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Sunday, March 19, 2017

Digging Up the Dirt with KillDozer and Forever Midnight


We have been running into the guys from Forever Midnight Podcast at conventions and film festivals for years now. And after seeing their limited enamel pins and filming location photos on various social media, well it was high time we picked their brains on the subject of horror.



KillDozer: How did the Forever Midnight Scary Movie Research Center and Cooperative begin? Also did the awesome name come first?

Forever Midnight: Jef was doing a podcast with some friends, and really got excited whenever the conversation would drift toward horror movies. Since every time the three of us would get together, we’d emphatically talk about scary movies, we decided to start our own show. Plus, it gave us the excuse to get together and watch horror movies all the time.


KillDozer: As far as films go, are you a like minded group or do you battle it out from time to time? What was the last title you really argued about?

FM: For the most part, we all love 80's and 90's horror and more modern movies that aren’t dogshit. The Greasy Strangler is a point of contention. If you’ve heard our show, we mostly tend to agree on most stuff…


KillDozer: How frequently do you record the podcast? Who have some of your favorite guests been?

FM: Not as frequently as we’d like, but since we set up our studio, we’ve been recording about every week or so. Barbara Crampton was our most recent actor guest, and she is delightful. Such an awesome & friendly person. Tom McLaughlin was incredible to talk to, and of course Mark Borchardt was amazing. Our friend Michael Conrad is a favorite guest of ours, and he’s been on the show three times.


KillDozer: What's the hardest part about doing the podcast?

FM: Dis dick. JK, we’re broke. Check out our Patreon page.


KillDozer: Who are the individuals involved with Forever Midnight? Other than being horror nerds what does everyone do?

FM: Jef is a rock & roll maniac, and plays bass in The Drought Cult and Litany For The Whale. He’s also a great illustrator and draws comics with Mystery School Comics Group. Brian is a killer photographer and you can see his stuff over @deathmuseum on Instagram. He’s also a rad dad and has the biggest Texas Chainsaw collection you’ve ever seen. Josh is also a bass player in The Velvet Teen & The New Trust and also sings in a new band called Mare Island. By day, he works in a record store and designs record covers and beer labels.


KillDozer: Why do you think horror films and television shows have reached an all time popularity peak in recent years?

FM: Who fucking knows? Cuz horror movies are less scary than real life these days!


KillDozer: You have an impressive inventory of horror goodies at your convention booths and store! When did you first think about making merch? What did it take to get started? How did the store become a reality? Where is it located and when is it open?

FM: Well, we needed to have something to sell at conventions, since our main product (the podcast) is free. Plus a little extra money helps support our nasty habit of buying horror VHS and memorabilia. We started with a shirt and then a pin, and some stickers and grew from there. Having 3 dudes that are huge horror fans and also visual artists has been a big motivator I think. We share our warehouse space with some friends that have businesses and a podcast as well, so that helps his with our rent. Our store is in North Santa Rosa and is open on Sundays from 12-5 or by appointment if you holler at us…


KillDozer: You were able to release an amazing soundtrack for Mark Borchardt's film Coven. What was that process like? How do you get licensing? Where did the idea come from? How do you go about choosing what color vinyl will be used?


FM: We were watching American Movie together, and the idea came to Josh because the music is so killer. The process of making the Coven soundtrack was a lengthy one. In 2014, we reached out to Mark & Patrick (director & composer) and they both got right back to us. Since they’re both the owners of rights to the film / music, no licensing was required, which made things easy. Records take a long time to make, but Josh has had a bunch of experience designing and pressing LP's. After all the custom artwork came together, it was finally released in May of 2016 and we couldn’t be more proud of it!


KillDozer: Why do you feel it is important to be a part of and support the horror community?

FM: We’ve grown up being a part of that community, and it has some of the coolest, most loving folks in it too.


KillDozer: Out of curiosity, how does the Forever Midnight crew feel about the terms "elevated genre" and "smart horror" used to describe films like It Follows and now Get Out?

FM: That shit’s silly. There have always been smart horror films out there, and they’re often times our favorite. Some of the best horror of the 70's and 80's also were legitimately funny and had some prevalent social commentary, too. Scary movies are scary movies, and they can be made so much better with original, smart ideas and directors who give a shit.


KillDozer: What's next for Forever Midnight? Feature film maybe? Where can we follow you and your scary movie research?

FM: Haha, we hope someday to make a great scary movie! For now, we’re trying to build on what we have going and keep the quality of the podcast top notch. Follow us on all the socials and at ForeverMidnight.net.



KillDozer: If you could take back seeing any film in the last 3 years what would it be and why?

FM: Jef says All Through The House. He says that movie can suck it. Josh says Eyeball is one of the worst movies with one of the best posters, and he wishes he hadn’t ruined it for himself. Jef says Eyeball is terr-eyeball. Brian says his biggest regret is Paranormal Activity: The Mark-Ass Ones because of the dumb superhero powers and fake-ass skateboard stunts.


KillDozer: What's the most awesome piece of movie memorabilia you own? How much would you sell it for?

FM: Brian has a Felissa Rose Sleepaway Camp figure that is pretty killer. There aren’t a whole lot of action figures with their dicks out. “Look at that thing. It’s so awesome that someone sculpted that.” We were given an original Poltergeist one-sheet by the screenwriter, and our first guest, Michael Grais. Neither of these things we’d sell. Another amazing piece of horror memorabilia we own is the Forever Midnight Re-Animator Pin. We would sell that for $10 to anyone that wants it.


KillDozer: What remake would you like to see happen this year if any?

FM: The Stuff would be great to see remade. Carpenter has a new Halloween in the works that is sounding incredible. They should immediately remake Insidious 3, since they totally blew it the first time around. Keep Lynn Shea, though.


KillDozer: Who would win in a fight, the mummy from Monster Squad or the original universal mummy?

FM: Josh: “Whuuuut, no Scorpion King?” Jef: “Wasn’t the mummy from Monster Squad falling apart?” Brian: “Only in that scene, up until that point, he was handling biz!”


You can follow Forever Midnight on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. And check out their photos, merch, and news at ForeverMidnight.net.


-KillDozer

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