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The Scream
Rock 'n' Roll. Hell. Two great tastes that taste great together. Long before Elvis gyrated on the Sullivan Show or the Beatles toiled the smoky red-light bars of Hamburg, music has been sowing the seeds of liberation. Or damnation. With each new generation the edge of rebellion pushed farther. Rhythms quickened. Volume increased. Lyrics coarsened. The rules continued to be broken, until it seemed that there were no rules at all.
And as waves of teens cranked it up and poured it on, parents built walls of accusation to explain their offspring's seeming corruption. Sex and drugs, demon worship and violence are the effects. Music is the cause. Or so the self-styled guardians of morality would have us believe.
Meet The Scream. Just your average everyday mega-cult band. Their music is otherworldly. Their words are disturbing. Their message is unholy. Their fans are legion. And they're not kidding. They're killing. Themselves. Each other. Everyone. Their gospel screams from the lips of babes. Their backbeat has a body count. And their encore is just the warm-up act to madness beyond belief.
It emerged from a war-torn jungle, where insanity was just another word for survival. It arrived in America with an insatiable lust for power and the means to fulfill it. In the amplified roar of arena applause there beats the heart of absolute darkness.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
29 people are currently reading
939 people want to read
About the author
John Skipp
103 books294 followersJohn Skipp is a splatterpunk horror and fantasy author and anthology editor, as well as a songwriter, screenwriter, film director, and film producer. He collaborated with Craig Spector on multiple novels, and has also collaborated with Marc Levinthal and Cody Goodfellow.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
September 15, 2024
I’m being generous with 2 stars, I’ll start with that. This was a book where absolutely nothing happens. Like I couldn’t tell you a single reason why anything in this story happened. Nothing was explained, at all.
Most of the story was vague but I was hopeful that it was going to explain itself near the end but nope! I got nothing. I didn’t really care why anything happened cause nothing was explained.
There was so much of this book that didn’t even matter by the end of it. Whole characters and character back stories that just meant nothing and was kinda filler, even tho this book is fairly large.
It was just not for me.
Most of the story was vague but I was hopeful that it was going to explain itself near the end but nope! I got nothing. I didn’t really care why anything happened cause nothing was explained.
There was so much of this book that didn’t even matter by the end of it. Whole characters and character back stories that just meant nothing and was kinda filler, even tho this book is fairly large.
It was just not for me.
August 30, 2020
Skipp and Spector's third novel The Scream, published in 1988, is a real blast from the past, but many of the cultural links I believe will be lost to those not living in 1980s. The center of the novel is the band called The Scream-- a heavy metal act that is taking the nation by storm. Our main lead Jake Hamer is a Vietnam vet and leads his own heavy metal band. Early on, Jake appears on a talk show with a few other rockers (one side) and a minister and the wife of a senator (the other side) who want heavy metal (the devil's music) either outright banned or at least given parental ratings. Of course, this is a reference to Tipper Gore, who in the 80s help lead the campaign to 'censor' metal bands. I vividly remember living through this controversy and was/am a huge metal fan-- my first concert was Judas Priest and Iron Maiden back in 1982. Sanctimonious assholes like Jimmy Swaggart and other moral majority types basically declared rock music the enemy and it was a cultural struggle. Skipp and Spector nail this head on with flare and elan; like I wrote above, it brought back a lot of memories.
Well, Jake and friends decide to take the bull by the horns and arrange a large concert in Philly 'Rock Aid' to raise money for bands being sued and so forth. Again, this is a clever reference to all the 'Aid' concerts back then for various causes ("feed the world, don't they know its Christmas..."). It seems, however, that The Scream really _are_ somehow affiliated with evil/the devil what have you. Some of their fans ('Screamers') are carrying out nasty murders and starting bloody riots when The Scream play their way across the US from the West Coast to reach Philly for Rock Aid.
The story slowly unfolds with many flashbacks from Jake and others on Vietnam; something happened there that comes to play a role today with The Scream, but I cannot say more without spoilers.
Overall, a fun read that touched some fun buttons and clearly fits into the splatterpunk genre that Skipp and Spector helped invent. The actual book is well produced with a little fold out poster inside as well. My biggest problems were the at times glacial pacing and character introspection that slowed the story down; with a different editor, this could be a much stronger book. Yet, it really encapsulates a piece of history so nicely I can over look its faults. 3.5 stars, rounding up-- Rock On!
Well, Jake and friends decide to take the bull by the horns and arrange a large concert in Philly 'Rock Aid' to raise money for bands being sued and so forth. Again, this is a clever reference to all the 'Aid' concerts back then for various causes ("feed the world, don't they know its Christmas..."). It seems, however, that The Scream really _are_ somehow affiliated with evil/the devil what have you. Some of their fans ('Screamers') are carrying out nasty murders and starting bloody riots when The Scream play their way across the US from the West Coast to reach Philly for Rock Aid.
The story slowly unfolds with many flashbacks from Jake and others on Vietnam; something happened there that comes to play a role today with The Scream, but I cannot say more without spoilers.
