Birth & Death

Hels were another lost Swedish Heavy Metal act that released one fantastic 7" and then disappeared in to faint memory shortly afterin 1985. Hels hailed from the bullshit town of Oxelösund, a town best known for iron works and trains. The A-side, "Life," is a pretty standard fist banging Metal anthem, but the B-side, "Death," exhibits some classic doom tendencies. I can't get enough of these Swedish bands from the '80s.

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None of the Above

Hardcore from the '80s and Tulsa Oklahoma. These guys had to contend with skinheads AND Socs. One night N.O.T.A. were leaving a movie theater and got jumped by a bunch of Socs, but fortunately they were saved by Darry and Sodapop. Then there was a fire and Johnny died or some shit. Stay gold, N.OT.A., stay gold.

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Oxiplegatz

Oxiplegatz was the work of Alf Svensson upon his defection from At The Gates in 1993. Alf set out to make avant-futurist black/death metal concept albums chronicling the struggles of alien races and pan-galactic warriors. In 1994 Alf self-released the first Oxiplegatz album, Fairytales, a quality hour of oddball metal, visionary and exciting from stem to stern.

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Soulville

Ben Webster was a great big man who was probably called "The Frog" as much for his deep croaking saxophone, as he was for his rather amphibian features. His 1957 album Soulville is about some luscious ice clinking in a glass, as cigarette smoke spirals to the ceiling, kind of shit. Maybe you're down 'cause some skirt got your spinach, and some bent coppers played a little chin music on you down at the clubhouse, but all that flim flam is behind you now, pal. Relax with some hooch and maybe even a juju, and the smooth moan of Ben Webster's horn.

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Charged For Glory

Here's a brief, but utterly charming, single from Turbo, another unsung NWOBHM band that wallowed in obscurity and pubs. Turbo kind of remind me of a less doomy Witchfinder General, especially on the b-side "Race For The Dawn," which may be the coolest NWOBHM song ever.

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Dead Person

Another ripping Japanese hardcore flexi. You know the drill: fuzzy guitars, speed, angry vocals, guitar solos, and strange titles like "No Mercy Surviving." Dead Person hailed from the bullshit town of Sendai, and this fucked up EP was their only statement. Also, the cover has three skulls and a skateboard on it, not sure how you could pass this by based on that alone.

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Tatir

Tatir were a classically Greek Black Metal band that eked out two great demos before falling into shadow in 1995. Here is the first (and better) of the two, it is titled Dark Autumn Nights, and if you are fond of the traditional Greek sounds of old Rotting Christ this will not disappoint.

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Larry Wallis is a Police Car

So on top of his impressive resume as a member of The Pink Fairies, Motorhead, Blodwyn Pig, UFO, and as the in house producer for Stiff Records, Larry Wallis is also some sort of police car as evidenced by his 1978 single. This is a pretty dated, but utterly cool little record. You'll wish you were a police car.

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Awakening

Releases like this are Cosmic Hearse's Raison d'Etre. Swimming Through The Past was the only official release from Downer Dutch death/doom delinquents, Awakening, Just two primitive, and rather teenage sounding cuts from a band obviously trying to figure out what they want to be. There were a million bands like this in the early '90s, so they tended to get ignored, now in 2011 people work very hard (and often fail) to capture this sort of ancient spirit and atmosphere.

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Dinner Time

Here's another great Swankys album with a cover that will probably get a warning put on this blog.If you have been paying attention you know that The Swankys were the more straight 77 style punk alter ego of Japanoise Hardcore gods, GAI.

EAT!!!

Sorrows

Sorrows are an exceptional Black Metal band that hail from somewhere in the U.S. The band prefers to keep it's profile mysterious, which is fine by me. Sometimes the less I know the better when it comes to new bands. Sorrows just offers up two songs on their debut demo, but they pack a lot of classic Black Metalisms into the scant thrteen minutes of material. There are wispy keys, acoustic guitars as well as buzzing electric ones, there is blast beats, and pained shrieks, there is atmosphere, there is mystery. Sorrows are a band to watch for, great stuff.

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Creepy Penis

Okay, if I am to understand correctly, John Thomas is some sort of outmoded Brit slang for a dick. With that out of the way, let me introduce you to the gritty bikerdelic sounds of Creepy John Thomas and their 1969 self-titled album. If you can't get behind a band that has a song called "Trippin' Like a Dog and Rocking Like a Bitch" then I can't help you, my friend. These motherfuckers were wild.

