CD Reviews

Misfits | The Devil's Rain

Misfits Records (2011)

By MICHAEL CHRISTOPHER | September 27, 2011

2.0 Stars

The reason there hasn't been a new Misfits record of all original material in a dozen years is because without Glenn Danzig, it's just not the Misfits. A Misfits lineup with bassist Jerry Only as the sole remaining original is akin to drummer Brian Downey pimping Thin Lizzy as legit. Thing is, Downey doesn't share Only's compulsion to release new material under his previous band's moniker. So you can expect this effort with Only at the mic to be rejected much as the late-'90s fiascos with singer Michale Graves were. That's a shame, because The Devil's Rain is chock full of good, campy horror business. But unlike Danzig, who eventually had the balls to go at it under his own name after the demise of the original outfit in 1983, Only lacked the confidence, reviving the Crimson Ghost in the mid-'90s. Unfortunately the legend stops with the glut of Hot Topic marketing, despite a valiant musical attempt here. "Monkey's Paw" has Only trying pitifully hard to ape the Misfits' "Last Caress," and tracks like "Curse of the Mummy's Hand" and "Ghost of Frankenstein" are too predictable to be more than schlock, though "Unexplained," "Vivid Red," and "Sleepwalkin' " are fun and frightfully ferocious. These guys just need another alias.

The Coathangers | Larceny & Old Lace
The Coathangers' abrasiveness goes beyond their band name's graphic, backroom abortion reference: riot-grrrl shrieks, slap-in-the-face lyrics, and badass post-punk energy are all up front on their records.
Trans Am | What Day Is It Tonight? Trans Am Live, 1993 - 2008
Trans Am are distillers of guilty pleasures, mixing fat AOR riffs with sleazy electronic accents and a propulsive attitude typically reserved for arcade soundtracks. What Day Is It Tonight? covers the DC-area band’s 20-year history with high-quality, high-energy live cuts taken from their many tours.
Various Artists | Where the Action Is: Los Angeles Nuggets 1965 - 1968
More than three years in the making, the most recent installment of Rhino's legendary archival garage-rock series offers an amazingly comprehensive excavation of an absurdly fertile scene.
Various Artists | Nippon Girls: Japanese Pop, Beat & Bossa Nova 1966–1970
Girl-group records are great and everything, yet the countless compilations out there were becoming a little hit-or-miss until 2005, when the great Girl Group Sounds Lost and Found box set finally gave this diverse genre a proper taxonomy.
Various Artists | Casual Victim Pile: Austin 2010
The notion that regional musical flavors exist independently in American cities is quickly becoming an archaic truism, seeing as how the world really is a stage these days, at least in the digital sense.
Bearstronaut | Broken Handclaps
There's a distinct absence of wildlife or astronauts on Lowell electronica quartet Bearstronaut's latest release.
Various Artists | Songs For Chris Knox
On June 11 of last year, Chris Knox suffered a life-altering stroke.
Avi Buffalo | Avi Buffalo
Look, I get it: the last thing we need right now is yet another band who can be described as “sun-baked,” “reverb-soaked,” or even just “psychedelic.” But Avi Buffalo (I know! An animal name to boot!) are worth your attention for a few reasons.
Review: Brandon Flowers | Flamingo
Brandon Flowers has gone on record saying he brought the songs on Flamingo to his fellow bandmates for the next Killers album and was given the brush-off.
Review: Kevin Dunn | No Great Lost: Songs 1979–1985
Casa Nueva Industries (2010)
Review: Crocodiles | Sleep Forever
With remarkable swiftness, Crocodiles tick off all the key characteristics of a band in the thriving lo-fi indie/punk/garage scene.
Less

Topics: CD Reviews , Music, CD reviews, punk, More

| More

5 Comments / Add Comment

Anonymous

Most Misfits fans appreciate the Graves era now. Those of us who love the band love what Jerry's doing. Surprising the Phoenix is so out of touch, I thought you guys were supposed to be Edgy. It didn't take balls for Danzig to strike out on his own it took his narcissistic attitude. That's why he broke up the Misfits, Samhain, and would go onto fire everyone in his self titled band twice. DO YOUR HOMEWORK.

