Mara Leveritt works as a newspapaer and Web reporter in Arkansas, focusing mostly on the criminal justice system. She has won numerous awards for investigative reporting, and in 1994 was named Arkansas Journalist of the Year.

Her book, THE BOYS ON THE TRACKS, published in 1998, examines the still-unsolved murders of two Arkansas teenagers and the drug-related corruption that abscured the case. It won Arkansas’s Booker Worthen Prize.

In 2002, Simon and Schuster published DEVIL’S KNOT, Leveritts examination of the legal irregularities that followed the sensational murders of three eight year-old boys in West Memphis, Arkansas. Acting on the deeply flawed confession of a minor, police arrested three local teenagers, now known as the West Memphis 3, and charged them with the crime. Prosecutors said the teens had killed the younger boyys as part of an occult ritual. One of the three was sentenced to death, the two others to life in prison. Leveritt considers the case as much a travesty-and as important to American history-as the Salem witch trials.

Library Journal “highly recommended” Devil’s Knot, which it called “an indictment of a culture and legal system.” The Toronto Globe Mail observed that, “In the best tradiotion of crime journalism,” Leveritt exposed a case that “has become a Gordian knot for U.S. justice and the nation’s sense of its freedoms.” In 2003, Leveritt was awarded a second Booker Worthen Prize. Leveritt opposes the death penalty, in part to her familiarity with faults in the legal system. In 1999 she was named Arkansas Abolitionist of the Year. While she is often labeled a true-crime writer, she stresses that, more than bloody ones, she is intersted in crimes by public officials.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/radiodeadly/2011/09/20/devils-knot

Exclusive coverage all night until the power goes out !

William Francis is a true Renaissance man. Writer, singer, producer, William manages to express himself creatively and uniquely in many disciplines. Recently I had the pleasure to talk to William about Aiden, his solo work as William Control, and so much more!

Let’s start with the present and work our way back and around. Aiden have just released Disguises, and like all Aiden releases, the album presents a unique aesthetic that differs from the releases prior. What is the overall theme of the album, and what was the creative process undertaken to determine said theme?

William: The creative process, for me, seems to have evolved over the years. Although It changes with every record, one thing remains the same; Whatever is happening at that particular time in my life, invariably it shows up in my writing. The theme for this record is hidden (pun intended) within the title. Disguises. We tend to, as a animal species, camouflage our true nature to survive, or to acquire the things we desire the most. Oscar Wilde puts it best… "Man is least himself when he talks in his own person. Give him a mask, and he will tell you the truth.

Aiden seems to be tackling darker subject matter farther afield than the band’s earlier, more romantically themed releases. What has influenced this shift, and do you have a sense of what path the band may travel next?

William: I’ve had quite the polemic attitude with regards to the idea of basing one’s life on faith in ancient doctrine and not seeking truth within science and reason. For a number of years now I’ve felt this. It was amplified when I had my son in 2009. I started to think a lot more about my own mortality and what kind of world I would like my son to be left with after I’m gone. There are plenty of people, in fact millions and millions, who stand up and say that you should follow this god or that god because this antique book says you should. Those of us who will not stand for such absurdity should be unafraid to speak out. As far as what path is to be traveled on next? I am unsure of what the future holds.

On the subject of dark, yet romantic themes, I’d like to talk about your releases as William Control. This material is such an amazing blend of Victorian decadence with modern electronica. What lead you to explore this facet of your art?

William: Thank you for such gracious remarks. I’ve been a fan of that style of music ever since I discovered Depeche Mode in the early 90′s. It’s more of an ode to my childhood than anything. The Victorian twist comes from my love of all things London, especially in the late 19th century. If there ever was a time in which I would like to travel to, it would be in the west end theatre district of London Town to see an Oscar Wilde play whilst he was still alive.

The William Control releases deal with abuse in a myriad of forms (drug abuse, bondage, emotional trauma), that truly challenges the listener, while still being pleasurable as art. How difficult is it to reach that balance, and how is that balance struck?

William: Inspiration comes in many different shapes and sizes. One person’s abuse is another’s pleasure, so the balance has been tipped in that direction. I guess that for most, inspiration has to come from a real place, somewhere beneath the surface. For me, It has to have depth and weight, meaning and importance. I couldn’t sound very honest singing about how much my ex-girlfriend broke my heart, or how bad I want be a "Rockstar".

