The 1977 albumSound Effects No . 13 – Death & Horroropens with a brand being sharpen , then unfolds into an agreement of chopping , rupture , crunching , lashing , sawing , and sizzle . The rootage of each noise is inscrutable , but listeners can refer to theback coverto discover where they may home come from . Track listingsunder the incision “ Execution and Torture ” admit evocative titles like “ Neck Twisted and Broken , ” “ Red Hot Poker Into Eye , ” and “ Nails forge Into Flesh . ”
Horror had take a bluff play in the 1970s . In the first half of the decade , movie audiences were appal by transgressive films likeThe Exorcist(1973 ) andThe Texas Chainsaw Massacre(1974 ) . And whileSound Effects No . 13didn’t depict unfitting uses for a rood-tree or a cannibal dinner party political party , it courted controversy all the same . The audio alone was disturbing enough to get the vinyl radical pulled from stores shortly after its freeing .
But it was n’t absent from shelf for long . The negative publicity fuel by conservative activists serve make it one of the most successful sound effects record album of its metre — and it all started with a few Brassica oleracea in a transcription studio apartment .
Murder to Your Ears
BBC Records & Tapes gained a reputation as the UK ’s oddest record book recording label in the seventies . In summation to releasing theme medicine from their tuner and television programs , the recording label put out a “ bizarrely divers ” assortment of recordings that lacked any sense of cohesion . Their memorable albums include postpartum exercise euphony , a talking to on astronomy , and a screening of Rod Stewart ’s “ Sailing ” sung by the companionship of a Royal Navy aircraft carrier . One series packaged sound effect from theBBC ’s archivesinto vinyl records for amateur filmmakers and playwright . The recording label received legion requests for a horror - theme album in this nervure , and in 1977 , they give listeners what they wanted .
WhileSound Effects No . 13 – Death & Horrorfeatures voice bites from the connection ’s library , many tracks were tradition recorded for the project . BBC staff member Ian Richardsoncommissionedthe album and figure out with producer Mike Harding to craft an audio journeying that spanned soppy stalk house noises to gory murder scene . The result was dread - inducing , but the behind - the - scenes process at the BBC Radiophonic Workshop more in all likelihood inspired hunger than fright .
As Richardson drop a line in theliner notesfor the record album , the more gruesome effects were achieve by “ ill-use large blanched cabbages . ” He explained , “ The results were extremely realistic and we even had some coleslaw leave for dinner party . ”
The track ’ vegetal origins did n’t hurt their effectiveness . Like the blockbusterJawsreleased two yr prior , Sound Effects No . 13proved that the most horrifying threat are the ones hiding out of sight . In the moments of tensity leading up to the killer ’s reveal , a decrepit staircase or a disembodied scream can chivvy a more visceral reaction than whatever bloody fit is wait around the round .
“ A recording of horror sound personal effects ? Who needs wakeless effects for executions and gory thing like that ? It ’s surely the ocular aspect of any horror motion picture which ship tingles down your back and progress to your pilus place upright on terminal , ” Richardson ’s notereads . “ Not true . Next clip you stay on up to watch the late night pic on the T.V. , sprain the speech sound down and you ’ll discover that not only does the lecture disappear but also those all - authoritative wakeless effects . ”
An Unlikely Hit
Sound Effects No . 13was cursorily labeled a moral catastrophe . Within a few days of its entry in 1977 , British anti - obscenity activistMary Whitehouselearned of its existence and made it her mission to remove it from depot .
This was n’t the first time she had butted head with the BBC . She had launched a campaign against the web ’s conductor - general Hugh Greene in the 1960s , phone him “ the heller corporal ” and accusing him of promotingsuch behaviorsas “ promiscuousness , unfaithfulness , and drink ” through his programming . The showsDoctor WhoandTill Death Us Do Partalso landed in her crosshairs .
The BBC ’s violent healthy effects record album was an unsuprising target . Even if Whitehouse never sit down to listen to it , she would have found plenty to be enraged by in the packaging alone . The cover have a screaming woman ’s warped side superimposed into a chatoric shot of toruture , dismemberment , and beheading . The tracks listed on the back were separate into the sections “ Execution and Torture , ” “ Monsters and creature , ” “ Creaking Doors and Grave Digging , ” “ Musical Effects and Footsteps , ” “ Vocal Effects and Heartbeats , ” and “ Weather , Atmosphere and Bells . ” The vinyl itself match the grisly content : When hold up to the light , it turned a vivid , bloody Bolshevik .
Unlike the programs Whitehouse had attacked antecedently , Sound Effects No . 13was never intended for universal audiences . It was conceived as a niche resource for multitude in the entertainment industry who were presumptively old enough to monitor their own media uptake . But thanks to her , the record album became a crossing hit . After call out BBC Records & Tapes ’ “ utter sense of irresponsibleness ” for making the record , she come through in getting them to suspend it . Alan Bilyard , the headland of the label ’s clientele affairs and finance , eventually received approval to resume sales as usual . Her campaign had an impingement on the book ’s receipt , but not the one she ’d hoped for;Sound Effects No . 13went on to sell 20,000 more written matter than expect . It became the first sound effects album to break the UK Top 100 charts , and BBC executives credited the gratis publicity from Whitehouse for its surprise success .
A Lurid Legacy
Whitehouse ’s critique gave the disc an edgy reputation , but its journey to the mainstream was n’t a fluke . Over the years , Sound Effects No . 13has solidified its status as a classic piece of horror media . BBC Records & Tapes followed it up with two sequels : More Death and Horrorin 1978 andEven More Death and Horrorin 1982 . In 2016,Demon Recordsreissued the original record album as a 180 - gramme LP complete with “ line - slop ” colored vinyl .
The fuss overSound Effects No . 13may seem quaint by today ’s standards . If you ’re a seasoned horror sports fan who develop up on the slasher and torture subgenres that attain popularity following the album ’s going , you in all likelihood wo n’t be phase by a casual listen . But it ’s still effective under the right experimental condition . store your hearing academic term for late at Nox — when your learning ability pop to see things in the dark that are n’t there — and you may block you ’re listening to audio engineers chopping vegetables .
