Today we stagger back from a GREAT trip out west to Minneapolis, Minnesota for the CONvergence science fiction and fantasy convention (known to you Twitterers as #cvg2011).

We received the 2010 Silver Mark Time for FinalRune‘s production The Cleansed: Episode Zero and celebrated with other winners, including Jonathan Mitchell (who created the spectacular Moon Graffiti), Matthew and Monique Boudreau and Samantha Mason of 1918, Domien and Eline of The Witch Hunter Chronicles, Cayenne Chris Conroy of TEKDIFF, and Jack Ward of Electric Vicuna/The Sonic Society rounding out this year’s winners, plus Brian Price, Jerry Stearns and Kris Markman of Great Northern Audio Theater, Jeff Adams of Icebox Radio Theater, and Scott Hickey of The Grist Mill.  That’s a lot of sonic energy!

We talk to these folks, recap the experience at CONvergence, and go on to play 1918 Season One in its entirety. And did I mention Captain Radio‘s great review of the Hazardous Players’ production Knighttime? Stay tuned…

Download audio file (rdr-podcast233.mp3)
Radio Drama Revival – Episode 233

This week is the “Halloween in July” episode, so named because we welcome back horror writer Joe R. Lansdale for an interview about his latest two books, Sanctified and Chicken Fried and Vanilla Ride. We talk to Joe about the joy of storytelling, how well stories can be told in audio, and what still intrigues him about the tough men of East Texas.

But before we get to all that, we spook you again with the dramatization of Joe’s story “God of the Razor” by our friends at The Grist Mill.

Download audio file (rdr-podcast133.mp3)
Radio Drama Revival – Episode 133

Download audio file (rdr-bonus-joe-lansdale.mp3)
Bonus: Standalone Interview, Joe R. Lansdale

P.S. The phrase “Halloween in July” is snagged from a killer short story by Kevin Anderson. Kevin’s work frequently appears on two of my favorite podcasts, the Drabblecast and the Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine. He also has his own blog and runs the audio market list for writers seeking audio publication.

Ghoulish tales for the ear were heard last night as goblins and ghosts radiated out through the radio waves…

Hear it now!

Download audio file (rdr-halloween-2008.mp3)
Radio Drama Revival 2008 Halloween Audio Horror Special

Special thanks due to…

• Crazy Dog Audio Theatre – Marianette 1.1
  
• Bill Dufris – The Horror of Walker’s Point
  
• FinalRune – Dark Passenger
• Echo Fiction – For being a great place to listen to new audio!
• The Grist Mill – The Estates
  
• Kevin MacLoed (LOTS of awesome music on his website)
• Oh… and a shout out to Anne Cammon at WKCR where FinalRune made another appearance… Let’s hear it for the ears in New York City!

We’ve heard the terrifying throes of God of the Razor before, but this time we go behind the scenes of this glorious gory tale by talking to author Joe R. Lansdale, who also happens to be the author of, oh, 30+ other books and 200 short stories and tons of other great stuff.

Between chunks of “Razor” we hear from Lansdale about the origins of this dastardly tale, his love of radio drama, and why he thinks audio is such a compelling medium for the horror arts.

Enjoy, and don’t forget, TONIGHT!!! 9-11PM on WMPG (online streaming available) you can listen to the live horror show!? Featuring works from The Grist Mill, FinalRune, Bill Dufris, Crazy Dog Audio Theatre and more…

And if you want to listen to God of the Razor in its entirety, there’s no better place than Echo Fiction.

Download audio file (rdr-podcast094.mp3)

Radio Drama Revival – Episode 94

Gosh, I wanted to dig into my behind-the-scenes coverage for “Slasher” but didn’t get beyond an amazing interview with Scott Hickey and Brian Price, the two men most responsible for the thrilling (and chilling) new tale by The Grist Mill.

As you’ll here again and again in this show, it’s available for a $3 download on CD Baby.