Noir contains my favorite piece of yours, Dorian Gray (who seems like such a perfect literary counterpart to the material presented on both Noir and Hate Culture). How much does literature (and other forms of entertainment) inform your work, and what are some of your favorites?

William: I’d say that over 95% of the songs that I write are inspired by something other than other music. Whether it be film, literature or life. Dorian Gray is most certainly in my top ten favorite books of all time. It’s a very powerful, well written story, filled with allegory and meaning. Other authors that inspire me range from James Joyce, Hunter s Thompson, Will Christopher Baer, Christopher Hitchens, Edgar Allan Poe….I could keep going all day.

Seeing a William Control performance was an exhilarating experience for me because of one simple act you performed that made the whole performance seem dangerous and unpredictable…you smoked cigarettes on stage, which is illegal in New York State. This effortless and understated act set the mood perfectly for the performance. Do you feel that performers have become to predictable and safe for audiences, and conversely, what balance do you feel must be struck to prevent having these elements enter the realm of the distasteful?

William: I do feel music has become a safe zone, homogenized, manufactured and produced. Corporate executives who run television stations have figured out how to sell records, create a stupid show about some crap singer/singers, present it to the world during prime time, or to preteens via the Disney channel, hire some song writers and Voilà, you have a record selling in the top ten. It’s disgraceful. The Christians have even got their foot in the door. That is a statement that directly contradicts the meaning of rock and roll. It’s about rebellion; it’s about going against the grain. Somehow, danger needs to be brought back so that the spirit of it all can be revived.

WiL and William Control seem, at least to me…and please forgive me if I’m mistaken, to be disparate elements of your personality. Both personae vary from one another, yet both deliver messages that are from your psyche. How do you feel these elements relate to William Francis? How do you determine what material should be performed by whom?

William: That is exactly correct sir. There are so many different versions running around in the compartments of my skull, I’m afraid that if I were to let them all out, I’d end up in a clinic for the mentally insane. Some are too dangerous to unleash while others much too boring. Writing songs for different projects and deciding which one will be attached is not a difficult task. The song is created from that voice and that voice alone. I never write Aiden songs and then say, well that would work better for William Control or vice versa.

On the same topic, do you ever feel that one part will become dominate over the other, and that you may lose yourself so to speak (to wit, the psychological issues experienced by Alice Cooper)?

William: To be honest? I am unafraid of what the future may hold.

Also, speaking of multiple elements, creatively you have worked in a number of disciplines (vocalist, writer, poet and producer to name but a few). Do you have one discipline that you prefer above the others, and are there any you haven’t tried yet, but would like to?

William: I am a writer. This has been a passion of mine since childhood. The many different facets that stem from that are a reflection of color dancing inside my brain. Writing and music, that’s all there is for me here in this life. It’s who I am and who I was born to be.

In conclusion, is there a parting message you would like to give our readers? (feel free to include plugs for any upcoming projects as well!

William: I’m writing a new William Control record as we speak, I don’t know how I am going to get it out, but when the time comes I just may ask for your help. See you all soon.

Please visit www.aiden.org and www.williamcontrol.com to learn more about the art of William Francis!

What will you do when the sun goes down?
Light a candle, pour the wine and enter the House where beauty and pain become one. Today 13 minus 12 will equal 5, for 5 is lord and master of the thirteen doors…

From “The House of Thirteen Doors” a novella available now by Daniel Wilder

I grew up in the 1980’s when The Soviet Union was still Americas greatest enemy. As a child nuclear war was a real threat and I feared it as did most Americans. Our parents reinforced that fear having lived through the Cuban missile crisis when we only narrowly escaped the fate of mutual destruction.

Hollywood didn’t help anything either. A very popular film called “Red Dawn” was a favorite amongst myself and some of my friends.  It was quite popular and had all of the up and coming stars in it. The movie depicted a group of high school kids forced to flee into the mountains and fight as rebel guerilla fighters and become part of the resistance after a Soviet invasion of the U.S.  The movie opens up on a clear Fall day as school has just begun.  As a teacher teaches his class we see out the window paratroopers descending on the grounds of the school.  They turn out to be Russian soldiers and as they advance forward begin indiscriminately shooting everyone, including the students. I’ll never forget the shot of one of the students slumped over and hanging out a window of the school. It is an image that came back to me during the Columbine shootings. I digress.I am old enough to remember Kruschevs “…we will bury you” remark. I, too recall Ronald Reagans’, “…tear down this wall” statement.

