Saturday, January 18, 2025

Dyr Faser – Falling Stereos

Dyr Faser now have 10 album releases under their belt, not to mention EPs and show no signs of sticking to any real formula – other than drowning your ears in satisfying gloop. ‘Falling Stereos’ is a pretty good description of this collection of ten tracks. The padding drum machine adds a strangely unsettling transience […]

The Horrific Life and Death of Peter Stumpp

Peter Stumpp (died 1589) (whose name is also spelt as Peter Stube, Peeter Stubbe, Peter Stübbe or Peter Stumpf) was a Rhenish farmer, accused of being a serial killer and flesh-eater also known as the “Werewolf of Bedburg”. There is much confusion around his real name as ‘Stumpp’ quite possibly refers to the fact that he only had one hand. This […]

Monsterbacks – The essential guides for the 80s youth

Though a step down from Usborne’s guides to monsters and the supernatural, Monsterbacks were still a much-treasured book in the 1980s for kids desperate for a horror fix. The four books, published by Marshall Cavendish, covered four enticing subjects: ‘Monster or Man?’; ‘Werewolves and Other Weird Creatures’; ‘Vampires’ and ‘Ghosts, Ghouls and Spirits’. All four […]

Brutes? Rondo Hatton and Acromegaly on film

Acromegaly: noun  (Derived from the Greek words “akros“, extremities, and “megas“, big) A medical disease in which the bones of the head, hands, and feet grow larger than normal, caused by the pituitary gland producing too much growth hormone  Rondo Hatton was born with the genetic condition acromegaly which affects the pituitary gland. Like all sufferers, there were few, if any signs, when he was young, the effects only becoming more obvious […]

Buy or Die! Ralph Records 1972-1982

The Residents Present: Buy or Die! Ralph Records 1972-1982 This could be one of the most surprising retrospectives released this year. Not that it exists – maybe a few years ago, the notion of collecting some of the label’s releases would’ve been considered too niche, but Cherry Red’s ultra-deep Residents digging has put paid to […]