Picnic At Hanging Rock - 1975

I'm sure Peter Weir's spellbinding 1975 masterpiece, Picnic At Hanging Rock, needs little introduction here. With it's ethereal, otherworldly atmosphere, the film leaves a permanent impression on the viewer, and left me feeling that I had been summoned to participate in a vivid dream. One that didn't begin to fade upon waking..

Repeat viewings result in the same delirium each time, and an ever-growing cult of fascination and mystery continue to follow the film.
The stunning cinematography plays a large part in that effect, but its the deeply haunting soundtrack that we're focusing on here.

The sounds you will hear were kindly provided by friend of The Cottage, 'The Ilk', who edited all the music, effects and snatches of dialogue into an album-length distillation of the film's unique, dreamlike mood. Bruce Smeaton's mellotron-heavy 'original' score (shamelessly ripped off of Hawkwind) mixed in with Gheorghe Zamfir's haunting panflutes and bits of Beethoven, Bach and Mozart make for a surprisingly coherent listening experience.

You can download the mp3 from here.

The brave ones among you may wish to devise a way to listen to it from the summit of a remote hilltop.

The rest might prefer the safety of a securely locked room.

The Seventh Cyrkle

My best wishes of the season, from deep within the sheer terror of Pendle Witch Country.

As I sit by the fire this evening and celebrate Hallowe'en,
I will be listening to the amazing new album from olde friends of The Cottage, Villa9 Studios. It's a wonderfully crafted blend of folk-horror, bad dreams, and forgotten rituals.

The latest Villa 9 Studios soundtrack is for "The Seventh Cyrkle";
a horror anthology series from 1975, based on the book of the same name. Seven different tales from seven different authors, all of an occult/supernatural theme.

You can listen to the  album here, and obtain a copy for your own foul ceremonies.

House On Straw Hill - Custom Soundtrack

I've taken my time with this one, as I wanted to do justice to this 1976 British classic. The film contains my most favourite obsessions:

Linda Hayden
Horror in the English Countryside
Private madness in an isolated house

Apart from Linda Hayden, the above list perfectly describes my own cottage, and ritualistically watching Exposé every summer has been a tradition since as long as I can remember. Heavy on rural atmosphere, with lashings of derangement and twisted sex; it's excellent.
The soundtrack was composed by Steve Gray (1944–2008), and I've been mindful not to adjust the jarring volume changes during Udo Kier's multiple freak-outs.

That's enough from me. If you'd like to read more about the film, then my creepy colleague over at Island Of Terror has written this...
If anybody wants me, I'll be lying next to a badly mutilated Karl Howman in the back field.

38 minutes 59 seconds. 320kbps. Free download.

May Day.. May Day..

Coming Soon..
A custom soundtrack is ready for one of my perennial favourites.
I just need to clean up all the mess first, then work out where to hide some of the larger victims.
Once that's all taken care of I'll share it with you degenerates. 

Kiss of the Tarantula - 1976 -Custom Soundtrack.

Something extremely disturbing for you here; the incredibly harrowing analogue score for the 1976 drive-in gem: 'Kiss Of The Tarantula'.
The film often receives negative reviews, but who wants to read those? I like the cheap atmosphere, the ultra-sinister soundtrack, and let's face it; the story of a solitary girl who lives in a mortuary, takes fatal revenge on her 'friends', her mother, and her lascivious uncle (by killing them with her pet tarantulas), is always going to be alright with me.
Once again, I put this together directly from the film, and the combination of creepy keyboards, deranged victims death-throes, and pleasant dialogue from the lovely Susan all add up to make a truly nasty audio nightmare.




















Disciples of the Cottage will already know the work of composer Phillan Bishop from the electronic madness he created for the classic 'Messiah Of Evil'. Suffice to say, if you haven't heard that already, you are truly missing out.


       Free 320kbps download -including artwork- is here. 

Coming Soon...

    

This doll loves spiders.

   This one doesn't.

My latest custom soundtrack will make huge analogue spiders crawl out of your ears. So you'd better watch this space.

Grange Hell

England. 1989. If you were there, then it's likely you were one of the millions of viewers who witnessed the ritualistic slaying of 'difficult' pupil Danny Kendall, by Mystic Master Bronson, the most feared of all teachers in the long running television drama series: Grange Hill.
The events leading up to this tragedy were bizarre to say the least, and those who innocently experienced this horror from the comfort of their own home remain forever scarred.
To mark the 25th anniversary of Danny's terrible fate, I have assembled a sonic account of the days leading up to the grisly discovery of Danny's corpse; which was found in the back of Bronson's car by some of Kendall's horrified classmates.
The piece ends with a chilling version of the iconic theme tune, altered out of respect by the BBC, and only heard once (until now).
To spare the pupils of Grange Hill the nerve shattering details of the case (and possibly protect the name of the school), headmistress Mrs McCluskey explained Danny's death as having occurred as the result of a "brain illness"; but listening to these recordings brings the true nature of this horrible murder into sinister focus.
Bronson walked away a free man, presumably continuing to practice his vile magic on others, while the students planted a tree in the grounds of the school, in a tribute to their fallen friend.

