Horror, rock n' roll, psychobilly act THE TOMB TONES bring the spook show out of Atlanta, GA, have been around for a while, releasing two albums, with some cover songs, and all new music been thrown around and expected out soon! The band has taken the time to discuss with us their horror vibes, music, and shows coming up soon!
1. Where did the idea for the band's name come into play, does it have a meaning behind it?
I’ve always loved oldies and I knew I wanted something that elicited that old-school feel. I had been digging for words and noticed the word gravestone had “tone” in it, but it didn’t feel quite right. Tomb Tones didn’t take long to figure out from there!
2. Did you all known one another before the band even got formed, discuss your formation and history for us.
The three of us (Kyle - vocals/guitar, Brent - drums, Jesse - bass) have been friends since high school, and have played music in various configurations over the years. Brent and Jesse had a punk band together in high school, and we were all in our school’s jazz combo together. We had gotten back together around 2016 to put on a cover show, which happened to coincide with a time where I had written a bunch of new original songs. Once I showed the guys what I’d been working on, they pressed me to actualize it - and here we are!
3. Why did you want to go with playing the genre that you do?
I’ve long held the belief that there need to be more “Halloween carols” so to speak. Sure, there’s a lot of horror-influenced rock and punk out there, but it can be self-serious and doesn’t always have the cheese-factor that Christmas songs do. I wanted to make something that elicited that same feeling that novelty rock from the 60s - Purple People Eater, Wooly Bully, that kind of thing - but give it a more modern sound.
4. Which bands have influenced or inspired you the most when creating your craft?
Great question - lyrics-wise, probably Ray Stevens or Screaming Lord Sutch. Music-wise, somewhere between the Ramones and Buddy Holly.
5. What about the songs, who writes them, what sort of topics do they cover?
I (Kyle) write all of our lyrics; usually with a melody in my head, and then I record a rough acoustic demo. We usually develop and arrange them at practice, and that’s where all the hooks and creative ideas really come out. Aside from a few exceptions, I try to write original stories for the songs rather than just reference existing media, and usually by finding some metaphor or connecting line between something that actually scares me, and something that seems scary in a more superficial ‘horror movie’ type way - for example, our song “Ghost Story” is about my fear of dying without getting to say goodbye, but it’s told from the perspective of a ghost who’s hasn’t quite realized it yet. Or “Taxidermized” which is about fear of change, so the main character of the song decides to take action to keep things exactly as they are, in a horrific way.
6. Can you discuss for us your latest album "Ghost of Toast", how does it compare and differ from "Pumpkin Guts (Smell My Feet Edition)"?
Pumpkin Guts was our first attempt at recording a ‘real’ album - we’d made a few demos prior to that, but we knew we wanted to go a bit bigger. There was a lot of trial and error - we like to do everything DIY - the recording, mixing, etc. - as a big part of this ‘hobby’ is learning how to make the art we want to make. We were able to approach Ghost of Toast with some lessons learned, but we also got more experimental with it; definitely felt a little more comfortable with the process. The idea to frame it with gag tracks actually came pretty late in the process, but it’s one of my favorite parts of that album. I want to do something equally kitschy for whatever we do next.
7. Does the band have any new music in the works you can share?
Yes! We actually just released covers of “Monster Mash” and “Ghostbusters” last month, and we’ve got a handful of new originals we’ve been crowd-testing live for a year or so.
8. Tell us about your next shows and why we should be there?
Our next big show is our Haunted Holiday Luau at Star Bar in Atlanta, GA on December 20 2024. I’m really excited for the lineup on that one, we’ve got surf band El Capitan and the Reluctant Sadists, local female fronted punk Los Ojos Muertos, and the incredible Beat Creeps out of Nashville, TN.
9. Describe your show, visual and musically for us?
It really depends on the show! Sometimes you might get us in full striped-tie and suspenders regalia, other times you might get us in spooky Hawaiian shirts, other times, we might be in completely uncoordinated Halloween costumes. We did a show dressed as hot dogs once. We like to surprise the crowd. Musically, we custom-tailor each setlist to what we feel like the crowd might be like. We also play a lot of covers at our shows that range from golden oldies, to Halloween classics and TV themes, to 80’s punk. We have a blast with it!
10. What makes your band stand a part from all the other horror punk, rock, acts out there?
I use the word horror punk in our marketing because I feel like horror punk fans would appreciate us, but I honestly don’t really think of us as a horror punk band aside from a select few songs. We’re not trying to emulate the Misfits or Calabrese. We’re more of a retro-inspired novelty rock band that has a punk and psychobilly feel.
11. Is Halloween just one day a year or 24/7 to you?
Halloween is definitely a year round thing for me! The band aside, our house is always decorated, I’m constantly binging horror movies, and looking for cool community events to get my fix. That said, October is always a *little* more special.
12. What sort of plans does this next year have in the works?
I’d really like to get more of our covers recorded and released, so people in other cities can get a taste of what our live shows are like - If you listen to the ones we’ve released so far, I think you can see that we like to put our own spin on things; and we apply that to all our covers.
13. How does music affect you and the world around you?
Music has the power to make us laugh, cry, think, reflect, and inspire. On a personal level, music has helped me focus my creative energy into a much-needed outlet. Through the band I’ve met so many people, made so many friends, and it’s really changed my life for the better - keep creating and find your purpose! Thank you Natalie for having us - let me know if you need anything else from me! Cheers!
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