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Out To Lunch

Alright so thar Mingus post went over extremely well so in light of that here's another avant-jazz classic, Eric Dolphy's revolutionary Out To Lunch album. The arrangements are littered with oddball skronks and squeaks, and the band features top notch players Freddie Hubbard, Bobby Hutcherson, and a young kid named Tony Williams on the drums. Shortly after Out To Lunch was recorded, Dolphy headed to Europe to gig with his pal Mingus. After the the dates, Eric stayed behind in Germany, and picked up a few extra shows. One evening in Berlin, Dolphy collapsed and died later that night in the hospital. Why one of the greatest musical minds on earth died suddenly in a foreign hospital is still hotly debated, but some form of das negligence robbed us all of hearing what may have come next from this brilliant man. Dolphy didn't live to see his masterpiece released, or see it's long-standing significance. Oddly enough, A.B. Spellman's original liner notes make no mention of Dolphy's death, as if Spellman and the rest of the world were just not ready to accept it, especially considering how alive Out To Lunch sounds.

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DEAD

Depending on how your ears work, Musical Abortions is either the worst Death Metal demo, or the best power electronics tape of all time. This was the project of Jim Coker of Brutality, Ulcer, Nasty Savage, and every noteworthy band in the Tampa Bay Area. Operating under the name Mucus Shitslime and joined by Belching Snotsucker, Vomit Puslicker, and Diarrhea Maggot, Mr. Coker created a torturous twenty minutes of white noise, demonic gurgles and over-the-top guitar soloing. Clearly this was a joke, but this is nastiness that will sate fans of Whitehouse AND Mortician.

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Too Fucking Busy For This Fucking Blog Right Now

I have a whole lot of band business that has me away until the end of the year. The Cosmic Hearse will resume upon my return around the beginning of 2011. I apologize for any stress this may cause you.

Plug In Jesus

This absolute classic of hardcore is long gone, and shoud not be forgotten. One of the things that set Dr. Know ahead of the pack was Kyle Toucher's Celtic Frost guitar tone, his sneering vocals and disdain for religion, this also helped make them one of the hardcore bands that was accepted amongst the metal set. This is one of the rare "nardcore" records that still holds up after all these years. Absolutely mandatory.

Jesus

War and Wisdom

A Caress of War and Wisdom is the debut EP of Greek Black Metallers, Zephyrous. It compiles material from their split with Vorphalack (who rule BTW) as well as a bonus song. So thin and laden with chintzy keyboards are these recordings, it almost sounds like video game music in parts. A Caress of War and Wisdom is definitely one of those magikal releases that is just too strange to not love. Sort of aesthetically in the same forest as Hearse favorites, Benighted Leams.

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I don't know about you, but I miss him.

R.I.P. O.D.B.

Call Your Name

The 1983 single from Seducer, one of the few NWOBHM bands that managed to get out some albums and singles before calling it. The a-side "Call Your Name" is a clumsy, but endearing stomper. The b-side "Survivor" is a mess, but isn't that usually the case with these records? At least it isn't the standard AOR type turd.

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Dead As Dreams

Weird to think that the last truly great Black Metal album of the 1990s was made by a San Francisco band that nobody gave a fuck about when they were around.

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Eternal Nightmare

Could we really spend a week on Bay Area related posts without some bonafide puffy sneaker thrash? Okay, so here is Vio-lence's 1988 debut Eternal Nightmare, a record, that for me, is somewhat marred by the rather choppy, one-dimensional performance of vocal dude, Sean Killian. However, Eternal Nightmare packs so much chunky wallop and delicious riffery that I can live with whatever Mr. Killian is arbitrarily shouting at me in lilting staccato. Vio-lence often sounded like a less skilled Slayer meets a more skilled Kreator, seriously, not a bad thing at all.

Mosh!

Verbal Abuse

Thanks for all the anniversary accolades, but we have work to do. I think we're going to keep this Bay Area theme going for a few more posts, and with that in mind, here is the debut from Verbal Abuse. Just an American Band introduced the world to VA's furious thrashing hardcore made even better by the nihilist lyrics and snot-on vocals of ex-Sick Pleasure dude, Nikki Sikki. This was released in 1983.

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Cosmic Hearse Turns 3

That's right, three years and over a thousand posts. Thanks to all the readers, followers, and bands and artists that have so graciously shared their work. The next year will be even better. Let's party.