Overall, a fun read that touched some fun buttons and clearly fits into the splatterpunk genre that Skipp and Spector helped invent. The actual book is well produced with a little fold out poster inside as well. My biggest problems were the at times glacial pacing and character introspection that slowed the story down; with a different editor, this could be a much stronger book. Yet, it really encapsulates a piece of history so nicely I can over look its faults. 3.5 stars, rounding up-- Rock On!
April 4, 2018
Lurid and over the top, but also features a giant monster who eats people with her vagina, and the first female character is introduced when we peer up her skirt while she's onstage. So there's that.
May 20, 2025
I bought this in paperback in Tallahassee when it was first published 30 plus years ago. I was finishing up my senior year as an English major, dreaming of the lucrative career options that would be coming my way and otherwise too busy to get around to reading a 400 page horror book about metal and mayhem. I remember lending it to a friend and then never saw it again. Earlier this year I found a vintage copy of it but, unfortunately, minus the poster that's supposed to be inside the front cover. The concept for this book seems right up my alley. I wasn't exactly a heavy metal fan back then, but I liked Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. I really liked Blue Oyster Cult but by 1988 I thought their best albums were before 1981. And I'm a fan of what's now "vintage" horror. But who cares about that stuff, it's the book we're talking about here. Finishing it yesterday, I think it was fine for a splatter-punk horror novel. It delivers the splatter, it delivers the punk, it hammers you with balls-to-the-wall prose and, unfortunately, it shoots for too much in the process. You have a take on the Moral Majority, the PMRC, censorship, freedom of expression, abortion, teen drug use, teen sex and the Vietnam war. All of this crammed into 400 pages. All the shock value that would have worked in 1988 seems a bit quaint today. Not that we're still not fighting the same battles. We absolutely are. Freedom of religion is just more moral majority bullshit but with social media behind it. That's just for starters. But I'm not going to rant. If you know me, you know where I stand on these issues. Back to the book. Fans of old horror books might appreciate it for what it is. It's kind of like digging out your Iron Maiden albums and cranking it. Not the worst way to spend a few hours.
May 23, 2020
Skipp & Spector's fourth collaborative novel is a sex & drugs & rock'n'roll splatterpunk gore fest, extremely graphic and disturbing at times, with controversial examinations of the changing world and values of the 1980s. It's a pretty good story, too, though not for the squeamish. I'd put it on the same shelf as Martin's Armageddon Rag, McCammon's The Five, and Denton's Wrack and Roll, except with a more horrific heavy-metal punkish slant. Rust never sleeps... let God sort it out.
January 12, 2024
This is a far more complex book than any of the tag-lines would lead you to believe. Yes, it's an incredibly visceral horror story set in the world of rock-and-roll, but there are far deeper subjects that get addressed and discussed throughout the book.
One of the most obvious - and controversial - is that of abortion. One of the side characters struggles with the keeping of a pregnancy in light of her career, her history, her temperament, and her relationship with the father. Because of the nature of the book, the extremes of both sides get put before us, and we can see the ugliness - and maybe the truths - of each side.
Other issues presented: rock-and-roll music as a controversial entertainment. This book was published in 1988, in the aftermath of the PMRC's congressional hearing and sticker parade. (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parents_... for more info). Again, the book shows both sides of the argument (with obvious partiality, but still relatively fair, if not overly sympathetic to the opposing side) in both good and negative lights. And that's kind of the point.
If you take anything to its polar extremes, it turns bad, no matter which way you slice it. In this particular example, you have rock-and-roll music (an outdated term, to be sure, but you get what I'm talking about: "the music your parents hate") which, in and of itself, is neutral. But you have extreme right-wing conservatives, typically claiming the Christian moniker, who want ALL rock music outlawed, because themes in "that type of music" run counter to their way of life and way of thinking. Standing in the middle ground, for story purposes, are musicians who are fighting for their livelihood. They recognize that what the right-wingers want to do is complete censorship for control purposes, and they want none of that. The know that rock music is cathartic, and downright necessary for human growth - rebellion aiding in the breaking away from mommy and daddy. On the far other side, in the story, are the centerpiece band THE SCREAM. Their goals are far more sinister, closer in scope to what the far-right wingers believe ALL rockers are about: the destruction of the youth of the world.
The book also deals with post traumatic stress disorder, both war-induced and tragedy-induced, and how people with this disorder react and cope with breakouts in their own personal ways.
I've read this book a couple of times, and as usual, I had forgotten about certain aspects from the previous reading. Maybe as I grow older, I see certain things from a different perspective.
Again, fair warning, the authors of this book were part of the "splatterpunk" movement of the mid-80's to early 90's, and as such, this story drips with blood. There is no pulling away from cringe-worthy scenes, no pulling punches. In fact, the camera plays pretty steady on the most violent scenes (you'll never look at a staple gun quite the same way again).
If you can handle that kind of gore, and don't have issue with themes touching on the satanic and blasphemous, then I recommend this book to you. If you do have issues with those things, I strongly recommend you not come near this book. You will be highly offended, even though there is some very good passages regarding God and Good fighting Evil and faith and salvation. Ultimately, it's your choice.
And that's kinda the point.
