Things&Ink

September 5, 2015September 5, 2015

Top Five Wes Craven Films

Our guest blogger is hobbyist film and TV series reviewer and writer Harry Casey-Woodward

Last week saw the passing of one of the coolest directors in cinematic horror, Wes Craven… He deserves to be called king of the slashers, for he kick-started two classic franchises of the genre (A Nightmare on Elm Street and Scream). However as crude as the slashers were, Craven’s films were always smart, imaginative and underpinned with great plot and occasional literary references. They were also quite scary. I admit I haven’t seen every Wes Craven film (including Last House on the Left, which I’m still kicking myself for) but I have arranged the handful I have seen in order of the best, according to my opinion of course. All aboard the Wes Craven ghost train…

5. Scream (1996)

It’s a shame that this was the film that inspired the Scary Movie franchise and the legions of unfunny film spoofs that followed. The original Scream movie was better, in that it worked the same way that its signature ghoulish killer did (you know, the one who dressed like he was trick or treating). Both were tongue in cheek and poked fun at the horror genre, yet still managed to efficiently scare and slaughter the other characters, no better than in the darkly funny but terrifying opening scene starring Drew Barrymore. In other words, Craven succeeded in paying tribute to classic slashers while being slyly aware of their clichés. At the same time he delivered an intense, gruesome chiller that was also funny and entertaining, thus creating a perfect recipe for a horror hit. The sequel Scream 2 , also by Craven, was just as good as the first film in exploring the public’s obsession with horror films. The follow-ups got a bit silly.

4. Wes Craven’s New Nightmare (1994)

Craven did another twist on the genre in the final addition of his other popular series (unless you count the heathen 2010 remake ). Despite his iconic creation Freddy Kruger getting ‘killed’ in the sixth Nightmare on Elm Street film , Wes couldn’t resist directing a follow-up, the only Nightmare sequel he directed. While Freddy may have died on film, he returns with a vengeance to the real world; a world so real that actress Heather Langenkamp (aka Nancy from the first film) plays herself, as does Wes and Robert Englund (who plays himself and Freddy if you can get your head around that). Then try and get your head around the fact that this is a Nightmare on Elm Street movie about a new Nightmare on Elm Street movie being made, and Langenkamp realising that the character of Freddy is creeping into her reality and threatening her life, sanity and family. The best thing about this movie is that it’s possibly the scariest Nightmare, since Wes stripped Freddy of the wisecracks and clownishness popularised in the previous sequels and left him as he is: a psychotic kidnapper. This movie not only stepped the game up from the previous sequels, but was a comment on audience’s obsession with Wes’ films and his nightmarish figure of Freddy.

3. A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

You can’t beat the original. One of those great cinematic success stories where a film starts with a budget of just over a million dollars (small in the eighties) and becomes an unstoppable franchise, cementing itself in the horror hall of fame. Starting off with a great premise (a killer returned from the dead to slaughter teenagers in their dreams), this classic is also great for its weirdness and imagination. Take the iconic villain Freddy Kruger for instance: a Dennis-the-Menace sweater, a trilby, a mutilated face and a glove with knives for fingers. You can’t even imagine how they put all that together, yet lucky they did for Freddy’s image proved very marketable in toy shops.

The other great thing, regarding the low budget, is the variety of stunts and special effects created for when the characters enter Freddy’s dream world: stairs become quicksand; phones lick you and beds vomit blood. I guess what makes this a horror classic is its blend of crassness (the bloody massacre of sex-addicted teenagers) and sophistication (dreams, a Gothic trickster and Shakespearean references). And while the soundtrack is heavy with synth and the hairstyles are big, this still remains a thrilling, gruesome and effective horror. By the end you’re no longer sure of the difference between dream and reality. Watch out for a baby-faced Johnny Depp too.

2. The Hill Have Eyes (1977)

Craven’s second feature after his controversy-baiting debut Last House on the Left and released the year punk broke, The Hills Have Eyes deserves its place as a horror classic for its sheer brutality. It’s a nasty, gritty piece of work in the same manner of Texas Chainsaw Massacre and fits right in with the decency-assaulting home-invasion shockers of the 70s (see Straw Dogs and I Spit on your Grave). Once again Craven blends sophistication with exploitation.