“Slasher” is just a startlingly awesome piece of audio, the best of the best out there. If my opinion’s not enough to convince you, take a listen to the comments and snippets as part of this week’s podcast.

Download audio file (rdr-podcast081.mp3)

Radio Drama Revival! Episode 81

Terror Stalks the airwaves! On Halloween we heard three tales of horror guaranteed to haunt your dreams “Forevermore.” We kick off a killer fright-night with William Dufris‘ adaptation of “The Statement of Randolph Carter” by H.P. Lovecraft, followed by the Grist Mill production of Joe R. Lansdale’s “God of the Razor,” and conclude with a scathing double feature from FinalRune Productions with the debut of “Dark Passenger” and the replay of “The Blind Man’s Confession,” two tales written and produced by yours truly, to make you fear all things that go bump in the night… Turn out your lights, hide under the blankets, and prepare to get spooked!

Download audio file (halloween-special.mp3)

Radio Drama Revival! Halloween Special 2007

A man lies on the brink of death, torn between two worlds — the world of pain, suffering, and failure, but a chance of love, and a world of peace, quiet, and acceptance… or at least so says the long dead voice of his abusive father. What chance is there for retribution beyond the grave?

Find out in AM/FM Theater‘s stunning adaptation of Mort Castle‘s “If You Take My Hand My Son” — and stayed tuned in for a chat with the story’s author, a prolific and genre-busting writer who’s as much a fan of radio as any of us.

Download audio file (rdr-podcast041.mp3)

Radio Drama Revival! Episode 41

Download audio file (mort-castle-extended.mp3)
Extended Interview with Mort Castle

This past week, we chatted with Scott Hickey from AM FM Theater. Hear about hitting the bar with Peter Straub at World Horror Con, growing up with radio drama, and the making of “God of the Razor.” A great interview not to be missed!

Download audio file (rdr-podcast003.mp3)
Radio Drama Revival! Episode 3

Well, I’m going to jump right into my audio theater reviews with a piece of modern horror that recently reached my ears: ‘God of the Razor,’ a grisly horror short story by Joe Lansdale realized by AM/FM Theater in Lowell, MA.

I had recently written on the radio drama digest (a mailing list for audio theater enthusiasts such as myself) bemoaning the lack of contemporary fiction stories told through sound. There’s no shortage of classic tales, whether it’s derived from the canon of American or British Literature, mythology, or folktales. Don’t get me wrong, such content is great, but my passion is in hearing the work of compelling living writers, and such content tends to be rare in the fully dramatized arena. That’s why it was such a treat to learn have Brian Price (from Great Northern Audio Theater, also the sound designer and director of ‘God of the Razor’) respond to my posting telling me to buy ‘God of the Razor’ from AM/FM Theater without asking questions.

I’m glad I did! Scott Hickey, who produced the piece, obviously has a great love of modern horror’not the hack and slash, teens screaming and dorky CGI monsters kind of horror’but the cerebral, psychological kind, ala HP Lovecraft or Edgar Allen Poe (two of the authors commonly dramatized in the ‘classic’ tradition of radio theatre). Joe R. Lansdale, accomplished thriller, horror, sci-fi, dark fantasy self-appointed ‘Mojo storyteller,’ is the epitome of the author whose work translate well to the audio realm. In ‘God of the Razor,’ the haunting environs of the dark tale are brought to life through stellar voice-acting, cutting-edge sound design, and unsettling music.

The story starts with an antique connoisseur checking out a creepy old house for any treasures that may have been forgotten in it. We are immediately placed in the uncomfortable, dark universe of the piece by carefully selected chords of music, effects, and dialogue that suggests something is going to happen without overstating too much.

