Tuesday, August 19, 2008

I Saw the Vampire!

THOIA Lyric Challenge Day Two. Who delivered the best chops yesterday? And who will bring it on bigger and badder than ever today? You’ve got a classic vampire tale to work with this time around, from the June '54 issue of Adv into Weird Worlds #30








“The bats have left the bell tower
The victims have been bled
Red velvet lines the black box
Bela Lugosi's dead…”
---Bauhaus

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Vintage Vampire Ads


18 comments:

Patrick said...

I was so busy at work yesterday I didn't get to post- so since I am up late painting monsters tonight, I had to stop in for the new story. Loved the artwork once again- that corpse victim at the end is excellent!!

I kept hearing RATT rocking out in the background while reading this one (which made it EVEN scarier!!)...

"I think you've been caught (You have been caught)
At the scene of the crime (You have been caught)
At the scene of the...

Now I know what you've done to me
At the scene of the crime
Cold blooded bitch goin' out on me

I've got me a weapon, got me a loaded gun
You know I'll track you down
And you'll be on the run, no fun"

AndyDecker said...

not the most surprising end in the world, but that was some really great and moody artwork.

Who was the artist?

Mr. Cavin said...

Yeah. Loved the art but the story is like a two pager sort of strung out into five. My lyric submission would work better if the vampire's victim was female, granted.

She asked me to stay and I stole her room
She asked for my love and I gave her a dangerous mind
Now she's stupid in the street and she can't socialise
Well I love the little girl and I'll love her till the day she dies

She wails
Jimmy's guitar sound jealousies scream
Waiting at the lights know what I mean

Scary monsters, super creeps
Keeps me running, running scared
Scary monsters, super creeps
Keeps me running, running scared


David Bowie, Scary Monsters

Emby Quinn said...

I opted not to go for the obvious here. Hope that's cool.

I can feel it coming in the air tonight
Hold on
I've been waiting for this moment all my life
Hold on
Can you feel it coming in the air tonight
Hold on, hold on

Well, if you told me you were drowning
I would not lend a hand
I've seen your face before, my friend
But I don't know if you know who I am
Well, I was there and I saw what you did
I saw it with my own two eyes
So you can wipe off the grin
I know where you've been
It's all been a pack of lies

I can feel it coming in the air tonight
Hold on
I've been waiting for this moment all my life
Hold on
Can you feel it coming in the air tonight
Hold on, hold on

Well I remember, I remember, don't worry
How could I ever forget?
It's the first time
The last time we ever met
But I know the reason why you keep your silence up
No, you don't fool me
The hurt doesn't show
But the pain still grows
It's no stranger to you or me

I can feel it coming in the air tonight
Hold on
I've been waiting for this moment all my life
Hold on
Can you feel it coming in the air tonight
Hold on
I've been waiting for this moment all my life
Hold on...


Genesis, "In The Air Tonight"

Chuck Wells said...

Lyrics from Bloodletting (The Vampire Song) by Concrete Blonde:

There's a crack in the mirror
and a bloodstain on the bed,
there's a crack in the mirror
and a bloodstain on the bed
O you were a vampire and baby
I'm walking dead
O you were a vampire and baby
I'm walking dead

There's a rocking chair by the window down the hall
I hear something there in the shadow down the hall
O you were a vampire and now I am nothing at all
O you were a vampire and now I am nothing at all

Mr. Karswell said...

>Who was the artist?

Manny Stallman. You can always click the highlighted issue link in the post intro that takes you to either GCD or the Atlas Tales site, 9 times out of 10 this info will always be available there (especially for Atlas stories.)

We're off to a rockin' start this mourn, keep 'em coming!

Tim Tylor said...

I'll go for the stalker's anthem:

Every breath you take
And every move you make
Every bond you break
Every step you take
I'll be watching you

Every single day
And every word you say
Every game you play
Every night you stay
I'll be watching you

Sting

Not my most original choice, but creepy as they come.

Unknown said...

Move aside
And let the man go through
Let the man go through

And by the phone
I live in fear
Sheer chance will draw
You into here


I wanted to go with "Paranoia" by Menthol, but good luck making out the lyrics.

silvano said...

Probably the best story in the last THOIA month or so ;
Sountrack courtesy of "THE HAUNTING" by THE MISFITS ...

Thanks for sharing

Anonymous said...

FOR ONCE I DONT AGREE WITH MR CAVIN. I THINK THIS STORY IS PACED PERFECTLY AND BUILDS TO A GREAT CLIMAX. REALLY LIKE THE ARTWORK

I SUCK LIKE A VAMPIRE AT THIS LYRIC STUFF THOUGH

Kitty LeClaw said...

