Glass Eye pal Graham Reznick (I CAN SEE YOU, UNTIL DAWN) releases a psychedelic minimal house track titled ‘Melllon Balller.’ Performed as bed music during Fessenden’s live Tales From Beyond The Pale episode “The Vampire Party.“

For Juneteenth, 100% of Reznick’s Bandcamp sales today will be donated to BLM and Campaign Zero. In addition, Bandcamp is donating their revenue share today (and all Juneteenth’s going forward) to NAACP.

Listen HERE

Doug Jones, Ron Perlman and writer/director Jeff Buhler (Pet Sematary, Midnight Meat Train) chat after recording the TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE Space Oddity “This Oracle Moon”— now available on TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE The Podcast.

On the occasion of the World Premier of Glenn McQuaid’s new Tale From Beyond The Pale, “Die Sleeping My Sweet” The Pale Men have a chat about the project’s origins. Accompanying art are alternative poster designs by Tales regular Brian Level.

LARRY FESSENDEN: Glenn, This is such a remarkable story you’ve written. Can you tell us about how the idea came to you?

GLENN McQUAID: The initial idea came to me when I read an article about a doctor who was able to communicate with a comatose patient in basically the same way as I demonstrate in the piece, right down to the use of the imagination of playing tennis as a means to trigger a yes response. It all seemed like such an interesting set-up and something that would work well within the audio drama format, I especially wanted to perform Die Sleeping my Sweet live as the foley is particularly physical and I think the audience really enjoy seeing our foley artists at work. 

LF: Isn’t it true that even as we do audio plays, there is a mischievous awareness that we are putting on a live show that we want to be unique for the audience witnessing this one-time-only event. (we restrained ourselves for reasons of safety I think: “It’s always fun till someone loses an eye” as mother used to say.)

GMcQ: I remember wanting Chris Skotchdopole to whack the tennis balls into the audience with all his might, and basically everyone on stage, including my tennis-playing husband, Lee Nussbaum, who handles our sound recording, advising me that that was not one of my brighter ideas. I still think it’d have been hilarious for the audience to be getting hit by the tennis balls that were integral to the story telling. 

LF: You have managed to hit a really great tone with this Tale. Can you speak about your influences.

GMcQ: Thanks, I love the tone too. There’s an aspect of the piece that’s inspired by classic late-night soap operas like Dynasty, Dallas and Falcon Crest, I wanted to have fun with the melodrama and lean into the exposition in the way those shows did. Exposition gets a bad wrap but I think it can be fun and ridiculous and ultimately its own art form. There’s also an element of noir to the piece, in that sense I think Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train is an influence. It’s always fun to tap into other art that speaks to you but I’m also keen to transcend those influences and let my work become its own odd thing, that’s where the magic’s at. I am a big fan of Anna Biller’s The Love Witch which clearly taps into a certain style of vintage Hollywood flair and ham but Biller uses those tropes and subverts them in really subtle and powerful ways, she produced a piece of film that moved past homage and became something new and exciting, its own wild thing. 

LF: You have often said this Tale and two others form a loose trilogy  (The Crush and Cedar Lake). Talk a bit about what you mean. How do you see them connected…?

GMcQ: I suppose the real connection is the ongoing punishment of John Speredakos! John is a terrific actor that I love to put through the ringer. In all three stories he plays the good natured, well meaning husband to a wife that’s ready to wring his neck for various reasons. All three pieces are inspired by EC Comics CrimeSuspense Stories, many of which start off as relationship dramas that turn ugly fast once greed, jealousy or even sheer irrational-meanness enter the picture. I like that within Tales we now have bodies of work that pool together, for instance, I think Reappraisal is of the same universe as Speaking in Tongues, similarly I sense a kinship with Who Killed Johnny Bernard and The Hole Digger.

LF: We put these shows on with almost no rehearsal, usually one read through on the day of the performance. Can you tell us about your cast: those who are familiar players and working with new members of the ensemble.

GMcQ: Well, as mentioned, I love working with John Speredakos, our relationship goes all the way back to I Sell the Dead and it’s always interesting to have him around for projects, he’s very passionate and there’s sort of a short hand between us now where I’m not having to over-explain anything. Matthew Stephen Huffman is another actor I love, he plays Antonio’s closeted lover Frank and he brings so much charm and depth to his work that it’s alway a pleasure to have him on board, Matt is also in The Crush and The Ripple at Cedar Lake, so I guess he’s another tie that binds. This was my first time working with Caprice Benedetti who plays Claudia, she was an absolute pleasure to have on stage and was really down for having fun with our short rehearsal period. I had seen Caprice in my friend Ana Asensio’s movie, Most Beautiful Island, so I was excited to collaborate with her. Juan Carlos Hernandez brought a lot of kindness and fun to the character of Antonio, similarly Teresa Kelsey who plays Dr. Peterson added a pathos and almost maternal warmth to her character that was a nice surprise to watch happen, I think she’s a wonderful actor. 

LF: Even though these shows are performed live, it is fair to admit we do some editing and shaping in post-production before presenting them to our home listeners. Care to talk about the journey this tale took from performance to final mix.

