I love Halloween. And in honor of, this will be the first of a two part Halloween Special. And because the holiday seems to take on two flavors, the Horrific and the Fun, one part will be dedicated to each. Part 1 is for Horror.
The song is Disappear by Motion City Soundrack. Released October 19th 2009. It is the first single from their fourth studio album "My Dinosaur Life". A song of anger. It successfully twists frustration into body horror. In this song we get a little taste of what it must be like to become The Monster.
For this episode I'd like to have a little fun and use these lyrics to tell a story.
Imagine, you and your best friends from Motion City Soundtrack are on a fun autumn trek in the darling woods of their home state, Minnesota. Josh (Joshua Cain - lead guitarist, but of course you knew that because your are a huge fan and even bigger friend) notices a cave in a nearby hill. Justin (Justin Courtney Pierre - lead singer and hike leader) eagerly encourages all the team to explore it with him. Matt (Matthew Taylor - Bassman Bassman) is apprehensive and is the last one into the cave. About 20 yards in, the tunnel makes a sudden downward turn to the left. Following Justin, guided by only his voice and faint phone-light, you descend. Suddenly, the earth begins to moan. Let the song begin.
To the deep end. To the hard line
A rumble! The Earth shifts! A cave-in!
Earth falls behind you. Your exit is blocked. You are trapped! And every fear you had has been realized. Your heart starts to beat louder. We've crossed the hardline, into the part of the pool that our mothers forbade us from visiting. And I doubt we will find metaphorical floats at the bottom.
Hold it straight together, man
Hold it straight together if you can
"Hold it together!" Justing implores frantically.
Calm down? How are we going to get out of here? Or is Justin talking to himself?
Which is falling apart faster, the walls or us?
Little fevers's wrapped in medication
All strung out on novelty
Collapse yourself and try to comprehend
Panic immediately sets on the group. Tony (Anthony Thaxton - beloved drummer and horticulturalist) sobs quietly in the corner. Justin too is bent over not feeling well. In fact, he looks ill, green even. And he's mumbling something that sounds like a nursery rhyme... going on and on. But wait, was that a smile?
Why is he giggling?
An angry island
A bitter bee sting
Severing each artery
To free the self and fix the in-betweens
Jesse (Jesse Johnson - the man with all the keys and boards) trys to calm and organize the group. He begins stating we need to conserve oxygen. All the while, Justin's laugh grows deep in his belly. The nursery rhyme becomes a limerick about mice in a trap and a large cat about to eat them.
We didn't stumble upon this cave at all, did we Justin? The plot thickens as He begins a twisted story about what he calls his "beautiful transformation": On tour in a distant land, a seemingly harmless insect-sting has left him ill. His his face begins to shift and his eyes begin to glow.
Isolation, mark the earth around you
Guess who's on the waiting list
I'll let you in on something secret
The cave is now a den. As a predator claiming his corner, Justin crouches and begins his transformation. Horrific screams fill the den as he begins shedding. Skin falls to the cave floor, leaving scales and fur covering his body. Claws replace fingernails and fangs for teeth.
You and the rest of the band become trapped sailors in a sinking submarine, clawing up the walls for escape. Your own screams are drowned out by the the howl of the beast just feet from you. You are trapped. It bows down on all fours. And just before it strikes -
You wake up.
Turns out you fell asleep waiting for Stranger Things season 2 with your horror playlist on and you missed the premier. Now you are at least 12 hours behind everyone else in your Netflix references and social media is full of "OMG did you guess that _______? #strangerthings2"
You are so frustrated that you clench your fists. The anger is almost boiling over. Your eye begins to twitch. Then suddenly, the high screeching vocals of Justin flood back into your head. You too are sloughing off your humanity. You bow down on all fours as the the chorus rings out.
I can disappear
Anytime I want to, time I feel you
Shuffle through my skin
I am with you to the end
I can decompose
When it suits me I accelerate it
Wicked on all fours
I surrender to the storm
You too have a monster inside you, thrashing, looking for a place to haunt. And like a threat, you let the world know (in the form of a tweet you just posted) that at anytime, if you so much as feel a whisper of a Stranger Things spoiler, you will give into your rage, shed your human form, and become the wicked Demogorgon releasing Hell on Hawkins.
But hey, turns out all your Saturday plans just got canceled. Sweet! Time to stay home, watch season 2 and do eat Doritos that just fell on the floor.
Happy Halloween (Part 1...)
