The date was February 8th, 1993 and a man named Gary Sudbrink was on leave from the US Air Force in San Antonio. Gary was staying with his parents in Long Island, New York. He had booked a flight under a guise because he hadn’t notified his commanders that he was leaving the base, which would have caused him to use some of his leave. Instead, he was taking a long weekend at his parents’ home.

If you are a horror and science fiction fan, you are most likely familiar with Howard Phillip Lovecraft. His singular brand of proto-horror-meets-science fiction was a breakthrough in the genre (if largely unappreciated at the time). He created the Cthulhu mythos and so doing, spawned a whole universe of horror fiction.

You wake up in the night, suddenly aware you are not alone. You look to one corner of your room; nothing. You look towards the door, and you see him: a man, or, rather, a shadow of a man in a hat, a vague silhouette. You cannot move. you cannot scream. It’s just you, the dark, and the Hat Man.

You’re looking at a picture of a vaguely familiar place. This could be a park, a playground, maybe your high school, or an office building. You know you have been there before. But there’s something not quite right.

Just off Santiago Canyon Road in the Santa Ana Mountains, there is a favored recreational park and trail. In the winter, when it does rain, there is even a scenic path that leads to seasonal waterfalls. It has a long and interesting history full of tragedy. Because of this, it is also known as one of the most haunted spots in Orange County, California. It’s called Black Star Canyon. It is scenic, beautiful, and, depending on what you believe, full of blood.

The imagery and the sound are haunting and extreme. It is also sometimes beautiful in its own, dark way. If satanism isn’t your thing, a lot of the newer bands focus on things like paganism and even ecology. Some of them are just like listening to a horror movie. Try not to take it too seriously.

If you are a fan of other genres of extreme metal like thrash, death, or doom, well…you probably already listen to or have listened to black metal. If you haven’t: what are you even doing with your life?

In 1852, in Carmel, New York, a local bricklayer decided to go in for himself. He decided to open and operate a stagecoach stop and Inn. The man’s name was James J Smalley. The Hoel was The Smalley Hotel. Much later it would become known as Smalley’s Inn and Restaurant. It is still one of the United States’ many paranormal hot spots.

You can call me The Wandering Ghoul, or perhaps simply Ghoul. I would say call me The Ghoul, but that seems a bit presumptuous. Ghoul will suffice. Of course, there will be more of us as time goes by, but as of the present, it’s just little ol’ me.