Category Archives: Musical Musings

Los Meesfits perform mariachi Misfits tribute at Monstrosity Championship Wrestling

Countless bands have resurrected the horror rock stylings of the Misfits over the years. But few have had such a unique take on it as Los Meesfits. Rather than just cover Misfits songs or create original material that sounds like the Misfits, Los Misfits perform these punk rock classics in Spanish with a mariachi or salsa sound. The result is clever and comical, giving most any horror or punk fan reason to stop and listen. Having performed at the Chambers of Horror haunted house, various Gorehound Productions events and this year’s Days of the Dead Atlanta convention, Los Meesfits clearly have a thing for horror. Come to find out, the band is also really into wrestling, especially front man Enrique Diablo, whose love of Georgia indie wrestling, lucha libre and monsters comes together quite fluidly in Monstrosity Championship Wrestling. So, when Los Meesfits were invited to perform at tonight’s MCW event, Diablo and his band of Meesfits were happy to oblige. Wrestling with Pop Culture has a quick chat with Diablo before he takes the stage in between matches at Club Famous.

Los Meesfits is a novel idea. How did it all come about?

One of my best friends owns Happy Happy Birthday To Me Records. He and I moved to Athens from Panama City and we used to do an annual festival to promote the bands. I was drinking with some friends, making jokes and I said, “Wouldn’t it be funny if we did Misfits songs in Spanish and called it Los Meesfits?” We thought it was really funny and I would always talk about it. He was booking a ten-year anniversary festival for his record label and he said, “I dare you to do that thing you always talk about. In fact, I’ve already booked your band. You guys are playing in a month. So you have a month to find members, get some songs together and get it together.” I was like, “There’s no way, dude. I can’t do that in a month. I don’t have any members and don’t know who I would call to start. I don’t even know what songs to cover. I’ve never been in a band before.” Then he shows me he’s already made the flyer and it’s pretty much a done deal, so if I back out of it I look like a chump.

I called a few people and the first incarnation of Los Meesfits was just me, Geoff Terry who played stand-up bass and Adam Hebert, my current guitarist. We started out with three songs and I was still learning how to play. People didn’t know what to expect at first and it could have either been really good or really bad. I like to think it was really good, but I recently saw one of those early shows and I was pretty embarrassed. But we’ve picked up other members along the way and we finally have the sound we were looking for.

Los Meesfits have performed at Chambers of Horror, Days of the Dead and other horror events, so I know you’re fans of monsters. But I understand you’re also a big wrestling fan. Is that true of the whole band or just you?

We’re all wrestling fans. I grew up watching wrestling from a very young age. I’m the biggest wrestling fan in the band. Me and my friend go up to Cornelia to check out Anarchy Wrestling whenever we get the chance. Any chance I get, I love to see wrestling. So when I heard about Monstrosity Championship Wrestling, I was like, “Oh, my God. That’s two things that I love: monsters and wrestling. What a great idea!” When we were invited to play, I was very, very excited. The fact that MCW has Anarchy wrestlers and people from Pro Wrestling Resurrection is really cool. I think it’s awesome. I love that Stryknyn is the MCW Champion, and I’m a big fan of Supernatural and the Undead Luchadores. My favorites are always the smallest guys and Supernatural pulls off some crazy maneuvers that make the other wrestlers look so good. I also watch a lot of AAA Mexican wrestling and the whole idea of Monstrosity Championship Wrestling is right up my alley because it’s basically the essence of what Mexican wrestling is all about. They always have the craziest characters and they truly go off the wall with it.

All that being said, what do you have planned for your show with MCW?

We have a few new songs we’ve only played a few times. We’ve practiced them quite a bit, so we’re going to put them in our set. “Hollywood Babylon” is one of the new ones we’ve been working on and this one’s a Cumbia, which is something we haven’t done yet. It works pretty well; “Hollywood Babylon” lends itself well to that style.

Dieselboy fuels turbocharged Blood, Sweat and Bass tour

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Photo by Jesse Pollak/Dizzy Focus.

Having helped fuel the drum and bass movement of electronic music in the ’90s and 2000s, Dieselboy is one of the few DJs of his era that has been able to thrive amidst the dubstep craze. While others have been stepped over (pun intended) by this equally aggressive EDM offshoot, Dieselboy has embraced these stylistic changes and, as a result, been embraced by dubstep fans. So much so, in fact, that he now finds himself co-headlining the Blood, Sweat and Bass tour with Downlink. With several new tracks being released by his Human Imprint and SubHuman record label this year, a secretive new musical project and the Blood, Sweat and Bass tour underway, Dieselboy takes a moment to put it neutral and talk to Wrestling with Pop Culture.

