My little honey I am non around
I've taken lost and I don't wanna exist establish
At that place's a lot that is wrong in this earth and me
There's a hole in my breast where my heart used to exist

There words from the track "Trash Art" by now-defunct killer Husker Du-by-style-of-Dinosaur-Jr-by-manner-of-Avail Philadelphia outfit The Holy Mess kept rolling around in writer/director Matthew John Lawrence's head as he worked his way through the script for what would go the sly, enlivening, deliriously entertaining, sometimes shocking, paradoxically life-affirming punk rock horror one-act Uncle Peckerhead, in which the eponymous bout-salvaging roadie (David Littleton) who seems heaven-sent for a hungry young noise punk band named DUH turns out to be partially possessed by a demon from the deepest pit of Hell…even hungrier for human flesh.

"When I started writing Uncle Peckerhead, the first draft had the same catastrophe you see in the movie," Lawrence tells Decibel. "And I knew I had to have 'Trash Age' close it out. To me, that lyric in item was a perfect distillation of Peckerhead. [Former The Holy Mess guitarist/vocaliser] Jeff [Riddle] has such a knack for writing incredibly tricky, accessible songs. Songs that conduct a lot of weight but don't leave the listener bloated with heavy-handed lyrics or Guitar Centre riffs. His melodies have taken residence in my brain for my remaining years — and I'm okay with that."

Eventually, Riddle came aboard Uncle Peckerhead to both play DUH'southward introverted off-stage, luminously liberated onstage guitarist onstage Max and co-produce the film — and, much to Lawrence'south joy, he agreed to not only sign off on the use of "Trash Historic period" only besides write and record an unabridged DUH demo.

"He sent me a demo version of 'Likewise Loftier to Cry Too Rare to Care' a few days afterward and I probably listened to that song — no exaggeration — nigh seventy to eighty times the day I received it," Lawrence says. "Even at present, later on spending almost iii years with DUH's music, I still love those songs. And I edited the fucker! I cannot count the number of times I had to listen to each one from pre to post production. Still. And so. Good. But I digress…"

It's actually non a digression, however — the DUH jams are really for-real actually fucking great.

And this greatness proves so essential to the success of Uncle Peckerhead: At that place'southward already horror and zaniness — a bunch of throwaway songs would've probable diminished the foundational authenticity of the film, muting its ability and minimizing the ability of audiences to suspend disbelief. Instead, the alive performances sizzle with authenticity and a real sense of urgency. You come across why the alchemy and beautiful volatility is then hard for the ring — which as well includes an absolutely lovely, rousing, nuanced performances from Chet Siegel as bassist/vocalist Judy and wry, hilarious turn from Ruby McCollister as drummer Mel — to walk away from even when their rapid ascent is aided by demonic carnage.

"Those demos Jeff recorded helped to convince people to join our band of misfits and make this movie," Lawrence says. "It demonstrated that we were serious, this was existent, and we already had insanely talented people attached to the project. Jeff was there from the starting time and without him there would accept been no motion-picture show. Jeff is a beautiful soul and I am then stoked that people are loving on his music similar I have for and then many years."

Decibel caught up with Riddle earlier this week for a wild, fun conversation on his musical background, DUH, creating "real not corny picture show band songs" for Peckerhead, and his sure-to-slay new band Five Hundred Bucks.

Uncle Peckerhead is now streaming OnDemand via all the usual suspects and out on DVD next week.

Tell me a bit virtually your musical background — first musical loves, discovering the more aggressive/outré side of stone, etcetera — and how that morphed from observer to participant.

I tin can actually pinpoint the offset time I heard the music that would change the course of my life forever and as cliché as it may sound information technology was when I heard Nirvana. I was probably around seven or 8 years quondam and I call back my friend Kyle'south dad had a Nevermind cassette record and we used to simply heed to it in his room non-stop. I got this overwhelming feeling ane day where I knew had to have this tape for myself and listen to information technology more than at dwelling house and I really asked him if I could borrow the tape and he said, "No my dad would kill me." And I believed him because his dad was a Navy Seal who apparently had killed someone in a bar fight i time. Now, I detest stealing, merely something came over me and I needed to accept it so badly that I simply took information technology and I felt like it was worth getting skinned alive by a Navy Seal for information technology. I simply listened to that tape solitary in my room on repeat. Information technology was the first fourth dimension that I remember being like, "Oh there's music out there other than what mom and dad mind to in the car — and it's way fucking better."

