Two wrongs don’t make a right. 

Over the past two years, A Killer’s Confession — led by former Mushroomhead vocalist Waylon Reavis — has plunged listeners into the conflicted mind of a vigilante serial killer through the Victim trilogy. Taking the lives of society’s most wicked when the authorities fail to act, our murderous protagonist grapples with his chosen path. He knows his actions are wrong. But there’s also a dark side. One that fuels him. One that refuses to abandon his mission to rid the world of evil, even if he’s a source of it himself.

On Nov. 13, A Killer’s Confession unleashes Victim 3, the dramatic conclusion to the ambitious trilogy. Set behind bars on death row, the final chapter finds the vigilante facing the consequences of his actions. Yet even with his fate seemingly sealed, the battle within him is far from over. He knows he deserves to die. But his darker half isn’t going down without a fight…or the occasional cellblock dance party.

A perfect blend of melody and menace, with an unexpected cover of The Weeknd’s “Blinding Lights,” Victim 3 brings this killer’s twisted tale to a close while leaving the door open for the band’s next confession.

Ahead of the album’s release, PopHorror caught up with Reavis to discuss bringing the trilogy to life, the extensive research behind his descent into a serial killer’s psyche, the evolution of the character’s masked appearance and his passion for introducing a new generation to all-things horror.

PopHorror: I have to tell you, I’ve absolutely loved the Victim trilogy. How are you feeling now that it’s concluded?

Waylon Reavis: Relieved! It was such an undertaking to make it go for three albums, have it be an audio book. To make it into song form that’s not a musical. I have a sense of accomplishment. Nothing in my career could have prepared me on how to do this. I didn’t follow any set rules or what had already been done. I just did it my own way and I succeeded. I’m proud of that. Taking this on was really hard because I had one subject matter. I had to make it last for three albums, not repeat myself, and not do the same thing over and over and over again because it would’ve been, “Well, he’s beating a dead horse.” And I didn’t do that. I feel like it may not be what some people would say is the height of my career or whatever, but I feel like this is the most I’ve ever done in my career. This is the highest moment for me. 

At Death’s Doors

PopHorror: It’s such a great narrative. In Victim 1, we meet this vigilante killer. He’s struggling with his identity a bit. Victim 2, he’s embraced it a bit more. We love someone who enjoys their career path! Now, in Victim 3, where do we find him? What’s going on?

Waylon Reavis: We’re in prison. In Victim 2, if you go to “Hand of God,” I based that off the movie Frailty where he comes in for his brother and he can hear him. And I’m saying, “I can hear your whispers.” He’s talking about the FBI. But in Victim 3, we’re starting in prison where he has been locked up. He’s been tried. He’s gotten the death penalty. He is at the end and it starts there. The whole album is in the cell, death row, the Green Mile. He is walking it. At the end of it, he’s done. I wanted to show everybody he was a killer and a vigilante. He thought what he was doing was the right thing, but still, two wrongs don’t make a right. Murder is murder. If there’s going to be a capital case like that, let them handle it. Let it go through due process. Don’t take this into your own hands. You do not have that right or the power to decide on someone else’s existence. 

So, we start with track one, where he’s telling everybody, “You’re all guilty. You have punished me for punishing the wicked. Now, you’re guilty by association. If you let me out of here, I’ll kill you, too.” He has no remorse for what he’s done. But he also understands — and you’ll catch it throughout the album — that there’s no change in him and he’s where he should be. He has that side to him still. Granted, he’s angry, but he also understands, “Yeah, you’ve just got to get rid of me. I’m never going to stop.” Like you said, he enjoyed his career path. And I’m so glad that you picked up on that. He got good at it. 

That was me doing a lot of research about serial killers and how they get addicted. It becomes a dopamine fix for him. “Oh, I got away with it. I’m going to do it again. I’m good at it. I know how to do this, how to get rid of the body.” I did all that research and I was like, “Well, this seems to be something that’s a repeating thing and happens with a lot of people.” So, I implemented that. And just like they do, he got careless and he got caught. Now, we’re here. 

The Song Stuck In Your Head

PopHorror: Compared to Victim 1, was your writing process different given the jail setting?

Waylon Reavis: A little bit. I still kept the split personalities. They’re still there. He’s got his yin and his yang. He’s got his good side, he’s got his bad side. Some of the songs are the bad side still. They’ll seem more upbeat and kind of fun because he’s all about it. He’s like, “Nah, man, I’m gonna get out of here. I’m gonna get all of you now. I don’t have limitations. I’ll just kill you. You are guilty.” Then the other side is, “Look in the mirror. You want to know what the problem was? You were always the devil. Now, it’s just clear as day.” There’s definitely the struggle. 