How can I forget the day that The Berlin Wall actually did come down?  I stared into the TV  set watching people literally tearing down the wall, helping eachother across to the other side, standing atop the structure that for so many years represented such tyranny and oppression. The behavior of these people just weeks earlier would have cost them their lives. Their it was…the chimes of freedom of flashing.

Soon after all of this there was a huge rock festival held in Moscow. All of the most popular western bands were on the bill. Skid Row, Bon Jovi, Motley Crue, Cinderella, The Scorpions…it was the 80’s after all.  My youthful eyes took it all in and it fanned the flames of all my rock n’ roll dreams that I so aggressively pursued.

I sat on the shore of the Black Sea the other day in Kubana, Russia just a few hours from Moscow the day after playing in front of some 3000 people the night before at a festival in which I headlined.  I stared out into the sea on a ledge overlooking the coast and thought about how far I have come in life, how far the world has come since my childhood.  Never could I have imagined back then stepping into this country. But there I was. …There I was going over all that was in my mind from the past and squaring it all up with the present and doing my best to be hopeful for the future taking into account the deteriorating relations between our two nations.

It is times like these that stop me dead in my tracks and brings me closer to that sense of Nirvana that we all strive for …or should be striving for. There I was in Mother Russia living out my childhood dreams making a name for myself and carrying on the legacy of 2 of the most influential bands in modern rock n roll history. It is times like these that really illuminate the gifts that have been given to me and how important it is that I appreciate them. In these quiet moments of my life I am aware of the true nature of my life and what perhaps my true work and reason for being is.

My short time with God is ended when I hear the unmistakable laughter of my good friends and band mates approaching me calling out to me.  Their joy is overflowing and apparent from the smiles on their face. The champagne they are drinking certainly helped.  They are joined by half a dozen locals that we met at the festival the night before.  We all meet up and continue on down the side of the cliff towards that beach. For the next several hours we all enjoy each others company as we run and swim and laugh.  far away now are the thoughts and fears of my childhood and the Russian monsters that once I found such dread in.  I can’t help thinking to myself…..what a wonderful world.

~Michale Graves

It’s late and I should be sleeping due to the fact that I have to be in the lobby in 6 hours to be at soundcheck which is scheduled for 10am. I am on the 47th floor of a hotel in Jakarta, Indonesia. The city is magnificent from so high up. The moon is at half crescent and a haze from the humidity blankets the city in a gentle fog which then sets the stage for a sunrise drenched in rich color.
Indonesia has one of the largest Muslim populations in the world. 86% of the people here in this place are of the Islamic faith. There is an arrow on the ceiling of my hotel room pointing in the direction of Mecca. Today before my acoustic set at the music festival, Rockvolution, just about everything became still and quiet when the evening call to prayer went out.
I did a press conference and was interviewed by the main sponsor of the festival before I played tonight and was asked “what I most hope to achieve by playing here tonight”. I responded by saying that I hoped that all of us that takes part in the festival this weekend can be seen as an example of peace and tolerance through music. All of us coming together, Muslim, Jew, Christian, non-believer….whatever you might be…. under one banner and one purpose with our music and our hopes and our dreams whatever they may be. I hope to and will do my best to continue to spread that message especially while I am here in this country along with all of the other good folks who are doing the same.
All day long I have seen the horrifying images and heard reports of what a madman, perhaps more then just one man… has done to so many children…Muslim children… in one of the most peaceful places on earth. I feel it is more important then ever to add my voice to the movement in Indonesia here that preach tolerance, diversity, freedom and peace. It is my honor and privilege to do so.

“The chorus of the people in the streets…singing songs of the free”

~Michale Graves

www.berbedamerdeka100persen.net
www.indonesiastreetmovement.tumblr.com
www.respectastreetgallery.com
www.propagraphic-movement@blogspot.com
www.serum.org

ENGLISH:TRANSLATION so its kind of rough:

Character really special and not immediately accessible assimilation, Michale Graves. Known by most for being the frontman for some time of the famous band The Misfits, Michale has long been active with Marky Ramone Marky Ramones Blitzkrieg in the project. But his is not a krieg limited to one field.

Singer with a voice of thrilling, top-quality performer (he can transform his concerts real show), but also a director of short films really intense, committed at the forefront of many social battles, a deejay known U.S. radio program and particularly proud husband and father, Michael is one of the most versatile rock scene that animate the world.