One of the most obvious - and controversial - is that of abortion. One of the side characters struggles with the keeping of a pregnancy in light of her career, her history, her temperament, and her relationship with the father. Because of the nature of the book, the extremes of both sides get put before us, and we can see the ugliness - and maybe the truths - of each side.
Other issues presented: rock-and-roll music as a controversial entertainment. This book was published in 1988, in the aftermath of the PMRC's congressional hearing and sticker parade. (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parents_... for more info). Again, the book shows both sides of the argument (with obvious partiality, but still relatively fair, if not overly sympathetic to the opposing side) in both good and negative lights. And that's kind of the point.
If you take anything to its polar extremes, it turns bad, no matter which way you slice it. In this particular example, you have rock-and-roll music (an outdated term, to be sure, but you get what I'm talking about: "the music your parents hate") which, in and of itself, is neutral. But you have extreme right-wing conservatives, typically claiming the Christian moniker, who want ALL rock music outlawed, because themes in "that type of music" run counter to their way of life and way of thinking. Standing in the middle ground, for story purposes, are musicians who are fighting for their livelihood. They recognize that what the right-wingers want to do is complete censorship for control purposes, and they want none of that. The know that rock music is cathartic, and downright necessary for human growth - rebellion aiding in the breaking away from mommy and daddy. On the far other side, in the story, are the centerpiece band THE SCREAM. Their goals are far more sinister, closer in scope to what the far-right wingers believe ALL rockers are about: the destruction of the youth of the world.
The book also deals with post traumatic stress disorder, both war-induced and tragedy-induced, and how people with this disorder react and cope with breakouts in their own personal ways.
I've read this book a couple of times, and as usual, I had forgotten about certain aspects from the previous reading. Maybe as I grow older, I see certain things from a different perspective.
Again, fair warning, the authors of this book were part of the "splatterpunk" movement of the mid-80's to early 90's, and as such, this story drips with blood. There is no pulling away from cringe-worthy scenes, no pulling punches. In fact, the camera plays pretty steady on the most violent scenes (you'll never look at a staple gun quite the same way again).
If you can handle that kind of gore, and don't have issue with themes touching on the satanic and blasphemous, then I recommend this book to you. If you do have issues with those things, I strongly recommend you not come near this book. You will be highly offended, even though there is some very good passages regarding God and Good fighting Evil and faith and salvation. Ultimately, it's your choice.
And that's kinda the point.
July 17, 2015
Read this MANY moons ago, senior yeah of high school I think, on the recommendation of a friend. Very intense, very visceral, very graphic. The characters are fairly well developed and diverse in a complex story.
A few common tropes for the late 80's (Vietnam, heavy metal satanism, single mothers, corrupt televangelists, the works). But that's what the story is about, taping into the absurd paranoia of the time. It literally is a parent's rock and roll nightmare.
If you were going to compare this book to a roller coaster, it would be one of those rides that launch you from 0 to 60 in no time flat and hardly slow down at all. The opening scenes set a burning pace and the climax is a rock and roll spectacular that you could only find in Ziggy Stardust's most horrific fantasies.
At 18, I'd have called rated this a 6 on 5 star scale. 20+ years later, I'll guess my teen-aged self was overly stimulated by the sex, drugs and rock and roll and call it a 4. But it is definitely a book I'll NEVER forget.
A few common tropes for the late 80's (Vietnam, heavy metal satanism, single mothers, corrupt televangelists, the works). But that's what the story is about, taping into the absurd paranoia of the time. It literally is a parent's rock and roll nightmare.
If you were going to compare this book to a roller coaster, it would be one of those rides that launch you from 0 to 60 in no time flat and hardly slow down at all. The opening scenes set a burning pace and the climax is a rock and roll spectacular that you could only find in Ziggy Stardust's most horrific fantasies.
At 18, I'd have called rated this a 6 on 5 star scale. 20+ years later, I'll guess my teen-aged self was overly stimulated by the sex, drugs and rock and roll and call it a 4. But it is definitely a book I'll NEVER forget.
October 10, 2020
When I first heard about this I jumped at the chance to read it, with it having numerous ingredients to whet my appetite to the point where I was salivating: heavy metal, demonic forces, a hedonistic band as the main protagonists, Catholic-bashing, and Vietnam, the most rock 'n' roll of all wars (at least in fiction, obvs in real life all war just flat-out sucks!!). And having read the Book of the Dead Vol. 1 & 2 as a feral child, I knew that The Scream wasn't going to skimp on the gory carnage when things go south.
So why only 3 stars? Well, to be fair, it isn't the story, the characters, or the "gory carnage" the latter of which you get in spades, but my own opinion of the first half of the book. It opens very well, and yanked my attention like two cold hands roughly gripping my cheeks, but somewhere not long afterwards I personally felt as though the plot meandered a little, however, I'm not sure if that's entirely accurate, I think the issue might have been the overwriting which tended to pop up here and there in various chapters, repeatedly derailing my attention, and therefore enjoyment of the advancing plot. This being a purely subjective criticism, I MUST point out that other readers might love the prose (and there really is some lovely writing here, I just think the editor should have reined in the language on occasion), and the story itself was very enjoyable: Jake Hamer is a tortured 'Nam vet and lead singer, who along with fellow ex-soldier and sax player Hempstead, are two members of the top-flight metal band, the Jacob Hamer Band, who along with the eponymous The Scream, and the rest of the '80's headbanging enthusiasts, find themselves targeted as the sinful, evil pariahs of youthful corruption by the hypocritical Pastor Furniss and his brainless and bible-thumping masses. However, The Scream are the real deal, they are sinful, they are evil, and their music truly is the product of the Devil.