And I threw a cover song in there again, a song that gets stuck in your head. It went over so well with Victim 2 and “Heart-Shaped Box.” People said, “How do you throw ‘Heart-Shaped Box’ on a concept album?” I’m like, “You ever had a song stuck in your head?” That’s exactly what’s happening. It’s the song in his head. It’s him and the demon singing it, or the dark side of him. The same thing goes for “Blinding Lights.” They’re singing it together and walking down Death Row. That is the last song that is ever going to be in his head. 

PopHorror: Oh, man!

Waylon Reavis: Yeah! I love that song so much. It’s like, if you’ve been in Walmart or the mall or any shopping center and you hear it. You get in an elevator, you hear that song. I remember the first time I heard it, I was like, “What is that? Is that from the ‘80s?” The first time I heard it, I swore it was some retro ‘80s song. But no, it was a guy called The Weeknd. I’m like, “I really like this,” and I’m not a pop guy at all. I love that song. 

PopHorror: What I really love about this cover, you didn’t go the obvious route and do a scream-heavy metal version. You stayed very true to the original. What was the thought process behind that decision?

Waylon Reavis: It’s the song stuck in your head, so, if you’re singing the song in your head, you’re not going to make it a metal song. You’re going to hum the melody like you’re in the shower or something. You’re going to sing it. What we did, we darkened it. If you listen to the original, it’s all bright. Then this one opens like that, but it’s got that low, ominous thing. We dropped it a couple of keys. And then I sang it pretty on top of that. It’s not as fast. It’s slowed down a little bit. People are like, “Oh, you did a one to one cover.” Like, no, I didn’t. You’ll hear the difference. There’s a low voice harmony that I do on it. That’s the other side – he’s singing it with his flip personality. It’s like they’re singing it together.

My producer was like, “Where has this been? I didn’t know you were a pop singer.” I was like, “I didn’t either! I’ve just been wearing a mask my entire life. Nobody told me.” He also goes, “I can tell you really like the song. I could just tell by the way you’re singing it that you really like it.” I’m like, “Yeah, I do. I really do.” It helped me in choosing something because originally, I was going to try and do Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time,” and I just couldn’t make it work. It didn’t have the sound that I was looking for, like how this had that ominous sound. I couldn’t get it to be that way. It just wasn’t translating. I might revisit that down the road and try to do it again, but I couldn’t make it right for my vision for this. 

PopHorror: The music video for “Blinding Lights” is so fun, basically a jail dance party. What was filming that like? And what was that day like on set?

Waylon Reavis: We filmed that one and the “Roses” video in the same day at the Akron Schoolhouse and Laboratory. They have just been so good to us over the last couple of years. They’ve allowed me to go in and shoot the videos for “Hollow,” “In Case of Emergency” and “Hopeless Gray.” They gave me these rooms and were just like, “Okay, have at it, just give us credit.” I get these massive, amazing sets to work on. I was looking for a jail cell because I knew the concept. I’m like, “Listen, I need to do a video of him in the cell walking the Green Mile. I need to take him to it.” And being that “Blinding Lights” is the first song we released, it’s kind of a Quentin Tarantino thing – I started with the end, showing him dead. 

When we got there that morning, the first thing I did, I put the makeup on. I put the mask on and I’m in the cell. We had shot the “Meat Hook” video the day before, and two of the actors could come and help. I was like, “Bring your costumes.” We put me in the cell and they’re the ones dancing behind me. That will all make sense after you watch the “Meat Hook” video. Everything in the three videos is tied together about what’s going on with him and the killer [side to him]. You see he’s lashing out at the nurse and the guard. Now that he’s in the cell, he’s like, “You’re all guilty.” You can really see that. But the dark side of him is straight up like a party. Originally, when I thought about the video, I wanted him walking the red carpet and the paparazzi were there. That would’ve been cool, too. 

Stepping Into The Body And Mind Of A Serial Killer

PopHorror: In the music videos, from Victim 1 through now, you can see an evolution to your appearance, transitioning from just makeup to a full mask. Can you speak to that process and how we arrived at the current look?

Waylon Reavis: Being that I was in Mushroomhead, I ended up working with [Jason] Kisner again and the fans wanted me to bring the character back. Originally, in Mushroomhead, I was in makeup. I brought the makeup back first and then I evolved into the mask. Then, I took the mask that I wore and evolved it into today. That’s a throwback for the fans, the people who’ve been following me since 2004. I’ve not forgotten where I came from. He’s still here. He’s still got time and he’s still kicking. You guys want to see him? Well, he’s not dead. Here he is.