GMcQ: We individually mic all actors and musicians on stage and a lot of the time the foley table has about four or five close-range mics on it, and so, often we end up with fourteen or fifteen separate channels to clean up in the post process. It can be quite daunting when one firsts opens the sessions, memories of the live performance need to take a back seat as we’re presented with the reality of the cold hard recordings, and so the work must almost start over. Each channel must be cleaned up to avoid spill from other sources, I will edit out any of the recording that is not “hot”– the silence between dialogue, non-perforamce breaths and so on. Once everything is cleaned up we can then go in and tweak the content if needed, edit the timeline and add additional sounds if we feel that kind of embellishment is favorable. We’re lucky that we have people like John Moros on our side, who adds a lot of professionalism and artistry to our post process. We’re nothing without the incredible team we’ve dragged with us Beyond the Pale! It has become such a rich, wild tapestry of craft, this mad project of ours. 

Lincoln Center, 2 August 2019: Jack Fessenden, Caprice Benedetti, Matthew Stephen Huffman, 
Juan Carlos Hernandez, John Speredakos, Glenn McQuaid, Teresa Kelsey

From ComingSoon.Net: The iconic decade-long radio drama Tales From Beyond the Pale: The Podcast has announced two new episodes are on the way for fans over the next week, beginning with a terrifying Valentine’s Day story Die Sleeping My Sweet by Glenn McQuaid and followed by Larry Fessenden‘s Who Killed Johnny Bernard?.

The brain-child of McQuaid (I Sell The Dead, V/H/S) and Fessenden (Depraved, Habit, Until Dawn), the podcast has received rave reviews and five-star ratings across the board on platforms from iTunes to Spotify, startling listeners with its remarkable variety of stories, its caliber of talent, and immersive production value.

Just in time for your Valentine’s Day weekend, Tales presents a twisted love story with McQuaid’s Die Sleeping My Sweet, which he describes as, “bringing together my love of soap opera melodrama, bear porn, and medical thrillers.” The piece is the third in a loose trilogy within Tales that includes The Crush (Episode #3) and The Ripple at Cedar Lake (Episode #7), and continues McQuaid’s exploration of bold queer characters caught up in peculiar situations.

“The format of the audio drama has allowed me to explore characters, stories, and tone in a way that I wouldn’t have otherwise,” McQuaid said. “The further I delve beyond the Pale, the more confident I am in leaning into the exploration and experimentation of auditory possibilities.”

Of Who Killed Johnny Bernard?, which premieres February 20th, Fessenden says, “It speaks to the broad opportunity offered by the Tales platform that I was able to process my grief at the loss of a friend by delving into a sweeping Tale that brought together so many of my themes of fate and belief and sudden violence and love, all in an ambitiously structured nifty half hour entertainment. We are so grateful to have an audience for our stories.”

Both Die Sleeping my Sweet and Who Killed Johnny Bernard? were performed at New York City’s Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in front of a live audience.

Read full article HERE

 Exclusive Comments: Glass Eye Pix Launches “Tales From Beyond The Pale”
As Weekly Podcast –Rue Morgue

Larry Fessenden’s Tales From Beyond The Pale
is coming to haunt your earbuds weekly – AV Club

Glass Eye Pix’s ‘Tales From Beyond The Pale’
Podcast Launches This Month – Horror Geek Life 

TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE to launch as a Podcast
Glenn McQuaid and Larry Fessenden’s Award Winning Audio Plays
will drop weekly starting OCTOBER 10 2019

THE PALE MEN: Glenn McQuaid and Larry Fessenden

THE TALES PODCAST will launch with a brand new audio drama entitled REAPPRAISAL,
written and directed by Glenn McQuaid and featuring Larry Fessenden as a mysterious stranger
determined to buy a property from an unstable seller played by TALES regular
Clay MacLeod Chapman (author of the acclaimed new novel “The Remaking”).
REAPPRAISAL was performed live in Oregon’s Timberline Lodge
as part of the 2016 Overlook Film Festival.

TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE, THE PODCAST
will offer up a different episode weekly each Thursday, mixing premieres and new content
with Tales plucked from archives comprised of over 40 half-hour recordings
by a diverse swath of genre writers and directors.

Read the press release here

GEP pals HOLY MOUNTAIN PRINTING are shipping this special edition of TALES FROM BEYOND THE PALE episode The Grandfather, written, directed, and sound designed by Graham Reznick and starring the incomparable Angus Scrim.

Available in two tone green or Glow in The Dark Vinyl! from HOLY MOUNTAIN PRINTING.

From Reznick’s liner notes: “I wouldn’t ask an audience to spend thirty solid minutes wandering through the foggy head of an elderly man possibly suffering cognitive decline unless they were guided by Angus. Because spending any time with Angus is to be treasured – as anyone who was lucky enough to spend time with him in real life can attest. His consummate congeniality was equalled only by his legendary, terrifying screen presence. I’ve always been fascinated by this contrast, and so The Grandfather is an attempt to have it both ways. An “attempt” only on my part as a writer and director: Angus achieved a pitch perfect blend of charm, sadness, intimidation, and danger. I hope you enjoy letting him into your head. “

BUY NOW!

The news is out, Glenn McQuaid and Larry Fessenden will present Tales from Beyond the Pale
as a Podcast starting this Spring, with old favorites and brand new
Tales served up with fresh commentary by the Pale Men themselves.

Read all about it in this Month’s Rue Morgue Magazine,
available at your favorite Brick and Mortar Newstand.

And keep an ear out (and an eye) for TALES on
Vinyl from Holy Mountain Printing!

Tune in to Scratching the Surface on Horror Happens Radio
TOMORROW and listen to an interview with GEP pal April Snellings.

While you’re at it, swing by Tales From Beyond the Pale to enjoy
FOOD CHAIN, SPEAKING IN TONGUES and COLD READING,
all penned by Snellings.