When I say “Midnight Syndicate” chances are you have no clue who I’m talking about. If I say Halloween Horror Nights, you know exactly what I’m talking about, and chances are you know the music. Midnight Syndicate is known primarily as “The Halloween Band” or “The Haunted House Band” because Universal Studios, Howl O Scream…hell pretty much every single haunted attraction or event has used their music. What makes them so special? It adds the perfect atmosphere to any attraction, it just gives it that over the top that it needs.
That’s right, they have composed music especially for Universal Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights. For 13 years they’ve been at it. And to top off this momentous of occasions they are finally getting to release their long in production film to DVD, “Midnight Syndicate Presents: The Dead Matter”. I’ve worked with Midnight Syndicate in the past, in fact, it wasn’t a Halloween Show without them. So I was very pleased to find this in my mailbox this evening:
Midnight Syndicate Halloween Music / Midnight Syndicate Films
www.MidnightSyndicate.com
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For the past thirteen years, dark music pioneers Midnight Syndicate have been creating soundtracks for the imagination and their music has become staples of the Halloween, gothic music, haunted attraction, and role-playing game industries. With a catalog of CDs that blend dark, orchestral horror and fantasy movie score-style music with sound effects, the band consisting of Edward Douglas and Gavin Goszka has had its soundtracks to imaginary films featured in everything from Hugh Hefner’s infamous Halloween parties, Barbara Walters specials and Monday Night Football to X-Box games, tracks by the Academy-Award winning rap act, Three Six Mafia, and Twiztid as well as concerts by dark music pioneers The Misfits and King Diamond. The music has also been featured on countless television shows and documentaries relating to horror films and the supernatural.
Often referred to as the first Halloween band or Haunted House band, Midnight Syndicate is the industry standard for the world’s top haunted attractions and amusement parks. From Siberia and Hong Kong to Europe and the United States, whether it’s a store, neighborhood celebration, or even a themed-cruise, Midnight Syndicate’s music has become synonymous with the celebration of the Halloween season. In September of 2009, AOL released a list of the Top 10 Best Halloween Music CDs of all time as ranked by AOL/CBS Radio listeners. Three of the ten CDs were Midnight Syndicate discs (#8, #4, and #3) ranking only behind Danny Elfman’s Nightmare Before Christmas and John Carpenter’s classic Halloween soundtrack.
In 2003, Midnight Syndicate made an impact in the gaming industry when it teamed up with Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast to produce the first official soundtrack to the classic role-playing game, Dungeons & Dragons. Midnight Syndicate’s 2005 release, The 13th Hour, was the first music CD to ever receive the industry’s top two awards: The Origins Award and the ENnie Award for Best Gaming Accessory.
2007 saw the band, take on three new projects as they composed music for Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights XVIII, scored Robert Kurtzman’s drive-in thriller, The Rage, and began work on their biggest production to date, The Dead Matter movie. In 2008, the band released it’s tenth studio album, The Dead Matter: Cemetery Gates. One of their most critically acclaimed releases to date the disc was inspired by the themes from the upcoming movie.
In January of 2010, Midnight Syndicate began a year-long celebration to commemorate the 13th Anniversary of the release of it’s Midnight Syndicate debut CD. A reboot of their website, the July 30th release of The Dead Matter movie and soundtrack, a 13th Anniversary Halloween Music compilation CD, fan appreciation contests, and special appearances, are just some of the major announcements the band will be making in the coming months.
Conquest Graphics – www.ConquestGraphics.com/Greg
Screamline Studios – www.ScreamlineStudios.com
Van Helsing’s Curse Halloween Soundtrack – www.VanHelsingsCurse.com
Robert Kurtzman’s Creature Corps – www.CreatureCorps.net