I got Kisner to step in and he did the Victim 1, 2 and 3 masks, and we evolved it each time. We took a little bit away, added some more, made it a little bit creepier. And I think we knocked it out of the park with this newest mask. Day one filming the “Meat Hook” video, we shot the first scene and then I had to get in the full get up. The key grip on the set had seen me before. Then I came back and had it all on. He’s got a light over top of me and he’s just staring into my soul the whole time. We cut, he follows me out and I take the mask off. He goes, “I couldn’t tell where it started and where it stopped. Was it makeup? A prosthetic?” And he was above me with a light. He was sitting there trying to figure out what was mask and what was me. I knew we did something here. 

I remember bringing this idea to Kisner and he was like, “I don’t know.” I wanted the mouth and the nose to be open for breathing and singing purposes. It’s really hard to sing live when you’ve got something pinching your nose, covering your mouth. It’s just hard to project. I wanted to open it up and then we’d paint. He sent me the copy and it was a beautiful mask. But if you look at the mask without the face in it, it feels like it’s missing something. And it is – it’s missing you. Your face is just as much part of it. Then I remember putting it on, putting the makeup on, sending it to him. He’s like, “Oh, my God, it’s beautiful,” once he saw the vision that I had for it. Jason Kisner, I’ve got to give him credit. He designed the mask and sculpted it all himself just off some direction from me. 

PopHorror: How does it feel to put the full thing on, especially on stage? I’m imagining it’s similar to how an actor might feel when they step into their costume for a role. 

Waylon Reavis: It’s very much so. You will deal with me all day, and then when it’s time to go on stage, he shows up. It’s a light switch. I’m fine until I do this [mimics pulling down mask] and the light switch is on. He’s there and he doesn’t leave for an hour. He’s got an hour recess and he will get mad if you do not give him that hour. It is stepping into a role because you’ve got to be that character. You can’t just wear a mask and go up on stage and be like, “Hey, y’all, how you doing?” Nobody wants to see that because it makes it Texas Chainsaw and it’s too real for everybody. You’ve got to look in the mirror. Even when I’m writing, I’ve got to look at the mask. I’ve got to look at who is doing this. You want it to sink in and have depth and layers. 

PopHorror: Where did this character come from for you? Was there a real-world serial killer or just real incident that inspired you?

Waylon Reavis: This is based in reality. I am the character. When I left Mushroomhead, I worked with children from sex trafficking for a year. This could have been me. I learned things and I witnessed things that I still have PTSD to this day over for victims. When I started creating this, it was like, what if I had lost myself in substance, split off and decided to say, “Well, I don’t feel like you’re doing enough to take care of this situation so I’m going to do it for you.” It has a real foothold in reality. That’s why I had to do so much research about real serial killers. That’s why you have the conflict. Me, I’m not the guy. I have appreciation of human life. But at the same time, I’m very much, “Strike them down, that’s wrong.” I do have that. I had to learn and study about how these killers love their job. They get good at it. But also, I felt like if we do too much of the violence and we don’t do the psychology, we’re missing the whole boat. You can only do so much when you talk about killing somebody. But if you’re talking about the psychological damage that is happening to the character, there is a broad horizon of where we go. 

Now, we’ve got two characters. How does he feel? How does he feel? Let’s have them have an argument. Going the psychological route seemed like the proper path of this. To just be like, “Well, I was hiding under his bed and slashed his ankle,” you know how easy it is to write that? But if you want to go into the mind of, “I don’t want to do this anymore,” it’s more challenging. And then the other side of, “No, we are.” It’s a split personality. That was fun for me. 

PopHorror: Kind of an angel and devil on the shoulders type of thing. 

Waylon Reavis: It was. And there’s also the thought that whoever’s in the mask, we could bring him back later down the line. I don’t want to do it right now. I want to hang this up and do something else. I’m going to do another story, but it’s not going to be this story. It’s going to be a new story. A new killer. He’s got something new to confess. Because we’re A Killer’s Confession – it just makes sense. We’re going to go there, but this time, it’s not going to be a vigilante. It could just be a psychopath. You bumped into him at a grocery store and he stabbed you. I’m trying to figure that out as we speak. Or, I could do a bunch of short stories, a short song, just being a different character. I’ve got so many ideas flowing in my head. If I think of something, I’ll just go write it down and save it for later. 

