I feel like it has been a while since our last Upcoming Talent feature but we are back with a bang to bring you news of a shiny new solo project from Indianapolis. Meet Pretty With The Lights Out, a quirky horror themed punk rock project whose mastermind, Nate, has many a spooky tale to tell as well as everything you need to know about his vision...
Scene Point Blank: Thank you so much for joining us. Please start off by introducing yourselves, telling us who you are, who plays what, where you are from and how Pretty With The Lights Out came about.
Pretty With The Lights Out: Hello, thanks for having us! I’m Nate Laff (yep, pronounced like laugh). Pretty With The Lights Out is horrorpunk from Indianapolis, Indiana. On stage, I am the singer and lead guitarist, but in the studio, I do everything, including all production for now. PWTLO is a “hired gun band,” which essentially means I am a solo artist who writes and records the music, but musicians are hired to play live shows to bring the band feel and energy to the stage. There are a few bands in horrorpunk of a similar nature, such as Argyle Goolsby and the Roving Midnight.
Scene Point Blank: How would you describe your sound and what influences Pretty With The Lights Out, musically and lyrically?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Pretty With The Lights Out is punk with a dash of metal and your typical horrorpunk themes: Halloween, horror movies and themes, yadda, yadda, yadda. Lyrically and musically, I decide on a song title first, and then I start building around that. Like the band name itself, I enjoy stringing together longer phrases that are unique, so if someone types it into the Google machine, they will only find us. I like puns, so songs generally start there. Some of our longer song titles are “The Best Revenge is Living Hell” and “Friday Night’s Alright for Frightnin’,” a play on Elton John’s “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting” about the thrills and romance of a horror movie at the drive-in.
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 personal spooky experiences?
Pretty With The Light Out : Monsters are my first love in the genre. I like horror with empathy and monsters, especially the ones that don’t know or intend to be villains, are my favorite. Our track, “We Belong Dead” is obviously based on my favorite horror film, The Bride of Frankenstein, but I generally prefer to draw from original ideas and personal experience rather than pulling from any existing source material. “The Best Revenge Is Living Hell” is, at face value, a story of vengeance, snubbing the idea of “the best revenge is living well.” However, beneath the surface it was written as a personification of disease or other health issues. In the future, though, if I do reference anything specific, I will stick to things that haven’t been touched before. For example, our new single “Zeke the Plumber” is from a one-off episode of a ‘90s TV series Salute Your Shorts that I loved as a kid. Zeke left an impression on me back then and I was surprised there wasn't a similar track about him already.
Scene Point Blank: Have you or anyone you know had a supernatural or paranormal experience? Please elaborate...
Pretty With The Lights Out: Oh wow, that could be a whole separate interview! The short answer is yes. We don’t like saying our home is “haunted,” but rather “coinhabited” by least one entity with us. Sometimes there will be a shadow cat that will run by, and our friends have felt it brush against their leg. It’s also been seen as a woman and shadow figure. Recently, a friend I have made through PWTLO did a reading for us and corroborated what we have felt. She found what she interpreted as a woman’s spirit had attached to a family member and came home with us. We have noticed this presence for quite a while and seems it even moved across the country with us. “She” makes herself at home in my recording studio as her safe place, which certainly tracks with experiences. It’s not necessarily scary and there is a shared respect, but sometimes it can be a little unsettling. We will help facilitate her crossing and she will supposedly let us know she is ready, which is apparently not right now.
I also did an interview for a documentary that will be releasing this October called The Salt House, which my friend Adam Stoner (tattooer & musician) has made about his experiences in his home and his tattoo studio, The Rue Morgue Tattoo Gallery in Franklin, IN. I would highly recommend checking that out. Both my wife, who works in the tattoo shop, and I give stories of what we’ve experienced in those places.
Scene Point Blank: Do you have a favourite horror character or franchise? If so who or what are they?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Shockingly, I like very few horror movies after the ‘90s and 2000s. Modern horror doesn't do much for me. All my favorite horror flicks were released before I was born. I’m more of a “classics” type of guy with Universal Monsters always having been my favorite. Not primarily regarded as horror, Ghostbusters was my first experience with the concept as a kid. Being terrified by The Librarian Ghost is one of the earliest memories I have. Even more than horror, I am drawn to comedy, so whenever they’re combined, I’m generally going to have a good time. In that vein, I think Freddy Krueger is a wonderfully crafted character. Ash Williams (Evil Dead) is another favorite for the same reason.