You were working on some new music just before this call. What can you tell me about that music?

I have a new project I’m working on. I can’t really say what the name of it is because I haven’t decided yet if I’m really going to put my name on it. It’s not exactly what I normally do and I feel like my name carries such a stigma that if it’s not straight drum and bass I’m going to get hated on for it. So I’d rather do something under a different name just so I can put it out there and see how it gets appreciated without my name attached to it. So that’s what I’m working on right now is this new project with a friend of mine.

Care to reveal who the other person is?

He’s an unknown artist, but he’s going to make some waves this year. We’re building him up right now.

You, of course, are known for drum and bass, which in many ways helped pave the way for dubstep. Dubstep is now the popular thing in the electronic music genre and you’re one of the few people who transitioned pretty well into that scene without really changing your style all that much. How were you able to do that?

I kind of saw the writing on the wall. When dubstep became so popular there was an overload of it. I like all kinds of music and there was dubstep that I liked. I realized one of the ways that I could help keep drum and bass alive was to incorporate ten or 15 percent of my set into dubstep. I was able to then go into these dubstep events and play mostly drum and bass and expose those kids to drum and bass. Part of the reason I did that was to help expose these kids to drum and bass who may not even know what drum and bass is. So I’d kind of Trojan Horse myself into some of these events. There weren’t a lot of shows that were just straight drum and bass anymore. Everyone was incorporating different elements of bass music into their sets. So I kind of experimented doing the same thing because I’m a drum and bass DJ, but I’m also a DJ and I like all kinds of music. It was an opportunity for me to experiment a little bit and try out some different stuff. I had been playing drum and bass my entire career and wanted to fuck around with some new stuff.

You recently emailed me a link Beyond the Back Bassline, which you described as your best mix ever. What sets this mix apart from previous mixes?

Back in the day before I was doing mix CDs, I was just doing mixtapes. When you do a mixtape, you don’t have to license tunes because you’re not making a profit on it. There’s a gray area there. Then when I started doing mix CDs all of a sudden however many tracks were in the budget to license, that was what my mix was. I was constrained by that completely and I did as much as I could within those constraints to put out the best mixes I could. So if we had enough money to license 17 tracks, that’s all I could use. Now, when I’m going back to doing old school mixes, I’m able to play 30 seconds of a song and that’s it. Being able to use whatever track I want and however much of each track I want to use, I’m able to really explore what I can do with the mix. The last four mixes I’ve done have been me going back and exploring those options again and just being able to do whatever the fuck I wanted to do with the mix. That last one really set the bar for me, but I feel like it kind of set the bar for other DJs, and not only drum and bass DJs. I feel like it’s an extremely super textured kind of mix. It’s something that if you listen to it ten, 15 times you might still pull out elements and little things in there that you might not have noticed before. It’s a super deep mix, super technical and I’m pretty proud of it.

Your Blood, Sweat and Bass tour is officially underway with Downlink, Mantis and others. How did this lineup come about?

About two years ago I was in Tokyo and I played a show with Downlink. Sean [Casavant] and I have been friends for a while now and I think he’s an awesome producer, but I really respect his perspective on DJing. He kind of has the same take that I do, which is that he tries to be a great DJ. He’s just one of these guys that really embraces the old school ethos of being a proper DJ and doing shit live. I like the music that he plays, he likes heavy music like I do. We had this show together randomly and I was really impressed with his performance. Then we ran into each other a few times after that and I was just like, “Hey, man. Would you like to do a tour together?” He was down, so we decided to put this tour together. I came up with the name because it was a cool-sounding name.

I put out a release of Mantis’ on SubHuman recently. I really like their music, they’re super nice guys and they’re also guys that are trying to be proper DJs. We also have Ajapai, who is an artist from Japan who makes heavy music and also is a good DJ. I just feel like it’s a good fit. We’re trying to do a tour with heavy bass music and real DJs, which is kind of becoming a lost thing these days.

Between this new project you’re working on, the tour and your upcoming SubHuman releases, when do you have time for new Dieselboy material?

