October in Onion Town

We hadn’t planned on doing another gig this year but when Dan Trembly master of ceremonies of the Onion Town Variety show invited us to do a ghoulish set this October how could we not come by and get creepy?


A few pics of Tapley Hall done up for Halloween
















Here’s a pic of Dan who kicked off the gig by telling some gags.













Here’s a pic of Dan beneath a portrait that looks a bit like him? Is it the portrait of Dan Gray?









Dan sang a couple of tunes with Ministrel Michael


















Minstrel Michael then played a cool but sad Christmas tune. Most of the best Christmas songs are sad. Why is that?















Then it was time for the sounds of Astro Al being spooky. Thanks to Alyssa Arrigo for the great pic! We did 3 things. Mansion of Dracula, You’re Dead, So Shut Up, and a brand new piece called Movement in the Field.















Next up was singer/songtress Amy Spillert. Amy sang a very cool tune about being a spy in WWII. She also passed around pics of some ladies she wrote songs about.




















Scott Matsumoto played next. He did an all instrumental set. This guy is one great guitar player. Very impressed with his skill and his humble nature. Hope to see him perform again!



































Then Captain David and his crew took the stage. Pics and a brief video clip below. Captain David and his crew always bring a shipload of fun to any gig they are at.



















































The show closed with a group sing along to the Monster Mash.























A ghoul good time. Go to the Onion Town you may cry but you won’t regret it.






Yours in variety,


Count Robot

Empire of Night

One of my favorite bit of words that I ever wrote for space rock metal masters, Spaceseed, is The Empire of Night.

People may get different things out of this track and most of the time I loathe over explaining my scribblings because when I read something I like to take my own interpretation of it just as I do with any other piece of art, but after some reflection I figure it is worth chatting about this piece a little.

What Empire was about for me when I wrote it is quite simply, paranoia’s prophecy becoming self-fulfilled.

When you get so paranoid that something is going to happen, often you make it happen just to validate yourself, even though you could never face that fact.

The character in Empire was never on the “government watch list” until he put himself there, and would never have his machine taken from him until he put it out there about the things he claimed it could do. Then of course he destroys himself and the entire world just to free himself and vindicate himself at the same time.

That’s what paranoid prophecies can do to you folks. Sadly it’s in the headlines all the time now. Don’t give in to those delusions.

-Yours in Bunker based living,

Count Robot

More Tunes

We in Space Castle Astro Al are always craving new tunes to dig.

Here’s some fine stuff we’ve been spinning lately.

The GoatMan Orginal Soundtrack by the Unseen

This is a most 70’s groovy find. A soundtrack to a movie that may exist or may not exist. We were hipped to this by our friend Garry Lee who is a dj for the great Starship Overflow show. Thanks Garry!  Here’s a link to Garry’s show

http://www.starshipoverflow.com/

There’s a lot of cool creepy sounds on this here GoatMan recording.

It reminds of us of the Astro Al cd Psychedelic Drive In Music which is about a drive in movie theater that no one knows for sure if its real or not…

The GoatMan soundtrack has a great story and visuals behind it. Give it a listen here:

http://theactivelistener.bandcamp.com/album/the-goatman-original-soundtrack-performed-by-the-unseen-al023

Read about the story behind the insidious GoatMan movie at the link below.

Warning this link isn’t safe for work!

http://unseenhorror.wordpress.com/

We’re also digging the latest release by prog super Swede’s Opeth. Their latest is called Pale Communion.

Check it out for a fun filled dive into epic time changes!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pale_Communion

So go forth and dig some tunes!

Yours in happy listening,

Count Robot

listen

We at Astro Al don’t just like to make sounds, we dig hearing them too.

What are we digging at the moment? Lots!

Mission Creep: On the Sea of Suns

It’s space party jazz for the groovy kids

http://www.cduniverse.com/productinfo.asp?pid=9356977

Twink: Critter Club

Always a good time in the garden of toy piano party tunes

http://www.twink.net/index.html

The Unseen: The Goat Man soundtrack

Trippy freak out horror soundscapes

http://theactivelistener.bandcamp.com/album/the-goatman-original-soundtrack-performed-by-the-unseen-al023

Hedersleben: 2

Yeah I can’t pronounce their name either but I can bathe in the glory of the

sounds they make

http://hedersleben.bandcamp.com/

Electric Wurms

It’s the Flaming Lips under another name making one of their best albums.

Fantastic!

Ok there’s enough for you now get out their and dig some tunes!

Yours in aural joy

Count Robot

town of onions 7/11/14

hey! Astro Al was grooving at Onion Town on 7/11/14. Onion Town is a fun filled variety show.

if you were there well you know how much fun it was. for those who weren't here's some highlights.

DNA Girl getting ready for the gig.

our pun filled host and nifty musician Dan Trembly

stuff that was thrown at our host!

sorry I don't remember this cats name. he played a good set. did some stevie ray vaughn and accompanied Dan. very good player.