VON Haiku

Nineteen-Ninety-One

VON spills the Satanic Blood

Black San Francisco

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Sea Hags

The Sea Hags story is pretty typical of the heartbreak of a million bands in the '80s who struggled to land that most elusive record deal, only to have it all go up in a poof of drug smoke and poor decisions. The Sea Hags were meant to be huge, San Francisco's hat in the ring of sleazy streetwise chick metal ala Guns n Roses, in 1989 the fucking world was their cocaine oyster. Their Kirk Hammett-produced demo earned them the attention of the blood-sucking vampires over at Chrysalis Records. Ian Astbury of the Cult was so smitten by these hard-working/hard living young lads that he offered to produce their debut, however the job went to Mike Clink who was, at the time, having his balls washed hard based on the success of Appetite For Destruction. Before the sessions even started management stepped in and pressured the dudes into replacing great drummer, Greg Langston, with better known drummer, Adam Maples, as well as adding Frank Wilsey on guitar (maybe not a bad idea.) Despite the well known and advanced drug problems of frontman Ron Yocom and bassist Chris Schlosshardt, the band managed to eke out a pretty decent album that is as much the first Lords of The New Church album as it is GnR. Didn't really matter much to Chrysalis though, they sat on the album and subsequent tour support in hopes that Ron and Chris might get their shit together long enough to dazzle the waiting world. Well that didn't happen. Schlosshardt died of either an pneumonia or a heroin overdose, depending on who you believe. Wilson quit after a short tour of the UK, Maples joined GnR for a minute only to be replaced by Matt Sorum and his perm, and Yocom could be seen around San Francisco's Mission district in bad fucking shape, until a few years ago, when apparently the former Sea Hag pulled himself up by the cowboy bootstraps and DID get his shit together. He now fronts the band The Power of 3. Right on Ron. And this record still is lots of fun. Frisco!!!

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R.I.P. Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson

The genius partly responsible for Throbbing Gristle, COIL, and some of the greatest album covers of all time has left the earth. He will be missed.

Sororicide

Sororicide was Iceland's best contribution to the worldwide Death Metal boom of the early '90s. Their one and only proper album, 1991's The Entity, is a lost classic of bloodsoaked teenage morbidity. The album was originally released in Iceland by Platonic Records and didn't really make it off that glacier. When the label folded, remaining copies were given to the band to be sold at their final gig in 2000. The Entity became a holy grail, of sorts, to collectors of obscure Death Metal, which resulted in a few copies turning up on eBay for ridiculous prices, as well as a few ill-concieved bootlegs. Another album that really should be reissued, perhaps by a certain big metal label that started out doing these sort of records, but has since aerially circumnavigated a certain aquatic predator. Seriously, I think the public needs this more than another Dying Fetus record. Just fuckin' sayin'.

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Mysteries

Formed in 1992, Mysteries were one of Poland's first Black Metal bands. They only released three extremely rare demos but it was enough to launch what would become one of the most potent scenes in Eastern Europe. The first of these demos was the brilliantly titled In The Dark and Sodomy, and like so many of these early Black Metal artifacts, the sound is reminiscent of Hellhammer, Beherit, and punk, also reminds me quite a bit of Hearse favorites, Verivala. This is precisely the sort of Black Metal the world is lacking today. No beauty, no introspection, no tremolo picking, no forest romanticism, just hate and shitty gear, what more do you need really?

...and Sodomy

Black Saint

Charles Mingus was a great big man who was prone to violent outrages, a man who loved to fuck whores, and was never afraid to speak his mind no matter how cluttered with irrational thought bordering on the bizarre word salad of schizophrenic street tweaker. He was also one of the greatest composers, musical minds, and bass players of the last century, as well s an adamant political activist, so any transgressions or flaws in his personality are wholly irrelevant, especially when listening to, what I believe to be his most monumental work, Black Saint and the Sinner Lady. Now I have stated here before that I am by no means an expert on the extensive world of jazz, however I do have a few favorite recordings that work incredibly well on my dillettante's ear. If you yourself find yourself a bit jazz-ignorant but are wanting one album to occasionally sate a thirst or accompany a certain mood, may I recommend this particular record. Almost all of Mingus' work from the late '50s and early '60s is absolute unhinged genius, but Black Saint... in particular will appeal to anyone interested in evocative music. Over the course of the four compositions there is enough goosebump heavy moments peppered with plenty of "what the fuck" changes and grooves. It also stands as proof that jazz can be pummeling and menacing and not all noodly toodly incidental bop. With it's lurid, lurching horns, moaning bass and crisp understated drums, Black Saint and the Sinner Lady is the perfect accompaniment to a late night innercity stroll, or a peaceful rainy afternoon at home. Also, it should be noted that Mingus had his psychotherapist, Dr. Edmund Pollack provide the album's brilliant liner notes.Again, if you know it than I am sure it is one of your favorites, but if you don't you really should. Any feelings or preconcieved notions you have about jazz or Charles Mingus should be checked at the door like a pork pie hat, just settle into one of the greatest things ever.

