Capitalizing on the brief fad of Reagan-era 3D movies, Steve Miner’s Friday the 13th Part 3 continues Jason’s manic journey across the blood-soaked grounds surrounding Crystal Lake. Acclaimed and revered by some fans more than the film itself, Harry Manfredini’s score fashions some of the most chilling, daring, and skillfully orchestrated music ever composed for the horror genre. Stalking the vaults of Paramount Pictures, Waxwork Records faithfully restored both Manfredini’s master tapes as well as the vintage 3D aesthetic of the film by commissioning the iconic horror artist "Ghoulish" Gary Pullin to carve out the vicious visual illusion that brought a new dimension of terror to the turntable.

Reflecting back upon his strong history with the Friday the 13th franchise, Pullin notes, “I love the Friday films, they’re always a lot of fun to revisit. I think Manfredini’s score is essential to the series, it’s a very eerie and chilling piece of music. I still hear it in my head every time I’m in the woods. It’s hard to imagine a Friday film without his score. I also love how Manfredini experimented with the theme and the Friday 3 soundtrack is a great example of that.”

“I’ve done a few official Friday the 13th-related things, I worked with Mondo on a Final Chapter poster and a very special screen print for Fright Rags for their ‘Survivors’ print. It was a charity event in 2012 with the actresses, or the “final girls”, from the first four Friday films. The event raised money and awareness for victims of domestic violence. I got to finally meet Adrienne King at Living Dead Con in Portland and tell her I was the guy that did the artwork.”

Working with Waxwork since its inception, Pullin has developed a potent chemistry with the label. “It’s always a fun collaboration working with [Waxwork Records]. The concept behind the 3D lenticular cover with Jason coming at you was something Waxwork mentioned in the very beginning. I kind of took it from there and presented them with the idea of Voorhees breaking through the movie screen, which was partly inspired by the original House of Wax 'in 3D' poster.

For Friday the 13th 3D vinyls, I suggested the red and blue to represent 3D lenses and then Waxwork came up with the bloody hockey mask variant, since Part 3 is the first time Jason finds the hockey mask. Waxwork is always thinking of cool ways to do things, and as a designer it’s really great because it really feels limitless in what you can do with the medium.”

“I watched the film and then just started collecting imagery for reverence” Pullin said when reflecting on the creative process behind the cover art. "I also referred to a really great book, Crystal Lake Memories. That’s where I got the idea to do the cut, alternative ending as the interior art. We tried to sneak as many of the fun things that make F13 in 3D so unique to the series into the design.”

Threatening your mental state with its multidimensional dread—Pullin captures the true, iconic stature of Jason Voorhees. Perfectly displayed within a lush lenticular, beautifully textured glass fragments literally pierce the eye, and the blue and red text font embodies the yesteryear of 3D imagery.

“Aside from a few thumbnails, I drew and painted everything digitally by hand using my Wacom Cintiq tablet” explains Pullin. “The people who printed the lenticular just needed all of the the elements on the cover to be on separate layers. It may have been a bit more time consuming with the glass and weapon elements. From the very beginning, I made sure to draw each element on their own. I’m used to keeping artwork in layers when doing a screen print, so this was a bit similar to that. They did a great job, and, as always, Stoughton Printing did a bang-up job with the rest of the package.

In regards to the length of the project, Pullin said, ”It’s hard to put an hour-by-hour estimate on it, but from start to finish it was over a month or so of work. But, as they say, time flies when you’re having fun!”

With the lenticular vinyl release selling out within a matter of minutes, it's safe to say the Friday the 13th Part 3 release struck a nerve with both the film's franchise and Waxwork's fanbase. Casting a look over his cadaverous canvas, Pullin said, "With each score we’ve collaborated on, the finished product has always exceeded my expectations. It’s like Christmas morning when I get to open up the records and see how they turned out. I hope the person buying our soundtracks just really enjoys them and has a new and unique experience taking in the artwork and the score as a whole. If the filmmakers, the composers, and fans of the films are happy with the end result, that’s really about all you can hope for.”

Campy and morose, the Friday the 13th Part 3 vinyl soundtrack continues Waxwork’s love affair with Manfredini’s dark strings (mixed with a little disco dust). Capturing both the frights and fun of the 3D cinematic experience, Pullin again showcases his schlock-horror elegance, all while wearing his heart on a vinyl sleeve.

Peace to "Ghoulish" Gary Pullin for helping out with this piece. To learn more about the Friday the 13th Part 3 vinyl soundtrack (which is now sold out), visit Waxwork Records. Head over to Daily Dead to check out Pullin’s work with Fright Rags and recap of the Survive charity event. Keep in touch with Pullin on his Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and official website.

[Editor's Note: This special feature was originally published on BEATDUST in April of 2016.]