Horrorpunk comes in many shapes and forms and I have been fortunate, doing this feature, to chat to many talented horrorpunk artists. All of these bands have horror as the deep-rooted core of their music and they bring this theme out in different styles. We have introduced you to the heavier side, the experimental and the punky side of horrorpunk. This is why we love this genre so much... and there is more to come! Please welcome The Tomb Tones for some family friendly horrorpunk in this latest instalment of Upcoming Talent.
Scene Point Blank: Thank you so much for joining us, guys. Please start off by introducing yourselves, telling us where you are from, who you are, who plays what and how The Tomb Tones started out.
The Tomb Tones: Hi Sarah! Thanks so much for having us! I’m Kyle from The Tomb Tones in Atlanta, GA. I’m on vocals and guitar, and my bandmates are Carl Sin on bass and Brent Cognito on drums. We’ve been friends for decades and have played in various configurations over the years, but officially started as The Tomb Tones in 2017 when I started writing more horror-focused songs.
Scene Point Blank: How would you describe your sound and what influences The Tomb Tones musically and lyrically?
The Tomb Tones: I like to say we’re somewhere between the B-52’s, the Ramones, and The Twilight Zone. I listen to a lot of “Halloween” music year-round, and I remember when we started, I was frustrated that Christmas seemed to have thousands of songs in the popular consciousness, but Halloween playlists tend to feature the same few dozen over and over, and a lot of the best ones are almost 50 years old. So I really dove into Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, Screaming Lord Sutch, and songs like “Monster Mash,” and tried to unpack what worked so well about them for me and made them feel like classics, so that we could try to make our own version of that. The storytelling structure, humor, and rock ’n’ roll swing-style stood out as my favorite parts, so it took a bit of experimentation to recreate that in our own style and modernize the sound while staying true to the retro rock feel.
Scene Point Blank: What kind of horror inspires you as a band, e.g. supernatural/paranormal/true stories/gore/monsters/the living dead or the undead? Do you find you draw from movies more or from personal spooky experiences?
The Tomb Tones: I have had a fascination with Halloween (the holiday) and the sillier side of horror for a long time -- B-movies and the pop culture phenomenon surrounding them -- but I also don’t like to lean too heavily on specific existing/copyrighted character references in my writing unless it’s done as a tongue-in-cheek thing or as part of a bigger concept (like Horror Beach). But I’ll always prefer developing an original idea with substance over blatant fan-service. Generally I try to think of a genuine fear I have -- for example, dying without getting to say goodbye -- and how I can turn that into something humorous that takes the edge off a bit. That idea turned into our song “Ghost Story.” My social anxiety was a big influence with “Sick Sense.” Fear of falling out of love turned into “Taxidermized.” I think the heart of most of our songs is something real, under a layer of kitsch to make it fun.
Scene Point Blank: Do consider yourselves to be old school classic horror fans or is there something to be said for modern horror? If so, has anything new caught your attention recently?
The Tomb Tones: Classic ‘30s, ‘80s, 2010s... I’m not picky. I love Universal Monsters films, John Carpenter and Tobe Hooper films, and I love A24 films too. I thought X and Pearl as a duology were brilliant. The only thing I’m maybe not as big a fan of is gore without substance to back it up. Horror is about the human experience, not just about seeing people get ripped in half.
Scene Point Blank: Have you or anyone you know had a supernatural or paranormal experience? Please elaborate...
The Tomb Tones: Honestly I’m not the biggest believer in the paranormal, at least in the literal sense. I think a lot of the stuff we think of as ghosts, night terrors, etc. is our psyche trying to talk to us.
Scene Point Blank: Do you have a favourite horror character or franchise? If so who or what are they?
The Tomb Tones: I love The Thing. It’s one of my favorite movies of all time. I really enjoy the Scream series as well, it gives me all the nostalgia vibes.
Scene Point Blank: You hail from Atlanta, Georgia. What is the scene like for bands like yourself?
The Tomb Tones: Atlanta has a pretty dynamic music scene -- a lot of rockabilly, punk, garage and bar rock -- and many have been welcoming to us. We kind of straddle that weird line in between a few of those genres, so we’ve been able to find a crowd amongst different circles, but we’re never a “perfect fit” either, due to being kind of a kitschy blend of genres. So I think it’s helped us have a broader base, but also meant that we’re not considered a “true” fit into any one genre, which can have drawbacks.
Scene Point Blank: When it comes to playing gigs is there much opportunity to put on many in your hometown or do you find yourselves travelling out of town a lot?
The Tomb Tones: We play almost exclusively in Atlanta. We’re all in our late 30s and with work and families, it’s just a “do what we can, when we can” kind of thing.
Scene Point Blank: When and where was your very first live show and how did it go?
The Tomb Tones: Our first show as a full live band was for our friends Zac and Courtney’s Halloween house party in 2018. It was way out in the country, to a small handful of maybe 5 people. But we still had fun and learned a bit of how to banter in a low-risk environment.
