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Masters of Horror Interview


Immortal Records assembled quite the massive metal undertaking for the soundtrack for the Showtime Masters Of Horror series, with groups appearing that range from aggro hardcore metal to screamo. A variety of bands, both well-established, such as chart-toppers Mudvayne and up-and-comers like It Dies Today makes this a formidable soundtrack that is more than befitting of the series' moniker. Kyle Sanders, bassist of Warner Brothers' recording artists bloodsimple, A Change Of Pace's Jon Kelley and Detroit Michigan's own Andrew W.K. share their thoughts on their contributions to this comprehensive, fright-filled soundtrack.


The Gauntlet: Tell us about your contribution to the Masters Of Horror soundtrack.

Andrew WK: Sure, no problem. Our song, "You Will Remember Tonight" was featured. I was very pleased to learn that Showtime and Masters Of Horror decided to use our song, "You Will Remember Tonight".

Jon Kelley: We have an unreleased song called "A Thin Red Line"


The Gauntlet: Why did you choose to use this track for the compilation?

Jon Kelley: I think we chose this song because it fit so well with the theme.
The song is about an unexpected death of someone you know really well.

Kyle Sanders: We had a few songs recorded that have yet to be released so thought this was the right time for "Overload" to get out there.

Andrew WK: That's a very interesting question. I think it's best to approach it from a couple angles at once. First, you have to think about the television side. Now, that's something that's coming through the screen, and people aren't only going to watch it, they're going to hear it too. At least that's what we're thinking, but at the same time, and this is my second angle, you have to also think of it as a compact disc. Meaning, that even if it's on a screen - and even if that screen is on for hours or just a few seconds - that screen is coloring not only the view but also the sound. It's a synch situation. I didn't choose which song to use - they did.


The Gauntlet: Which episode/scene scene does your song appear in?

Jon Kelley: I know that our song is on disc 2 of the compilation but I don't know
what episode or scene it's in.

Andrew WK: I don't know. I'm actually not sure if I've even been shown the scene yet, but I look forward to watching it.


The Gauntlet: What are some of the songs performed by other artists on the compilation that you most enjoy?

Kyle Sanders: Unfortunately we have not been able to check it all out....we're in the middle of the Soulfly tour and there is literally no time to breathe....play, drive ,play ,drive......But I really want to check out the Mastodon, Mudvayne, In Flames, Autumn To Ashes, and Buckethead tracks....

Jon Kelley: There are so many rad bands on this compilation... My three favorite
would be The Bled, Scary Kids Scaring Kids, and Yesterdays Rising.

Andrew WK: I haven't been played any of them yet.


The Gauntlet: Is your particular track on the soundtrack one that we will be hearing the band play in concert on your next tour?

Kyle Sanders: That's a damn good idea ... I think our next tour we will have more time so I would say yes we can throw it in the set

Andrew WK: You know what? I think that's actually a very good question, and I don't mean that as in "I'm passing judgment", but rather, that we're both here, sitting in judgment of what the other is going to say, yet neither of us has any real experience of the other saying it, only a supposed record of interaction. It works as interpreted communication, and that's how I think I'll approach this answer. Look, I can't say exactly what you're going to hear at any point on a tour. That's all decided in production, but we just played a concert in San Diego and we played the song there. I enjoyed it.

Jon Kelley: Yes, while we were home we rehearsed the song a lot... So if anyone
comes out to any of the My Space tour shows you will hear it for sure!


The Gauntlet: Do you personally enjoy horror movies or programs in general? What movie or show is your personal favorite?

Andrew WK: I have liked the feeling of being scared, but that was because I felt safe - I was at peace, so it wasn't really scared, it was more experiencing the ideas and sensations associated with fear. I've enjoyed watching horror movies and T.V. programs very much. But, not more than any other particular area of film. I like to take the movies as "movies" and sometimes I prefer approaching the film as a "film". If it's a good movie to me, then I'll think it's a good movie, but it hasn't lead to a point where I felt some sort of comfort by latching on to a particular cinematic institution. I'm glad that those institutions exist, because it's a folk tradition, and there are people who love to revel in it, but as a place to dwell, I find it truly horrific, in that it's a potential dead-end.