Scene Point Blank: You hail from Indianapolis, IN. What is the scene like for bands like yourself?
Pretty With The Lights Out: My wife, daughter, and I relocated to Indianapolis from Denver, CO, in 2020, so we’re still learning the area and scene. One of the awesome things here is Punk Rock Night at the Melody Inn, which has hosted a punk show every Saturday night since 2000! It’s generally the stop for bands like us that are from out of town. A few bands in the current generation of horrorpunk have stopped by recently, such as our We Are Horror Records labelmates Won’t Stay Dead. Pretty hasn't played PRN yet, but I can’t wait to!
Scene Point Blank: When it comes to playing gigs is there much opportunity to put on many shows in your hometown or do you find yourselves travelling out of town a lot?
Pretty With The Lights Out: For right now, the focus is Indiana. Because everyone in Pretty With The Lights Out is a hired musician, there is a greater personal investment from me. When everyone is in a “band,” there is the shared comradery and expense, which means more willingness to pile into a van and go get paid in beer. For hired guns, I need to ensure they’re compensated, and for out-of-town shows, that means having to pay for a place to stay and making sure they’re fed. Luckily, we’re very close to other major cities like Cincinnati, Columbus, and Louisville, so we will certainly be heading there in the future.
Scene Point Blank: What can we expect from a Pretty With The Lights Out live show now?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Pretty does not have a “gimmick.” There is no face paint, vampire fangs, and I don’t have a cool stage name. That is definitely not a knock to those that do it; I love the theatrics in the genre. But without it, I need to rely on grabbing attention quickly with personality wrapped up in a memorable name, good song writing, and a tight performance. And having a catalogue built up and released ensures someone will be able to leave the show, ideally with one or more songs stuck in their head, and each one will be available to stream or purchase immediately so we’re not forgotten hours after the show ends. I wanted to build the brand and have awareness before even hitting the stage. I don’t have any desire to be a weekend warrior, playing every single weekend, so there will be space between shows to let that demand build a little bit and have people excited to come see us, making it more of an event that we’re playing rather than a certainty.
Scene Point Blank: If you could play a gig with any band (past or present) who would it be and why?
Pretty With The Lights Out: GWAR for sure! They have been my favorite band since I was 12 years-old. While things are not quite the same since Dave Brockie (Oderus Urungus) passed away, I will always support them, and they’ll always be a part of me. Having my name on the same bill as GWAR is definitely a goal!
Scene Point Blank: To those people out there who are unfamiliar with Pretty With The Lights Out, now is the time to talk about yourself: all your recordings, Eps, singles, etc. So can you give us the low down on all of your recordings to date please?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Our EP, Pumpkin Spice Formaldehyde, released in March 2023, is a six-song compilation of our first singles. It included two new songs, “Do Not (not) Resuscitate” which is a little slower compared to the rest, and “The Best Revenge Is Living Hell.”
We originally hit the scene with a single that was not released on the EP, “Little Gizmo (A Merry Mogwai Christmas),” a Gremlins-themed Christmas song, which was a collaboration between Adam Stoner and me. I did all the music for that track, and Adam was on vocals. The song is ridiculous with these over-the-top Dio/Metallica-like vocals, and a Gremlins vocal section which is all Adam. We didn't do any vocal processing; he did all of that naturally. In hindsight, making it the first single was a bad idea because it was confusing--especially here locally with people not realizing the collaboration aspect--thinking Adam was the singer of PWTLO. Adding to the confusion is that I am the hired gun guitarist for Adam’s solo band. The single was pulled from streaming right before the EP came out, but the singalong style lyric video remains on YouTube because it’s a part of PWTLO history and brings a smile to my face. It was my first attempt at mixing and mastering, and there are some issues for sure.