This project I’m working on now is my focus. But I’m going to be doing a new mix in April. Downlink and I are going to do a mix that’s going to come out simultaneously under the banner of Blood, Sweat and Bass. That’s not going to be the name of the actual CDs, but it’s going to be under that banner to help promote our project and our tour. Hopefully it will be better than Beyond the Black Bassline.

www.destroyplanethuman.com/db

Julianna Barwick offers and ambient chill on “Nepenthe” tour

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On her previous releases, Julianna Barwick has composed ethereal soundscapes out of loops and other atmospheric sounds with little, if any, input from anyone else. While those works are definite explorations of Barwick’s imaginative look at the world, last year’s Nepenthe takes her away from her comfort zone, literally and figuratively, as she traveled to Iceland to work with Sigur Rós collaborator Alex Somers to create a more extravagant album that is simultaneously deft and deeply mesmerizing. Braving the winter climates once again, Barwick takes a moment during her current North American tour to talk to Wrestling with Pop Culture.

On Nepenthe, you’ve gone from recording alone in your bedroom to traveling to Iceland to work with Alex Somers. How did that collaboration come about?

Alex Somers makes music with Jónsi as Jónsi & Alex to make Riceboy Sleeps and things like that. He also mixes and records and is heavily involved with Sigur Rós, but he’s not an official member of Sigur Rós. But I got an email three years ago from Alex and it said, “I really like your stuff. Would you ever want to do anything?” I immediately responded and said, “Yes!” We talked for about a year and made plans for me to come to Iceland and make the record. So that’s how it started, with an email. I went over there twice, in February for a couple weeks and in April for six weeks. I was finishing up touring for The Magic Place in 2011 and Alex and I were talking all year. Then we made plans to work on it at the beginning of 2012.

Speaking of The Magic Place, it’s about a tree from your childhood that, in your mind, had rooms and other magical features. Your work is dominated by themes of seeing more than what is physically visible, and the ambient approach you take allows the listener to do the same thing with your music, especially on Nepenthe. Is this a sense you’re trying to convey to your listeners or is that just the way your creative mind works?

Photo by Shawn Brackbill.

I’ve just always had a deep love of imagination and things that are magical, or feel magical, like that tree when I was a kid. Things that are full of wonder, I really like things like that. Maybe it comes from my love of things that are magical. I’ve always had a pretty good imagination and I think that comes in handy when you’re sort of tapped into your own world and making your own stuff.

Nepenthe is fleshed out a little more than your previous work, with a lot of additional musicians and the influence of your Icelandic surroundings. How much would you say this unfamiliar environment affected the sound of the album, given that you usually work alone in your bedroom or smaller studio?

It made a huge, huge difference. That’s why when I started work on recreating these songs live for the tour, it was pretty daunting. With the previous albums, I made them 100 percent on my own, basically bedroom style. With this record I had Alex producing, Amiina playing strings, Icelandic teenage girls singing with me and Robbie from múm playing guitar. So it was pretty much the antithesis from the way I’d made my other albums. It was completely different and it was a dream come true to go to a place like Iceland that I have always been curious about and work with someone like Alex, who just made the producer/songwriter relationship such a smooth and easy one. The record is music that I came up with while I was in Iceland. Everything was written there, so it’s very much a specific moment in time. Amiina and Robbie from múm contributed, but they improvised. We didn’t tell them what to play. It was almost like this magical collaborative thing. We had one day in the studio with Amiina doing string and they just listened and felt it and came up with the music right there. That’s just kind of the way this record was made. It was really intuitive for everyone. I could not have even come close to making the record sound the way it does by myself. It took all these other people lending their talents and their time.

On the song “One Half,” there are audible lyrics. I believe this is the first time you’ve released a song in this way. What was the reason for doing that on that particular song?

Photo by Shawn Brackbill.

“One Half” is actually the only caveat to what I just said about every single thing being made in Iceland. “One Half” is the one pre-existing song. I used to perform it in a different way. I made that song up years ago off the top of my head and those are the lyrics that popped out when I sang it. I just wanted to get that song on record somehow. I thought about changing the lyrics, but it’s not too lyric driven anyway. They don’t really have a meaning, or maybe they do. They’re kind of mysterious, so I just decided to keep them.

You’re playing at museums, churches and non-traditional venues such as the Goat Farm in Atlanta on this tour. Why is that? How did you go about choosing the venues for this tour?

I’ve been working with my booking agent for almost five years. I was really interested in playing non-traditional venues for this record and she reached out to the right people and it worked out. I definitely wanted to not be playing your average medium-sized rock club. I wanted to play in unusual places. I thought it would be more interesting or me and for the people seeing the show.

www.juliannabarwick.com

“Dracula: The Concert” offers a simpler version take on the vampire rock opera

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Dracula (Rob Thompson) and his brides! Photo by Stungun Photography.