Away from the mainstream and the red carpets, Michale years bears his contribution to the rock scene seamlessly, engaged in numerous initiatives with the dedication and above all the enthusiasm of a neophyte, and with the humility of one who, from life, not has never stopped learning, but continues his personal progression in a particular path that stretches 360 degrees from music to movies to art in general. Difficult to label, Michale is outside of any standard canon. It ‘a surfer, and he applies his particular philosophy to every aspect of his life. Hang loose, as he says.

“I know I’m a very special person,” she admits. “Often my consistency and my commitment to some important issues I have brought many circuits in the automatic exclusion from canonical punk. I am driven by core values: belief in God, believe in my country and I believe in family. I believe in respect for others and hard work. And this, in the punk, I brought criticism from many of those who call the purists of the scene, critics who consider their cultural insignificance a flag, and use it to attack me where my thinking is not approved, what believed to be the thought – one of punk rock: anarchy, lawlessness. All bales. I believe in God and believe in my family, and I’m not afraid to say it, “says Michale with pride but also with a certain shyness.

A few years ago, at the end of his adventure with the Misfits, went through a bad period. And ‘he tell us about. “All my old friends have abandoned me. All of a sudden, more than 30 years, I found myself alone. And this led me to reevaluate my choices and different decisions. ” In this dark period of his life, two very important meetings.

“The first meeting was with the story of Damien Echols. I was crossing one of the darkest periods of my life, when by chance I found a book by Damien in which he spoke of his particular human case. Convicted in 1993 for the murder of three children, Damien would later be acquitted by the use of new scientific evidence such as DNA analysis, but the American justice system is very unique, and often end up on death row are people from most disadvantaged strata of society and with little hope in a just defense. From this chance meeting, I found new energy for life, and made his personal experience of a new starting point for my life. I’m not the only one to have passionate story of Damien: Eddie Vedder also, for example, has mobilized to him. With Damien I wrote 5 songs, and I went to record their own in Arkansas, where he is being held on death row awaiting execution: Frost Pie Wornhood, Nothing, Thousand cracks of daylight and Silent Partner. Damien has a website and invite everyone to visit: www.wm3.org ”

But it is the second encounter of his life to score the difference. The encounter with his life partner, Renee. “Renee has saved me. I know it sounds strange to hear about love that lasts a lifetime by a punk, but it is. Renee is my reference point, I think the first thing in the morning and the last I think about before falling asleep. She and our daughter Olivia. Watch – and shows me a tattoo that covers the entire shoulder, a broken heart with the words and Renee Olivia – Olivia was born with a malformation of the heart that has forced several weeks in hospital. For weeks we have Renee and I feared for his life, and I dedicated it to her that if and when the last song I recorded with Marky Ramone. The experience of having a daughter in the hospital, a small defenseless creature, it changed my life. And ‘God that I addressed my prayers every morning, for the sake of my little angel. And the prayers are served. This experience has strengthened even more the link between me and Renee: She is a very patient woman, knows that I have to be often away on tour and that life is not easy, but it takes hard it is my first fan. And I love her with all my heart. ”

To hear him talk about his love for his wife and daughter, will you squeeze the heart. When he talks about Renee, she does it with enthusiasm and transport of a lover, was struck by the passion and love. And ‘Michale sincere, honest feeds on feelings: love for his woman and his family, his values ​​and ideals, the same ones that often drew criticism from many in the environment.

“And ‘the reason why I started to not be afraid to speak my mind. In a world often conveniences, I noticed that what people perceive to my concerts were just the tip of the iceberg, hence the need to speak directly to the public, to tell him my point of view unfiltered and uncensored . For this reason I was born on Deadly Radio program, which anyone can listen to streaming at www.radiodeadly.net “. I have often had problems with my beliefs: many said that talk of love for their nation, for God and family are not “punk” as if “punk” was a stereotype that having to adapt to strength, not a way energetic live life, but an empty set of counter-values ​​that have always rejected. I strongly believe in spirituality, you see it too. If spirituality has to do with whether or not punk, this is not for me to say. But you remember well the last night: that girl who took my hands and crying, or that child whom I dedicated the song … tell me if those are moments that transcend the man, if they are not worth a life time “. Michale refers to just two concerts took place, at the time the song Poison Heart. The first time, in Barcelona, ​​a girl took her hands them to him and he has held for the duration of the song, while the girl was crying and lived experience that only she can understand, as if he were emerging from its depths something , something that no one else could understand. The second, more Poison Heart, but this time in Marseille: Michale stooped and took the hands of a child, and sang the whole song, as if it were written just for him. “Believe in your dreams”, she said. Two very exciting moments.