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Upper Echelon

No reason the Brits and the Svennes should get all the love here, Upper Echelon kicked some serious Heavy Metal ass from their bullshit hometown of Seattle, a town known for computers and coffee. True Cascadian metal right here, kids. If songs like "Drivin' Mean" and "Evil" don't get you pumped than you may want to check your pulse. However, Surface Tension sort of peters out on the second half.

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Maggot Sandwich

Cosmic Hearse is long overdue for a post on these snark-infested Florida antipunks, so I have decided to do this right and give you a whole lotta Sandwich in this one post. Maggot Sandwich started in Pensacola in 1984 and continues to this day (I think.) Over the course of their lengthy history the band has released a few 7"s, a couple of LPs and tapes, and contributed to many home-spun punk compilations. The hallmark of the Florida punk bands of the '80s was a certain degree of off-kilter humor (see F, Gay Cowboys, Roach Motel, Broken Talent) and Maggot Sandwich had this tenfold, and down to a fucking science. Check it out, I am giving you a bunch of stuff here, not exactly sure what, but the great Get off the Stage LP as well as the Murder War and Dead to My World EPs are included. There may be some duplicate tracks and shit but don't bust my balls over it, just party with classics like "Dinty Moore Night" and "USS Foreskin."

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Stormsheim

Bulgaria is a country in southern Europe. They love their yogurt, and their volleyball, and their orthodox church, but there is at least two Bulgarians that probably don't care for bacterial dairy products, or sports, and definitely don't care for churches. The individuals known as Necromant and Vesela operated as Stormsheim for a brief time in 1996. This unholy union produced one demo titled Ars Imperje, it is an odd bit of poorly recorded, keyboard heavy teenage darkness. Black Metal in an aesthetic sense but the music here is more like early Mortiis with harsh vocals. I like yogurt.

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The Legion of Rockstars

The process is called "Pure Pleasure" and it was invented and perfected by a mysterious group calling themselves The Legion of Rock Stars. The Pure Pleasure Process entails a band listening to songs with 30db blocking headphones and attempting to play the songs at the same time. The band can not hear their own instruments or performance, only the original composition. The results are often hilarious as this sample of the Legion's "best" work displays. More information about The Legion of Rock Stars and The Pure Pleasure Process go here. To hear their reworkings of classics by The Beatles, Loverboy, Human League and more, click the link below.

Pleasure

Lonely Hearts

Another stunning rare FWOSHM single from 1984. Lonely Hearts hailed from the bullshit town of Boras, a town known for sheep and mail order businesses. Unfortunately the band only managed to eke out this record before singer/bassist Christer Eriksson died at a rather young age. The a-side is a steely scorcher called simply "Lonely Heart," and while the b-side is a decidedly less rocking AOR number called "One More Night" it is still an enjoyable enough song. These kids had chops and pep, sad they never did more.

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So What?

The furious Japanese punkers of So What had huge hair and spikey leathers, much like the skeleton demon with awesome abs portrayed on the cover of their second of two great ep's, Blood Wash the Dead City You can probably imagine what this is going to sound like, gruff vocals, fuzzy guitars...blah blah blah.

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Ancestor of the Darkly Sky

Gehenna's brilliant 1993 EP was clumsily called Ancestor of the Darkly Sky and was released in limited numbers by Necromantic Gallery Productions. The riffing and atmosphere are exemplary of my favorite period of Norwegian black metal, when gaunt suburban norgie teens painted up and flocked to the woods to pose in the snow, a time when the woods echoed with reverb and fell screams....darkly.

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Motherfuck Future!!!

あらゆる理解できないに関しては行く発見されたHip Hop日本のnoisecore GAIの伝説はろばのBeastieのスマートな男の子の行った。 スペース侵略者は生まれた、複数の極度な衝突の喜びのEngrish音の記録解放されて。 私はここに第1いることを公正のに、驚く信じる何かタイトルを得ることができる99%の小便はある。

Motherfuck Future!!!