Not too far downward the line, I had to go to Philadelphia for a funeral and that's where I ran into my older cousin. He was like thirteen and was into playing guitar and showed me bands like The Ramones, The Dead Boys, Green Day, Black Flag, and then on. I was only there for like five days and tried to absorb as much equally I could from my cousin'south tape collection and it blew my fiddling fucking caput off it'south shoulders. I returned to my hometown of Goose Creek, S Carolina — information technology's a existent place — and knew that I wanted to merely play in a ring. I didn't care about being famous or even good, I but wanted to play music.

I started a band with some of my friends when I was well-nigh 14 and we sucked and it was great. We got better at our instruments and getting into trouble every bit the years went on. This is where a lot of my "tacklin' fuel" came from for my character when information technology was fourth dimension to play Max in Uncle Peckerhead. Eventually our ring got to a signal where I wanted to keep touring and playing shows and my friends wanted to do real things with their lives. Smart conclusion, honestly. I made an acoustic record which was basically just punk songs without a ring and I lived in my motorcar for a year and modify only playing shows and selling that CD for money. I would play anywhere. I mean anywhere. It was one of the near fun times in my life, honestly. Information technology was unsafe and I didn't know where my next meal or tank of gas was coming from. Ane fourth dimension I played a sushi shop in a college town in the South. I didn't know anybody there and while I was playing I was telling this crowd of drunk college dorks nearly how I hate cops and some drunkard lady came up and started shoving me and had the Chief of Police on speaker phone and put me on the phone with him. I told him to become fuck himself and threw the phone across the room. All I heard after that was yelling. I had to get out of there considering a bunch of jocks wanted to crush my ass. Oh, the good old days.

Non as well long after that I moved to Philadelphia and started playing in some bands such equally Scarier Area and The Holy Mess. I even put out an actual acoustic record that wasn't just me yelling over an acoustic guitar in an flat. Did some touring put out some records and now here nosotros are.

You're pretty deeply intertwined with the Uncle Peckerhead epic — producer, thespian, creating the band'southward music — simply going by IMDB it looks like this is your first characteristic. Is working in film something yous ever wanted to exercise? Or was Peckerhead a target of opportunity?

Yeah this was the offset feature I've done. I've always thought information technology would be so cool to create some kind of prove or be involved with filmmaking to some degree but it e'er seemed like something that was then unattainable and out there that I never really seriously considered it. I met Matt Lawrence back in like 2011 or 2012 because I was friends with his brother, Mike. Matt asked if I would be interested in interim in his brusk — which became Larry Gone Demon — and I was like, "Yeah of course." I didn't really have his request seriously and was and then naive to the whole thing. I honestly didn't think he would ever really call me to practise it. I think he asked me at a political party at the former Luther house in Philadelphia. About a year and a one-half or so later I become a call and information technology's Matt and he was like, "Okay, you ready to do it now? I'll send you the script." I was like, "Oh shit, he wasn't kidding. I have to do this now."

I'yard and then glad I did because information technology turned a key in my brain and opened up a whole new affiliate and like a whole new earth that I never thought I'd actually get the chance to exist a role of. Since so, Matt and I have gone on to go best friends and when he asked me to do Uncle Peckerhead I didn't have a 2d of hesitation or doubt in my listen. Matt is a great director and producer and after what I saw him reach with Larry Gone Demon, and especially now working on Uncle Peckerhead together, we've been through the shit together and I'd follow him into the fire any day. I hope he's not reading this.

Did you have fun putting information technology together? Did y'all feel similarly that it had to be "real," not but an approximation of what a noise-punk band would play?