I feel more satisfaction being that writer than just being like, “I’m going to write a song about my feelings and how I’m hopelessly in love,” or, “I’m going to write 30 seconds for TikTok.” No. I’m not going to do any of the above. I’m going to continue to write something with layers and then tie it back. I’m already thinking of how I can take this new stuff and tie it back to this, where there’s hints that it’s all the same universe. 

PopHorror: A serial killer musical version of The Conjuring Universe. 

Waylon Reavis: Yes, exactly that. That’s going to be the fun part and keep it alive for me. As an artist and as a writer, I’ve got to find some kind of satisfaction. I find no satisfaction in trying to write just a song. I’ve done it for so long. I’m over it. I’m not over music, I’m just over this factory work. Everybody chasing each other’s tails and trying to be the next big thing, be some kind of rock god that doesn’t really exist. I’m like, “You’re all just fools.” Enjoy the moment. Let’s do something different for once. Let’s not play by the rules. Let’s bend them. Let’s be artists and have fun with it. 

Being A Horror Household

PopHorror: How has horror influenced your music? And what are some of your favorite films and franchises?

Waylon Reavis: I’m a huge Evil Dead fan. Bruce [Campbell], God bless him, he’s got a couple more years left in him. He’s got cancer. I love him. When I first started this, I always told myself that I would never be in the video, that I was going to always hire Bruce to play me. And I never did it. I kind of wish I could get him to do it now. But I love the fact that they’ve continued Evil Dead without him. Their universe has opened up and you’ve got these new characters. I love it.

I’m terrified of zombie films. I cannot watch a zombie flick. I have PTSD from my mother. Return of the Living Dead II – movie’s hilarious, cannot watch it. I was six. Back in the day, we rented it from Blockbuster. She popped some popcorn, put a blanket on the couch. But she was a bigger chicken than I was. She’d hide her head and make me tell her what was going on. I have a super bad fear of zombies. I love Hellraiser. Puppet Master. I love any kind of possession film. Possession of Emily Rose, The Exorcist, because there’s a basis in reality. It kind of gets in your head. The Conjuring. So, horror? Yeah, of course. Look at me, I’m playing the killer. 

And I’ve got to work with some amazing people. I’ve got pictures of my son Phoenix sitting on Kane Hodder’s lap while he signed autographs. That was about the coolest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. I’ve done all the conventions and Kane would always be beside us when I was in Mushroomhead. 

PopHorror: Was your son aware of who he was?

Waylon Reavis: My son was like, “That was awesome, Dad!” He got to meet Robert [Englund]. He got to meet all of them. My son grew up in FX makeup, so he understood it’s fake. He knew he was on the inside of the joke. All the other kids were scared and Phoenix was like, “I was on set. I’ve seen how they did that.” He would go to school and play Freddy Krueger. He’d take his four fingers and chase people. I got called to the principal’s office, that she wanted to speak to me. I grabbed my Mushroomhead mask because I knew what she was going to say. She goes, “This must stop in your home.” I said, “What do you mean stop in my home? He’s over here playing as Freddy Krueger and Jason Voorhees.” At recess, we all did this. I played this when I was a kid. She’s talking like it’s this terrible thing. 

I said, “Do you know who I am?” She goes, “You’re Phoenix’s father.” I said, “No, no, no. Beyond that, do you know what I do?” And she goes, “No.” I said, “Alright, we’re going to fix this right here.” I grabbed a picture and laid it down. It was Phoenix with Robert Englund. Robert’s leaning over on top of him and he’s got the claw, and my son has the biggest grin in the world. He was probably six or seven at the time. Then I laid down a picture of Phoenix with Kane Hodder. I said, “Do you know who those two guys are? That’s Freddy and that’s Jason. He knows them personally.” Then I reached in and pulled the mask out, set it on the desk. I’m like, “My family makes its living off of this. Do not tell me what to do in my own home.” And she just stopped. I said, “He has a better understanding that the boogeyman’s fake than any of these kids.” I know I stumped her because she was the ultimate Karen. I couldn’t stand this woman. 

But he’s been on set. He’s seen somebody’s heart get ripped out. He knows this is Halloween makeup. Do not tell me I can’t do what I do in my home because you don’t like him running around with his four fingers, and they’re playing tag and calling it Freddy Krueger. What else can they do, sit in their safe space? Just look at each other? They’re little boys. They’re playing. They’re being active. They’re not on an iPad. Don’t stop it. This is all art. Don’t stifle anything. If they’re using their imaginations, let them go, unless it’s really weird. [laughs] 

PopHorror: I love that you introduced him to your world at such a young age. If I ever have kids and the teacher tells me they were playing Chucky, I’ll be so proud. 

