Horror Highlights: SHOOK! SONGS OF THE DARK SIRENS, CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT, THE HIVE

Launching this fall: SHOOK! SONGS OF THE DARK SIRENS: “Coming to Kickstarter this month, Second Sight Publishing has once again gathered an award-winning team of Black comic writers and artists in the follow up volume of its hit horror anthology, SHOOK! A BLACK HORROR ANTHOLOGY.

COO of Second Sight Publishing, Marcus Roberts, has announced the lineup for the follow up volume of the history making SHOOK! A BLACK HORROR ANTHOLOGY which will be coming to comic bookstores and other retail outlets JAN 2024 through Dark Horse Comics. Roberts states that a Kickstarter for the project will launch this month. The volume, entitled SHOOK! SONGS OF THE DARK SIRENS will once again feature a group of the top Black writers and artists in comics along with talented newcomers and is continuing in the tradition of volume 1. “We have brought in people like Alitha Martinez, Tananarive Due, and Micheline Hess to name few, to pass the baton to and let them carry things forward.” Marcus Roberts states. 

For this volume, Second Sight has brought in industry veteran editor Colleen Douglas, who will also be contributing a story. Colleen hails from Nottinghill, West London in the UK. She was Editor in Chief for Amigo Comics working on titles such as Call of the Suicide Forest, Nancy in Hell, Tales of Rogues, The Apocalypse Girl vol#1, Ghost Wolf and Phantasmagoria among others and edited for Sally Books based in Malaga as both submissions and project editor. She is currently an editor for Scout Comics on titles such as Oswald and the Star Chaser, Unicorn Vampire Hunter, and The Greylok. “ Bringing in a veteran like Colleen as editor on this project was definitely something we needed to push the envelope!”, says Bradley Golden, CEO Second Sight Publishing. “Colleen has been great to work with!”, Bradley Golden continues. 

The super-talented line up of writers and artists include:

• • Alitha Martinez- Artist– Cable, Iron Man, Voltron Defender of the Universe, Riverdale One Shot, Mighty Crusaders, Omni, X-Men Gold Annual, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, Lazarus X+66, Hindsight, Foresight, Bat Girl, World of Wakanda, Superb, Nubia and the Amazons, Nubia, Queen of the Amazons; Eisner Award (2018) GLAAD Media Award (2018)
  • Colleen Douglas- Writer- Silk Cotton; Vic Argas: Species Negotiator; Cthulhu Invades Wonderland; Ringo Award nominee (2023)

• Julie Anderson- Artist- Spirit’s Destiny, Tides In Time, Nia Caler, Safari’s Secret, GI Joe #285 (variant cover), 4 Pages 16 Bars Volume 5 (cover) 

• • Micheline Hess- Writer/Artist- Diary of a Mad, Black, Werewolf; Malice in Overland Glyph Comics Awards nominee (2016), Glyph Comics Award winner (2017)
  • Rebecca Wanzo- Writer- The Content of our Caricature: African American Comic Art and Political Belonging, The Suffering Will Not Be Televised: African American Women and Sentimental Political Storytelling, Eisner Award (2021)
  • Raeghan Buchanan- Writer/Artist-The Secret History of Black Punk, Black Punk Now! (story) releasing October 2023
  • Shakealia “Shake MacAudacious” Finley– Writer- upcoming project with John Jennings (2024)

• Tananarive Due- Writer (books)- The Keeper, The Reformatory, The Wishing Pool; Film/TV (writer)- Horror Noire, Twilight Zone (episode A Small Town), Danger Word. From Cape town with Love, (actor) Miles Underwater, From Cape town with Love, (producer) Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror, Danger Word; 2-time Bram Stoker Award nominee, British Fantasy Award (2016), Ignyte Award (2020), American Book Award, NAACP Image Award, Carl Brandon Kindred Award, Glyph Comics Award (2023), Eisner Award (2022)

The main cover for the anthology will be done by Julie Anderson with Alitha Martinez adding her talent for a Kickstarter variant. 

The Kickstarter goes live Oct 10th and will run for 30 days.”

