I am a certified Halloween enthusiast!I love everything about Halloween.So, I decided to scare up some Halloween themed questions and shoot them out to some bands.This batch went out to Greg from Witnesses! Are you superstitious? Not in the least. Like anyone, coincidences can sometimes really give me pause, but I don't believe in any hocus pocus.
Why do you love Halloween?Well, it's Fall, so that means the Summer nastiness is receding here on the US east coast. That's reason enough, but of course I just love the imagery and overall spirit. It's particularly great here in NYC as well. I haven't gone to the big parade in years because it's overwhelming, but even just getting on the subway this time of year is more of a freakshow than usual. Great stuff.
Do you scare easily?Watching movies? Yeah, definitely. In real life, not so much. Which is weird considering how lost in my own thoughts I can get.
What's your favorite Halloween movie? The VVitch. I watch it every year. It's really a masterpiece in terms of attention to detail, performances, and leaving things open to the viewer to interpret. I love that; I hate being told what to think in movies or for things to wrap up neatly with a bow on top. Oh, also, some really cool, creepy sounds in the movie. I don't know how they did it, sounds like some wretched articulation on cello piped through some effects, perhaps?
What's your favorite Halloween song?Probably "What's This?" from The Nightmare Before Christmas. I believe Danny Elfman did a lot of composing for this without a script. Maybe I'm making that up. But this song is absolutely brilliant, playful, and convincing. It really feels like the singer is experiencing Christmas for the first time. Incredible. Though maybe I'm off topic now!
What's your favorite Halloween candy?I don't think I ever separated out Halloween v non-Halloween candy. But I like shitty, mass-produced candy to be honest. Twix, Kit Kat, stuff like that. I don't need anything gourmet or made with the finest ingredients.
What's the strangest thing you've received while trick-or-treating?When I was a kid there was some cursed house that gave out pennies. WTF? I hated that house. I'm guessing I only went there once. Even as a kid you knew that was bullshit.
Favorite horror monster or villain?No favorite. But perhaps the best monster design ever in my opinion is the Xenomorph. It's the most horrifying monster I can think of. It's both supremely creative and terrifying. Not to mention its whole disgusting lifecycle, which taps into some other very disturbing psychological bits. I won't even get into it.
What was your favorite Halloween costume as a child?
Dracula, no doubt. I had a pretty good get-up one year. I mean it probably looked more like the Count Von Count than good old Dracula, but it was still really fun and I remember it to this day.
Do you prefer gore or thrillers?Thrillers, without question. Gore can be comical for me when it's very exaggerated. I also kind of like that because it's satirical. Robocop has a lot of gore, and I think it works really well for something that satirical. When things tap into our own weird reptile brain, I like it. It makes you reflect on yourself. But it's not something I seek out. Love great thrillers though.
Michael Myers or Jason Voorhees (if you had to choose)?Option C: Freddy. I was a kid when the first Nightmare on Elm Street came out. Freddy with those long arms is etched in my brain forever. Utterly terrifying stuff for a kid. Alien was the same in leaving me emotionally scarred. I guess to answer the actual question, Jason. Not sure why, though! Maybe the hockey mask? I don't even watch hockey, it just looks badass.
Huge (with a y sound) thank you to Greg for taking the time to answer these questions.I appreciate you doing so.As for the rest of you, click on the link so generously provided below and check out the latest offering from Greg's band Witnesses.You can thank me later.~El Pedo Caliente (aka Uncle Jameson from the Fistful of DOOM show)
https://witnesses-nyc.bandcamp.com/album/joy