Despite my wandering attention, from the mid-point on, this book really took off, and was very entertaining, all culminating in a truly great and blood-drenched climax, and as somebody who loves their horror stories to end with a satisfying body count I can't fault the finale.
In fact, screw it, playing it back in my head, I'm upping it to 4 stars. \m/
So why only 3 stars? Well, to be fair, it isn't the story, the characters, or the "gory carnage" the latter of which you get in spades, but my own opinion of the first half of the book. It opens very well, and yanked my attention like two cold hands roughly gripping my cheeks, but somewhere not long afterwards I personally felt as though the plot meandered a little, however, I'm not sure if that's entirely accurate, I think the issue might have been the overwriting which tended to pop up here and there in various chapters, repeatedly derailing my attention, and therefore enjoyment of the advancing plot. This being a purely subjective criticism, I MUST point out that other readers might love the prose (and there really is some lovely writing here, I just think the editor should have reined in the language on occasion), and the story itself was very enjoyable: Jake Hamer is a tortured 'Nam vet and lead singer, who along with fellow ex-soldier and sax player Hempstead, are two members of the top-flight metal band, the Jacob Hamer Band, who along with the eponymous The Scream, and the rest of the '80's headbanging enthusiasts, find themselves targeted as the sinful, evil pariahs of youthful corruption by the hypocritical Pastor Furniss and his brainless and bible-thumping masses. However, The Scream are the real deal, they are sinful, they are evil, and their music truly is the product of the Devil.
Despite my wandering attention, from the mid-point on, this book really took off, and was very entertaining, all culminating in a truly great and blood-drenched climax, and as somebody who loves their horror stories to end with a satisfying body count I can't fault the finale.
In fact, screw it, playing it back in my head, I'm upping it to 4 stars. \m/
December 29, 2011
Recently finished THE SCREAM by John Skipp and Craig Spector and was amazed at how talented these guys are. They can tell one hell of a story. In THE SCREAM, Jake, a Vietnam vet and leader of a heavy metal band, jousts with Christian fundamentalists campaigning against what they see as Satanic rock music. What neither understands is that mega-cult band The Scream is actually using their music to plant the seeds of slaughter and literally raise Hell. Grounded in rich detail about the rock industry in the ’80s and a deep background in the hell of the Vietnam War, THE SCREAM is an outrageous trip bringing together heavy metal bands fighting Christian fundamentalists fighting the Devil. If you’re familiar with their stories you already know that Skipp and Spector do their homework, pour their hearts into their characters, and lavish their stories with tons of gore and mayhem. Lots of fun. Recommended.
September 28, 2024
1,5/5 🌟
Fail :(
Fail :(
February 5, 2017
Ok I guess. This is my fourth Skipp/Spector novel and so far I'm all over the place when rating these guys.
This is the second book of theirs where I was completely indifferent towards all the characters, and to me forming some kind of emotional attachment to a character goes a long way towards making or breaking a novel. I thought the story itself was pretty unique though and somewhat interesting, and I had no problem with the writing style.
This is the second book of theirs where I was completely indifferent towards all the characters, and to me forming some kind of emotional attachment to a character goes a long way towards making or breaking a novel. I thought the story itself was pretty unique though and somewhat interesting, and I had no problem with the writing style.
August 3, 2011
The Scream by John Skipp and Craig Spector wasn't much of a fun read for me. I loved the descriptions of the band members, fans, and the life styles of both, but for
the most part the book felt like a mess of undicisive writing. Half the time I couldn't figure out what the hell was going on and when I did think I knew what was
happening I didn't know why. I hated the dream-like quality of this novel. Perhaps it was the purpose of the authors to write a book that felt like it was on the same
mind-altering drugs as its characters but I didn't like it at all. I have an intense dislike for dreamy books. It did have some pretty detailed descriptions of violence
and an interesting enough ending full of explosions and death with a soundtrack of metal, but the trip to it isn't worth it. In short, I loved the idea of this book
more than the book itself. Like David J. Schow's The Kill Riff, I was very willing to give the book a try because of its dealing with metal music (something that I love
to play and listen to), but I think they both could have been done much better. A good idea performed in a bad way.
the most part the book felt like a mess of undicisive writing. Half the time I couldn't figure out what the hell was going on and when I did think I knew what was
happening I didn't know why. I hated the dream-like quality of this novel. Perhaps it was the purpose of the authors to write a book that felt like it was on the same
mind-altering drugs as its characters but I didn't like it at all. I have an intense dislike for dreamy books. It did have some pretty detailed descriptions of violence
and an interesting enough ending full of explosions and death with a soundtrack of metal, but the trip to it isn't worth it. In short, I loved the idea of this book
more than the book itself. Like David J. Schow's The Kill Riff, I was very willing to give the book a try because of its dealing with metal music (something that I love
to play and listen to), but I think they both could have been done much better. A good idea performed in a bad way.