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New Rock Song “CHILDREN OF THE NIGHT” Celebrates the Classic Movie Monsters: “The Universal Monsters are featured in a new song for the first time since “Monster Mash,” 60 years ago.

Former Universal Studios tour guide and creator of the comedy Twitter account @FakeThemePark Jason Ginsburg has produced and co-written “Children of the Night,” a song he calls “a literal love letter to these iconic characters” that include Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man, and the Mummy.

The song’s narrator has become so “bored with regular men” that she starts dating the classic monsters. She recounts what first attracted her to each one, and then explains the fatal flaw that led her to break up with them. Eventually, she ends up with Frankenstein…which makes her the famous Bride.

The title comes from the memorable line spoken by Dracula in his 1931 film. Upon hearing wolves howling outside his castle, he declares, “Listen to them – children of the night! What music they make!”

Ginsburg is a lifelong fan of the classic monsters, and was thrilled that his work at Universal let him walk the historic sets where their movies were made. “I’ve always felt the monsters deserved their own anthem. As I started writing it, I realized the core of these movies is actually love, even if it’s misguided or unwanted. Though terrifying, the monsters are really sympathetic characters. This song tries to humanize them and show how relatable they really are.”

He wrote the lyrics and connected with film and video game composer Eduardo García Rascón (whose work includes the upcoming games Womg and Mogrimera: Disciple of Order) to create what they call “a cross between a gothic symphonic metal work and a Broadway showtune.” Vocalist Brette Alana brought the song to life.

“Since the beginning, this project sounded very appealing to me,” says Rascón. “I loved the idea of creating sort of an ode to the classic monsters known and loved by so many throughout generations, a song unlike any other! I also embraced the challenge of creating a song that appropriately tells a story sort of like a Broadway song mixed with a symphonic metal feel.”

Brette Alana found the creation process to be “a blast. It was so satisfying to give a voice to the electrifying feminine point-of-view, in the world of classic monsters, in such a fun and relatable way. For me, the message is really highlighting the possibility that monsters aren’t that different from us at all, and could even be a mere reflection of the nature that runs through every being, dead or alive – and that’s love.”

The lyrics for “Children of the Night” include references to the monster films and their quirky sequels that should delight horror fans. Attentive listeners will also hear the themes from Frankenstein (1931) and The Wolf Man (1941). The song includes Swan Lake, which served as the main title for both Dracula and The Mummy (1932). “Since the beginning, it was very clear that we needed to, somehow, sneak in small snippets of the classic themes. Just small references for the fans out there, sort of like an easter egg,” notes Rascón.

All eight classic monsters are referred to in “Children of the Night,” a feat that surpasses even “Monster Mash” from 1962. Ginsburg and Rascón hope the song can become a Halloween staple, noting there hasn’t been a spooky hit since the era of “Ghostbusters” and “Thriller” in the ‘80s.

While Universal didn’t participate in the project, Ginsburg hopes it sparks a renaissance of monster content and would love for his song to become part of Universal’s legacy. “It would be a dream come true to hear this song playing at Universal’s Halloween Horror Nights.”

“Children of the Night” is available on Apple Music and Spotify, and other music sites.”

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Sci-Fi Home Invasion Thriller THE HIVE Breaks Into Home Video October 27th: “Buffalo8 is excited to announce the North American VOD release of The Hive, the debut feature from writer-director Jared Allmond. Starring Timothy Haug and Christie Griffin as a feuding couple whose marital issues take a backseat to their fight for survival. The relationship drama builds to a science fiction thriller as the pair must put their issues aside to survive the sadistic strangers whose origins are not what they seem. The Hive will hatch on Cable and Digital VOD October 27th, including Prime Video, Vudu, Vubiquity, Cox, and Comcast.”

Synopsis: “Albie and Penny, a young couple with a failing marriage, try to rekindle the fire by having a night out by themselves. To make matters worse, the couple returns home to armed strangers. With no help from their neighbors or law enforcement, they attempt to get evidence of the intrusion. They’re captured by the intruders and tortured for information. There’s no hope until Albie escapes and saves Penny. So hellbent on revenge, he puts their marriage on the line. Unfortunately, all help has been compromised and there’s nowhere to run.”