Fröhliche Krampusnacht!

It's Krampusnacht, and that means that all of the bad children will be visited by Krampus tonight! Krampus, the Christmas Devil and evil counterpart of St. Nicholas, is a cloven-hooved, goat-demon that punishes bad children with a lash of his birch branched switch, then transports them to Hell inside the wicker basket upon his back.

Have you been good this year?

Photo courtesy of Liv Rainey-Smith/Xylographilia.

Photo courtesy of Sean Gallup/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of Matej Divisna/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of Miguel Walch.

Photo courtesy of Hexe Productions.

Photo courtesy of Fest300/Krampusnacht 2013.

Photo courtesy of Stefan Koidl.

And a little homage to the horned-one himself from the 2015 Michael Daugherty film of the same name to put you in a ghastly yuletide mood... "Cloven" by composer Douglas Pipes. Enjoy!

  

Fröhliche Krampusnacht!

Gruss vom Krampus!

It's Krampusnacht, and that means that all of the bad children will be visited by Krampus tonight! Krampus, the Christmas Devil and evil counterpart of St. Nicholas, is a cloven-hooved, goat-demon that punishes bad children with a lash of his birch branched switch, then transports them to Hell inside the wicker basket upon his back.

Have you been good this year?

Photo courtesy of Liv Rainey-Smith/Xylographilia.

Photo courtesy of Sean Gallup/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of Matej Divisna/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of Miguel Walch.

Photo courtesy of Hexe Productions.

Photo courtesy of Fest300/Krampusnacht 2013.

Photo courtesy of Stefan Koidl.

And a little homage to the horned-one himself from the 2015 Michael Daugherty film of the same name to put you in a ghastly yuletide mood... "Cloven" by composer Douglas Pipes. Enjoy! 

  

Fröhliche Krampusnacht!

Gruss vom Krampus!

It's Krampusnacht, and that means that all of the bad children will be visited by Krampus tonight! Krampus, the Christmas Devil and evil counterpart of St. Nicholas, is a cloven-hooved, goat-demon that punishes bad children with a lash of his birch branched switch, then transports them to Hell inside the wicker basket upon his back.

Have you been good this year?

Photo courtesy of Liv Rainey-Smith/Xylographilia.

Photo courtesy of Matej Divisna/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of Hexe Productions.

Photo courtesy of Fest300/Krampusnacht 2013.

And a little homage to the horned-one himself from the 2015 Michael Daugherty film of the same name to put you in a ghastly yultide mood... "Cloven" by composer Douglas Pipes. Enjoy!

  

Douglas Pipes - Trick 'r Treat

Today's torrential downpours have really taken it out of me. Quite a few little things left to do before the big night, but tonight I think I'm just going to crawl under a blanket and watch my annual Halloween classic.

But until then, I think I'm going to fire up the trusty turntable and spin the amazing soundtrack to said annual Halloween classic...

Always wear a costume

Hand out treats

Never blow out a jack-o-lantern

Always check your candy

Fröhlich Krampusnacht!

Gruss vom Krampus!

Have you all been good girls and boys this year? If not, you'll be visited tonight by Krampus, the European cloven-hooved, goat-demon who punishes bad children during this holiday season. With a flick of his long tongue and a lash from his birch branched switch, you'll be placed into the basket upon his back and transported to Hell to receive reprimand for all of your misdeeds...

Have you been good this year?

Fröhliche Krampusnacht!

Photo courtesy of Sean Gallup/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of Matej Divisna/Getty Images.

Photo courtesy of iamexpat.de

Photo courtesy of adobestock

And enjoy "Cloven" from the 2015 Michael Dougherty film, Krampus. Douglas Pipes' perfect track to accompany you on your trip to Hell...

"Krampus" Soundtrack by Douglas Pipes

Okay, just one more Krampus-themed post for 2017. But first, a little story...

Back in the winter of 2015, I quickly decided that I wanted to see Michael Dougherty's new holiday horror film, Krampus. After his now cult classic, Trick 'r Treat, became a mainstay in my Halloween traditions, I figured I'd give this one a shot to see if it would be added to my Christmas traditions as well.

The day before Christmas Eve, I had a late afternoon physical therapy session. I was rehabbing from surgery on a badly broken finger, thanks to an awesome mountain bike crash earlier in the summer. The therapy session was an hour long and I was completely against heading back to work at 4:00 on the day before Christmas break, so I decided that I was going to the movie theater to see Krampus instead. Alone.

Truth be told, I had never gone to a theater to see a movie on my own (which is kind of weird, because I have done just about everything else on my own!). I walked up to the ticket  counter and waited in line to get my ticket. I got to the counter and said, "One ticket for Krampus, please." The young girl working the counter looked up at me with a startled look on her face. Smiling, she said, "Wow! Someone NOT here to see Star Wars!"

D'oh! As I looked over to the entrance into the theater, I could see the line. EVERYONE was in line, waiting to see Star Wars: The Force Awakens. My palms got sweaty...

I grabbed my ticket, quickly walked past the line and found the theater number that was playing MY film. I walked in and looked around.

Not a single person in the theater. "Cool, I'm early so I get first pick at a seat." I of course picked a seat right in the middle of the theater for maximum sight and sound.

The previews started playing and I kicked back and relaxed a bit. Still nobody else in the theater.

After the endless parade of previews to films that I had absolutely no interest in seeing, the movie started. I could still hear the line of people outside the door, waiting for Star Wars. But still nobody else came into my theater.

Ten minutes into the movie, I made the joyous realization that nobody else WAS coming in. I had the whole damn theater to myself!! I kicked my feet up onto the seat in front of me, and with a relaxed grin, I sat back and enjoyed the hell out of Krampus. Alone in a theater, the night before Christmas Eve.

It was probably one of the best theater experiences I will ever have.

And because of that, Krampus will always hold a special place in my heart. But also because I really enjoyed the film, too.


One year later, Waxwork Records put out an incredible double-vinyl version of the film's amazing soundtrack, composed by Douglas Pipes (who also composed the soundtrack to Trick 'r Treat, another favorite of mine!).

I was able to score the limited double-picture disc version, featuring the amazing "evil elves" from the film. Pipes has done an amazing job of merging cheery holiday melodies and menacing, tense, dark rhythms to create a new Christmastime classic.

I absolutely love everything about this soundtrack and it has become a staple in my post-Halloween playlist...

It's Time To Make The Props!

I've got a full, uninterrupted evening of Halloween prop making ahead of me tonight, and I can't wait to get started! I've got the night's soundtrack all cued up...

Have a great weekend everyone!!