October 11, 2018
Has all the visceral gross out factor of their other collaborations, and could probably be considered one of the better heavy metal or rock and roll horror novels, but it felt overlong and I didn’t care about the Christian/Antichristian elements, the ‘safe’ rocker lead characters or the other commentary here on issues like abortion. Meanders too much and thus dilutes all the good stuff. Doesn’t hold a candle to their other books like THE BRIDGE or THE LIGHT AT THE END.
March 20, 2021
Just finished this one by Skipp and Spector and damn I loved it. Horror, heavy metal, evil spawn, and death. The ultimate struggle of good versus evil. This book was batshit crazy and I loved every second. As a huge metalhead and fan of all things horror this book had everything I dig in one story.
December 30, 2020
All the 80s kids are going crazy about rock music and the band of the moment is The Scream, an enigmatic and openly diabolical outfit that nobody really knows nothing about. Their debut album soon becomes a soundtrack to murder and mayhem as the band's hardcore fans, the Screamers, sort of zombies with their eyes gouged out, begin their slaughter-spree and suburban homes and concert venues become killing grounds. EEYAAOW! as them kids say.
Splatterpunk, which is basically a synonym for excess, was all the rage in the 80s and Skipp and Spector were the horror subgenre's best examples. The Scream has a good base to it - rock music is the Devil's music, after all - but as Manowar sang it, "all men play on ten", and so do Skipp and Spector. Sometimes the results are admittedly nice, but often they feel cartoonish, because everything that can go over the limit inevitably does. Especially problematic is the finale at a stadium concert, with one fictional band led by Jacob Hamer going after the by-gum-they-are-truly-evil The Scream with guns and grenades and what not. Seeing as the final concert takes place after The Scream's previous concert caused a massacre makes one wonder about the competence of the municipal authorities as well.
The subplot about the Christian right's crusade against rock music is a sign of the times, as are the references to Vietnam. Everyone and their uncle seems to be a veteran, probably because First Blood part 2 came out in 1985 and they all suddenly remembered. Getting the music right is the hardest part of any book dealing with music and while The Scream doesn't fumble too badly it hasn't aged too well either, mainly because the music that came after makes these fictional mid-80s bands pale in comparison. Sure, some of The Scream's lyrics are clearly evil invocations (the Screamers would probably have their minds blown by Morbid Angel, whose debut LP came in 1989), but mostly the lyrics spell generic mid-80s hard rock.
The Scream would be a quick fun read if not for its slightly bloated length, with too many secondary (or tertiary) characters one barely even remembers by name. There's simply too much filler here for an effective impact, and the impact is all one cares about in splatterpunk.
Splatterpunk, which is basically a synonym for excess, was all the rage in the 80s and Skipp and Spector were the horror subgenre's best examples. The Scream has a good base to it - rock music is the Devil's music, after all - but as Manowar sang it, "all men play on ten", and so do Skipp and Spector. Sometimes the results are admittedly nice, but often they feel cartoonish, because everything that can go over the limit inevitably does. Especially problematic is the finale at a stadium concert, with one fictional band led by Jacob Hamer going after the by-gum-they-are-truly-evil The Scream with guns and grenades and what not. Seeing as the final concert takes place after The Scream's previous concert caused a massacre makes one wonder about the competence of the municipal authorities as well.
The subplot about the Christian right's crusade against rock music is a sign of the times, as are the references to Vietnam. Everyone and their uncle seems to be a veteran, probably because First Blood part 2 came out in 1985 and they all suddenly remembered. Getting the music right is the hardest part of any book dealing with music and while The Scream doesn't fumble too badly it hasn't aged too well either, mainly because the music that came after makes these fictional mid-80s bands pale in comparison. Sure, some of The Scream's lyrics are clearly evil invocations (the Screamers would probably have their minds blown by Morbid Angel, whose debut LP came in 1989), but mostly the lyrics spell generic mid-80s hard rock.
The Scream would be a quick fun read if not for its slightly bloated length, with too many secondary (or tertiary) characters one barely even remembers by name. There's simply too much filler here for an effective impact, and the impact is all one cares about in splatterpunk.
July 5, 2022
Skipp and Spector captured the zeitgeist of the late 1980s in an unflinchingly visceral and gritty tale of worlds colliding in a catastrophic and terrifying nightmare brought to life. Heavy metal, Christian fundamentalism, and the horrors of a war most people wanted to forget--though it was less than two decades in the rearview--combine to create a tense and dizzying descent into the depths of Hell. But Hell isn't content to remain in the depths.
The Scream is the fictional band the Christian right believed all heavy metal acts to be, sinister occultists using the devotion of their fans to bring Hell on Earth. Fronted by the beautiful and mysterious Tara, the band pushes the limits of technology, performance art, and irreligious symbolism. But there's more going on than performative evil, and it all has something to do with a presence at work during the Vietnam war.