I really enjoyed writing the music for DUH considering it was the get-go time I had written with whatever kind of direction. Matt sent me the script and wanted to use a song of mine that he really liked and I was like, "Yeah that's cool, just what if I wrote a whole EP for this band? Like make the songs real and not corny movie band songs." I really couldn't run into doing it any other manner. Matt didn't so much give me direction on how the songs should sound, only we would talk nearly things like mood or what was happening in a scene and information technology kind of informed my decisions on what the tone of the song would be for a given part. I wanted the songs to be authentic but I wasn't "trying to make them feel accurate". I estimate the songs are all filtering through me and are just an extension of how I write and the experiences I've had in my life and it was fitting when making a real record for a imitation band.

One swell affair nigh your character, who has this self-empowerment arc, is that, while plainly Peck helps depict him out of his vanquish, there is also this idea that volition resonate with a lot of fans of underground music that these diverse scenes are — at their best — places where people can detect the security and customs to cocky-concretize. Distressing if that'south overthinking it, but I'm only curious as someone who plays music and obviously has a deep grounding in information technology whether in that location was something special to yous in that sense almost your grapheme?

Admittedly! I mean, my character is shy and awkward and weird and lovable. He is like this timid creature that really but comes into his own when he is on phase and so sort of turns into whole a different person when he'southward playing music. There is also the dynamic that when he is around his best friends, his bandmates, he tin can let his baby-sit downwardly and be himself. I feel similar he is the petty blood brother and his two big sisters are kind of always protecting him and looking out for him because he's just an amiable fragile person. David [Littleton]'s graphic symbol Peck also is longing for that sense of belonging and just fits right in with this coiffure of weirdos. Punk has always been a beacon for people who don't fit in and nosotros just wanted to show that anybody tin exercise information technology. You lot don't have to be good, you don't take to be pretty, you don't have to be cool. Similar, fuck the gatekeepery, punker than thou, jock bullshit. I've never gotten downwards with whatsoever of that. This moving picture is for the freaks, and I call back there is something most the story and characters that almost everyone tin can relate to.

Did your co-stars have a musical background? Did you lot take skilful chemistry in those live scenes with them?

Chet Siegel and Scarlet McCollister first off are dreams to piece of work with and learn from. We became instant friends. They didn't take whatsoever real musical background per-se, but I fabricated videos of me playing the songs with like close ups of chord patterns and how they looked on the cervix. I think Ruby took a month of drum lessons. William Francis Orender who is in my existent band, Five Hundred Bucks, played the drums on the recordings of these songs and also made videos for Ruby to exercise with. I remember them both beingness a lilliputian nervous on our commencement day of filming a band scene and I sort of had a huddle with them and told them, "Guys, we're making the best kind of music. It'south punk music. You don't have to be proficient. Just have a good time. I fuck up all the time at shows. It's the best part. Just have a good time, that's all that matters." I think that actually set the tone for the rest of the picture show because they fucking crushed information technology and nosotros all just had a blast. That's my existent van in the moving-picture show, my real business firm that we filmed in for DUH's house — it looks meliorate at present, I hope — and all my band gear. We were like a existent ring. I shared a room with David, and Reddish and Chet lived together at an AirBnB. I would go pick them upwardly every forenoon. I collection the bandage around in my van and nosotros just blasted punk music and would coil up to dissimilar locations and it really felt similar we were a band on tour.

What's up with your current ring?

William Francis Orender who played the drums for all the DUH songs and I have a ring together called 5 Hundred Bucks. Information technology's a pretty new projection but we have a song out that you can mind to wherever you do that. We have a full record we recorded with Jeff Leonard Jr. and Eric Rickert that I'one thousand stoked on and a 7" that's getting pressed right at present that we are self-releasing and we should take that back any day now. If anyone wants to put the LP out holler at us.

Are you hoping to make more films?

I would love to be involved in filmmaking in any way possible. We accept a little product company called Subtle T-Rex if someone wants to requite us some money to make something else, nosotros take ideas and we're all ears.

I'm curious: What's Jeff Riddle's day to day life like?

My mean solar day to solar day life right now consists of waking up, doing the hippie speedball — a spliff and some strong java — watering my plants, hiking with my dog, writing music and working on script ideas, rinsing and repeating. This pandemic has made me incredibly fucking boring…er.

Finally, Uncle Peckerhead seems to leave the door open for a sequel. Is that a thought?

Well you know what they say, when Uncle Peckerhead leaves a door open, I estimate I'thousand paying to cool off the whole fucking neighborhood.