"Hey, if you got atomic blood
And nothing to waste it on
I'm a sexual vampire
I'll eat your love tonight

I said hey, in the wreck of the subway train
Trapped and wasted away
Cos nobody saw the hands
I'll eat your heart tonight

Everybody's gonna die
Cos it's the end of the world

In the morning I get ready for the night
Cos baby, there's no red button in sight
I want to leave this world tonight..."


--Zombina and the Skeletones, End of the World

The Vicar of VHS said...

Well, they say no good deed goes unpunished...and no bad deed either! You can't fucking WIN with these comics, K!

I agree about the moody art here--very nice, almost like a storyboard of an arty student film, but in the best possible way.

As for lyrics today--if you're going to ROCK, I say, ROCKWELL:

I'm just an average man
With an average life
I work from nine to five
Hey, hell, I pay the price
All I want is to be left alone
In my average home
But why do I always feel
Like I'm in the twilight zone

And I always feel like
Somebody's watching me
And I have no privacy
Whooooa-oh-oh
I always feel like
Somebody's watching me
Tell me, is it just a dream

When I come home at night
I bolt the door real tight
People call me on the phone
I'm trying to avoid
But can the people on TV see me
Or am I just paranoid

When I'm in the shower
I'm afraid to wash my hair
'Cause I might open my eyes
And find someone standing there
People say I'm crazy
Just a little touched
But maybe showers remind me
Of Psycho too much
That's why

I always feel like
Somebody's watching me
And I have no privacy
Whooooa, oh-oh
I always feel like
Somebody's watching me
Who's playin' tricks on me



I don't know anymore
Are the neighbors watching me?
Well, is the mailman watching me?
And I don't feel safe anymore
Oh, what a mess
I wonder who's watching me now?
(Who?)
The IRS?!?!?


Peace out!
*does the robot, moonwalks*

Anonymous said...

Let's see, how about "The Voice" by Alan Parsons?

It's almost a feeling you can touch in the air,
You look all around you but nobody's there.
It's been a long time now since you've been aware
That someone is watching you...(he's gonna get you)...

Sooner or later when your big chances come,
You'll look for the catches but there'll be none.
Remember before you grab the money and run
That someone is watching you...(he's gonna get you)...

Before you run and hide
He's gonna get you.
You got no choice,
'Cause you can't escape the voice.

Jumping at shadows that come up from behind.
Scared of the darkness that's there in your mind,
You're frightened to move because of what you might find...
Someone is watching you...(he's gonna get you)...

Before you run and hide
He's gonna get you.
You got no choice,
'Cause you can't escape the voice.

Anonymous said...

Wow -- great story. It was almost like a Poe tale, with the dramatic evocation of fear, mounting to an unbearable terror. A tale very well told, even if the ending was predictable.

The art was just a good, I thought. The sightless eyes of the victim at the top of p2 were powerful. The increasing close-ups on the last two pages were quite cinematic and effective.

But who knew vampires have such bad acne?

I'm no good at these lyrics contests, but I think Emby wins with "In The Air Tonight."

Patrick said...

I'm relieved as hell that I am not judging the lyric contest this time around... This has been taken to a whole new level!!

Anonymous said...

It's Stallman art,isn't it?.haven't seen this one in years.as for lyrics,i can't think of any...but give me a deal-with-the-Devil story and i can definitely get to thinkin'.

Ger Apeldoorn said...

Yeah, I was just going to ad that this is typical of Stallman's later work.

Anonymous said...

A lyric finally came to me.


I saw the vampire,
But I did not see his deputy.
I saw the vampire,
But I did not help his deputy.

Yeah! All around in my home town,
They're tryin' to track me down;
They say they want to bring me in guilty
For seeing a vampire's deputy,
For the life of an undead deputy.
But I say:

Oh, now, now. Oh!

I saw the vampire,
But I ran away in self defense.
Oh, no! Yeah!
I saw the vampire,
And they say it is a capital offense.
Yeah! Ooh, ooh, oo-oh Yeah!

That vampire, he always hated me,
For what, I don't know;
The one time I walk down that alley,
He said kill you before you go,
He said kill you before you go.

Read it in the news:
I saw the vampire. Oh, Lord!
But I ran away in self-defense.
Where was the deputy? (Oo-oo-oh)
I say: I saw the vampire,
But I looked away in self defense. Oo-oh. Yeah!

Death came my way one day,
And I hid in my room, yeah!
All of a sudden I hear the deputy
Coming to bring my doom,
Because I saw - I saw - I saw the vampire, and I say:

Because I'm guilty I will pay.

I shot the vampire,
But I didn't help his deputy,
I didn't help no deputy -- oh, no-oh
I saw the vampire. I did!
But I didn't see no deputy. (Oo-oo-ooh)