Jake Hamer, Vietnam veteran and frontman of the Jacob Hamer Band, is no stranger to pushing limits and pushing buttons. He's developed an extreme dislike for the brand of Christian fundamentalism promoted by the likes of Pastor Daniel Furniss, and that sentiment goes both ways. As conservative voices in the political world seek to stifle and curtail the free expression of artists like Jake Hamer, these two men find themselves on opposite sides of a battle neither of them knows is coming, with stakes that they couldn't imagine.
Skipp and Spector's novel hits the ground running with a barrage of violence and insanity that sets the stage for the nightmares still to come. Packed with as much social commentary as violence, the authors force readers to confront some unpleasant truths, the most striking of those being the light shone on the performative nature of evangelical Christianity being not so different from the performative Satanism of heavy metal artists of the time.
The Scream is the fictional band the Christian right believed all heavy metal acts to be, sinister occultists using the devotion of their fans to bring Hell on Earth. Fronted by the beautiful and mysterious Tara, the band pushes the limits of technology, performance art, and irreligious symbolism. But there's more going on than performative evil, and it all has something to do with a presence at work during the Vietnam war.
Jake Hamer, Vietnam veteran and frontman of the Jacob Hamer Band, is no stranger to pushing limits and pushing buttons. He's developed an extreme dislike for the brand of Christian fundamentalism promoted by the likes of Pastor Daniel Furniss, and that sentiment goes both ways. As conservative voices in the political world seek to stifle and curtail the free expression of artists like Jake Hamer, these two men find themselves on opposite sides of a battle neither of them knows is coming, with stakes that they couldn't imagine.
Skipp and Spector's novel hits the ground running with a barrage of violence and insanity that sets the stage for the nightmares still to come. Packed with as much social commentary as violence, the authors force readers to confront some unpleasant truths, the most striking of those being the light shone on the performative nature of evangelical Christianity being not so different from the performative Satanism of heavy metal artists of the time.
June 10, 2015
Rock'n'roll and its bastard child Heavy Metal were more conversational in the 1980's than at any other time thanks to organisations like Tipper Gore's Parents Music Resource Center and countless TV evangelists. John Skipp and Craig Spector made this fact the foundation of their third novel The Scream. The Scream is a Heavy Metal band led by an impossibly beautiful woman; the ultimate femme fatal. Jake Hamer is a rocker as well, but his group is less extreme. He publicly takes on the wowzers, led by Rev Dan Furniss, with an event called Rock Aid; like Live Aid but aimed at saving rock'n'roll instead of staving children.
It turns out The Scream is on the bill and sixty something people are murdered at the event. There's something very wrong with The Scream and their fans.
Heavy Metal is almost always associated with the devil and evil and Skipp and Spector make this a reality with The Scream. Jake is a campaigner for reason but when things get demonically real he is forced to fight the monster with the indirect help of Walker, The Scream's manager who has a crisis of conscience.
Were the wowzers right all along?
I wanted to like this novel more than I did. The Scream is written in the authors' folksy; let me tell you a story, informal way, which is good. But it goes on a bit long. And given what happens later perhaps the title of the book should have been Napalm Death; but of course we already have one of those.
Add the occasional Vietnam flashback to the marching mothers and we are slap bang in the middle of the topical eighties. Perhaps The Scream hasn't aged as well as the classic The Light at the End?
It turns out The Scream is on the bill and sixty something people are murdered at the event. There's something very wrong with The Scream and their fans.
Heavy Metal is almost always associated with the devil and evil and Skipp and Spector make this a reality with The Scream. Jake is a campaigner for reason but when things get demonically real he is forced to fight the monster with the indirect help of Walker, The Scream's manager who has a crisis of conscience.
Were the wowzers right all along?
I wanted to like this novel more than I did. The Scream is written in the authors' folksy; let me tell you a story, informal way, which is good. But it goes on a bit long. And given what happens later perhaps the title of the book should have been Napalm Death; but of course we already have one of those.
Add the occasional Vietnam flashback to the marching mothers and we are slap bang in the middle of the topical eighties. Perhaps The Scream hasn't aged as well as the classic The Light at the End?
October 3, 2019
TITLE: The Scream
AUTHOR: John Skipp and Craig Spector
GENRE: Horror
PAGES: 432
We have all heard the phrase "Sex, Drugs, and Rock n Roll". Well, if you go to the flipside of that coin you will see "Blood, Gore, and Goo!" Lucky for us, John Skipp and Craig Spector own that coin, and they have flipped it over and over and over again in their novel The Scream.
The Scream is a heavy metal rock and roll band that have legions of fans. Their fans see an awesome heavy metal group that goes beyond the norm and embraces all things dark and Satanic, which is right up their alley. For the rest of the rock community, they realize that something is not quite right with the group, but hey, it is all in the name of Rock and Roll.
Add to this a preacher that wants to ban Rock altogether, an entity called Momma that has an agenda all her own, some Vietnam War vets on both sides of the aisle, a runaway teen that has seen both heaven and hell, and a pregnant band member of the Jake Hamer Group (another Heavy Metal Group that butts heads with The Scream) and you get a story that ratchets up the tension with each and every page, right to a a soul searing showdown in Philadelphia that will leave the reader feeling like a wrung out dishrag at the end.