Animal People

Okay, this is an odd one. Metal Virgins sound pretty fucking punk throughout most of their one and only release, Animal People (1984) which isn't a bad thing in the least. The drunken punter vocals (and amazing lyrics) of a guy named Steve and the bands frantic, sloppy almost speed metal, almost hyper fast NWOBHM biker stomp is as confusing as it is delicious. Often Steve sounds like he's singing an entirely different song than the rest of his Metal Virgin mates, but his performance is so passionate and looney that you won't fucking care. I simply don't feel that I have the vocabulary to adequately express how fucking cool Animal People is. Just get it.

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No Thanks

No Thanks hailed from NYC and had an angry young front lady going under the nom de puke of Debbie Damage. The extremely rare Are You Ready To Die 7" was No Thanks only official release. It was released Dead Space records in 1983. Coming in at just under six minutes, this little red record packs in a fair amount of pissed off hardcore, with Debbie Damage taking on the mundane workaday world, posers, and life in the big rotten apple, with an unequaled estrogenocidal rage. Fuck Everything!!!

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The Advent

Where has this been all my life? Dai hailed from the Czech Republic and were sonic cousins of Master's Hammer, the greatest metal band the country had to offer. In fact Dai sound so similar to Master's Hammer, I was a bit shocked to discover they weren't connected. Like the aforementioned band, Dai played deeply eccentric occult proto-black metal/death metal/space thrash, angular and mystical. The Advent was Dai's only album and it was released in 1993.

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Chicory Tip

Finally all those sugary, ooey gooey, bubble gum goopy, glam hits from Chicory Tip, a band you have never heard of, compiled into one easy to manage CD. The party starts now.

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Measureless

Measureless weren't the best (or best known) band to emerge from the extremely fertile Swedish death metal scene, but this demo, Abandoned to Die is still a great listen. If you have been riding the hearse for sometime you know roughly what to expect from these bored Scandinavian teenagers, however, Measureless wandered into some of the melodic territory of black metal (check out the track "Gory Incest.") Despite some obvious flaws in production and performance, this is one of the better unknown artifacts from the scene.

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Inga

Inga is a currently active Japanese hardcore unit that have expanded on the original orthodox sound of G.I.S.M., much like Hearse alum, CTR. Frantically fuzzy and all fun. Inga rules.

性交

The Triumph of Death

Here's some strange one-man black metal from Russia (with hate.) Death Triumphant was the name under which an individual calling himself Fallen operated between 1998 and 2005. Death Triumphant released two great demos, Obscure Origin being the second. Towering, buzzing, unfriendly black metal at times reminding me a bit of Furze. Kvlt!!!

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Dennis Dread's Halloween Mix Tape 2

Last Halloween I turned the reins over to Mr. Dennis Dread and he did a smashing job with a great Halloween mix tape. We decided to make it a tradition and bring him back for another potpourri of creepy cantos. For those of you who so foolishly doubt Dennis' credentials, besides having great taste in music, he is also an accomplished illustrator best known for his work on recent Darkthrone albums. He also runs a great art zine called Destroying Angels. Once again, a tip of the ol' witch hat to Mr. Dread for all that he does.

Intro ~ Alfred Hitchcock

The disembodied voice of Alfred Hitchcock presides over our All Hallows ritual. I listened to this record hundreds of times when I was a kid and the hastily painted cover art still takes me right back to wild nights with jack-o-lanterns on every porch. "Now that we're all here, we can begin..."

Phantasm Intro/Main Theme ~ Fred Myrow & Malcolm Seagrave

If you haven't spent time in a dark room with the 1979 Phantasm soundtrack coursing through the headphones like a silver sphere aimed straight at your soul, you are truly missing out on one of life's simplest pleasures.

One Step Into Oblivion ~ Blizaro

Blizaro is the brainchild of Rochester, New York doom enthusiast John Gallo. I've considered myself a fan ever since I scored the Horror Rock demo back in 2006, lured by Lucio Fulci graphics and the promise of, well, horror rock. John plays in a bunch of metal bands but Blizaro is his psych/prog project that pays homage to the great esoteric horror scores of the 70's and early 80's. This mesmerizing track comes from the Orne split 7" which was recently released in a limited pressing of 400 by Svart Records.

Mount Meru Is Tall ~ Saturnalia Temple

Perhaps you will challenge my choice to place this gateway to Saturn's Temple on a Halloween mix tape. Perhaps you will debate the appropriateness of a Saturnalian celebration in the heart of autumn. You will of course be sadly mistaken. Few hymns will clear a room of unwanted influence and open the veil to the dark forces waiting beyond as effectively as this hypnotic offering from the Stockholm trio that has restored my faith in the magic of sound and all things heavy. The gate is open...