Since emerging from its theatrical coffin three years ago, the Little 5 Points Rockstar Orchestra’s staging of Dracula: The Rock Opera has been seen in a few monstrous forms. While the music, a hybrid of Andrew Lloyd Webber-like majesty and classic rock power, has always been an important part of the production, it hasn’t been quite the focal point that it is in this Valentine’s Day weekend’s performances at 7 Stages.

Described by members of the cast as being akin to VH1 Storytellers or a plugged-in version of MTV Unplugged, Dracula: The Concert strips away some of the theatrics of previous performances for a more raw interpretation of the love-and-lust at the heart of Dracula. But these concert productions also serve as CD release parties for Dracula: The Rock Opera, the double-disc set of all the music (as well as some pretty cool packaging and photos) from the previous Dracula productions.

“It’s more to illuminate the rock ‘n’ roll side of it,” says co-creator Naomi Lavender, who portrays Mina Harker. “We’ve done the first act, we’ve done the full show and because this is a CD release party we’re taking it more to a concert level. It is a really good show, but it’s also really good music. It’s just really special because Bram Stoker was such a brilliant writer and we get to bring it to 2014. All of the lyrics are pretty much verbatim from the book with only a little bit of changes to make them rhyme or things like that. But for the most part they are lyrical on their own, straight from the book.”

In true rock ‘n’ roll fashion, there will still be some theatrics such as props and costumes from the rock opera production. Plus, there will be other insights into the making-and-progress of this ever-growing endeavor.

“With this concert version, we have some interludes with some funny stories from the production, some hopes for the future, people playing multiple roles, things like that,” says 7 Stages artistic director Heidi S. Howard. “We’re keeping it very simple because one of the things we don’t want to do is recreate what the production is because we’ll end up hurting it. We have some elements [from the original production] that we’ll have set around. Other than that, we’ve got a band, some stools and some microphones.”

“We enjoy the music, so it’s fun to get to play it and not have to act it out or be worried about all the other things,” says co-creator Rob Thompson, who stars as Dracula. “We get to just go out and be loose, sing the songs and have fun. We don’t even have the full cast, so we have some people singing other people’s parts. I sang most of these songs when I was writing them and we were doing our first rough recordings of them. So it’s fun for me to get to sing some of those parts again.”

www.7stages.org/dracula

The many ways in which Keith David’s talents have been “Enlisted”

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He may not be as instantly recognizable as the A-list actors he’s often co-starring with, but once you hear the deep bellow of Keith David‘s voice you’ll immediately start trying to figure out where you’ve heard it before. From voicing ominous animated characters such as Goliath in Disney‘s Gargoyles or the title character in HBO‘s Spawn to narrating the recent The History of WWE: 50 Years of Sports Entertainment DVD to appearances and voice work for a wide range of movies including Platoon, There’s Something About Mary, Cloud Atlas, Coraline and The Princess and the Frog. And who could forget that famous fight scene he had with “Rowdy” Roddy Piper in John Carpenter‘s They Live? With numerous new films slated for release this year, David also has a recurring role in all 13 episodes of the new military comedy Enlisted, debuting this Friday night. Next month, David will be part of a reunion of The Thing cast at Days of the Dead: Atlanta (where he will also reunite with Piper) and he continues to narrate upcoming documentaries for WWE. Amidst his busy schedule, David takes a moment to talk to Wrestling with Pop Culture about his many contributions to film, television and theater.

While watcing the recent History of WWE DVD, I immediately recognized your voice as the narrator, though I didn’t see you credited anywhere.

I guess I’m going to have to get on them about that, right?

Of course you do! You’ve done some previous work for WWE. How did your working relationship with WWE come about?

I do have a good working relationship with WWE. I’ve been narrating documentaries and stuff for them for a long time. First of all, I like to work. Second of all, I’ve been a fan of WWE since the days of Bruno Sammartino. So it was a nice thing to be asked to participate in their documentary and I was very happy to do it. We have several documentaries coming out about the history of WWE and how WWE is actually changing the face of sports entertainment. That’s what this documentary is about is how WWE has changed the face of sports entertainment and how we look at sports. They have hundreds of thousands of fans that attend these huge events and all these big stars that have come out of WWE. I don’t think any of them have become great actors in the same way that some NFL athletes have, but more and more of them are getting parts in movies, guest starring on television shows and things like that. Some are even becoming politicians, like Jesse Ventura.