You can examine the case for yourself by downloading it from here.
The curious can invoke it from TOMTIT by pressing this.
Or tune in to direct evil via the link below..

Coming Soon..

Let's Scare Jessica To Death [1971] - Custom Soundtrack.

Firstly, allow me to wish everyone a very Happy Halloween; I haven't posted much this year as I've been working on The Pseudoscientific World of TOMTIT with mr Unmann-Wittering. Now that project is off the ground, I'm returning to the macabre world of audio disturbance and will begin by dealing with a request.
This particular custom soundtrack was not made by myself, but was crafted by the excellent Ben from Toys & Techniques. I had been asked to make a soundtrack for this one, but instead here's a link to Ben's original post, as he's done a superb job of capturing the music and sounds from the film. However, I couldn't resist making an album cover using the track titles suggested by Jedrific.

The eerie score was composed by Orville Stoeber & Walter Sear and you can download it here. Well worth a listen - especially today !

Coming Soon..

THE TWO FACES OF EVIL

 I came across this album in the village second hand shop, hidden away behind some damp asbestos tiles. The three old ladies who run the place looked horrified when I asked the price, and screamed that I should "just get rid of it... take it away before it all starts again!".

I did as I was asked, and after a walk home via the churchyard to collect some wild flowers, played the album by candlelight. What followed was a distressing evening of mental torture, sinister apparitions, and malevolent rural forces; all seemingly awakened by these ghastly recordings. My doors mysteriously locked themselves, and I became aware of a group of dark figures gathering around the cottage in the fields outside. At some point I must have passed out, and I awoke the next morning to discover a dozen mummified woodland creatures had been arranged around me in a crude circle.

The year 1974 has been scratched onto the surface of the vinyl, but apart from that, no other information about the contents exists. The back cover credits 'Cottage of Electric Hell' and 'Island of Terror' and I can only assume that these deranged individuals were responsible for the trauma I suffered.

The sounds you hear were taken from side 'A' of the album, and when my mental strength returns I'll attempt to capture the sickening terrors trapped within the grooves of side 'B'.
Until then, I advise you to proceed with extreme caution, cast the appropriate protective runes, and stay inside your chalk circle until you're certain the danger has passed.

You are advised not to allow this unholy noise into your home, but if you insist on dabbling in the black, sonic arts, you can invoke it here.

or:

Planet Of Dinosaurs [1977] Custom Soundtrack

Giant Foes, Starvation, & Basic Communal Challenges.

Dear reader, I know what you're asking yourself: " how could a 1970's LOW budget dinosaur movie find it's way into the Cottage ? "

The answer is because I carefully coaxed it inside, captured it's crazed music, and released the highly dangerous results back into the wild.

The electronic madness of this score has to be heard to be believed (it took me three viewings just to assure myself that all this was really happening), and those who seek out the Triassic roar of the Analogue Synthesizer will not be disappointed.

And I urge you to mix up your most potent narcotic potion, sit down in front of the film itself, and marvel at the truly stunning stop-motion dinosaurs*, atrocious acting, and monolithic trousers.

* the impressive prehistoric creature footage was ripped off a thousand times for various movies, commercials, and specials, mostly without crediting the source of the material (making this a sort of modern-day ONE MILLION B.C. in terms of cannibalized dinosaur footage).

Duration: 28:20.  320kbps mp3 including custom artwork can be downloaded here, or here.

