If anyone is looking at the title and wondering what in the heck we’re getting at, the answer is pretty simple, the band Ice Nine Kills has a connection to The Shining since they’re huge horror buffs and they’ve actually had a chance to stand in the place where The Shining was taking place. Plus, their frontman Spencer Charnas has been in love with the movie since he was a kid, so it’s easy to think that a lot of their work has been inspired by his love for slasher movies and has gone on to become a career that idolizes the genius behind it. Many people have their own opinion about Stanley Kubrick, but the fact is that when it came to movies, Kubrick was an odd, almost freaky kind of genius and it’s also obvious that he knew how to get the attention of the people and keep it for a very long time considering that his movies are still spoken of in reverent tones by so many today. The fact that Spencer gushes a bit about being invited by the Kubricks to stay at their home and look through Stanley’s many different items is another good way to explain how Kubrick’s creation has influenced them in such a big way since they felt honored to be allowed to peruse his material and to bask in what he’d created over his career.
Kubrick did pass away in 1999 but he did leave behind a legacy that is pretty impressive since many upon many people would give just about anything to be able to stand in any location that he once filmed in and try to see things from his point of view. That’s not entirely possible obviously, but it would still be a rush for many fans since Kubrick is considered to be a man of such keen intellect and sight that his movies have been glorified in many ways for a number of reasons, but mostly because he made them. This is normally where I’d try to bring people back down to earth and remind them that Kubrick was in fact quite talented, but beyond being able to make some people believe that he was a genius, he didn’t have much else to go on. Of course, plenty of people would disagree and they’d have that right, but the fact is that he did make a few very good movies that didn’t get enough credit, The Shining being one of them, and it does feel that he deserves the spot he’s been given in history since he had a vision that was difficult to see at first but is easy enough once it’s looked at from a different perspective.
The Shining has actually been more influential in the past couple of decades than many people might realize since certain moments have been taken from it to use in other movies and TV shows, or entire TV episodes have been able to utilize the elements of the movie that many people recognize. Those that belong to this millennia might not recognize every single element, but those of us that grew up with this movie back in the day knew about it and have been holding onto it for a while. It’s not hard to see how it would influence a band’s music since the fact that Charnas has been into The Shining for so long and the rest of his band has followed suit, it was bound to happen that their favorite influences would make it into the music and thereby come out in a big way. Many bands have various influences that manage to come out in their music, whether it be moments from their real lives or something they’ve been idolizing since they were children. It’s been the same for many musicians over the years since the need to express oneself is always there in musicians, but finding an influence that works for them to spread their message is sometimes difficult for some folks, while it’s easy for others as it just needs a form to follow at one point or another. Ice Nine Kills has found that direction and they’ve been making good on it for a while now as they continue to up their game and find ways to connect with the fans.
Horror is a great way to gain fans since the number of horror lovers out there is hard to count considering that many upon many people love to be scared and would no doubt love to hear songs about it. Ice Nine Kills has definitely tapped into a vein that could carry them even further if they’re seeking to get to the top like so many other musicians, and their connection to The Shining could be just one way to get there since it’s no doubt helping them keep their edge.
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