Horror films have evolved to feature stronger, independent lead characters, diverting from former tropes of simply presenting characters for the sole intention of enhancing kill scenes. The genre continues reinforcing its crossover appeal with many hard rock and Metal fans, with soundtracks often earning greater commercial appeal than the films they supported.
Traction Park Massacre works to elevate slasher films and their respective soundtracks by pushing creative limits while celebrating genres of our youth. Directed by Adam Dubin and Douglas DiMonda, both individuals successfully merge their passions for music and horror while leveraging memories of the now-infamous Action Park theme park as their backdrop.
“Doug and I had gone to Action Park back in the day and there would be groups of people that would boo and shout if someone didn’t experience some kind of pain on a ride! People there were more like spectators, and the only kind of supervision was from 17- year-old stoner kids from Jersey,” laughed Dubin.
Dubin has created a successful directing career, which included co-directing the now iconic Beastie Boys videos for Fight For Your Right To Party and No Sleep Till Brooklyn. Dubin’s direction of the 2019 Bay Area Thrash biopic, Murder In The Front Row further reinforced his adept skills of capturing intimate anecdotes amid backdrops of musical chaos. Having wanted to work on a project with long-time friend, DiMonda, the duo reignited their creativity after having seen the 2020 documentary Class Action Park.
“That movie kind of gave us a venue, a foundation to kind of revisit and create something from. That documentary was well done it and it gave a voice to what many thought was just an urban myth. We always wanted to work together and Traction Park Massacre really came together because we combined our passions for music and horror, and the shared experiences of actually going to Action Park,” laughed DiMonda.
Dubin and DiMonda quickly agreed that adding humor within horror was key but they wanted to create empathy for their film’s characters to illicit more reactions and connections from the audience.
“You look at horror films like Elm Street 3 and it still holds up because people could identify with those teen characters. It also had a great hard rock soundtrack and continued showing the crossover appeal of Metal and horror. We wanted to do that with Traction Park Massacre but also, when you look at other films like Halloween and Hellraiser, there was a lot of depth to the music so we wanted to creatively explore that aspect,” shared Dubin.
While working on Murder In The Front Row, Dubin became friendly with Testament guitarist Alex Skolnick. Skolnick continues earning accolades for his versatility and expressive playing, often cited for elevating Testament’s songwriting within a genre critics often dismissed as one-dimensional. Dubin was confident Skolnick would propel Traction Park Massacre’s soundtrack, and urged DiMonda to attend a Skolnick show featuring his jazz trio.
“I was blown away when I saw him! His feel for music is something you cannot beg, borrow, or steal to achieve. Adam wanted to know if I would be onboard with having Alex do our movie soundtrack and right away, I knew he would be perfect because there is such expression and fluidity within his playing,” shared DiMonda.
Skolnick has always expressed the ambitious desire to challenge himself and avoid creative trappings of being pigeonholed. This led to leaving Testament in 1992 but his eventual return to the thrash metal group reignited their songwriting and contributed to more creative longevity.
“For a lot of people, they do what they do and do it well. I have no issue with that but personally, that is not for me. I like to push myself and create without limits. I have had thoughts about creating music for other mediums, like a movie or a podcast and Adam and Doug offered me a new door and I happily walked right in,” laughed Skolnick.
Skolnick’s virtuosity always enables him to approach any endeavor with the unique ability to seamlessly transcend challenges, but he shared composing for Traction Park Massacre immediately had him changing his approach to gain new insight into film nuances.
“With this kind of project it easily felt like the actors were my bandmates! I quickly learned that the mood of some music could work but not the timing. I was finding myself watching more movies and television shows and learning how the music complements not only a scene, but the dialogue. In the last few years, I have revisited piano which allowed for more textures and moods,” said Skolnick.
Securing Skolnick for Traction Park Massacre immediately enhanced the film’s creativity but the directors quickly shared how budget and time constraints forced them to work with an unprecedented approach.
“We were very conscious of the fact that there were some gore scenes that we had to get in a single take. Completing a large gore scene requires a lot of preparation and the shooting schedule was intense, but we knew what we were getting into from day one. I remember Adam saying after the first day, miracle day one, done. We had a tight schedule with no time to waste and we had no deleted scenes,” recalled DiMonda.
Skolnick continued working on the film’s score but felt visiting the set in Georgia would enable him to further connect to the project.
“Showing up to the set was very helpful, throwing myself in 200%. To be there and see what was going on and witness the process, their passion, and their excitement for everything they were doing was unique for me. I met most of the cast and was able to see scenes created just a few feet in front of me. In music, people say ‘capturing lightning in a bottle’ and I feel it applied there. They nailed it.”
Returning home to complete the score, Skolnick took his unique on-set experiences to further connect with his newest creative endeavor. Never wanting to creatively limit himself, Skolnick shared he worked tirelessly to ensure he could provide the subtle textures and moods to truly complement the film’s scenes, while challenging himself by utilizing piano and synth.
“The movie has some solemn, even tender moments before going off the rails. I felt the characters had compelling moments that could even be told within other movie genres, but it worked for horror. I wanted to create something musically to communicate that. I wanted people to hear this music and not have it be obvious it was created by a heavy metal guitarist. I wanted people to hear it as if it was created by a composer and I worked to make it sound cinematic,” stated Skolnick.
Traction Park Massacre embraces slasher film tropes and reinforces the genre’s deep connection to Metal artists, but the directors confidently state they worked to embrace different creative paths to achieve their goals.
“Scripted entertainment is a whole new level of planning. I didn’t go into this thinking just because I worked on documentaries that this would be an easy thing. I loved not having to rely on famous actors, it keeps people guessing. When people see a big name on the screen, they know that individual survives. The tight budget and shooting schedule forced us to get the best out of each other,” shared Dubin.
Asked to assess Traction Park Massacre within a critical lens, DiMundo echoed that the shooting schedules forced him to dig deep and bring out his best, under unprecedented pressure.
“I feel the movie punches above its weight. Despite a limited budget, it looks good. We worked to, hopefully, make sure viewers feel a connection to the characters while also adding humor and paying homage to the horror films we all grew up with.”
Skolnick’s completion of the soundtrack enabled him to once again view his craft within a new lens, adding Testament’s upcoming record has elements of surprise that provided a new layer of excitement for the band.
“I’m happy to say our drummer Chris Dovas continues bringing youthful excitement to the band. It helps light a fire! The upcoming record will feature a ballad, which we haven’t done in awhile, and it has cello. This song has orchestration that adds a whole other layer of mood. Then, we have some really extreme Metal songs, really post-modern brutal stuff with Chris’s awesome blast beats. I loved working on the movie soundtrack and I really feel the experience was a gift,” concluded Skolnick.
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