Posted: October 03 2011 at 8:30 PM

Report

Anonymous

When I listened to it for the first time I was like, no this is not gonna work. Now (2nd day) I am listening to it 10th time and it is still rolling round and round, I can't get enough of it. Jerry did it right and I am happy. This is no Famous Monsters, this reminds me more of Walk among us, but without Danzig. Just give it few listens. You will find out that this is one of their best albums. Less metal and more punk although there are nice HM songs as well like Jack the Ripper. That one's like from some NWOBHM album.

Posted: October 04 2011 at 7:40 AM

Report

TheFantasticMrHell

What exactly is Jerry doing??? He sued Danzig and marketed the imagery to ridiculous lengths and fired everyone from the Graves era. Anyone who does their homework will find that the Misfits originally broke up 'cause Jerry and Doyle weren't serious. They constantly broke their equipment and didn't do well live. This is evident on the Evilive record. Danzig wanted to go at it full swing but wanted something different with more competent musicians. So was birthed Samhain. When Samhain was about to be signed he knew London May and Damien wouldn't be able to make the cut so he let them go and changed the name to Danzig for legal reasons. One reason was so old members couldn't sue him. Hmmm smart move considering this is what was to happen with the Misfits. So everyone ultimately got 3 legendary bands. Jerry originally wanted a cut of the Misfits royalties. Thats right. He wanted money. But eventually changed his mind to getting the rights to play using the name and imagery. Around this time there was a huge interest growing on the misfits since Metallica were/are outspoken fans and Danzig at the time was at his peak in popularity. There was a demand. But Danzig was too busy looking forward to look back so Jerry took it. This is all evident now more than ever. Although the Graves era did release some great material and was more a legitimate working unit than this pathetic hodge podged cover band. Eventually Chud, Graves, and even Jerrys brother Doyle would all leave to do their own thing. Jerry with his own inflated ego would take up singing as well as bass so everyone could hear the songs Danzig wrote by someone else bearing the Fiend Skull flag. That's all Jerry did. He took everything from Danzig. Jerry would be nothing without Danzig. Well, unless Kryst the Conqueror took off then maybe I guess. But even that was embarrassing. But otherwise; no. It was Glenns lyrics, Glenns songs, Glenns imagery, Glenns everything other than the Devilock which Jerry invented. So how exactly is Jerry qualified to do any of this? Even in the Graves era he didn't write anything. It was all Graves, Doyle, and Chud. That sort of answers why it took over a decade to make an album that sounds more or less the same from beginning to end. Jack The Ripper being the only stand out. To further prove my point I will suggest doing some research into The Monkeys Paw. You will find that it is in fact a 1999 Famous Monsters reject. This band is a joke. And I love how fans are already saying. "If you don't like this album your not a true fiend." Or "Its not Famous Monsters but its still good." Or my personal favorite. "It reminds me of Walk Among Us." All I'm hearing is a sorry way of justifying poor quality. If thats how you have to think to be a true fiend then I want no part of it. I'm perfectly fine with seeing Samhain, Danzig, and Danzig and Doyle doing Misfits songs at the DANZIG LEGACY show at the Gibson. Ill be with all the other non-Fiends in the pit on Halloween night.

Posted: October 04 2011 at 11:55 AM

Report

Anonymous

I agree with the Fantastic Mrhell. This album is garbage. I'm a graves era fan. Danzig did have some really, really, good work. Then again, Danzig also had cough, cool. I was excited for this. When land of the dead and twilight of the dead were released in 2009, I thought Jerry just might pull of a listenable record. Listenable, not good. And I was completely wrong.

I love the misfits, I don't love the Jerry Only band. That's what it's become. Jerry Only sings "The Misfits"! AND, some other not so good songs, but who cares! He's sporting a fiend skull so misfits fan have to like it!

Screw that.

Posted: October 04 2011 at 5:04 PM

Report

Anonymous

Die hard Misfits fan here. Seen Danzig many times(met him and he was awesome) seen the Misfits w/Graves and am a Grave's fan as well. I pick anything Misfits related up. The sound of this record is a mix of the post Grave's 60's Tribute sound and Osaka Popstar. Even though Only is the final original member of the band, the roster is very serviceable. Definitely will take a few listens to get into but will be worth it.

Posted: October 05 2011 at 4:29 PM

Report

Add Comment

HTML Prohibited