One of modern Alternative Rock’s most well-known bands, Anberlin, has a history that dates back well over two decades. Originally coming together in 2002, the band has sustained itself with a unique sound that blends various genres, consistently topping charts album after album.
No small accomplishment, they continue to strike interest with the release of new music, 2022’s Silverline and 2023’s Convinced (which eventually became the bulk of their 2024 full-length album Vega). However, two additional tracks were recorded with Memphis May Fire’s Vocalist Matty Mullins for Vega that piqued curiosity.
Currently filling in for original Vocalist Stephen Christian (who has been on hiatus from touring with the band since 2023), more surprises came in 2025 when the band released a reimagined recording of the 2005 album Never Take Friendship Personal with Mullins on vocals. Calling the new release Nevertake, the band continues to tour throughout the year with Mullins.
A run of dates that will take them around the USA and Brazil, chances are, they will be watching a movie or two to kill time between shows. With that in mind, co-founding Guitarist Joseph Milligan sat down to reflect on a list of ten Horror flicks that have stuck with him through the years.
10) Train to Busan (2016): With the flood of zombie movies that continue to pour in year after year, this movie has a fresh take on the genre. Aside from the car-to-car running and overall feeling of being trapped, the actors playing the zombies contort themselves in a terrifying way throughout the film.
9) John Carpenter’s Prince of Darkness (1987): This movie was fairly under the radar, but was a wild idea from the jump. With a team of researchers trapped in an old church with a cylinder of strange liquid (that is apparently the son of Satan) shooting around and possessing them one by one. It has everything from visions of an apocalyptic future to a homeless Alice Cooper ready to murder anyone who steps outside the church.
8) It Follows (2014): A great film with a throwback feel that doesn’t rely on jump scares. The feeling of impending doom and unstoppable evil keeps you stressed through the entire event and doesn’t leave you feeling safe in the end.
7) Let the Right One In (2008): In my opinion, far superior to its American remake, this is another fresh take on old folklore. A bullied child makes friends with the new girl next door and soon finds out she is not what he thinks. This movie challenges notions of love and alternative motives for it. The “pool scene” is still one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen in a Horror movie.
6) The Shining (1980): A total classic with more subtle (and not so subtle) sounds and visuals than you know what to do with. Jack Nicholson was absolutely flawless as writer Jack Torrence slowly losing his mind with his family in isolation as they tend to a hotel that’s been vacated for the winter. Shout out to Shelley Duvall (RIP), showing an amazing amount of sheer terror as Wendy Torrence.
5) The Descent (2005): If you’re like me, the simple thought of crawling through caves is an absolute nightmare. These people do it for fun and find something that was already down there. Big time claustrophobia and trapped vibes.
4) Alien (1979): Pioneering in more ways than one with jump scares, inescapable evil, and a badass female lead that would go on to inspire hundreds of movies. Xenomorphs have become iconic in Horror, as has Ellen Ripley.
3) Hereditary (2018): Visually disturbing, perfect sound design, and choices in silence. The story felt very fresh and inventive. The way director Ari Aster lets you marinate in scenes to maximize the impact of the terror is masterful. Toni Collette is unreal in this film.
2) The Exorcist (1973): A practical effects masterpiece with only one scene containing a score. The absence of music keeps you holding your breath, waiting for the inevitable shock to come, completely maxing out the feeling of fear. To this day, one of the only movies that scares me each time I watch it.
1) Halloween (1978): It may not be the first Slasher film ever, but it did it best, and set the bar impossibly high for the Slasher films that followed. Michael Myers is silent, unrelenting, and unstoppable as he terrorizes Haddonfield, IL. The iconic soundtrack sets the perfect complementary mood as, like the killer himself, it continues repetitively, growing stronger and stronger throughout the film.
Anberlin 2025 Tour Dates:
06/04- Porto Alegre, Brazil at Araújo Vianna Auditorium
06/06 – Rio De Janeiro, Brazil at Fundição Progresso
06/07 – São Paulo, Brazil at Audio
06/08 – São Paulo, Brazil at Audio
06/20 – Kansas City, KS at Not Just A “Phase” Fest
07/31 – Jacksonville, FL – Decca Live
08/01 – Charleston, SC – Music Farm
08/02 – Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Soundstage
08/03 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa
08/05 – New Haven, CT – Toad’s Place
08/06 – Albany, NY – Empire Live
08/07 – Philadelphia, PA – Theater of The Living Arts
08/08 – Brooklyn, NY – The Brooklyn Monarch
08/10 – Boston, MA – Paradise Rock Club
08/12 – Buffalo, NY – Electric City
08/13 – Scranton, PA – The Ritz Theater
08/14 – New Kensington, PA – Preserving
08/15 – Cincinnati, OH – Bogart’s
08/16 – Cleveland, OH – House of Blues
08/17 – Indianapolis, IN – Hi-Fi Annex
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