Sister Devil ~ Sixx

I'm a relatively recent convert to Sixx since I didn't even know this band existed until I heard about the lush vinyl reissue last year. This is the Von dudes apparently after they traded in their bloody skull-crowns for ruffled silk shirts. I've never been a fan of Christian Death or bands of their shockingly pretentious ilk but this really works for me. I'm glad it's Halloween because now I can play this record loud without blushing. Bela Lugosi is dead indeed.

Hangman ~ Deathcharge

One of Portland, Oregon's best kept secrets is also one of the city's longest running punk outfits. Deathcharge has had a revolving line-up for over a decade now but they seem to have a solid core at the moment and have been playing local shows relatively consistently in the past year. So far their few recordings haven't done their unique brand of Discharge cum Killing Joke death noise the justice it deserves but the forthcoming debut LP is very eagerly awaited. No mosh. No fun.

Recognition ~ H.P. Lovecraft

These terse H.P. Lovecraft readings by John Arthur and Mike Olsen were lovingly reassembled from out-of-print recordings and released as a limited 7" over a decade ago by someone who clearly wished to remain anonymous (let's call him "He Who Cannot Be Named", eh?) and they very quickly became as difficult to find as the original vinyl. My copy is 179 out of 300. Behold the muted terror of a doomed cosmos.

Necronomicon ~ Sacrifice

Our brothers to the north really excelled at this kind of ferocious speed metal during the 80's. No, I'm not talking about Scandinavia this time. This is CANADIAN METAL and Sacrifice was one of the most promising harbingers of the bunch. A class act with the kind of satanic lyrics that got you into trouble with teachers back in the day. Seriously. I think these dudes were still in high school when they recorded Torment in Fire which is really remarkable when you consider their complex song structures and absolutely relentless shredding.

Stirring The Cauldron ~ Whiplash

Whiplash's debut LP Power & Pain is one of the most grossly under-appreciated thrash albums of 1985 (and if you like fast pissed-off music you know 1985 wasn't a shabby year). This came out around the same time as Bonded By Blood but how often do you see kids air guitaring Spit On Your Grave? Well, actually, I see that a lot at my house but you get the point. This is the sound of three Passaic barbarians named Tony dragging Kreator through the meanstreets of New York Hard Core. Total schism.

Horrorshow/The Mansion ~ Hallows Eve

Long ago, before metal came to be personified by sensitive men with beards, heavy metal was a hooded executioner rendered in discount paints with the anatomy of Popeye the Sailor Man. Atlanta, Georgia's Hallows Eve was that hooded executioner and they delivered the fucking goods. Take this selection for instance from their debut LP, which is really two distinct songs that form a mini-cycle of sorts. They went on to score a cameo on the River's Edge soundtrack before disappearing into a fog of nihilism and madness (i.e., short hair and day jobs).

Lycanthropy ~ G.B.H.

These collectible British Punk action figures come complete with leather, bristles, studs and acne! Of course these quintessential street urchins also ripped this chorus straight out of Lon Chaney Jr.'s quivering lips: "Even a man who is pure in heart and says his prayers at night can become a wolf when the wolfbane blooms and the autumn moon is bright!" Death Breath did a killer cover of this snotty classic but for my money nothing beats the original source. This just sounds like nothing else!

Till' The Following Night ~ Screaming Lord Sutch and The Savages

English audio pioneer Joe Meek recorded this killer debut single for the "monster in black tights" known as Screaming Lord Sutch in 1961. It was swiftly banned by the BBC. No wonder the Brits had to invent punk rock and smash the system (see above). What an incredibly uptight society. Sutch's early stage show included coffins and skulls and is widely recognized nowadays as a precursor to the horror shock antics of Alice Cooper and probably Black Widow and Death SS as well. Ritchie Blackmore was one of the original Savages and he left the fold in the late 60's to form Deep Purple!

Night of the Vampire ~ Entombed

To be perfectly honest, these dudes lost me after Clandestine but I do appreciate their noble stab at this Roky Erickson favorite. Sure, it's stilted and crunchy to a fault but I like the emotive Danzig flair on the vocals and the totally rockin' part at the end. This was a split 7" with Ohio punks the New Bomb Turks which was a weird pairing at the time. In hindsight I guess it makes sense.