What really makes this novel shine is the fact that thirty two years after its publication it still stands the test of time. It is as relevant today as when it was written, maybe even more so considering all that the world is going through.
6 Bookmarks out of 5! (Yes, I realize I said 6, but this book is worth the extra bump. It is THAT good!)
AUTHOR: John Skipp and Craig Spector
GENRE: Horror
PAGES: 432
We have all heard the phrase "Sex, Drugs, and Rock n Roll". Well, if you go to the flipside of that coin you will see "Blood, Gore, and Goo!" Lucky for us, John Skipp and Craig Spector own that coin, and they have flipped it over and over and over again in their novel The Scream.
The Scream is a heavy metal rock and roll band that have legions of fans. Their fans see an awesome heavy metal group that goes beyond the norm and embraces all things dark and Satanic, which is right up their alley. For the rest of the rock community, they realize that something is not quite right with the group, but hey, it is all in the name of Rock and Roll.
Add to this a preacher that wants to ban Rock altogether, an entity called Momma that has an agenda all her own, some Vietnam War vets on both sides of the aisle, a runaway teen that has seen both heaven and hell, and a pregnant band member of the Jake Hamer Group (another Heavy Metal Group that butts heads with The Scream) and you get a story that ratchets up the tension with each and every page, right to a a soul searing showdown in Philadelphia that will leave the reader feeling like a wrung out dishrag at the end.
What really makes this novel shine is the fact that thirty two years after its publication it still stands the test of time. It is as relevant today as when it was written, maybe even more so considering all that the world is going through.
6 Bookmarks out of 5! (Yes, I realize I said 6, but this book is worth the extra bump. It is THAT good!)
July 16, 2007
The defining 1980s splatterpunk novel and the pinnacle of Skipp and Spector's collaboration. What I'd give for a copy of The Scream's "Critical Mass" CD! One of the most entertaining horror novels ever written.
June 15, 2017
As always, Skipp and Spector NEVER fail. This book is so well written I am certain other writers of their generation hate them for being so good. And I don't blame them! The authors know how to deep dive into emotions and characterization. The people in the book were my family by the end. I read this every few years. Awesome book
January 1, 2020
4.7 stars!
The Scream popped my Splatterpunk cherry. What a long crazy ride. Demonic metal music massacre.
Puns, lyrics, poetry, insane terror!
Compulsory addition to any splatterpunk and horror collection.
The Scream popped my Splatterpunk cherry. What a long crazy ride. Demonic metal music massacre.
Puns, lyrics, poetry, insane terror!
Compulsory addition to any splatterpunk and horror collection.
March 4, 2022
I read this decades ago when it came out and was heavily into horror (I still am but I've expanded my tastes somewhat). What I remembered was a hard rock/metal band called The Scream and a jungle setting of some sort but little else. Upon re-reading it, I was very entertained by Skipp & Spector's clean, unobtrusive writing that has the right amount of cynicism and bite to make it interesting.
An American soldier in the Viet Nam War is at death's door and is given a chance to live by an inter-dimensional demon who can only enter our dimension in times and places of extreme carnage - great setup. The story continues years later as the soldier becomes a rock manager for The Scream, the hottest band in the land, and wants to use The Scream's influence on the young to raise Hell on Earth.
The novel is very much of its time with thinly-veiled references to the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), the "Satanic Panic" as well as the then in-vogue charity concerts like Live Aid, Farm Aid, Hear 'N' Aid, etc.
Skipp & Spector deliver on the gore as is their trademark as godfathers of the "Splatter Punk" trend of the era, but also throw in some good characterization and side plots about religious fundamentalism and the abortion debate, fortunately they don't distract too much from the main story. Not their best, go the The Light at the End for that, but pretty damn good.
An American soldier in the Viet Nam War is at death's door and is given a chance to live by an inter-dimensional demon who can only enter our dimension in times and places of extreme carnage - great setup. The story continues years later as the soldier becomes a rock manager for The Scream, the hottest band in the land, and wants to use The Scream's influence on the young to raise Hell on Earth.
The novel is very much of its time with thinly-veiled references to the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), the "Satanic Panic" as well as the then in-vogue charity concerts like Live Aid, Farm Aid, Hear 'N' Aid, etc.
Skipp & Spector deliver on the gore as is their trademark as godfathers of the "Splatter Punk" trend of the era, but also throw in some good characterization and side plots about religious fundamentalism and the abortion debate, fortunately they don't distract too much from the main story. Not their best, go the The Light at the End for that, but pretty damn good.
August 1, 2023
Honestly this should be a 2.5 star review but it get's an extra 1/2 star from me for nostagia purposes. It's been thirty-five years since I first read 'The Scream' and I remember devouring it when I was a horror and metal obsessed teenager. I also remember loving it and enthusiastically recommending it to anyone and everyone who liked to read, whether they were a horror fan or not.
Flash forward thirty five years and I pick up the trade paperback and decide to see how this splatterpunk classic holds up. Unfortunately, not well. This is an extremely clunky read that's at least a hundred pages too long, crammed full with unecessary flashback scenes, too many characters that aren't fully fleshed out, and some real amateurish prose.