Black Christmas [1974] Custom Soundtrack

For many years, it's been my festive tradition to sit down by the fire with Bob Clark's horror masterpiece 'BLACK CHRISTMAS'.
Made in 1974, this film defined the modern 'slasher' movie, and has rarely -if ever- been bettered. A thoroughly nasty tale, made all the more sinister by fabulous cinematography, and Carl Zittrer's unsettling score. 'Billy', the deranged killer, is without a doubt the most disturbing screen maniac of all time, and the mere thought of him is enough to freeze even my blood.
His series of twisted phone calls to the sorority house make for extremely distressing listening, and paint a bloody mental picture of infanticide, and the most severe psychopathic disorders imaginable. His first call is pure obscenity (be warned), but chillingly ends with the calmly delivered statement: "I'm going to kill you".
What follows is a mind-bending outburst of insanity each time the telephone is answered.
Composer Carl Zittrer had worked with director Bob Clark before, scoring the wonderfully eerie music for Clark's 1972 'DeathDream'. Another film that left me feeling uneasy for days after my first viewing.
His 'Black Christmas' soundtrack makes a perfect accompaniment to the terrors depicted on-screen, and hugely adds to the ever-present menace in the air.
"Carl Zittrer, stated in an interview that he created the film's mysterious music by tying forks, combs and knives onto the strings of the piano in order to warp the sound of the keys. Zittrer also stated that he would distort the sound further by recording its sound onto an audio tape and make the sound slower. The audio for the disturbing phone calls was performed by actor Nick Mancuso, director Bob Clark and an unknown actress. Mancuso stated in an interview that he would stand on his head during the recording sessions to make his voice sound more demented."
In making this custom soundtrack recording it was necessary to include moments of dialogue and effects that would have been impossible to remove without severely spoiling the nightmarish mood. After some deliberation, I decided to edit out John Saxon's speech towards the end, as this would have revealed a major twist in the plot for anyone who hasn't seen the film. I chose to keep the protracted sound of the ticking clock and winter wind in the final minutes, as careful listeners will pick up a variety of disturbing whispers in the background; all essential to the overall effect.
Lastly, I've included the audio from the original cinema trailer, which is a masterful piece of editing, and an effective distillation of the music and madness of this classic.
   Duration 37:25.    320kbps mp3.    Download from here or here

       I wish it could be Black Christmas everyday!

You'd Better Watch Out !

Coming Soon...

Gibbet of the Damned

The good people over at Six Ton Armor asked me to invoke an audio mix for their mind-warping 'psychcast' collection, and I was more than happy to oblige.
Persistent ghosts from my childhood, nightmare sounds from British horror cinema, and televised terror fragments, have all been allowed to inter-breed.
The sonic runes were cast by candlelight in my haunted farmhouse, and designed to achieve maximum potency for Hallowe'en.   Listen in the dark if you dare !

^ the lovely artwork created by Six Ton Armor
 320kbps mp3 - Duration: 1 Witching Hour
 Download here or here

Coming Soon..

   Electric Hell for Halloween

A specially commissioned audio mix to celebrate our favourite time of year will be let loose before the 31st .
Play it in the churchyard at midnight, and frighten the vicar to death in the most pleasant way possible.

SATAN'S SLAVE - 1976 - CUSTOM SOUNDTRACK

 If you worship 70's British horror (and lets face it; if you don't you really shouldn't be here), then you'll already be familiar with Norman J. Warren's 1976 masterpiece SATAN'S SLAVE.

With bewitching locations, a truly excellent cast, superb score, and an occult script by Pete Walker favourite and exploitation film legend David McGillivray , you just can't go wrong.

The soundtrack has never had an official release, so I've created a 30 minute mixture of music taken straight from the film.

Perfect for Necromantic rituals, or killing your wife by mistake.

* Dedicated to my fallen friend, J. Matias Aaltonen;

 who would have loved this, but left us far too soon*

 

320kbps. MP3. Includes custom made artwork.
Download it here.

Coming Soon...

Sit within your protective circles

and cover your ears !

The Fiend [Beware My Brethren] [1972] Custom Soundtrack

Firstly, I should explain that this film is a big favourite here at the cottage.

British horror has been my lifelong obsession, and The Fiend has a hugely impressive pedigree:

Patrick Magee, Tony Beckley, jaw-dropping misogyny, sinister 1970's atmosphere, and an incredible soundtrack... it really is a dream come true.

Many of the wonderfully twisted British horrors of the 1970's have had their soundtracks released; but not this gem. And so, I present a comprehensive exploration of the sounds, music and dialogue, all mixed together into 39 minutes of unsettling magic.

I make no apology for including Patrick Magee's religious rants, as I could happily listen to him read the telephone directory aloud. His speeches throughout this film are pure gold.

You can look forward to some lovely murders, and confused ramblings from the excellent Tony Beckley.

The songs are also dangerously catchy, so be prepared to have your mind invaded.

320kbps. Stereo. Running Time 38:46. Download it here
This is dedicated to the marvellous Between Channels

The LEGEND of HELL HOUSE [1973] custom soundtrack

As requested, I present the original soundtrack for The Legend Of Hell House.
Electronic music and sound effects were created by Delia Derbyshire and Brian Hodgson (of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop) & recorded at Hodgson's Electrophon studio in London. The soundtrack is currently unavailable commercially.


















MP3. 320kbps + artwork: download