Jon Kelley: Yeah, I'm a huge fan of horror movies. My personal favorite would have to be The Shining.

Kyle Sanders: I love horror....horror and comedy is basically what I watch.....then you combine the 2 and you have the great Evil Dead trilogy.......seen Evil Dead 2 about 200 times......Bruce Campbell is the man. Then you also can't fuck with the classic George Romero films.


The Gauntlet: What made you decide to want to become involved with the project? Did you feel that it was because the theme of either your music overall or the track that you contributed specifically was a good match for the portion of the series that you appear in?

Kyle Sanders: We got word they were looking for unreleased tracks for this series and we were all about it.... I haven't actually seen any of it so not sure where it will be but we're in good company

Jon Kelley: I think that it was just a combination of a couple things. We had the offer to be put on the compilation with these amazing bands. And we knew we had a song that fit the theme. So it just worked out really well.

Andrew WK: It wasn't my decision, but rather it was presented to me as something my producers wanted to do with the song. I agree with them. They feel it's important and I completely see where they're coming from. At first I was purely thrilled by the collection of directors. Once I was told the list, and the show was explained to me, we had a meeting and got the low-down on the deal. I thought it sounded great, and now I'm really pleased it all worked out as it did. A lot of people have put in a lot of time to make this television series. I love to think about that. And the people I work with have put in time and effort to make our end happen. I love to think about that too. That's why I work with these people - because they have their work cut out for them. They put this deal together and arranged where the song would fit in, so they must've known a good match when they heard and saw it. The producers I work with had been talking about different strategies with the song, and at first I didn't see where they were coming from, but they have very clear ideas about where they want the song to be, and who they want to hear it, and what they want people to think. I leave that up to them and so far it's worked out.


The Gauntlet: The collection is quite diverse in terms of artist selection. Do you feel that you will be garnering a larger fan base by appearing on this soundtrack?

Jon Kelley: I hope so. I hope kids that buy this CD who are into other genres dig our track.

Kyle Sanders: We hope so, when you're out on tour its all word of mouth to get new fans. Hopefully someone who doesn't even know we exist will hear it and check us out. There are a lot of good bands on this thing.

Andrew WK: Of course.


The Gauntlet: Give us a little bit of background on your contribution. When was it written/recorded? Is there a particular reason that this song was available for the program? What do you feel are the distinguishing qualities that stand out about this song?

Kyle Sanders: This is actually the oldest bloodsimple song. We recorded it for real last summer in Vancouver and have just been sitting on it until now. It's not as heavy as our other stuff but it's a really solid song. We rewrote the verse in the studio and it tool on a whole new life. I'm thrilled it's getting out there!

Andrew WK: The song "You Will Remember Tonight" is from our upcoming third album. We've been recording it for the past year and it shows no signs of slowing -it's going to stop hard and fast - with a bang - so in that way, it's almost done. The third album will come out when it's finished, and then it'll be released. I appreciate you asking about this. The song is in C Major, which is one of my favorite keys. It has a great range for the other instruments and performers, and it sits nicely on the keyboard, giving you a low-low-low C and the A below that. What else? Well, the song also was written in what we call "Service Verse", which is a way of writing the lyric melody in reverse, based on the music after it's been recorded. Meaning that the song was written about itself and the lyrics are singing about anticipating that experience. As in predicting that in the future you will remember what is about to happen. So, it's a double layer of anticipation - you WILL remember something in the future and it's about to happen in the immediate future (tonight).

Jon Kelley: The song was recorded about 7 months ago and it was used as a b side over in the UK. The song fits well. Like I said before, it's about losing someone really close to you unexpectedly. We're just stoked to be in the mix with all these amazing bands!




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Tags:  Kylse SandersAndrew WKJon KellyAndrew WK, Kyle Sanders, Jon Kelleyinterviews

    October 28, 2005

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