But this candor has cost him dear: at first many locals have started to cancel his show and to boycott the promotion of music. Michale beautifully he’s screwed, and embraced another cause “uncomfortable”, that of war veterans from the Wounded Warriors Foundation supported mutilated. “People tend to identify too the army and the marines with an abstract entity, as if they were formed by men, more often by children who leave everything to the need to find a job, most often poorly paid and thousands of miles from home. These are the true heroes of our day: 18 kids, 20 years to go on mission, because they love their country and need a job. Unfortunately for many of them as means to be maimed, losing an arm or a leg in a firefight. And unfortunately, many of them to return home awaits them wait a year before they are recognized their compensation from the government for which they sacrificed their lives and youth. And ‘why associations such as the Wounded Warriors born: to provide immediate assistance to veterans who return home with permanent injuries and that once at home can no longer find anything, often abandoned by the authorities who sent them to fight in a war that was not theirs. No policy on my part in this: I love my country, but sometimes do not agree with some choices and contradictions, as in the case of the death penalty or the lack of aid to veterans. My action is driven only by an enormous boost for human solidarity with those who once were my peers. Only humanity, no politics. And ‘that often people do not understand. ”

Social work, music, tour, radio show: Michale is a person unable to stand with our hands. All this adds his recent involvement in the film as a director behind the camera: The Blackness and The Forest is his first film, enjoyable for all of his youtube account www.youtube.com / radiodeadlyshow … her narrative voice is intense, fast-paced, a bit ‘like his show. In short it also speaks of his life, its difficulties, of how he faced and overcome and all the situations that have become the person is now.

(Photo by Alexander Aron)

The same show where he used the increasingly large crowds of fans, that everywhere, from South America to Europe to Indonesia, following it faithfully. And, to see his last concert together punk icon Marky Ramone, one can understand why. Michale does not stop for a moment, for 90 minutes gives you body and soul to the audience: sing, dance, sweat, makes the bystanders, jump. “I do not save when they are on stage. I know that for young people to buy the ticket for a concert is a sacrifice. And when they make this sacrifice, is not just for a concert is to go see a show, a concept, the idea of ​​rock’n'roll. And I have to disappoint them. People do not often see what is behind the scenes of a tour: miles and miles in the car all day in a given city, often a different country. And ‘stressful, but it’s my job. And do not spare myself. People pay me to see me at 100%, it is my duty and I do a good job, send them what they paid for the ticket, give him a memorable show. And sometimes, as in the case of the adolescent or child, even more. ”

But in all this, Michale is a little ‘space for himself? “Sure. I continue to cultivate my passion for surfing, not a sport, but a real lifestyle. Sometimes when I’m home in New Jersey, I take on my surfboard and go out in search of a spot. When the dawn light up the beach, put on the table and swam off. There I wait for my magical moment, we are alone in those moments, I immensity of nature. There I was, and I want to go there. And one day, hopefully not too far away, I wish I could take my daughter Olivia: I, you, a blanket … and the immensity of the ocean. The spectacle of nature that he wakes up. At that moment our daily actions seem to me to resize again so small. At that moment I feel part of an immense. Only a small cog in the enormous game of human existence. ”

Ride your wave, Michale. And it’s the highest wave of your life.

Geffen Records printed  a trading card set to promote the release of AMERICAN PSYCHO. 5 separate cards depicted Michale Graves, Dr. CHUD, Doyle, Jerry Only and a 5th card of the Crimson Ghost himself!

Cards were limited to only 2000 sets.

*Note Michale sporting a Sardonica t-shirt! (check out SARDONICA.COM)

We here at Radio Deadly would like to extend our sincere congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Steele!

Bobby and Jill were like 2 school-kids all weekend and we wish them continued happiness and nothing but the BEST in their new life together!

Bobby Bloodfeast, (Radio Deadly producer and host of Loud n’ Snotty) captured this video of Bobby Steele fresh after gettin hitched’ to Jill ‘The Mother Chick’ Kethel at the Expo performing David Bowie’s ‘Ziggy Stardust’ with Chiller-staples The Dead Elvi! You’ll see Jill and Gorgeous George on stage as well, dancing and havin’ a blast!

We’ll have show recaps, playlists and recommended tunes, and full reviews of events and tours.