''Shock 'Em Dead'', also known as ''Rock ‘Em Dead'', is a 1991

comedy horror Comedy horror (also called horror comedy) is a literary, television and film genre that combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. Comedy horror has been described as having three types: "black comedy, parody and spoof." Comedy horror can a ...

film written by Mark Freed, David Tedder and Andrew Cross, and directed by Mark Freed. It stars

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and

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in one of her first post-adult film roles. The film is a thriller with a music comedy twist, a self-aware take on metal guitarists from the 1980s, and is also notable for featuring

Nitro Nitro may refer to: Chemistry *Nitrogen, a chemical element and a gas except at very low temperatures, with which many compounds are formed: **Nitro compound, an organic compound containing one or more nitro functional groups, -NO2 **Nitro ligand ...

guitarist

Michael Angelo Batio Michael Angelo Batio ( ; born June 12, 1956), also known as Michael Angelo, Mike Batio or MAB, is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal guitarist. He was the lead guitarist for the glam metal band Nitro (band), Nitro in the late 1980s and ...

as a guitar double. It was

Aldo Ray Aldo Ray (born Aldo Da Re; September 25, 1926 – March 27, 1991) was an American actor of film and television. He began his career as a contract player for Columbia Pictures before achieving stardom through his roles in '' The Marrying Kind, P ...

's last film.

Synopsis

Angel Martin (

) has just made the deal of a lifetime. Fame, fortune and beautiful women will all be his - for a price. To become a rock star Martin must give his soul, and to survive he must feed on the souls of others. But Angel wants to possess more than just the soul of the woman of his dreams. Lindsay Roberts (

) is the manager of a rising rock band that has a talented new band member. When Angel Martin joined the band she suddenly had her hands full with concerts, contracts—and private meetings with Angel. But success isn't the only new thing in her life: their recent concerts have been marred by a series of brutal killings, which remain unsolved. As Angel lures Lindsay further into his dark mysterious world, the lines are drawn for a terrifying

black magic Black magic (Middle English: ''nigromancy''), sometimes dark magic, traditionally refers to the use of Magic (paranormal), magic or supernatural powers for evil and selfish purposes. The links and interaction between black magic and religi ...

battle against the ultimate evil.

Full Cast

as Angel Martin *

as Angel Martin Guitar Double *

as Lindsay Roberts *

Troy Donahue Troy Donahue (born Merle Johnson Jr., January 27, 1936 – September 2, 2001) was an American film and television actor, best known for his role as Johnny Hunter in the film '' A Summer Place''. He was a popular sex symbol in the 1950s and ...

as Record Executive *

as Tony, The Pizza Shop Owner * Tim Moffett as Greg * Jerico DeAngelo as Jake (as Anthony Christian) * Markus Grupa as Jonny * Karen Russell as Michelle * Gina Parks as Marilyn * Laurel Wiley as Monique * Tyger Sodipe as Voodoo Woman * Christopher Maleki as Dustin * David Homb as Izzy * Madison Monk as Jimmi Wolf * Yankee Sulivan as Trailer Manager * Barne Subaski as Record Executive #2 * Miyako Kirksey as Pizza Girl #1 * Kathleen Kane as Pizza Girl # 2 * Phillip Irwin Cooper as Pizza Boy * Danny Spear as Officer Corbett * Mark Richardson as Devin * Pete Knight as Lead Guitarist #1 * Daniel Sidlow as Lead Guitarist #2 * Ross Hamilton as Peter * Scott L. Schwartz as Guard * Dina C. Scott as Groupie #1 * Jackie Moen as Groupie #2 * Jason Adelman as Kid * Dave Tedder as Cashier * Frank Callagher as Production Manager * John Minton as Officer Meak * Mitch Ford as Officer Reed * Jan Washburn as Officer Schmidt * Debra Cross as Receptionist * Tyler Bowe as Announcer * Tim Yasui as Spectator * Richard Strahle as "Porky"

Musicians

* Rick Livingstone - Lead Vocals * Michael Angelo Batio - Lead Guitar * David Celentano - Lead Guitar * Robert Decker - Producer, Songwriter * Mark Freed - Songwriter

Production

The band music and guitar solos were pre-recorded except for the final concert scene in which Michael performed live on film. Supplementary solos were pre-recorded and performed live on film by David Celentano. The band cues (except for

Purple Haze "Purple Haze" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix and released as the second single by the Jimi Hendrix Experience on March 17, 1967, in the United Kingdom. The song features his inventive guitar playing, which uses the signature Hendrix chord a ...

) were written by Mark Freed and Robert Decker. There was no back-up guitar on the recorded tracks or rhythm guitarist in the film. The lead vocalist on the band tracks is Rick Livingston.

Michael Angelo Batio's participation

Director Mark Freed recalled: "When we finished writing the script, it was obvious that the movie was going to need more than just an average guitar player to emulate the role of Angel Martin. This ‘character double’ needed to be a heavy metal, highly skillful guitar player with a dynamic stage presence. The producers and myself agreed that the best man for the job would be Michael Angelo Batio. Two years earlier, I produced Michael in a Star Licks Productions instructional guitar video – hence, I knew of his incredible style and technique". "I called Michael to see if he'd be interested in reading the script; he said his schedule was busy but he’d make time for it. Soon afterwards, he said he’d love to get involved – e.g., doubling the guitar shots on film, playing the role of the demon in Martin's dream sequence and overdubbing the guitar tracks for the film’s concert scenes in advance of

principal photography Principal photography is the phase of producing a film or television show in which the bulk of shooting takes place, as distinct from the phases of pre-production and post-production. Personnel Besides the main film personnel, such as the ...

". "Many fans have asked me if Michael's guitar parts were sped up in the film. The answer is no, what you see in the film is in fact Michael playing with no special effects". Producer Robert Decker also recalled: "I recorded the band tracks in my

Santa Monica Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

studio utilizing a

Korg , founded as Keio Electronic Laboratories, is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instrument An electronic musical instrument or electrophone is a musical instrument that produces sound using electr ...

01/W workstation, Emax 8-bit sampler, and a

Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...

R-8 rhythm composer – recorded on a Otari MX one-inch 16-track". "For the session, Michael showed up with a Dean, twin-necked guitar, which I plugged into a

Rockman Rockman may refer to: * ''Rockman'', the Japanese name for the ''Mega Man'' franchise ** Rockman, the Japanese name of Mega Man (character), the titular protagonist of the ''Mega Man'' video games * Alexis Rockman (born 1962), American contempora ...

then direct into the board. Preferring a bit more distortion, I patched in a stomp box that Michael brought as well. I don’t believe that he had heard the band tracks prior to the session – so, as a result, Michael took time to work out the main solo and harmony on a single-neck but would refer to the double-neck to verify that the two parts could be performed in a dual-necked fashion. In our quest to get precision solos in one short studio evening, Michael performed his parts on a single-neck for instant accuracy. Overdubs were added for a fatter sound".

References

External links

* *
"Shock 'Em Dead"
at the

VARIETY Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

Magazine Television Reviews -

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Shock 'Em Dead (Film) 1990 films 1990 horror films 1990s American films 1990s English-language films 1990s supernatural horror films 1991 comedy horror films American comedy horror films American supernatural horror films English-language comedy horror films Films produced by Eric Louzil Heavy metal films