Keith Emerson

Keith Emerson has died aged 71, and sadly it would seem that the musician took his own life. Fans of Italian horror will always remember the prog rock giant for his score for Argento's Inferno. Although more old-fashioned than the two Goblin scores that had preceded it, it's no less memorable.

He also scored Fulci's Flashdance ripoff/giallo Murder Rock and, along with Goblin, contributed some tracks to Michele Soavi's superior The Church.

Mater Suspiriorum! Lacrimarum! Tenebrarum!

Dominae, Dominae Dominae Dominarum!

ZOMBI - Diffraction Zone

Here, have a tasty video for new Zombi track "Diffraction Zone", taken from their recently released Shape Shift LP. The vid was put together by uncle TNÜC and seems to have been custom made for me, as it features two of my favourite things: blob monsters and melt-movies. Enjoy some of the messier and randier moments from Creepshow 2 (The Raft), The Stuff, The Blob '88, Trick or Treat and Slumber Party Massacre II. 

ZOMBI

Over the last year Steve Moore's name has cropped up a couple of times here at the EYE, as his killer retro synth scores are a standout feature of both Adam Wingard's The Guest and recent Belgian slasher Cub. The man who wrote his first scores for low budget gorefests The Redsin Tower and Gutterballs is now making a real name for himself as an electronic composer of the highest order. I'm dying to hear what he has in store for Joe Begos' upcoming Scanners homage, The Mind's Eye, as Moore is a perfect fit for the material). A choice cut from The Guest...

...and here's a beauty from Cub. The intro part of this track is reminiscent of Ennio Morricone's score for The Thing, after which it morphs into the more typical Carpenter sound that's a mainstay of Moore's work:

As everyone reading this is doubtless already aware, Moore is also the keyboard and bass half of ZOMBI, his longtime band with drummer Anthony Paterra. Over the years the duo (who hail from the same town where Romero shot Night, Dawn and Day) have surpassed their reputation as mere Goblin and Carpenter acolytes, and are now the reigning kings of the horror/sci-fi related prog/space rock and synthwave scene. As with bands like Goblin and Trans Am, the inclusion of live drumming and bass kicks things into overdrive, making their music noticeably more visceral and heavy than many of their synthwave brethren.

My favourite ZOMBI jam to date is the title track from 2009's Spirit Animal LP. Their music is very cinematic (obviously), but this 14 minute epic is so evocative that I can't listen to it without daydreaming about the images that might accompany it on screen. Split into three parts, "Spirit Animal" seems to be telling a story. As the track's anthemic opening segues into a beautiful giallo-esque melody, and finally into a transcendent crescendo, it's easy to imagine it as a powerful accompaniment to an extended sequence filmed as a dialogue-free visual narrative. Have a listen for yourself, you'll see what I mean:

After a four year hiatus, following 2011's pulse pounding Escape Velocity, ZOMBI are back next month with a new nine track LP called Shape Shift. If these new tracks - "Pillars of the Dawn" (which could be a lost track from Goblin's DOTD score) and "Mission Creep" (fuck Moore knows his way around a bass) - are any indication, we could be in for their best stuff yet.

Goblin 2013

Last month the mighty Goblin came to Sydney and played the Metro. Seeing them was one of those real bucket list moments for me, and the show not only survived my high expectations, but totally blew my mind. Walking home afterwards with a few beers in me, I felt like a grinning, giddy fanboy. I had just seen fucking Goblin live, and not at some big festival, but in a small venue!

The lineup on this tour consisted of original members Claudio Simonetti, Maurizio Guarini and Massimo Morante. Joining them on bass and drums were two younger guys who I didn't recognise, but looking at their Wiki page it appears they might have been Bruno Previtali (bass) and Titta Tani (drums).

This lineup just killed it. Simonetti and Guarini, both on keyboards, delivered all those throbbing, spooky, atmospheric sounds and melodies that are etched into every horror fans brain, Claudio in particular handling his rig with style and elegance to spare. Guitarist Massimo Morante, looking every inch the tripped-out proto prog rocker, was on point too, and it was amazing seeing him play the eerie opening of "Suspiria" on a mandolin. Adding further atmosphere to proceedings, the band was joined on stage by local Theremin wizard Miles Brown for the Phenomena theme.

After hitting the stage to thunderous applause, they set the mood with a full rendition of 1976's Roller, which was cool, but after that the black leather gloves were slipped on, the gleaming straight razor was picked up, and the band got down to serious horror business. 

What followed was a selection of choice cuts from Deep Red, Suspiria, Tenebrae, Phenomena, Sleepless and Dawn Of The Dead, and it was pretty fucking rad my fiends. I have to admit, I kind of lost my shit a little when they played the stuff from Dawn ("L'alba Dei Morti Viventi" and "Zombi" if I remember correctly, but I was pretty drunk by that stage. Did they play "Oblio" too or did I just dream that?)

Goblin are hitting North America later this year. Don't miss them!

Photos: Chris Evans

Suspiriorum Profundus!

Check out my post at Illogical Contraption on the newly reformed and soon to be touring Goblin. Simonetti is back in the lineup, along with original members Massimo Morante and Maurizio Guarini. Check out the post here, and thanks to Cinezilla for the inspiration!