The Tell Tale Heart ~ Beyond Possession

Who knew skating and gothic literature could live together in such beautiful harmony? This is the title track from Calgary skate rockers Beyond Possession's 1985 debut 7" The Tell Tale Heart. This is sorta like Suicidal Tendencies without all the bandanas and messy circle pit stabbings. As a general rule it's not a great idea to rhyme 'house' with 'mouse' in a hardcore song unless you're Ludichrist but this particular ditty is about Edgar Allan Poe so fuck your rules, man!

Intermission ~ Vincent Price
"We have much studying to do, there are many ancient mystic texts to guide us..."

Deathknell ~ Ghost (Sweden)

The b-side of the debut 7" from these mysteriously shrouded satanic messengers from Sweden is absolutely enthralling. The clean Blue Oyster Cult influences evidenced by such bands as The Devil's Blood become even more pronounced in the capable hands of these earnest rockers. E. Danielsson of Watain has provided their stark and provocative imagery thus far. Perhaps he is himself one of the six nameless ghouls? I have no idea, but I can't wait for the full-length!

At The Sound of The Demon Bell ~ Mercyful Fate
I couldn't resist. I'm running on a bells theme here, folks.

Cloven Hoof ~ Cloven Hoof

The debut LP from these champions of NWOBHM is a galloping occult adventure of epic proportions! The cover is directly inspired by the old Coven record but they've incorporated crude stenciled flames and a serpent demon mascot that makes those Grim Reaper covers look really fancy. For fans of Pagan Altar and 'EAVY METAL only. And if you're not a fan of 'eavy metal, why are you here? "Seek not to envoke demonic entities beyond the living, unseen forces mankind can never hope to understand, in satanic pact a soul giving, unto hell, when time relents to death's command." Huh?

Halloween III Montage ~ John Carpenter & Alan Howarth

This is really loud in the mix for some reason but don't forget to wear your Silver Shamrock masks anyway.

Re-Animator ~ Rigor Mortis

Here's an obvious choice given the horror thrash leanings of this mix tape but I just love this catchy chorus that you can sing along to even when you're drunk. Which is fortuitous because when I finally saw them play a few years ago Bruce Corbitt stuck the microphone in my face while I was thrashing up front and if the lyrics were more complicated that would've been an embarrassing moment of silence. This is from their debut 1988 LP which boasts absolutely perfect cover art by a guy name Cort Johnson who did skateboard graphics back in the day. Incidentally, Mark Ryden did the fantastic cover art for their follow-up EP Freaks and he has since gone on to become a hugely successful fine artist.

Werewolf's Life ~ Fear Itself

I don't know much about this band from Anchorage, Alaska so I'll spare you my snide commentary except to say that this 57 second blast is culled from the 1988 Attack Is Now Suicide compilation, which also features one of my favorite R.K. Sloane drawings of all time, and it's about a werewolf. The life of a werewolf is not easy.

Violence Is Golden ~ Gargoyle

What?!? You've never hear of Gargoyle from New Jersey??? Poser. Actually, in this case the correct answer is, "Who the fuck is Gargoyle from New Jersey?" These dudes only released two demos in their very brief tour of duty so unless you were lucky enough to stumble into Bleecker Bob's at precisely the right moment in 1986, chances are you're probably not familiar with their ripping thrash. Do I really need to explain why a band called Gargoyle deserves to be on a Halloween mix tape?

Sendero Siniestro ~ Anal Vomit

"Bestial" is a dumb adjective that gets passed around like chlamydia by message board lurkers these days. But when you really think about it, how many of these frowners are truly bestial? Peru's Anal Vomit is the real deal, as proven by this raging invocation from their 2004 Demoniac Flagellations LP. Misleading name aside, their songs of satan, pussy and death are delivered with such psychotic devotion that they make their underground counterparts sound like doughy pacifists in comparison. They're even willing to let it all hang out on their albums and that's pretty bestial (i.e., "of or relating to beasts; resembling a beast; lacking intelligence or reason; marked by base or inhuman instincts or desires").

Twisted Darkness ~ Yellow Cross

I don't want to be accused of ignorantly wallowing in nostalgia so here's a track by Olympia, Washington's very promising Yellow Cross from their 2009 demo. It sounds like Blue Cheer hanging out with Paul Chain at a pizza shop. Black Virgin part II is the real gem on this demo but it was too long for our purposes and I really couldn't justify it on a Halloween mix tape. But twisted darkness? That's spooky.