However, recording “Gizmo” was quite interesting in the paranormal sense. In addition to the crying-laughter that occurred in the studio as we were trying to get through Adam’s vocal takes, there was an incident where I was looking at him, and I saw his face light up as he saw what he thought was my wife, Anna, peeking her head around the corner to see if she could come in. In a split second, his face went from joy to pale white terror as his brain reconciled that it was not, in fact, Anna. He was looking at the shadow of the entity that hangs out in the studio peeking around the wall. He is quite seasoned when it comes to the paranormal, but that one shook him up, even to this day. Simultaneously, on the main level of the house, Anna texted me to tell me that one of our cats was sound asleep and then suddenly fled terrified from his bed. Something spooked him badly, and it was weeks before he would go back to that bed. He would walk around it very carefully, sniffing it to make sure it was safe. So, some pretty good energy burst through the house at that moment. We began filming the rest of the session, which sadly resulted in no evidence.
Occasionally, when I am recording, I will start video recording as well if I’m feeling that energy down there, but so far nothing good has been captured besides an occasional orb. It’s been fairly quiet down there lately.
Scene Point Blank: Your releases to date, Pumpkin Spice Formaldehyde and “Zeke The Plumber” have been released through We Are Horror Records. How does this this relationship work for unsigned bands?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Actually, “Zeke” and four of the tracks on Pumpkin Spice Formaldehyde were all self-released. The only thing technically considered a label release was the physical copy of the EP itself. WAHR approached me last year about releasing an album or EP, and since it was already my plan to compile the existing singles onto an album, I went for it. The biggest benefit of doing it this way was having Dan (WAHR) as an extra cheerleader to help promote and push things to ‘zines for review and promo. I can truthfully say it otherwise wouldn’t have gotten that attention that it did from them. I’m surely only here for this interview now because Dan helped spread the word on that release and his early support of PWTLO on his radio show “Horrorpunk’s Not Dead.” Releasing through WAHR also ensured that I was held accountable to choose a release date and stick to it instead of constantly moving the goal post, avoiding a perfectionist attitude or “just one more” syndrome. If I self-released, I probably would have waited to complete “Zeke,” which was in the pipeline… then I would have started another and waited for it, then another… so it was a good constraint for me.
Scene Point Blank: With the news that We Are Horror Records going on hiatus, will Pretty With The Lights Out be going it alone for the time being?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Dan has become a great friend through the process of releasing Pumpkin Spice Formaldehyde -- we chat every day! But my production, plans, or output were not really affected by WAHR. Being on the label resulted in a wonderful PR push from someone with more visibility and a bigger platform than we have organically, and a rad a logo on the back of the release. But “being signed” isn’t what it used to be! There was no financial investment from WAHR--it was much more of a time investment from him, which was very appreciated. The WAHR deal was very easy and straight-forward and artist friendly. There was no ownership taken from anything on our end. I don’t envision Pretty being on another label any time soon. Never say never, I suppose, but I am not aware of any other type of deal that makes sense for my scenario. I know of deals in the genre where the label can take your logo and art and print it on whatever they want without your input and you don’t see a dime of that, which I can’t wrap my head around. Our branding is our strongest asset, and I would say that’s true for most bands, so to lose any control or profit there doesn't interest me at all. A second pressing of Pumpkin Spice Formaldehyde will be done soon as a self-release with the first run being nearly sold out.
Scene Point Blank: What do you consider to be the pros and cons of being a solo artist?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Pretty With The Lights Out’s existence is two-fold. I wanted to make a footprint in a genre that has meant so much to me for over half my life. More so, I wanted to have something for my wife and daughter as a legacy of sorts. If I die tomorrow, they can hear my voice, hear me playing my guitar again, and remember my humor and my terrible puns. Being in a band is hard. Feelings, egos, schedules, and opinions all jiving with three or more people is a difficult balance to find. I like not being limited by any of that. I can write and perform the music exactly as I want, when I want. The artists that are hired for the stage don’t have to commit to anything long term and can come and go as needed without hard feelings or drama. If one drummer isn’t available for a show, I can use my other drummer! If someone just isn’t feeling it anymore and is ready to move on that’s fine, too! I’m fortunate right now to mostly have my friends being the first guys joining me, but should they decide to move on it doesn't negatively affect the friendship.
"If I die tomorrow, my family can hear my voice, hear me playing my guitar again, and remember my humor and my terrible puns."