The plot has something for psychologists, sociologists and violence addicts alike. It’s essentially a merciless battle between two families. On one side you have a typical decent white American family. On the other, a clan of cannibalistic savages who live out in a patch of American desert previously used for testing nuclear weapons; which the other family happen to be driving through. The movie succeeds in building up suspense in the first half, with lots of howling wind and spooky desert shots, and once the violence starts it never lets up. The audience is assaulted with constant noisy savagery as the civilised family find themselves in a bestial fight for their lives. The 2006 remake offered the same with some pointless back story. Watch the original for a ferocious vision of the American dream.

1. The People Under the Stairs (1991)

Possibly Craven’s most underrated masterpiece and one of the most underrated of all horrors. I consider this his best work, for he concentrates most on the story and characters over the violence, which pays off. I cared more about the heroes in this film than any of Craven’s others, mainly because they were kids and they weren’t stereotypes of teens or nuclear family members, and the villains are truly detestable. This film could almost be a family adventure if it weren’t for the disturbing content. What makes it genius is its blend of classic and contemporary storylines. It’s almost like a traditional fairy tale: children are lost in a big scary house, outwitting the ogre and witch-like adults. The modern aspect of the story comes from its depiction of the social and economic divide between races in America.

Our hero is a young black kid named Fool (Brandom Adams) who lives in a deprived neighbourhood and agrees to help rob his landlord’s house in the rich white neighbourhood. Unfortunately the landlord and his wife turn out to be a pair of racist, incestuous, cannibalistic fiends, who like to feed undesirables to their clan of deformed, animalistic offspring locked in the basement. When Fool finds himself trapped in this fortified, booby-trapped house from hell, he relies on his wits and the help of some allies among the children (including the brutalised daughter Alice played by A. J. Langer) to escape and get justice. This most original and imaginative of Craven’s efforts (which says a lot) wins for having such a classic enjoyable plot: plucky underdog heroes in a battle of wits against some truly nightmarish villains. Like all of Craven’s films, there’s a lot going on under the horror and it’s still quite frightening. A real exhibit of the talents of a great director.

Images from IMDB

September 4, 2015

Music Review: Atreyu

Our guest music writer Robert Moody continuously trawls the country for live music. In this post he reviews Atreyu and Shvpes who played a sold out Rescue Rooms in Nottingham last week.

The ‘Sold Out’ signs were on display at The Rescue Rooms on Friday night, as Metalcore pioneers Atreyu descended on the venue as part of their first full UK tour in nearly 5 years. Following a lengthy hiatus, the band had torn apart The Underworld in Camden back in April of this year, and were now playing the similarly sized Rescue Rooms as a warm up show for their appearances at the weekend’s Reading & Leeds festivals.

The sole support for the evening came from Birmingham quintet Shvpes, who wasted no time launching into an energetic set to get the crowd warmed up. Shvpes are an interesting band to critique – having previously been known as Cytota, they have been touring for several years now and feel like a familiar name. Yet the band are still very young as they played their first shows when most of the band members were under 18. Because of this where many bands have had time to hone their craft in the confines of smaller venues, this band have done so in the limelight, often supporting much larger bands. Since bringing in new vocalist Griffin Dickinson just under a year ago, the band have really begun to gain momentum, and watching them tonight it is clear to see why. Griffin commands a great stage presence and has a powerful voice to complement it, notably on latest single ‘State of Mine’. By the end of the set the pits were breaking out and the band left the stage to a warm reception.

But there was no doubt which band had sold the tickets for this show. Atreyu walked onstage to a thunderous applause, and launched into ‘Becoming The Bull’, which like every song in their set was well received. However, it was fair to say that throughout the set, the deeper Atreyu went into their back catalogue the more raucous the crowd became. Such that the intro riff to ‘Right Side of the Bed’ was enough to open up a large space in the packed room. Moments later bodies were flying across the room and as they moved straight into ‘The Crimson’ the room erupted.

As the band revealed to us in an interview before the show, they are not planning on playing live shows as frequently as they did prior to their hiatus, and instead want to focus on giving their absolute all to every show they play. This is firmly evidident throughout the show with drummer Brandon Saller still managing to deliver a great vocal performance during the most complex drum beats. Whilst bassist Porter McKnight even found himself out amongst the crowd towards the end of the set, with them promptly organising a circle pit around him. Lead vocalist Alex Varkatzas seemed slightly more muted on stage, but later revealed that his initial jump into the crowd 2 songs in had not gone so well, so on this particular occasion he was understandably forgiven!