What I like about [this documentary] is you get a very clear picture that the persona of the wrestler in the ring is exactly that, it’s a persona. It’s like an actor playing a character because they do have lives outside of the arena. And some of them, i.e. Jesse Ventura, are very responsible men with very strong political views who are wanting to make a difference in their communities.

How much did you learn about WWE while working on this documentary and how much were you already aware of?

Generally speaking, I knew about all the different leagues and I knew the names of the creators like Ted Turner and Eric Bischoff and those guys. But in the documentary you learn about some of the specifics about how [WWE] negotiated these different deals. I didn’t realize some of the internal battling that has been going on between some of the stars, the re-creation of some of their personalities and things like that. That kind of stuff is very interesting. We’ve seen the results of all that, but we’re not always necessarily privy to how they came about.

Prior to working directly with WWE, you worked with “Rowdy” Roddy Piper in They Live. What was it like working with Piper and being part of such an iconic cult movie?

Oh, man. Roddy was the first professional wrestler that I ever met up close and personal. What a wonderful human being! At that time, he was pound for pound the strongest man I had ever met in my life. I was weighing at least 230 pounds at the time and he would lift me up like I was a 3-year-old and look back at the director like, “What am I supposed to do with him?” We had a lot of fun. He taught me a few wrestling moves and we had a lot of fun choreographing our fight, along with Jeff Imada. It was some of the best fun I ever had in my theatrical life, in the movies or on stage. One thing about doing fights in movies that’s different than on stage is you have all those different angles to cover. We just had a great time. It was a really good time. All of his training in the ring and mine in stage combat helped us be able to sell a really great fight. It was very fun working with him.

Will you be working on any other WWE projects?

Absolutely. I have one coming up this week, as a matter of fact. I don’t know exactly what it is yet, but it’s going to be part of the ongoing documentary series.

You have several movies coming out this year. What can you tell me about some of those movies?

I have a movie coming out called The North Star, which was the first time I got to play Frederick Douglass in a movie. I haven’t seen it yet, so I hope it turned out well.

In the meantime, you have a new TV show coming out called Enlisted.

Keith David as Command Sergeant Major Donald Cody in “Enlisted”.

Amen! Yes, Enlisted is coming out on Friday, Jan. 10 at 9:30 p.m. on Fox. It’s a workplace comedy and we just happen to be in the Army. We are a rear detachment unit and I play the Command Sergeant Major on this post. It’s all about how we take care of the families of the deployed soldiers and how we run the business of the Army. Everybody can’t be deployed in Afghanistan or Iraq; some of us have to stay home and take care of running the business and that’s what we do.

Enlisted is one of several military roles you’ve played. You were also in WWE Studios‘ Behind Enemy Lines: Colombia with Mr. Kennedy in 2009. What was it like working with Kennedy?

It was fun. He was a good guy. He was playing a soldier and he certainly looked like a soldier. We were in Puerto Rico, so it was a good time had by all.

Would you be interested in doing more work for WWE Studios, especially considering how many more movies they are putting out each year?

I like to work, so if the right project comes along I will be very happy to work with them.

Are there any particular WWE stars you’d be interested in working with in a movie?

Oh, I don’t know. It would depend on the project. There’s a big difference between a personality and an actor. Depending on the project, you’ll see how those dynamics work together. Sometimes there’s a great personality in a particular show or movie and the story flows. Then there are other things that are far more challenging. There are plenty of guys that would be great to work with and I would enjoy working with any of the wrestlers under the right circumstances.

I understand you’re also working on a musical release. What can you tell me about that and when will we be able to hear it?

Every year I wind up saying, “By the end of the year.” But certainly by the end of this year I’ll have my CD project out. Also, my next project in Los Angeles will be playing Paul Robeson in a production called Paul Robeson at the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center with the Ebony Repertory Theatre in March.