Waylon Reavis: That’s the thing – when a child’s playing, let them play. Everything’s offensive now. I’m glad my kids are grown, that’s all I’m saying. Phoenix is 18 and in college now, so I don’t have to deal with it anymore. I can be old and ornery, “I like what I like! Get off my lawn!” 

The Singles

PopHorror: Speaking of horror, you also have a single from Victim 3 called “Meat Hook.” Tell me about that one!

Waylon Reavis: Meat Hook is the killer. It’s a party. It’s a masquerade. It’s a celebration for him. In this album, we split it up like we always have with the psychological. We have the good side and the dark side. There’s a couple of songs where it’s the dark side. He’s having the time of his life. Welcome to the Meat Hook! It was such a fun song. It’s got an old, industrial vibe to it. It’s my favorite song on the album. 

PopHorror: And you’ve also released the single “Roses,” which listeners have been interpreting in their own way and sharing how it applies to their own lives. What does this one mean to you and this character?

Waylon Reavis: It was him realizing everything he had done was in vain. Nobody was going to appreciate what he was trying to do. Deep down, he was trying to do a good thing. He was trying to protect. He did it all to keep them safe. But in the end, there’s going to be no roses on his grave. A lot of artists don’t do this, but I was very blunt about what you’re hearing. He’s saying, “I gave it all to keep you safe.” He means it. “I’m giving my life. I gave everything till there was nothing left to give, and I’m not going to be appreciated for it.”

It’s also got that deeper meaning for people to not look for appreciation. Do something because you’re doing it. Know why you did it, but don’t do it looking to get the pat on the back. You’re not going to get it. You’re never going to get what you’re looking for and 99% of the time, you’re going to get hurt. They’re going to ridicule you. They’re going to put you down for it. Do it for you. If you’re going to do anything, do it for yourself. Don’t do it for other people. With sobriety or anything, if you try to do something for someone else, you will fail every time. And when you do something for yourself, you’ll do it – you won’t lie to yourself. You won’t fake it. You can be honest with yourself. The one person you can’t lie to is yourself. Don’t do things for other people’s approval. Do them for your approval. 

PopHorror: Yes, you have to be proud of what you’re setting out to achieve. Not to sound pessimistic, but most people don’t really give a shit. 

Waylon Reavis: No, they don’t. They don’t give a shit at all about what you did. They don’t care, especially because on social media now, they’re their own self-fulfilling gods. It’s all about how many likes they can get. Everything’s about them. They have no empathy. They’ll say they do for likes. They’ll go out and do something to tell you that they did it. I like the person that did it and you never knew who it was. That’s the people I want to see come back – the ones who do it because it should be done. Don’t post it online and expect to get a million likes. Then you didn’t do squat – you did a “like” campaign. That’s not cool. 

Final Words

PopHorror: To wrap up, in addition to the new album, is there anything else upcoming that people can look forward to?

Waylon Reavis: I’ve got the tour, leaving on Nov. 4. We will be playing most of the album. So, for the songs that you have not heard, I will be playing a lot of it live. I’ll also bring back some classic songs for the first time in a couple years – “Numb,” “Angel on the Outside.” People have been screaming at me, “Why don’t you play that anymore?!” Well, here you go. We’re going to play them. And then this spring, I’m going out with Powerman 5000 and supporting them on their tour. And during all that time, I’m going to find time to sit down and start writing what’s next. Probably sooner than later, my tree of ideas will start getting filled out and we’re going to have a whole new story, a whole new look. I might go to makeup, I might stay in the mask. I might just go normal. It’s untelling what I’m going to do next. That’s the joy of being an artist. I’m going to do whatever is needed to be done at that moment. 

PopHorror: The possibilities are endless!

Waylon Reavis: Yes, they are!

PopHorror: Well, I can’t wait to see what you do next. Do you have any final words for our readers and your fans?

Waylon Reavis: Just get up and go do something. Enjoy life. Treat every day as a gift. Get up and just be a ray of sunshine. I’m not kidding. Enjoy yourself because this is a gift every day that we’re above the ground. Enjoy who you are. Be proud of who you are and don’t compromise for anybody. Don’t compromise yourself. 

Thanks for speaking with us, Waylon! Keep up with A Killer’s Confession on Instagram @a_killers_confession. 

Photo by Dusty Boles