The band’s hour long set covered everything fans expected and had come to see, right down to their cover of Bon Jovi’s ‘You Give Love a Bad Name’. Yet it was pleasantly surprising to see the first of the band’s new songs ‘So Others May Live’ generating a huge reaction from the crowd. By the time the band closed out with the classic ‘Ex’s and Oh’s’ the capacity crowd were in little doubt that Atreyu are not just back, but they are back at their best. Fans of the band can only hope that the decision to the title their upcoming album ‘Long Live’ is as much a reference to the band’s future as it is to their past.

September 4, 2015September 4, 2015

House of Butterflies

Justin Taylor and Charlie Lane are the creators of House of Butterflies, a small online business that sells framed butterflies, moth and beetles. The couple set all of the specimens themselves from their home in Maidstone, Kent. We chatted to Justin and Charlie to find out more about their arty adventures…

How did you start House of Butterflies? What do you create? The House Of Butterflies started from an idea we had at a craft fair, where Charlie was selling prints and original artwork. We thought it would be fun to do something together, we both share a common interest in taxidermy and art so thought why not combine the two. The framed butterflies idea came from Justin’s grandparents house as they have a small collection of framed butterflies hanging in their hall way. We both thought how great they look and wondered if we could make something along the same lines. We sat and researched the idea for a month or so before finally taking the plunge and having a go.

What inspires you? The inspiration for our boxes comes from the idea of preserving something beautiful. They are inspired a lot by the seasons, nature and by things we really like. We find when we sit and talk about ideas we tend to inspire each other. We try to choose the butterflies or moths first and then try to match the background to them rather than the other way around. The art in general is inspired by the outdoors; gardens, plants and animals.

Do you have a background in art?
Charlie: Yes, I studied at Maidstone UCA and have a degree in print making. I learnt a lot about etching and I helped with adult courses in a print making studio. I have done a lot of commission work for small businesses, band logos and for special occasions. I spent a couple of years in the tattoo industry working in a couple of small studios.

Where do you source your items from? We source all of our specimens from a entomologist based in the UK. He sources all of his specimens from butterfly farms abroad, people hear “butterfly farm” and usually think how terrible. When actually they are the most ethical way to source specimens, they bring employment to poor areas and stop the practice of wild collecting which has had a devastating affect on some species. Finding an ethical source and supplier was a big thing for us, a lot of time and effort went in to finding the right supplier with the legitimate source.

How do you create them? What is the process? The process is a fairly long one and takes time and patience, we had a few disasters at the beginning. We are completely self taught when it comes to the setting of the butterflies and it was a total case of trial and error. Internet videos make it look easier than it actually is.

The process starts by having to relax the butterfly, moth or beetle as they arrived to us in a dry/closed state. The specimens go into a relaxing tub which has a mild chemical solution in it. The chemical solution breaks down the enzymes in the specimens body making it pliable again. The specimens stay in the relaxing box until the reach this state, once there you can remove them and start the setting process. Opening the specimens is always the most fun part as you get see the true glory of what your setting. We pin the specimen to a setting board, which is a board with a small channel down the centre to hold the specimens body in place when you spread the wings. Then we very carefully pull the wings into the position we want using tweezers and then with strips of wax paper pin the wings so they are secure. We then leave them to dry out again for a number of days, depending on size. Then we unpin the specimen and then you have a set specimen, which is always very rewarding.

The vintage frames we stain ourselves to give them that old look, then we add the vintage artwork and add specimens we think work well with the artwork.

Where can people buy pieces? Do you do commissions? We have a small Etsy shop where people can buy from us, we update regularly with new items as we like to keep a good variety of pieces on there. We can be found on Instagramwhere with have a direct link to our store.

We take on commission work and our always up for a challenge, whether it be artwork or a specific butterfly or a combination of the two, we will always try our best to accommodate.

What are your plans for the future? We are hoping to keep going and maybe expand more, we do a lot of craft stalls, especially in the winter months leading up to Christmas. The big plan is to have a small high street shop where people can come in and browse.

How did you meet? How long have you been together? We met through a mutual friend who Charlie was tattooing, she thought we would get on well, turns out she was right. We had a few dates, realised we shared a lot of common interests and thats about it, and people say romance is dead! We have been together now for two years.

