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Enter the Fright Zone

10/2/2024

Des Moines has been evolving into the next Halloween Town USA with Zombie Burger, Monsterama Arcade and Pizzeria, and the seasonal Slaughterhouse attraction with its new Haunt speakeasy. (If you know, you know.)

My creative career started with a love of horror films, and it was never about violence. There is more violence in true crime shows that your stay-at-home significant other binge-watches during the week. What I loved about horror films were the wild worlds I would see on screen. 

These worlds would feature the dead returning to life and feasting on the living and alien beings falling from space and imitating every Earth creature they encounter. Let’s not forget one of my favorite tales, “The Monkey’s Paw,” which has been rehashed many times with the line always being, “Be careful what you wish for.”

The Fright Zone podcast started during the pandemic and is still going strong. It features Brian Hogan, Greg Wheeler (member of the bands The Poly Mall Cops and Night Stories), and Nate Phillips (vocalist in Traffic Death) doing deep dives into classic horror titles. 

“We officially describe the podcast as three horror hounds’ bimonthly journey into beloved and forgotten horror films, but I’d also describe it as three guys cursing like sailors and talking about trashy movies,” Wheeler said. 

Before the pandemic, the guys were hosting quarterly double features at Hogan’s barbershop (Franklin Barbershop, located in Beaverdale). They called those events “Friday Night Frights.” But once the pandemic hit, packing a barbershop full of people to watch cult horror films didn’t seem safe. Being a DIY musician, Wheeler had a humble home studio. To keep from going insane over the pandemic, they decided to utilize the studio to record a podcast. They treated it almost like a book club, as they would each watch a movie, take notes, get together and talk through the picture.

Nate Phillips has spent nearly a lifetime building his home video collection (VHS, Betamax, CED, you name it) in his basement. 

“I have always enjoyed movies. As long as I can remember, I’ve liked watching and talking about them with friends,” Phillips said. “My dad started taking me to see movies in the theater when my brother and I were youngsters, and we haunted the local video stores a couple times a week. The Fright Zone gives me an excuse to talk about movies in a way I sometimes don’t get the chance to do in a world that’s always so busy. I feel like the podcast shows that we love movies.” 

I invited the Fright Zone boys to offer their definitive top 10 horror films for this Halloween season. However, asking such a thing from three horror fanatics with different tastes was leading to a possible demise of the podcast. So, instead, they provided 10 films IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER that you should watch this spooky season. We listed them in alphabetical order.

Top 10 horror films:

“Bad Taste” (1987)

Sure, you could watch Peter Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” for the umpteenth time… or you could watch his film debut about aliens collecting humans for their intergalactic fast-food restaurant. Is there even a question? – Hogan

 

 

 

 

“The Beyond” (1981)

From the legendary Italian director Lucio Fulci comes a depraved cinematic masterpiece. More atmosphere than his earlier work, this movie delivers when it comes to gore and creativity. Total classic. – Nate

 

 

 

 

“Creepshow” (1982)

Written by Stephen King and directed by George Romero (“Night of the Living Dead”), this anthology film features five short stories channeling the spirit of 1950s horror comic books like EC’s “Tales from the Crypt,” which the duo grew up on, so it’s a love letter of sorts. This film is pure fun. – Greg

 

 

 

 

“Dawn of the Dead” (1978)

George Romero’s social commentary horror masterpiece has it all — zombies, bloodshed and 1970s mall scenery that’ll make you miss your days of being a mall rat. Get some. – Hogan

Probably the greatest zombie film of all time. – Nate

 

 

 

 

“Fright Night” (1985)

A horror movie nerd discovers his next-door neighbor is a vampire, but no one will believe him. They all just think he has been watching too many movies. A super fun horror film that is self-aware of the genre. Meta before meta was cool. – Greg

 

 

 

 

“Monster Squad” (1987)

Do you like movies that incorporate all the original Universal Monsters and makes them battle a group of horror-obsessed, tree-house-dwelling children? Well, then this is the movie for you. Super fun and memorable for its great scenes where the kids take on the Monsters, but also full of great one-liners and amazing staying power due to an amazing story. A favorite since childhood. – Nate

 

 

 

“Night of the Creeps” (1986)

An underrated gem. Alien parasites from space begin eating the brains of frat boys, turning them into zombies, and it’s up to a depressed detective and a couple of nerds to save the world. – Greg

Same director as “Monster Squad,” Fred Dekker. – Nate

 

 

 

 

“Rocktober Blood” (1984)

This movie was a tape my friends and I acquired back when mom and pop video stores were unloading their stock. Is the music amazing? Yes. Is it fun as hell to watch with a group of friends after a few beers? Absolutely. Of course, you might always end up getting murdered by Billy Eye, but what can you do when there is a killer on the loose? – Nate

I want to say that 90% of the time I’ve hung out with Nate, a song from this movie ends up being played and we have to sing along. This is the story of a rock musician coming back from the dead to seek revenge on his ex-girlfriend and band. – Greg

 

 

“Silver Bullet” (1985)

Garry Busey. CHECK.

Corey Haim. CHECK.

Werewolves. CHECK.

