The recent shift in pop culture has steered toward the creation of a newsubgenre of horror.
This genre is famous for low-fidelity graphics and cryptic messages.
These graphics have a vintage unit presentation.
The subgenre has officially been dubbed analog horror because of the eeriness the retro aesthetic contributes to the artform.
What Is Analog Horror?
These videos often feature self-contained vignettes connected by a common theme, environment, or lore.
The term analog horror was first coined when a small channel on YouTube called Local 58 started making rounds.
Today this channel is hailed as the pioneer of analog horror media.
This series on YouTube is what also propelled the evolution of analog horror into what it is today.
Because of the giant ball of hype Local 58 caused around itself, the series quickly spawned imitators.
This hype, over time, gained momentum and catapulted the subgenre into mainstream media exposure.
What Is Local 58 Analog Horror?
This video series was originally uploaded to a now-defunct website called local58.info.
The content from the website was soon moved to an official channel on YouTube.
The main plot point for Local 58 seems to be the hijacking of a television station by extraterrestrial entities.
The deeper meaning and motivation behind these cryptic messages add to the horror element of the videos.
What Kind of Channel Is It?
Local 58 is known as an analog horror anthology created and illustrated by Kris Straub.
The setting of the fictional anthology covers the mysterious events happening in Mason County, West Virginia.
Local 58 is a public access television in this region that started broadcasting in the late 1930s.
We also hear that a GPS guides the driver to follow the fastest available route.
As they continue onwards, the commands from the automated voice become increasingly suspicious.
Finally, the GPS tells him to stop and park.
Once more, the driver complies with the commands.
The car stops and turns off its headlights.
After a few moments, a roar is heard.
Startled, the driver turns on the lights to reveal a bipedal entity in front of the car.
The feed freezes once more.
One last roar is heard before the GPS delivers its last chilling sentence.
You have arrived at your destination.
Then, an abrupt interruption by an emergency alert from a fictional agency.
This agency is the Department for the Preservation of American Dignity (DPAD).
A written message from President Lyndon B. Johnson plays with the national anthem accompanying it.
Once the message is over, the broadcast continues.
Then, the song My Country, Tis of Thee plays, albeit with a distortion.
During this segment, the DPAD coerces viewers to commit vile actions to avoid the invaders.
The message emphasizes that citizens must ensure compliance and that it is illegal to delay the civic act.
The message also implies that anyone who does not comply with this civic duty shall be executed.
Furthermore, the message adds that the broadcast will continue until there are none left to read it.
The video starts with a regular program; however, an EAS message interrupts it at midnight.
The messages this time have been altered.
This time EAS claims that the warning has been lifted and that everything is safe outside.
The next messages from the EAS encourage people to go outside and witness whatever spectacle is happening.
The feed cuts back and forth, signifying a struggle to regain control of the station.
The first party frantically tries to vie for the feed and attempts to issue a warning for the viewers.
The hijackers keep intercepting this until they manage to cut the feed off completely from the original station.
The broadcast then abruptly ends.
The video starts with a regular program broadcast that transitions into a bumper.
Through Cadavres journey, he comes across a grave.
Wondering if his lover may be inside, Cadavre decides to inspect the tomb.
He sees a realistic skeleton which frightens him, causing him to run away.
Soon after, he comes across yet another open grave.
He finds a bird-like creature and runs away.
At this point, the noticeable quietness of the cartoon is apparent due to the sound cutting out.
Cadavre, now visibly tense, keeps walking through the graveyard and finds another open grave.
He again inspects what might be inside and finds an entrance to a cave.
He proceeds to explore this cave which comes out to a different open grave.
Cadavre, now exhausted and unable to move, simply opts to lie face up inside the open grave.
A few moments later and the cartoon cuts back to Cadavre, now much more realistic and lifeless.
This short video is a compilation of the history of Local 58.
The video shuffles through the fictional channels past logos; however, an interruption occurs again.
Messages begin to flash on the screen similar to those shown in Station ID.
After a few more messages, the stations broadcasting returns to normal.
The video plays as a personalized VHS recording created by an organization called the TRI.
The tape begins by having a simple myth or fact game about sleeping.
The feed then zooms into the surface of the moon.
Moving clouds, seemingly organic formations, and strange artificial constructions can be seen.
After a few moments, the feed zooms out, and the moon fades away.
After this, loud noises arise as the moon reappears, now significantly larger.
you’re able to hear an air raid siren as the video stabilizes.
Its final resting point captures something from the bottom, consuming the moon.
The video now shows the cameraman walking toward the moon with arms stretched upward.
The on-screen text reads rejoice as the blaring siren sound, and the feed cuts back to static.
The video begins with a special announcement from the TV station dated July 13, 2022.
The message announces that Local 58 will be conducting a digital switchover at midnight.
The normal episode of One Step Beyond airs alongside a tribute bumper commemorating the stations history.
The end of the bumper shows Local 58s newest and current logo.
This comes with a tagline that says Community Digital Television.
The switchover happens but when the clock hits midnight, a broadcast interruption and the analog signal persists.
Is the Local 58 Brand of Analog Horror Based on a True Story?
Fans have long data-mined and collated clues to help them discover more of the lore about the mysterious broadcasts.
The YouTuber Nexpo came up with two theories.
MatPat, from the channel Film Theorists, also has some theories of his own.
One theory he has stated is that the moon might be a living Eldritch Abomination.
Another theory he also has is that aliens might be trying to invade our planet.
Various pieces of evidence back both of these theories are also in the videos.
One such genre, aside from analog horror, is creepypastas.
Creepypastas are not horror stories so much that they are legends that linger on the internet.
Many people claim that they can write a creepypasta.
However, a creepypasta becomes one if it achieves notoriety.
However, these two are very different, especially with their very polarizing methods of telling a story.
Local 58 spearheads the movement and is a good introduction to the subgenre.
Analog horror can be similar to other horror genres.