Can you tell us about your tattoos?
Charlie: My tattoos are a mix of things that remind me of all the places I have lived across the world as a kid, and pattern work that I’m really into. I like the geometric and dot work tattoo styles as it is how I myself draw. I like the work of Vana Chanelle, who has tattooed me a few times, along with Dan Frye who done a stunning traditional style Indian bride on my arm. I have tattooed myself a lot.

Justin: I’m a big fan of traditional style tattoos and love fat lined pieces. I have a lot of skateboard related tattoos as it used to be my favourite past time. I have a bit of a mix of black and grey, traditional colour and pattern work. I have my good friend Ben Griffiths to thank for a lot of my work, also Dan Frye and his partner EJ Miles.

September 4, 2015September 4, 2015

Playlist to get you moving

Our music writer Amber Carnegie has created a playlist to get you moving, give it a listen and let us know what you think!

We are all guilty of loving those tracks that get us moving. I can’t resist a catchy chorus or something I can wield my leg as a pretend guitar to. So no apologies if this gets your feet tapping or if it makes you question your dance moves but hopefully as these playlists pick up you’ll be engrossed in throwback tracks or something you may have never listened to before.

The Dillinger Escape Plan – Milk Lizard
The Dillinger Escape Plan were kind enough to come to the UK to play two festivals over my birthday this year so I cannot help but picture myself dancing around in a field as soon as the jazzy intro kicks in. Regardless of my questionable moves when their labyrinth of riffs pick up.

Billy Joel – We Didn’t Start The Fire
If you are familiar with the American version of The Office then you will agree when I say when anything goes wrong in my life I can fit the blame into the lyrics of this song. There isn’t a better way to get over something rubbish happening.

Every Time I Die – We’rewolf
What gets you dancing more than a cowbell?

The Ghost Of A Thousand – Knees, Toes, Teeth
Every Birthday and Christmas I wish for this band to reform but as it’s yet to happen I’ll probably just continue to get my hopes up every time I hear this song start up.

Four Year Strong – Wasting Time
As cheesy as it is this is ‘my jam’ I cannot believe I just typed it – but it’s true.

Jason Derulo – Trumpets
I’d love it if someone felt the same way about me as Jason Derulo does in this song… or if they at least came with a marching band.

Frank Turner – Photosynthesis
Do you have a song that makes you dance like an idiot but it’s so good you couldn’t care less? This is that song. When the club lights come on and your spinning in circles with your best friend singing ‘I won’t grow up’ there isn’t a better way I could think of ending a night out.

Images from Itunes & YouTube

September 3, 2015September 3, 2015

Ashley Riot & Cristina Gogo Blackwater

Our Italian contributor Ilaria chatted to travelling tattoo artist Ashley Riot and artist Cristina Gogo Blackwater. The couple share their work, relationship and hopes for the future in this intimate interview…

photo: Carlo Carletti | editing: Claudia Cosentino

How would you introduce your other half to our readers?
Cris: Ashley is an undeniably talented tattoo artist and painter with deep, intelligent eyes and a kind soul. He is gentle but fearless, patient but constantly curious, handsome and brave. He’s also really sweet while having a certain kind of dark side about him, a particular combination of pluses and minuses that makes us similar, and that I believe brought us (and keeps us) together. He’s my space captain, my everything.

Ash: My own personal muse. An equally beautiful and intelligent woman with her head and heart in the right place. Cristina’s curiosity and quest for knowledge and adventure are on par with my own. My soul mate. She’s a jack of all trades, easily picking up new hobbies and making rad new things. Most people would say, “oh, she’s that babe on the cover of all those tattoo magazines.” They aren’t wrong, but there’s many more layers of awesome tucked away in this one.

Traveling is part of your lives, is it a stimulus that enriches you, or a taxing, tiresome experience?
Cris: It can be both enriching and exhausting, but the highs are much higher than the lows. There is this famous Bill Murray quote that goes something along the lines of “if you think you met The One, don’t just date and get married. Buy a plane ticket and travel the world, in places that are hard to go to and get out of. If you’re still in love when you come back, then you know you found the one” and I couldn’t agree more. I am seeing the world with the one I love. I am sharing every memory, every moment. I’m an only child so being alone was always a big part of my life. Now we can be alone together, and grow up together.