Scene Point Blank: What do you do to make a living outside of music?
Pretty With The Lights Out: I am a software engineer. I created software for tattoo and body piercing studios to manage their business. I have been doing that since 2010. It is one of the most popular apps of its kind and is used by many of the top tattoo studios and artists in the world. This has allowed me to be tattooed by many amazing artists at tattoo conventions across the country, which has been an incredible experience.
Scene Point Blank: What do you consider to be Pretty With The Lights Out’s greatest achievement to date?
Pretty With The Lights Out: Because of Pretty, I was put on the radar of my then-acquaintance but now friend, Tracy Byrd (T.B. Monstrosity of Blitzkid). Last year, I was asked to record rhythm guitars for an upcoming EP for one of the bands he is in, Dragnun. I have since gone on to record and produce other things for him as well. So, while it’s not an accomplishment of the band necessarily, it gave me an opportunity to collaborate with one of my horrorpunk heroes!
Our song “Down, Down to Goblin Town” has certainly received the most attention. The song is a cover from the 1977 animated film adaptation of The Hobbit. I loved the song as a kid and always thought it would make for a cool cover. Power metal fans seem to agree, as that is where it is the most popular. That is not a genre I have ever listened to and wouldn’t know how to write a song for it. It really hits there and ends up on a lot of those playlists. I suppose it must just be due to the source material.
Scene Point Blank: What is next for Pretty With The Lights Out?
Pretty With The Lights Out: The focus is now moving to the stage. We are just confirmed the inaugural home show for September 23 at The Hoosier Dome here in Indy with some of our favorite current horrorpunk artists, Won’t Stay Dead and Pumpkin Guts!
There is another single that is already completed that will probably be released around Halloween. But, maybe I just get bored one weekend and decide it’s time. One of the many freedoms of being DIY! I am considering releasing the track as a cassette single (cassingle) along with our latest “Zeke The Plumber” in one of those thick paper sleeves. The first music I bought for myself as a kid was Billy Joel’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire” cassingle, so that would be a neat throwback for me personally. With Zeke coming from a ‘90s show and this single being, well, a surprise for now, let’s just say they both evoke that era of music, so both would be a good fit for that format.
A variety of shirt, tank and hoodie designs, as well as the Pumpkin Spice Formaldehyde CD and other accessories can be found on our website prettywiththelightsout.com.
Our merch is more popular than our music for sure. Someone will quickly buy a shirt even if they haven’t listened to a second of the music or even realize it’s a band. I bring shirts/tanks with me to tattoo conventions and put them in my booth and nearly sell out just because people like the name and design. I don’t shamelessly slap the logo on just anything, though, and I try to be thoughtful in what people would enjoy and will tie them into our releases. For example, when “Friday Night’s Alright For Fright’nin’” was released, we did a tank/panty promo to match the final girl/’90s movie vibe of the song. When you see a girl in a horror movie in her underwear and tank top, you know she’s not gonna make it! For “Zeke The Plumber” there was a fanny pack to match the summer camp theme.
We also have the Jack-o’-Lantern Social Club, a “fan club” of sorts based on our track of the same name. When you join, you get a little merch bundle that includes a plastic member card, embroidered patch, pin, guitar pick, and some other fun stuff. All members were thanked in our EP liner notes, and I send out surprise packages in the mail to all members every few months. I put every dollar earned from PWTLO right back into it, especially when it comes to the club. For example, this summer I sent out a set of Social Club coasters to all members and have another mailing about to happen. A lot of thought and care goes into the presentation of the club, even down to the custom envelope the welcome package comes in. I treat it as something that would make me happy as a fan. Getting any kind of mail other than bills and junk is always fun, and I try to make it a unique experience.
We’re on all social platforms, but Instagram/Facebook is the primary one: @prettywiththelightsout.
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.
Pretty With The Lights Out: Thank you for having me! I have always been a guitarist in every band I have been in since I was a teenager. This is my first time assuming the role of the frontman, which is not always easy being a lifetime introvert. I didn't have any preconceived notions about what Pretty would be or where it would go, I was just doing it for my own reasons, but the response I have received from within the community has been awesome and I appreciate the support