www.keithdavid.com

SnellVillain is accomplishing heroic feats in the electronic music world

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Over the past few years, SnellVillain (aka Corey Herrin) has emerged from the Atlanta dubstep scene to become one of the most sought after electro performers in the Southeast. He’s constantly bringing his bass-heavy beats to Atlanta stages and recently performed at Alex and Allyson Grey‘s Visionary Arts Fair in Asheville. Come to think of it, Wrestling with Pop Culture and SnellVillain actually have a lot in common. While we won Best Local Blog in Creative Loafing’s Best of Atlanta voting in 2012 and 2013, SnellVillain was voted Best Local DJ the same two years. And even though I’ve seen him perform a few times, it was at a WWE event where I actually met Herrin, who happens to also share some of my enthusiasm for professional wrestling. But as successful as SnellVillain’s year has been, he’s heading into 2014 with even more momentum. He performs tonight at Iris Presents‘ Christmas party before returning for Iris’ New Year’s Eve event. With new music on the horizon (including a remix that’s, uh, a Pretty big deal), SnellVillain chats with Wrestling with Pop Culture about his recent ascent and where that is taking him in the near future.

Given the stage name you use, I certainly hope you’re from Snellville.

Yeah, man. I went to Brookwood High School and lived in the Oak Road and Five Forks area. I lived there until I moved to Athens to go to school at Gainesville State.

How did you get into performing electronic music?

I went to my first alternative bass show while I was in Athens. I saw Bassnectar at the 40 Watt. I saw how open it was, people were doing their thing and there were different styles of music. I was already into a lot of music, so it piqued my interest. That was probably in late 2010 or 2011.

So, you’re still relatively new to performing. But you’ve gotten your name out there in Atlanta really well and consistently perform at the top venues for electronic music.

Yeah. Definitely, man. It’s come together really quickly in the last six months or so, even though I haven’t been doing it as long as some people.

I’ve seen you perform and seen your name around, but you and I actually met at a WWE SmackDown event at Philips Arena. Are you a wrestling fan?

Yeah. My uncle used to really be into it, so I got into it through him. I used to love Stone Cold and all that stuff back in the day, so I definitely paid attention to it until I got a little bit older. I still know who some of the wrestlers are and stuff, but I don’t follow it as much as I used to.

You were recently voted Best Local DJ by Creative Loafing readers. Atlanta has a lot of well-known DJs and electronic musicians. What would you attribute your success to?

I actually won it 2012 and 2013. But I don’t know. Things have just been going crazy since my birthday last year. I’ve been playing a lot of big shows and my production’s gotten a lot better than it used to be. I learned new techniques and better mixing abilities. I got better at mastering, too. I wasn’t really good at getting a solid product together and putting it out there before it was completely done. I’ve just been taking my time on things.

You have, of course, made a name for yourself based on live performances. But do you have any recorded releases available yet?

I’m about to release a new EP on Beatport and iTunes in early February, and I have an official release coming out with Pretty Lights. He just got nominated for a Grammy and he’s been playing my remix on tour. That’s going to be officially released with him next month, then shit’s going to get really crazy.

How did that opportunity come about?

My buddy from Atlanta just moved out there and became Pretty Lights’ assistant and got him the song. He really enjoyed it and I actually ended up winning a remix contest for him. I don’t know the exact release date, but his engineer is mastering the song right now.

It looks like you have a bunch of big shows lined up to close out 2013. Where all will you be performing in the next few weeks?

I have some really awesome shows, actually. Tonight I’m playing for Iris with Protohype from California, who is a really big bass artist. Styles&Complete are also on the bill. The weekend after that I’m playing with Adventure Club on the main stage at Opera. The following Tuesday is New Year’s Eve and I’m playing with Ott, Mantis and lots of other people at Iris. Then I play with Archnemesis, which is a really awesome electro-funk group, in January at Masquerade. Then I’ve got a bunch of music festivals lined up that I can’t actually talk about yet.

The Joy Kills are ready for Friday the 13th performance with Monstrosity Championship Wrestling

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The Joy Kills are no strangers to monsters or wrestling, and the band seems to embrace the superstitions surrounding an unlucky date such as Friday the 13th with punk rock abandon. So it only makes sense that this garage rock act join forces with Monstrosity Championship Wrestling on Dec. 13 for a high-energy holiday horror show involving demented elves, racist wolfmen, a zombie football player and other undead grapplers. Having contributed the synically seasonal “Black Friday” to Blood Drunk Records‘ Family Dinner: A Holiday Compilation, The Joy Kills’ idea of the Christmas spirit is clearly not all that different from that of MCW, which has already featured monstrous Santas in action. To preview the event at Club Famous, Wrestling with Pop Culture talks to The Joy Kills front man Eric Haugh and guitarist Mike Westberg about wrestling, the holidays and other subjects ranging from high school football accolades to potentially satanic messages being hidden in their next album.