Ash: My wife crushed it. I can’t say how many excellent humans we’ve met already in our travels and how many more we look forward to meeting.

photo: Carlo Carletti | editing: Claudia Cosentino

Is your work your only passion, or do you have any future projects?
Cris: The great thing about making a living as an independent artist, is that every hobby and every passion can be a part of your work. Certainly this is much less secure than having a regular pay check, and is sometimes a risk, but I don’t live to make money as an ultimate and absolute goal, because it’s not money itself that was ever my passion. Each year my favorite part of my job is different. Right now, I am completely enamored with my hand embroideries of tattoo flash designs. Very few things make me happier than creating something with my hands.

Ash: Work definitely keeps us both busy. There’s always ideas brewing in the back of my head but very often, after drawing designs for tattoos and making those tattoos, I’m shot. It’s a very demanding craft both physically and mentally.

Tattoo by Ashley

Is there a correlation between tattoos and sentiment?
Cris: I would say so. I don’t think that the subject of a tattoo necessarily has to signify something sentimentally relevant, in fact I have very few tattoos like that. I prefer to get inspired by a vague idea of something I like, and then bring it to a particular tattooer and let them interpret it in their own way. At the same time, the more time goes by the more each tattoo reminds me of a particular moment in time.

Ash: Certainly each tattoo contains sentimental value; I don’t have names, dates, or memorial tattoos on myself, but each tattoo most definitely has a memory attached to it. I can look at each of my tattoos and reminisce on numerous situations, cities and friends. I can see times of sadness, madness, and most importantly happiness that have sculpted me into the human that I am today.

photo: Carlo Carletti | editing: Claudia Cosentino

To which of your (and his/hers) tattoos are you most attached to?
Cris: I am most attached to the ones that I got out of love and friendship. As far as Ashley’s tattoos, I am extremely fond of the ones on his torso. Perhaps because I’m not very tall so my gaze often falls on that area, or maybe it’s because it makes me think of our closest moments.

Ash: I think on myself I have too many good ones to have a personal favourite. I could say which I hate my most, but I’ll hold my tongue! Cristina has a bunch of really nice tattoos. I would say that the ones I did are my favourites.

Does your life together follow a specific style, or philosophy?
Cris: I guess because of how we look and what we do, we could easily fit the stylistic profile of others who live similar lives as us, but I tend to focus on the core of things, and in my head the only philosophy that matters is very simple: to experience everything, regret nothing, and to be decent, respectful people. To never intentionally hurt anyone, nor each other, nor ourselves. To love each other, and have fun together, and mostly never take anything too seriously. It’s always a work in progress of course, but to me, that’s really ALL there is to it.

Ash: She definitely speaks for both of us on this one.

Embroidery by Cris

What does “forever” mean to you?
Cris: I can’t really grasp the concept of forever as an absolute, it’s just too much to wrap my head around. I can have a very vague scientific understanding of it, but that’s sort of irrelevant, in a way. In my very limited, relative to my life kind of way, I like to be a little bit of a romantic and think that love is forever.

Ash: F-O-R-E-V-E-R? I think it’s the outside edge of our mental capacity to understand such a massive span of time. I feel like it’s easier to think of it in a narcissistic way; as the span of time from birth to inevitably becoming worm food. This tiny window of time which holds every memory and interaction that will ever exist is your personal forever.

Tattoo by Ashley

Personally, I believe that everything that is made by hand (be it a tattoo, or an embroidery), captures the energy of its artist. Do you think this is possible?
Cris: I think it’s absolutely possible. Perhaps I’m overly optimistic and positive about it, but to me, even when the work in question appears to be rushed and meaningless, a little bit of the soul of who made it is inevitably embedded in it.

Ash: I try my best to live up to that philosophy. Sometimes there’s only so much of yourself that you can put into someone else’s dream about their tattoo. After all, it is their tattoo. I’m mostly certainly up for this challenge each and every time.

Have you ever tattooed each other? If so, what was it?
Cris: I have a few tattoos that he did on me by now, and I love them all so much! And I scribbled on his leg once, a few years ago: it’s horrible of course, but it’s a great memory of our first trip together.

Ash: I can happily say that I lost count. I really like to test myself when I tattoo Cristina.

Embroidery by Cris