Keep up with Claudio Sanchez's horror series My Brother's Blood Machine, featuring exclusive covers, at Revolver's shop.
If you want to talk hard rock and comics, you should know who to call: Coheed and Cambria's vocalist-guitarist Claudio Sanchez. From the very beginning, the alt-prog act's albums didn't just have a cinematic sci-fi feel — most of the band's records actually are part of a conceptual storyline called The Amory Wars, a series written by Sanchez himself that has been turned into a series of comic books as well as a full-length novel. In addition, he's co-written Key of Z and Kill Audio with wife and comic book writer Chondra Echert, and co-authored the novel Year of the Black Rainbow with Peter David. Plus, he owns and runs Evil Ink Comics. We rest our case.
So, back in 2012, when Revolver wanted an expert list of horror-related comics, we flipped through our Rolodex and gave Sanchez a call. Check out his selections below.
Hellboy: Seed of Destruction
I'm a huge fan of Mike Mignola's Hellboy. Seed of Destruction provides a little of Hellboy's origin story, but jumps quickly into the action. Freaky characters, Nazis, explosions and dark comedy. A super fun read.
The Walking Dead
I remember seeing Issue One of The Walking Dead and instantly feeling connected to the energy of Tony Moore's art. He has the ability to make a page come alive, even if it's filled with the undead. For me, this series was the quintessential combination of evocative imagery and a story that showcases the human condition in the worst of times. I kind of fell off once Tony stopped doing the art, but undoubtedly one of the best.
The Saga of the Swamp Thing
The storyline in this miniseries [by Alan Moore] negates everything we thought we knew about the creation of The Swamp Thing, by way of a burning research scientist falling into a swamp, so the reader begins with a new understanding of the monster we always thought had human origins. It's cool to see an old character in such a new light. The Swamp Thing's had a few reincarnations with different creative teams over the years, but I think with Moore's poetic dialogue and captions — the character finally finds a real home here.
30 Days of Night
It's minimalistic, smudgy, very dark. It's scary. Templesmith's monochromatic tones have intent and impact here, always driving the plot. Nile's take on the vampire genre is smart and more importantly, fresh.
Tales From the Crypt
As a kid, these were my "gateway" to the genre, both the old comics — or the reprints of the comics, I should say — and the television show. The Crypt Keeper is up there with Batman and He-Man in terms of my childhood memories, falling somewhere between funny and terrifying. There's an innocence about the gore in these stories, with the horror kind of dimming in light of the lesson in morality.
