Toxic Schlock

Time to kick off our next mini-series: SLASHERS! In this episode, we dive into the early films that begat the blood soaked Slasher boom of the 1980s, with an in-depth exploration of the man who helped define the genre: MARIO BAVA! We explore his early work in cinematography, the creation of the Giallo genre with films like BLOOD AND BLACK LACE, and his film that kick started the Slasher genre: A BAY OF BLOOD! After that, Michael sits down with indie filmmaker William Hellfire to discuss the film, the proto slashers like PSYCHO and THE HOUSE THAT SCREAMED that inspired it, Bava's legacy, and how the film created many of the tropes now associated with the genre! Stick around after the discussion to hear our listener's thoughts on what defines a Slasher film! Join our Patreon! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter , Facebook  

Our Body Horror series is going out with a bang!  We're going to Japan to explore the 1989 Cyberpunk classic TETSUO: THE IRON MAN! We explore his early Kaiju passions, the influence of Akira Kurosawa, dealing with disapproving parents, and how his debut film came to be! We're then joined by Gregg Harrington of the podcast Neon Brainiacs to discuss the film, Nine Inch Nails, d-beat soundtracks, the incredible industrial score, and how this film impacted the future of horror cinema worldwide. Stick around after the interview for the reveal of our next series!    Join our Patreon! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter , Facebook  

Our Body Horror series rolls on with a dive into Stuart Gordon and his slimey classic FROM BEYOND. We explore Stuart's early radical theater roots, run-ins with the law, HP Lovecraft, and Re-Animator. We are then joined by Ben Roberts of the fantastic new comic CHILDREN OF THE GRAVE to discuss From Beyond. Stick around after the interview for our first mailbag segment!   Join our Patreon! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter , Facebook

We enter episode 2 of our Body Horror series with an exploration into the mind of the man most associated with the genre: David Cronenberg! We explore his early scientific background, his arthouse origins, early films, and much more! We are then joined by JR Hayes of Grindcore legends Pig Destroyer and Mike Prophet of Screamo icons Pageninetynine to discuss Cronenberg's first truly iconic film: THE BROOD!   Join our Patreon! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter , Facebook

Toxic Schlock has risen from it's pandemic induced grave and is back and better than ever. We kick off our 4-part series on Body horror with a dive into David Lynch's arthouse classic ERASERHEAD! We explore Lynch's artistic origins and influences, the creation of the film, and the contemporary reaction to it. We are then joined by Erik Button of the Charlotte punk band Dollar Signs to explore the just what makes this movie so special! Join our Patreon! Follow us on Instagram, Twitter , Facebook

Bust out your drill guitars, because this week Michael is joined by Carolina Hidalgo of the fantastic music history podcast No Dogs in Space to discuss the 1987 slasher sequel classic SLUMBER PARTY MASSACRE 2!  Listen in as the two discuss the original film's feminist satirical origins, the brilliance of Roger Corman, MANDY, DARK NIGHT OF THE SCARECROW, being impressionable as a kid, the complicated nature of researching the Misfits, greaser slashers, her origin story with the Mads, and much more!

This week on Toxic Schlock, Michael and Dylan Wachman of Dollar Signs dig into the underrated modern classic "DRAG ME TO HELL". Michael and Dylan dig into the career of director Sam Raimi, the film's dark humor and (perhaps questionable) CGI, terrible movie theater experiences, THE LIGHTHOUSE, A24 movies, video games to get through quarantine, and much more!

Josh Robbins returns to Toxic Schlock to discuss the Alfred Hitchcock murder mystery classic REAR WINDOW. Michael and Josh dig into the horror vs thriller dynamic, the best and worst of found footage films, Hitchcock's iconic style, Arnold Schwarzenegger, envisioning a remake of Rear Window, and much more!

Recorded from their individual quarantines, Michael and Eric remotely dig into the 1950s sci fi schlock of CREATURE FROM GREEN HELL. Along with digging into the film and the Misfits song it spawned, the fiends catch up on Danzig's upcoming Elvis covers album, bootleg shirts, staying sane during Covid19, Verotika, ranking the 10 Misfits movies thus far, and much more! We did have some technical difficulties and sound level issues. We are still finding the best way to record remotely, so bare with us!

