Audio

Howling

TRACK #68:

Howling by Babel

Round 3 of The 80’s Oddball Sequel Dance Party goes to The Howling, a franchise that seems to have produced nothing but oddball sequels.

I’m not exactly sure what to make of Howling 2, another gem from 1985. For that matter, I’m not sure anyone involved is sure either.

Christopher Lee personally apologized to Joe Dante on Gremlins 2 for appearing in it, if that gives you any idea of what we’re dealing with here.

However, despite all the uncertainty, there are a few things you can be sure of:

  1. It’s definitely not the worst Howling entry. In fact, it may just be the most enjoyable, and that includes its predecessor.
  2. It’s ridiculous. It’s awesome. It’s ridiculously awesome.
  3. You’ll see Sybil Danning in (and out!) of some bizarre outfits that’ll make you believe Lady Gaga jacked her entire steez from Stirba: Werewolf Bitch.
  4. Ditto for the bewildered Christopher Lee (except the nudity and Lady Gaganess)
  5. You’re gonna hear this song, performed by fake band Babel, at least a dozen or so times throughout.

And anytime a song is this permeable, it’s definitely on the Shindig.

I highly recommend it’s viewing to anyone who wants to see:

  • Werewolves
  • Werewolves fucking
  • Awesome werewolf-cult orgy-parties
  • Sybil Danning’s tits
  • Christopher Lee lookin like a Jedi
  • Christopher Lee straight stabbing werewolves
  • Bizarre werewolf logic and mythos
  • A weird munchkin thing running around in a scary mask
  • Crazy 80’s laser FX
  • Whack-ass shape wipes
  • Some of the worst werewolf acting around
  • Some of the worst acting around (save for Christopher Lee)
  • Seriously some of the worst editing ever

Ridiculous Howling 2 gig blast commencing forthwith. Get your reblog button ready. It’s at the bottom now. Thanks Yahoo!

 

Image

Friday 5’s Strange Dance

Some more strange dancing, compliments of the Friday the 13th series.

Audio

His Eyes

TRACK #67:

His Eyes by Pseudo Echo

Let’s keep the 80’s dance party/Oddball sequel thing going here.

1985 offered us Freddy’s first foray into sequel-dom, however Jason was already and old man by ‘85, going on his 5th outing.

Perhaps one of the more derided films of the series, and certainly it’s oddball entry, Friday 5 is still Paramount, still hugely 80’s and (I think) rather unfairly maligned.

It’s hard to say which is the “worst”, as some thrive where others lack and vice-versa. Honestly, a lot of it just comes down to personal preference after a point.

5 however has the distinct honor of being the only entirely Jason-less sequel (save for the pre-credit sequence…I guess) as the killer is merely assuming the MO and hockey mask. This, more than any other reason, is why it finds itself on the bottom rung with fans.

What 5 has going for it however is a serious body count. Notably the most of any Friday the 13th film at 22. That’s gotta be worth something.

Sure the effects aren’t on par with other entries and a lot of the murders are cut-aways but this dude ices 22 different people and that’s an achievement, however lessened it may be by the fact that its not actually Jason killing these people (except the first 2 guys…I guess.)

This song, by Australian pop-smiths Pseudo Echo, plays while Violet is dancing and being murdered. The song was actually a suggestion of actress Tiffany Helm, a fan of the new wave and punk music of the day.

Imagine being able to select which song to which you’d be murdered by Jason? Pretty dope.

Interesting side note regarding Violets death. Originally, she was to take a machete to the vag. Now that’s a way to go.

However, the producers thought that was a bit much, and changed it to her stomach, which they don’t even really show anyway, so I guess it doesn’t even matter. Oh well.

This song is pretty awesome though and almost sounds as if it were written specifically about Jason. It was produced a year early however, so no luck there. It does fit in nicely into the movie however, and makes a great addition to The Shindig.

 

Audio

Whisper To A Scream

TRACK #66:

Whisper To A Scream by Bobby Orlando & Claudja Barry

Lets get a Freddy two-fer going, cause your guests are still pissed…

“How the fuck am I supposed to dance to some bullshit like ‘Down In The Boiler Room’…? Are you serious right now?!”

And fair enough. I’m not sure that song’s palatable, much less danceable. So let’s look to Freddy’s soundtrack offerings for a little relief. And what better place to go for a dose of danceable 80’s synth-pop than Freddy’s Revenge.

Certainly the black sheep of the series (and with good cause), A Nightmare on Elm Street Part 2 is probably the worst way you could have followed the highly original and groundbreaking hit.

Every franchise has its Oddball Entry. Ya know, that one that doesn’t quite jive for whatever reason; be it overtly non-canon (Halloween 3), lacking its main character (Friday 5) or plays fast and loose with the primary mythos, as is the case with Freddy’s Revenge.

While not so out of place at the time, just a little curve ball for the sequel, the fact that subsequent Elm Streets have totally ignored this entry, its characters and its logic, makes it the strange, stand-out entry it seems today.

Basically, Freddy attempts to possess Jesse, the new teenager living in Nancy’s old room at 1428 Elm., choosing to work through the boy in the material world, as opposed to terrorizing all the children in their sleep. Granted, he does possess Jesse through his dreams, but all the kills are carried out by Jesse in the waking world, as he slowly transforms into a flesh and blood Freddy Krueger.

Needless to say, that pissed off a lot of fans at the time, and still continues to do so today. Coupled with its generalized shortcomings (acting, writing, direction, etc), its bizarre homo-eroticism and its overall weirdness, Freddy’s Revenge is not a fan favorite, and is offend cited as the series’ low-point: a rushed and lazy attempt to cash-in on the success of the original, with Dream Warriors being a much more creative and fitting sequel. True enough, I can concede.

However, I have a soft spot for Elm Street 2, cause well…

  1. I’m a sucker for bad movies, and this one delivers.
  2. Clu Gulager is awesome. I don’t care what movie he’s in, he’s always on point.
  3. Grady is the man (as played by Ron Rusler of The Daggers….fuck yeah Thrashin’)
  4. Freddy is still scary, and he retains his creep-factor before plunging into total buffoonery as per 3, 4 et al.
  5. Jesse is such a little wiener, it’s hard not to love him. Horror’s first male Scream Queen.
  6. You could write a thesis paper on its homosexual subtext. In fact, I kinda found one looking for gifs.  Make that 2.
  7. And I appreciate the attempt to do something different. Though its failure does lead to subsequent films treading back (and back again) into more familiar waters, it’s still nice to see people trying something different.

That being said (and long-windedly at that) let’s get to Bobby Orlando’s funky beats, as heard during the pool party sequence of Freddy’s Revenge.