A wheelchair named the silver bullet with an FL250 engine. CHECK. – Hogan

Based on the Stephen King novella of the same name, this is the story of a small town facing a series of unexplained murders and a boy and his uncle’s quest to find the killer. – Greg

 

 

“The Thing” (1982)

We honestly had to decide between “Halloween” or “The Thing” via coin toss. – Hogan

A stone-cold classic. One of the best horror films ever made, in my opinion. A group of scientists in the Antarctic find themselves up against an alien that assimilates and imitates any organism it encounters. Some of the best practical FX work ever put on film, a lock-tight script and masterful directing from John Carpenter. – Greg

I will follow The Fright Zone boys and not make this a ranking, but I do love horror soundtracks. I recently inherited an entire collection from Beaverdale resident Dick Klemenson, a longtime publisher of the British horror fanzine, “Little Shoppe of Horrors.”

 

 

 

Kristian Day’s 10 horror soundtracks: 

“Day of the Dead” (1985)

Composed by John Harrison

I’m a troll for thinking this is the best George Romero zombie film. It lacks the atmosphere that the city of Pittsburgh gave the previous two, but this score by John Harrison is epic. I own this one and the “Dawn of the Dead” score by Goblin on LP (it’s the Italian import under the title “Zombie”), and although the “Dawn of the Dead” score does rule, I return to this one far more often. “The Dead Suite,” which clocks in around 20 minutes and is the entire B side of the album, is a journey of adventure, fear and even a sense of false hope. This was all done on a Yamaha DX7, a famous workhorse synthesizer from the 1980s.

“Halloween III: Season of the Witch” (1982)

Composed by John Carpenter and Alan Howarth

This is my favorite Halloween movie and my favorite soundtrack from John Carpenter. The analog synth score is both atmospheric and tension-filled. The original Halloween theme is excellent, but “Season of the Witch” has a layer of excitement the other scores didn’t.

“Exorcist II: Heretic” (1977)

Composed by Ennio Morricone

This is one of those music scores that is 1,000 times better than the movie itself. In fact, the movie is kind of an embarrassment to the original, but you can’t go wrong with any score by Ennio Morricone. This was one of my newly acquired LPs from Dick’s collection. The score is heavy in the strings, primitive tribal beats and gnarly whaling voices.

“Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf” (1985)

Composed by Stephen Parsons

Could there be another soundtrack that is better than the movie? Yes. This is 1980s synth punk at its best. The music was composed by Steve Parson (aka Mr. Snips). This one is extremely difficult to find. I tracked it down at a record store in Germany. I now have the LP, the 12-inch single, the 12-inch single picture disc, the 7-inch 45 rpm single and the cassette bootleg. My first overseas phone call was to Mr. Parsons when I interviewed him for Fangoria magazine in 2014. He asked me where I was calling from, and I told him Des Moines, Iowa. He replied, “I’ve been there when I was on tour with The Sharks. I was very stoned, and nothing was open after 10 p.m.”

“It Follows” (2014)

Composed by Disasterpiece

This score is as much of a banger as the movie it accompanies. The synth drive music echoes some of the best from John Carpenter and evokes the essence of Detroit mixed with the invisible presence that stalks its victims. It also carries tension-filled melodies similar to Bernard Herman’s score for “Psycho” and John Williams’ iconic theme for “Jaws.”

“Killer Klowns from Outer Space” (1988)

Composed by John Massari, and The Dickies

You should know this masterpiece. Out of the gate, we have the theme song performed by The Dickies. This song rules, and it was during a time when movies would have some band or artist write the theme song outside of the regular score. Only the 007 movies do that now. John Massari’s score also evokes the sounds and themes of the circus. Some of the cues are in your face, but it works.

“Maniac” (2012)

Composed by Robin Coudert (as ROB)

I danced between the Elijah Wood remake and the original 1980s movie with the score by Jay Chattaway. Both are memorable for different reasons, but I find myself revisiting the remake more because it was an original take on the story. ROB’s score is also synthesizer-driven, but this one captures the late-night dance club feel that fits the fashion world of New York where the movie takes place.

“Suspiria” (1977)

Composed by Goblin

I remember the first time I saw this movie. I was 18 years old living in my first apartment in college, and my friend brought it over on VHS. The theme music was the most eerie and primitive new-wave-style score I had ever heard. It mixed synthesizers, toms and a cocktail of shrieks and whispers. The Italian prog-rock outfit Goblin did several soundtracks for filmmaker Dario Argento. I recommend also checking out their scores for “Deep Red” and “Tenebrae.”

“Trick or Treat” (1986)

Music by Fastway

One of my favorite films ever made, this follows the rock and roll/heavy metal horror style of Rocktober Blood. I am a sucker for 1980s hair metal, as it takes me to a simpler time when we didn’t know what we didn’t know (before the internet was there to drag us down). The movie is about an Alice Cooper/Ozzy Osbourne type rock star who is burned alive but not before cursing his final album, which, if played at midnight on Halloween, will bring him back from the dead. The songs are a blast to listen to, and I catch myself singing them off and on during the season. The score was done by Christopher Young (“Hellraiser”), but it isn’t available anywhere.

“Under the Skin” (2013)

Composed by Mica Levi

When I ran my movie theater in Fairfield, I played this film as a midnight screening for a month. Every week, I would get just enough people who wanted to watch it (sometimes for a second or third time). Actor Peter Coyote watched it while he was in town and walked out in the middle. He told me something I had never heard before or since: “There is too much Scarlett Johansson.” The score mimics the film’s point of view perfectly, following an alien creature disguised as a woman who is trying to hunt men to feed her tribe. Every piece sounds out of tune and disjointed. Trust me; it works. n

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