The horror-punk legends are back. Dead kings rise!Somewhere down the line, complications arose within the band, and they split. Ten or so years later, they have reformed, but without Glenn Danzig on vocals, but rather the new, young Michale Graves, my favorite Misfits vocalist. They also gained Dr. Chud on drums.
This is (very arguably) the best Misfits album in my opinion, and I'mma tell ya why.
Before, the Misfits talked about not very serious subjects in their songs, like getting abducted by aliens and the sort, but Glenn Danzig took it very seriously. Enter Michale Graves, the young man who had never even heard a Misfits song before he applied for the band. Where as Danzig had a vocal type that sounded like Elvis (what is the correct term for this vocal style?), Graves is here with his clean, almost pop-punk vocals, and honestly, I feel like it works a lot more with the sound of the band than Danzig did.
Not dissing Danzig or anything, I sure do like the guy, just not as much as I like Graves. I mean come on, part of his stage name contains 'Graves'. Does your name contain 'Graves' anywhere? I didn't think so.
The 'Fits are back, and catchier than ever. Either the whole band really learned how to make catchier melodies, or Michale really knows what he's doing. The sounds are a bit more metal-sounding than before, and people who couldn't get into Misfits before because of a certain problem will be joyed to hear something:
This album actually has nice production! It doesn't sound like it was recorded in someone's garage! This is a studio album! Jerry Only's bass can be heard, Doyle's guitar is raging, and Dr. Chud's drumming is furious. This all serves to back Michale Graves' vocal onslaught.
Michale can sing, yell, and chant. From his low voice singing on 'This Island Earth' that'd be sure to please Danzig fans (if they didn't have their heads up their rear-ends), his yelling in 'The Shining', and of course, who could forget his very catchy chant in 'Crimson Ghost'? This man is taking control of Misfits, and there's no problem with that.
The only bad things I can really say about this album is that while it's great, after a while it's pretty easy to get burnt out on this, but the same could be said about every Misfits album, or every album even. A few of the songs also aren't that terribly memorable, but I wouldn't call them bad by any means, just nothing I'd put on by choice. Also, depending on who you are, their silly lyrics could get on your nerves after a while because these guys don't seem to have an ounce of seriousness in them!
Favorite Misfits album. All you "OMG DANZIG IS TH BESTTT THESE GUYS SUK" should really stop whining about it online. Maybe you don't consider it good by Misfits standards, but on its own it's a great album and you know it.
8/10
Recommended track(s): American Psycho, Walk Among Us, Crimson Ghost