They're Creeping Up On You ~ Engorged

I love this little gem from the Engorged/Gruesome Stuff Relish split. This was originally intended to be a 7" but the Engorged dudes wisely included 4 minutes worth of Creepshow samples so it became a 12" 45 (which worked out well for my crude cover art). This isn't necessarily characteristic of the Engorged sound but it definitely conveys their essential underground ethos and approach. Hopefully these guys will return from Yuggoth soon and finally finish recording the House of Cthulhu LP. Ahem. Guys?

Necronomicon ~ Les Dexter

My favorite track from one of the greatest cinematic scores of all time. The Dunwich Horror is actually a pretty dull flick but we can all learn a thing or two about dynamics from a laid-back cool cat like Les Dexter. Just listen to how these exotic sounds swagger & boom like an ethereal procession sent straight from R'lyeh with all the time in the world to fuck you up. THE STARS ARE RIGHT!

Mineshaft Chase ~ Fred Myrow & Malcolm Seagrave
Phantasm reprise.

Der Henker Von Dartmoore ~ The Vampires of Dartmoore

The Vampires of Dartmoore was an imaginary West German pop group providing the soundtrack to an imaginary Euro-trash horror flick circa 1969. Metronome and Mercury Records basically wrangled together these session jazz musicians in an attempt to cash in on the popularity of adult-oriented monster novelty records and they produced two LP's, Psychedelic Dance Party and Dracula's Music Cabinet. Exploitation director Jess Franco actually discovered this LP and licensed it to score one of his 70's tits 'n' terror romps. The rest is history. Very confusing history. Recently repressed on gatefold vinyl by Finders Keepers.

Outro ~ Alfred Hitchcock
"This concludes our danse macabre..." Happy Halloween.

Side Trick

Side Treat

Also on a side note. Cosmic Hearse is taking a few days off to get caught up on all the unglamorous behind the scenes work that goes on here. Don't take it personally, use the time to talk to your kids about drugs or something.

Cleanse

This compilation, curated by the well known punk graphic artist known as Pushead, was sort of a mindfuck for me when it was released way the fuck back in 1985. Cleanse The Bacteria just upped the ante as far as hardcore brutality was concerned, and exposed the general punk public to some amazing obscure bands. We all benefitted from Pushead's tireless letter writing and tape trading. Cleanse... also marked my first experiences with soon-to-be favorites like Poison Idea, The Execute, Siege (way ahead of the pack in sheer hostility), and Mob 47, as well as offering up contributions from some bands I was already well aware of like Septic Death (of course,) C.O.C., and 7 Seconds (who seem a bit tame for this comp.) This is some kind of fancy pants CD reissue with a ton of extra tracks. Let's skate.

Here

Christian Mistress

So what if I told you that there was a band from Olympia, Washington (of all places) that kinda sounds like Mia Zapata fronting Diamond Head? What if I told you their new album Agony and Opium (20 Buck Spin) was one of the best records of 2010? What if I told you they are playing tonight at The Hemlock in San Francisco with Thrones and Acid King? What if I gave you their awesome debut 7"?

Here

Disemballerina

By far one of the coolest things to grace my mailbox in the past year was Disemballerina's demo CDR. I don't know if they are still a band or not (I seem to remember some mention of a split) but they have a MySpace page and a Facebook as well if you would like to contact them and tell them how much you love their beautifully dynamic instrumentals performed with cello, viola, harp, and acoustic guitars, at times introspective and at others, violent and reckless. I am reminded a bit of Dirty Three, Rachel's, Amber Asylum, and Godspeed You Black Emperor, but Disemballerina doesn't sound much like any of those really. Stunning bit of work from some talented and maudlin Portlanders. Five songs, forty minutes, and every bit of it stirring. The closer, "Hex" is an absolute heartbreaker. Someone get wise and release this. Just crushing.

Here

At Dusk vs. Idolater

Two obscure bands from Santa Cruz do battle on this self-released split CDR. At Dusk strike the first blow with their distant, ghostly black metal that holds plenty of mesmerizing guitar work and cold atmosphere. But not ones to go down without a fight, Idolater counter with some frantic and chaotic black metal that reminds me a bit of Dark Tribe. While Idolater is great, the obvious drum machine and dry production weaken their attack slightly. At Dusk definitely takes this one. On a side note: this was mailed to me, when I opened the package my whole apartment smelled like soap and incense. It would seem that these two bands are out to assault my sense of smell as well. Awesome.

Here