Bust out your VCRs, because this week on Toxic Schlock, Michael talks with Ben and Gregg of the Neon Brainiacs podcast to do a deep dive into the horror films of the 1980s. They ask the question "why was this decade so iconic for horror and what made this era different than the ones before it?", and touch on classics films like THE THING, EVIL DEAD 2, KILLER KLOWNS FROM OUTER SPACE, VIDEODROME, TETSUO THE IRON MAN, DEMONS, NIGHT OF THE CREEPS, and much more!

Grab your Venom and NASA patches, because this week we sat down with Matty Morand of Pretty Matty to discuss the 1987 Canadian classic "THE GATE". Matty and Michael dig into the power of family friendly horror, the reality of pre teen metal heads, the impact of ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK, the best (and worst) of modern American horror, and much more! 

In podcasts, no one can hear you scream! Michael sits down with Connor Jacobus of The Districts to discuss their mutual favorite film, ALIEN. They dive deep into the morbid genius of HR Giger, the b-movie origins of the plot, the power of a slow burn, and much more! But first, Michael also catches up on a slew of recent horror releases like THE INVISIBLE MAN, THE COLOR OUT OF SPACE, and THE LODGE!

Death comes ripping this week on Toxic Schlock when Michael sits down with actor/comic creator David Dastmalchian. David talks about his fantastic horror comic series Count Crowley, and his life long journey to see it made. They also touch upon David's work in some of the best genre films of the last 15 years, and then dive into the 1933 Universal monster classic The Invisible Man!

The fiends are coming to get you Barbara, because this week on Misfits Mondays, Michael and Eric revisit George A Romero's zombie classic NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD. The fiends dig into the greatness and legacy of Romero's work, the classic Misfits track of the same name, VEROTIK, recent Misfits gossip, The MANDALORIAN, THE GIRL ON THE THIRD FLOOR, Darren Aronofsky, Johnny and Gilbert Ramone, the brilliance of Tom Savini, and much more!

Whip out those peacemakers, because this week on the show we've got Tim Kasher of indie/post hardcore legends Cursive and The Good Life to dive into the underrated Stephen King adaptation SILVER BULLET. They dig deep into the film, as well as being an early adopter of VHS, falling deeper in love with horror later in life, the tragic brilliance of Gary Busey and Corey Haim, the PHANTATSM-SILVER BULLET connection, the film's gloriously obscured werewolf costume, Stephen King's signature dialogue, just how deep Tim's connection with the film gets, CHRISTMAS EVIL, the most promising rising filmmakers, and much more! Catch the dates for Cursive's upcoming western American tour at: https://cursivearmy.com/tour-dates/

In a very special episode, Michael sits down with his Misfits Mondays co-host Eric Kelly to look back at the 2010s in horror cinema. From their favorite films like THE WITCH and MANDY, to the stellar 2012 EVIL DEAD remake, to some of the not so great horror films, Michael and Eric discuss it all! The 2010s were a really special period for horror, so there was no shortage of cinema for the fiends to tear into!

Rev up those chainsaws, because this week on Toxic Schlock, Michael chats with Jessie Clavin of Bleached about one of the greatest horror movies of all time, Tobe Hooper's THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE. Michael and Jesse discuss the film's fairytale origins, cleverly implying gore, the unique experience of growing up in Los Angeles, the trauma of CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST, the soul purifying experience of falling in love with horror, and much more!

Toxic Schlock goes back to high school this week with a chat with Sam Woodring (formerly of modern emo/indie greats Two Inch Astronaut and now of Mister Goblin) about the modern darkly comedic film Jennifer's Body. Sam and Michael dive into this deeply under-appreciated film, it's miscalculated promotion campaign, it's relevance in the modern landscape, the pitch perfect depiction of late 2000s adolescence, and much more!

Prime Directive: EXTERMINATE! The fiends return for a jam packed episodes of Misfits Mondays. Eric and Michael dig into the 1968 b-movie THE ASTRO-ZOMBIES, the recently announced Philly show, their Halloween retrospectives, Danzig's hilarious 80s movie reviews, The Mandalorian, the latest edition of absurd Misfits merchandise, and the toxicity of binge-watching culture.

Toxic Schlock gets extra gorey this week with Matt Harvey of Death Metal giants EXHUMED. Michael and Matt dig deep into the 1980 Fulci classic CITY OF THE LIVING DEAD, where they discuss the power of Italian horror, the distinctions between Dario Argento and Lucio Fulci, 80s euro sleaze horror, the intensity of Bay Area Powerviolence, the staggering popularity of late 80s thrash metal, and much more!