Gio! a comedian. not sure why this pic was so dark but he was funny. liked it when he goofed on ikea.

the always wonderful and fun Captain David Fork Tongue. the best pirate around!

a very pro video clip from our tune Cocoa Clouds the Chocolate Dimension. dig the mask.

The boondock sinners. good acoustic duo.

more of captain david!

ministral michael singing sea tunes as part of Captain David's crew

sword dancing! another member of captain david's pirate crew.

so yeah, if you weren't at onion town friday night feel square because you missed a lot of good times!

yours in fun

Count Robot

And the Stupid Shall Inherit the Earth

I would never claim to be a genius or the smartest man in the room. I understand that not everyone is smart, and I hardly count myself in the realm of gifted thinkers, we can all have good qualities and a high IQ isn't always one of them. One thing I will never understand is when someone covets their stupidity and uses it as a shield and armor to protect themselves from learning.

There is always a chance to grow, learn, and improve so why cling to being a moron?

Goodbye Garou

The greatest werewolf we ever knew has left this planet.

As many of you may know, Garou, one of the hosts of the great horror show, Penny Dreadful’s Shilling Shockers, has lost his real life battle with cancer.

We in Astro Al land are huge fans of the show and had the pleasure of meeting Garou a few times. He was as funny as he was furry.

We will miss him always as much as we will treasure him always.

Our condolences go out to Penny and her great fang gang.

If you want you can make a donation to the American Cancer Society in his name. American Cancer Society, 30 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701.

yours in remembrance,

Count Robot

the deathless night begins.

Ok most of you probably knows this by now but for those not in the know...

Count Robot has been up to some scribing again...

A Meeting in the Night is the first installment of the six part short story ebook series The Deathless Night.
You can purchase the ebook from the link below
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K4E9Q1Q


Click below to watch the youtube preview of A Meeting in the Night. The trailer is narrated in the voice of the star of the Deathless Night series, Ashlynn O'Kavangh, a vampire from ancient Ireland.

Fans of 1970’s vampires will dig this like a grave. A six part short story series of gothic romance, blood magic, and revenge. No wus, sparkle, I wish I wasn't a vampire, powerless zombie vampires here!

If you don't have an e-reader you can download free software from amazon to read the story on your PC or MAC

Yours in the Deathless Night,

Count Robot

The Swirl of Words

What is what was for you and me.

Retro Drive In midnight horror show finds revenge in the haunted forest of the back seat of the sweaty teenage car.

What is Astro Al doing?

Were have we been hiding? Under a bottle of course.

It’s empty now.

We’ve got a video 85% done for our upcoming musical endeavor, Space Outer. A collection of oddly oddball tunes. Some titles Include Lady Etheria Owns A Unique Airship, Set the Controls for the Heart of Khan, and Cocoa Clouds the Chocolate Dimension.

We’ve been working with the amazing and amazingly crazy Harts Horn. This collection of strange tunes have been collaborated and constructed by the three of us. Given both our crazy schedules this one won’t get done this year but then again one never knows…. Happy with the stuff coming out. Wish Harts Horn and Astro Al could do more stuff together. Perhaps what doesn’t make it for this one could be the beginning of the end of our next project together.

Space is time and time is waiting for space.

Drunkenly yours,

Count Robot

Why Limit?

Why limit yourself to one genre of music, fiction, art, food, and so on and on?

Better to change, grow, evolve, party, and make amazing things happen.

Better to live with one foot in the now and another in the future.

Guide yourself through the past to learn lessons for the future.

These tired dog matters are brought to you by the good folks of Pam A Wow makers of the new odor eating, flesh devouring, fashionable sock, the Sockalot! Astounding Sockalot washes the floor as you walk using fresh fluids harvested from your feet! Incredible Sockalot runs numbers for illegal betting on soybean wrestling matches, earning itself money, and it gives you thirty percent right off the top!

Go on down, and let yourself be walked out of a store by a pair of Sockalots today! Amazing stupendous ravishing Sockalot even walks for you dragging your lazy carcasses all over town!!!

Yours in advertising revenue,

Count Robot 

Corman is Roger

Al Goreman is full of Corman

So there’s this Bee that’s going to be in the movie. We’re going to call it Curse of the She Bee. The Bee changes into a beautiful woman and stings men to death because this scientist was experimenting on a queen bee with an atomic ray.

Moments like this call for brain surgery in the round

I slid down in the car seat next to him. Hey man if it’s a female bee isn’t it a queen bee? I thought the only female in the hive was the queen. So shouldn’t the movie title be Curse of the Queen Bee.

Yes technically yes but it’s not as catchy as She Bee. Women like it when we put she in the title of the picture so do boys. Remember that movie we put out last summer, She Monster? That movie was garbage and we made a bundle on it. A couple of weeks later we put out She Ghost and that was big too. So we’ve got to keep that title.

Ok, ok how about this, the bee that gets blasted is a male bee but it turns into a she. So we get that whole strange gender thing going on in addition to the horror stuff.

Great idea. Write the script. You have five days. By the way here’s the poster. It’s great isn’t it?