"We played the local zoo for a Halloween festival and mosh pit of children broke out in front of us."
Scene Point Blank: What can we expect from The Tomb Tones live show now?
The Tomb Tones: We play a lot of special events -- Halloween festivals in Atlanta, vampire balls, conventions, and things like that. So if it’s a big event show, there’s sure to be a big crowd in costumes. During the rest of the year, it’s a mixed bag -- but always a blast. We’ve gotten a lot more dynamic with the song selection and banter, and the stage has become a place for me to just lose my mind during our show.
Scene Point Blank: If you could play a gig with any band (past or present) who would it be and why?
The Tomb Tones: The Beatles for sure. Imagine the exposure we’d get!
Scene Point Blank: Do you have any funny/gross stories to tell from when you've been out on the road?
The Tomb Tones: Some of the funniest moments have been when we’ve been hired to play more “family-friendly” events, which has been a perk of being a mostly clean band. We played the local zoo for a Halloween festival and mosh pit of children broke out in front of us. But those shows are also very rewarding -- many people have told me their kids want to learn to play guitar or start a band after seeing us, and that’s the biggest compliment I could ask for.
Scene Point Blank: To those people out there who are unfamiliar with The Tomb Tones now is the time to talk about yourselves, all your recordings,(EPs, singles, etc.). Can you give us the low down on all of your recordings to date, please?
The Tomb Tones: We’ve got two full albums out: Pumpkin Guts (2020) and [/i]Ghost of Toast [/i](2023). Pumpkin Guts is a great starting point for new listeners, and we just recently remastered it and added new bonus tracks to it. Ghost of Toast is more of a concept album, loosely telling the comical story of haunted piece of bread in rock ’n’ roll format. And our most recent release was a collab cover of “Hex Girl” from Scooby-Doo that we did with the talented and gracious Jess-O-Lantern.
We’ve also been honored to be featured on a number of compilations, including upcoming We Are Horror Records’ Horrorpunk’s Not Dead Vol. 3! I think the main thing we’ve learned is that things worth doing correctly take time, and that the real magic of this gig comes from the audience, so it’s important to make people who invest their time in us feel seen and appreciated. That being said, one of the biggest challenges has been the internet’s 3-second attention span and getting past the idea that our music is only relevant at Halloween-time, and guiding new listeners to our Spotify page.
Scene Point Blank: What do you consider the pros and cons of being a DIY band?
The Tomb Tones: I’m very proud of the fact that we do everything DIY. It takes longer, but it means that our only limits are what we are able to achieve technically, which pushes us to be constantly learning and growing our skillsets.
Scene Point Blank: What do you all do to make a living outside of music?
The Tomb Tones: I’ve worked in film production for 12 years as a colorist (some projects I’ve worked on include Haunting of Hill House, The Conjuring 3, and Exorcist: Believer) and have recently moved into marketing. Brent’s in sales and Carl is in live media production.
Scene Point Blank: What do you consider to be The Tomb Tones greatest achievement to date?
The Tomb Tones: I’m definitely most proud of our albums. I never fully realized how much work goes into an album until we produced our own, and I love that it’s out there in the world for people to find and appreciate.
Scene Point Blank: If The Tomb Tones were superheroes what would be your special powers? Would you wear your underpants over or under your costumes?
The Tomb Tones: If I could have a superpower, I’d want to be able to clone myself. With so much going on, it’s hard to find time to just stop and rest. So I guess my supercostume would just be a bathrobe on the couch with a cat in my lap.
Scene Point Blank: What is next for The Tomb Tones?
The Tomb Tones: It’s a bit outside of genre for us, but we’re hosting a big local music night called “Hawkfest” that’s a tribute to Tony Hawk Pro Skater soundtracks, which were I think a big influence for many millennials growing up. I booked 10 bands to play 4 songs each, from any of the games. So I’m really excited for that (April 6 at Star Bar in Atlanta, if you’re in the area). We’re also working on laying down a few fun covers to release over the next several months, while we write new material for whatever becomes the next album.
Please, follow and connect with us!
www.thetombtones.com/music is the best way to get to whichever music service you use!
Scene Point Blank: Thank you again for taking part in this feature. It has been a pleasure. Please use this space to shout out other bands, etc., or mention anything else about yourselves you think will be beneficial to your band and any other bands, friends, family, neighbours, pets or any venues you think deserve a shout out!
The Tomb Tones: I’d like to give a shoutout to the people who have supported us most: my wife Melissa, her best friend Cara Caravan, Brent’s girlfriend Nikki, my sister Megan, and our dear friend Katie. We’re truly lucky to have a support system with such wonderful people in it. And to the Star Bar in Little 5 Points for always being a home base to us. Thank you so much Sarah and Scene Point Blank for the interview and always cheering us on! Stay Spooky and Happy Halloween!