The narrator, who’s also the main character, heads into the creepy house as the full moon comes and goes from behind clouds. As he heads into the basement, he sees a site that shocks him, and an unexpected voice from the shadows starts to recount a tale to chill his bones and yours: the story of an ancient evil accidentally revived, of a razor blade that demands blood sacrifices regardless of the wielder’s wishes’

While there are a couple of minor issues that drew me out of the piece (for instance, the story begins with a one-way cell phone conversation with a character that never comes back again), ‘God of the Razor’ succeeded in scaring me and that’s no small feat. It uses violence in a restrained, ‘less is more,’ manner, meaning that the moments of violence in the piece are that much more of a shock. And the ending will send a thorough chill up your spine!

If you really want to treat yourself to some good modern horror, produced by a great group of pros who really have a passion and sense of the art, check out ‘God of the Razor.’ If you order now, you get a poster signed by the cast, producer, director, and author, plus the CD comes with another treat, a short tale called ‘If You Take My Hand My Son.’

I haven’t heard the rest of the ‘Grist Mill’ catalog but ‘God of the Razor’ was enough to get me interested.’ Check out more audio horror stories at the AM/FM Theater SiteWell, I’m going to jump right into my audio theater reviews with a piece of modern horror that recently reached my ears: ‘God of the Razor,’ a grisly horror short story by Joe Lansdale realized by AM/FM Theater in Lowell, MA.

I had recently written on the radio drama digest (a mailing list for audio theater enthusiasts such as myself) bemoaning the lack of contemporary fiction stories told through sound. There’s no shortage of classic tales, whether it’s derived from the canon of American or British Literature, mythology, or folktales. Don’t get me wrong, such content is great, but my passion is in hearing the work of compelling living writers, and such content tends to be rare in the fully dramatized arena. That’s why it was such a treat to learn have Brian Price (from Great Northern Audio Theater, also the sound designer and director of ‘God of the Razor’) respond to my posting telling me to buy ‘God of the Razor’ from AM/FM Theater without asking questions.

I’m glad I did! Scott Hickey, who produced the piece, obviously has a great love of modern horror’not the hack and slash, teens screaming and dorky CGI monsters kind of horror’but the cerebral, psychological kind, ala HP Lovecraft or Edgar Allen Poe (two of the authors commonly dramatized in the ‘classic’ tradition of radio theatre). Joe R. Lansdale, accomplished thriller, horror, sci-fi, dark fantasy self-appointed ‘Mojo storyteller,’ is the epitome of the author whose work translate well to the audio realm. In ‘God of the Razor,’ the haunting environs of the dark tale are brought to life through stellar voice-acting, cutting-edge sound design, and unsettling music.

The story starts with an antique connoisseur checking out a creepy old house for any treasures that may have been forgotten in it. We are immediately placed in the uncomfortable, dark universe of the piece by carefully selected chords of music, effects, and dialogue that suggests something is going to happen without overstating too much.

The narrator, who’s also the main character, heads into the creepy house as the full moon comes and goes from behind clouds. As he heads into the basement, he sees a sight that shocks him, and an unexpected voice from the shadows starts to recount a tale to chill his bones and yours: the story of an ancient evil accidentally revived, of a razor blade that demands blood sacrifices regardless of the wielder’s wishes’

While there are a couple of minor issues that drew me out of the piece (for instance, the story begins with a one-way cell phone conversation with a character that never comes back again), ‘God of the Razor’ succeeded in scaring me and that’s no small feat. It uses violence in a restrained, ‘less is more,’ manner, meaning that the moments of violence in the piece are that much more of a shock. And the ending will send a thorough chill up your spine!

If you really want to treat yourself to some good modern horror, produced by a great group of pros who really have a passion and sense of the art, check out ‘God of the Razor.’ If you order now, you get a poster signed by the cast, producer, director, and author, plus the CD comes with another treat, a short tale called ‘If You Take My Hand My Son.’

I haven’t heard the rest of the ‘Grist Mill’ catalog but ‘God of the Razor’ was enough to get me interested. Check out more audio horror stories at the AM/FM Theater Site