Yours in retro movie magic,

Count Robot

Starlight Drive In Movie Theater

Sure I worked at the Starlight Drive In. I worked there most of my life and I got more tail than you would believe. Those were the days of great cheap fun movies. We ran stuff like Attack of the Prehistoric Beast, Vampire Hookers from Outer Space, and we were one of the only theaters that played the Burning Witch. I hear all the prints of that flick disappeared. These days they don’t make them like the ones we used to show, fun, dumb, cheap, short films.

Yeah I heard all the crazy stories people used to say about the Starlight. Some weirdoes say the place was never really open. All I have to say about that is I have the pay stubs to prove it was real.

There were a few nuts that complained to us that they heard strange voices on the loudspeakers. It really did happen sometimes though. There were some jerks that used radio gear to cut into our signals and say weird stuff like they could predict the future or that you shouldn’t eat stuff from the snack bar. Crazy jerks.

I’ll tell you one thing for sure about the place, it really was haunted. I saw some of the ghosts myself. There was one of this really hot chick. There was another one of this little kid who died in the middle of the concession stand. No one knows why he died he just did. Back in those days stuff like that happened and people didn’t sue.

And don’t let any idiots tell you the place is still open. I don’t know where people get such stupid ideas. The Starlight is closed. Has been for years. It was a great place but it just ain’t the type of place that could be around now you know? I mean no one makes the type of flicks that we used to show and all the normal movies you can go see at the mall so why would anyone go to a drive in? Pretty sad but that’s the way it is.

Vincent “Vin” Breen

Former projectionist for the Starlight Drive In Movie Theater

Spaceseed

As you might well be aware for some time now Count Robot has been scribing some of the words for Georgia, space metal prog rockers, Spaceseed.

Well in a bit of news, their new cd comes out soon with some of Count Robot’s ramblings on the disc.

I’m sure you expected that…

However what you didn’t expect is that we are already planning another Spaceseed release and this one will be more epic…

Writing and rambling away like mad.

A few of you may ask, hey how did you get on board that there Spaceseed ship Count Robot?

Well it happened like this…

Back in the days of anti-social media John Pack AKA JP High Overlord of Spaceseed and Commander of the Quill Back Momboloids and Count Robot got communicating online since they were going to be playing a festival together. The chattering ran into arranging a gig in Boston for Spaceseed. Then the chattering turned into meeting and more jibber jabber then JP asked Count Robot to contribute some words and that there is history.

So get on board the Spaceseed ship! All humans, and Non humanoids are welcome!

Yours in Spaceseed delight,

Count Robot

Pirate Tales

ARRRRRRRRRrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Like a little pirate booty aye?

Well there friends, folks, and salty dogs check out Captain David’s Haunted Pirate Show.

Its full of ghastly spooky songs and tales.

A couple of the stories were woven by our own Count Robot so dig it like a grave.

Here’s a ghastly and brief interview between Count Robot and a ghost.

Ghost: When you work on these tales for Captain David are you interested in historical accuracy?

Count Robot: I know that the tales Captain David has written himself are very historically precise, however since so far I’ve only written for the Haunted show I decided to jettison reality and make up as much as I wanted. Fictional tales most often function best in a fictional world.

Ghost: Are you happy with the way Captain David tells the stories at his shows?

Count Robot: Very much so. Captain Fork Tongue really brings the stories to life and gives them a vibrancy that’s not on the page. When I wrote those stories I made sure to listen to Captain David’s voice in my head. If I couldn’t hear the line in his voice then I edited that line out.

Ghost: Will you be writing more stories for Captain David?

Count Robot: I would be happy to do so.

Here’s a clip of Captain David Fork Tongue’s Haunted Pirate Show

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=REZt2kya0h0

Yours in haunted sea shanties,

Count Robot

I Bleeding to Death

 

Blue magic marker

Window

This is where they were dying died dead

We’ve raised a garden of therapy stones

Did it make you feel so big

Did it make them all seem so small that they didn’t matter and you could do whatever you wanted because you had them right where you wanted them

How many times did I see this nightmare on TV

How many times did I listen to some other idiot pretend to understand and conceptualize this thing which burned through us like a hole where there’s a bullet still lodged

Someone wrote that, “I bleeding to death” in blue magic marker on a window

They weren’t talking to me or you they were dying

Many of the families of Columbine feel like its forgotten already

That’s easy for us to do, there’s no one to avenge ourselves on except ourselves so let’s move on

The monuments and the memorials are built so let’s move on to a window with blue magic marker

I bleeding to death

One victim wrote that

and died

yours in sadness,

Count Robot

Stephen Colbert is a pansy

You heard me right wimpburger, I am call you out! How dare you duck Rio Santos and his challenge to you?

I know there you are and your show with your intern slaves and Jimmy minions doing your bidding and you have your millions of fans but all the while you live in fear of the mighty power and powerful odors of the great and greatest masked super hero wrestler of all time, Rio Santos!

If you think you’re a man, and not an intern hording twonk bucket, you will face the power of Rio Santos on your show!

Rio Santos knows you are a bear in the form of a man and here is the video to prove it Stephen Coalbear!