But it's also got gallons of goopey, groovy gore gags, a big ass Kaiju-sized Momma Demon, and a gonzo climax that's like the prose version of Peter Jackson's Dead Alive. Some parts work. Other parts don't. And unfortunately it drags too many times when it should be kicking into high-gear.
A couple years back and I re-read another Skipp & Spector joint - the superlative werewolf thriller 'Animals' - and was surprised to see how well it held up. Same for 'The Bridge', their eco-horror novel, also the last they would write together. It's a shame but 'The Scream' falls short for me the second time 'round.
Flash forward thirty five years and I pick up the trade paperback and decide to see how this splatterpunk classic holds up. Unfortunately, not well. This is an extremely clunky read that's at least a hundred pages too long, crammed full with unecessary flashback scenes, too many characters that aren't fully fleshed out, and some real amateurish prose.
But it's also got gallons of goopey, groovy gore gags, a big ass Kaiju-sized Momma Demon, and a gonzo climax that's like the prose version of Peter Jackson's Dead Alive. Some parts work. Other parts don't. And unfortunately it drags too many times when it should be kicking into high-gear.
A couple years back and I re-read another Skipp & Spector joint - the superlative werewolf thriller 'Animals' - and was surprised to see how well it held up. Same for 'The Bridge', their eco-horror novel, also the last they would write together. It's a shame but 'The Scream' falls short for me the second time 'round.
October 3, 2025
I would give it 3.5 stars if possible.
Being a big fan of John Skipp and Craig Spector, giving 3 stars is painful.
"The light at the end" was far better written, despite of being written a lot sooner. This seems a regression of their writing skills.
I do not know if this happened to other people, but the writing seemed to be confusing.
Also, there were too many characters and too many relationships. In "The light at the end" there were quite a lot too, but it was less confussing.
There were parts of the story than I thought could be removed and the result would not be affected.
And it was supposed to be splatterpunk, but it resulted to be more punk than splatter.
Still, the story is very original, and enjoyable despite the confussion, and very Skipp-and-Spectoresque.
I cannot wait to read "The cleanup".
Long live rock and roll.
Being a big fan of John Skipp and Craig Spector, giving 3 stars is painful.
"The light at the end" was far better written, despite of being written a lot sooner. This seems a regression of their writing skills.
I do not know if this happened to other people, but the writing seemed to be confusing.
Also, there were too many characters and too many relationships. In "The light at the end" there were quite a lot too, but it was less confussing.
There were parts of the story than I thought could be removed and the result would not be affected.
And it was supposed to be splatterpunk, but it resulted to be more punk than splatter.
Still, the story is very original, and enjoyable despite the confussion, and very Skipp-and-Spectoresque.
I cannot wait to read "The cleanup".
Long live rock and roll.
May 31, 2025
3.5 stars. Rock musicians (the Jacob Hamer Band) vs. satanic panic Christian fundamentalists (led by Pastor Furniss) vs. demons from Vietnam (a band called The Scream) with a splatterpunk flare. There’s a lot going on in this one including throwing in an abortion side story, Vietnam War flashbacks, PTSD, and rock concerts for a noble cause (to save rock and roll). This was like quiet horror with sprinkles of splatterpunk. The last 50 pages or so were pure chaos and carnage. I suppose my biggest criticism is that it was too long with too many things going on and needed to be edited down.
April 11, 2024
This has some really good gory parts, and the story is mostly good, but I think that it's much too long and has too many characters to keep track of. There were also way too many Vietnam flashbacks, and not only from one character, that don't all tie in to the story. It's well-written and very descriptive, but it gets bogged down in some parts.
The Screamers were fun, though. EeeeeeeyaaaaOWWWW!
The Screamers were fun, though. EeeeeeeyaaaaOWWWW!
May 13, 2023
Follows a rock band with the usual troubled lives, and the emergence of a sort of death metal band The Scream that inspires its fans to murder. And sort of connects to hell? A lot of it remains unclear, and the large cast of narrators makes it a bit confusing, but there's plenty of gross out horror and weird sex. The end gets pretty crazy. Not really one I'd recommend, but entertaining enough.
July 17, 2025
Wie ein gutes Metal-Album: hart, exzessiv, packend. Aus einer Zeit, in der Rob Halford und Dee Snider öffentlich den Metal verteidigen mussten: eine Story über Dämonen, der Krieg, der sie gebiert, die Leute, die sie füttern und das allgegenwärtige Chaos, das wir Leben nennen. Ein Meisterwerk des längst wieder in Vergessenheit geratenen (und überholten) Splatterpunks. 4,5/10.
January 1, 2020
Better than I remembered. Remember it to be more gruesome than it was (read it late 80s). Loved the premise. Not the best realization of it though. Really like the writing style. And the narrator was really great.
May 23, 2023
Back to the 80s and the PMRC (Parents Music Resource Center) controversy. Add in a demonic heavy metal band, Vietnam War flashbacks, pro-choice/pro-life battles and the value of Christian mercy. A good read, but not as good as other Skipp & Spector books: THE LIGHT AT THE END, ANIMALS or THE BRIDGE.
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