Just when the hard-core/ punk movement seemed chewed up,
 swallowed and spat into a sea of nothingness, SON OF SAM
 have come bearing the fruit of all that is death-rock integrity.

 Formed only a year ago, following AFI's tour with Samhain and 
 Danzig, SON OF SAM is the brain child of guitarist Todd Youth 
 (Danzig, D-Generation, Murphy's Law, Agnostic Front, Warzone, 
 Samhain etc.), vocalist Davey Havok (AFI), drummer London May 
 (Samhain, Tiger Army, Dag Nasty), and bassist Steve Zing 
 (Samhain, Chyna). The project began almost accidentally with 
 May, Youth, and Zing penning four tracks one night out of 
 simple boredom. The tunes, summoning elements of Samhain, 
 The Exploited and 7 Seconds, with the hard-core drive of 
 Black Flag and the Circle Jerks, were anything but drab. 
 "I think it's a mix of goth, punk, hardcore and metal. The 
 music is dark, aggressive, melodic, and unpredictable," 
 said May of the band's distinct sound. "Jackhammer drums, 
 relentless bass, bone-saw guitar, and howling vocals. It's 
 reminiscent of Earth A.D. era Misfits and Unholy Passion era 
 Samhain." Havok was asked to write and record the vocals. 
 Before long, four songs multiplied to ten and SON OF SAM 
 (a name created by Youth as a tongue in cheek play on the 
 modern pronunciation of Samhain) was spawned.

 "I quit drinking and doing drugs and just didn't know what 
 to do with myself," confessed Youth, who wrote and produced 
 the entire record. "I went to London's house and just started writing." 

 With an all-star line-up, Nitro Records, home of such bands 
 as The Vandals, AFI, Ensign, T.S.O.L., The Turbo AC's, and 
 The Damned, took to the band immediately before even hearing 
 a tune. The debut, appropriately titled Songs From The Earth, 
 was recorded, mixed and mastered in only days at Grandmaster 
 Studios in Hollywood, keeping with it a grass-roots, organic, 
 basement-made edge. "I just went in and didn't fuck around," 
 said Youth. "We did the record in ten days. Nick Raskulinecz 
 (who engineered Marilyn Manson's Hollywood) engineered it and it was done."

 "It was like a workshop," recalls May. "Davey upstairs writing, 
 Todd downstairs producing, while Steve played bass, and I rehearsed 
 backup vocals with the S.O.S. "hellfire choir" (Joey, Howie, 
 Ricky, etc.). We had never played together as a unit and some 
 of us were fighting jet lag, but we pulled it off."

 "This was the fastest recording I've ever experienced," adds Havok.
 "We produced it all ourselves. When I arrived in LA I believe the 
 rest of the guys had only been recording for four days and had 
 finished all the basic tracks. I had all the words and melodies 
 written and immediately set forth on singing them aloud for the 
 first time ever. Luckily, the rest of the guys were happy with what 
 I had done. I had two days to finish all the leads and backing vocals 
 and most of the stuff was done in one take. It was non-stop recording, but at the same time everyone was really relaxed and having a good time doing it. 

 The attitude was, we don't have much time, but fuck it, let's just
 go for it and have fun." Guest appearances from Danzig/Misfits/Samhain front man, Glenn Danzig (who plays guitar on "Stray" and "Songs From The Earth," as well as keyboards on "Songs From The Earth."),  Howie Pyro (D-Generation, Danzig), Joey C. (Danzig), and Nick 13 (Tiger Army, Influence Thirteen) only further accentuate the band's nostalgic appeal. 

 "I'm not speaking for myself, of course, but all the players on 
 the record have a long history of making great music," said Havok.
 "We're playing a style of music that no one really touches anymore.
 "The end-product relentlessly oozes with anthem-esque vocals, 
 Anti-flagish back-ups and gang chants. "I think because of who 
 we are and who  we've played with, we are the band that other 
 bands want to imitate," quipped Zing." We really just want to reach
 that market that missed out on the original Misfits and Samhain."

 With ten tracks clocking in at only 30 minutes and 43 seconds, 
 Songs From The Earth holds true to the old-school stylings of punk. 
 "To me, doing this record was sort of a tribute to Samhain. Playing 
 guitar for Samhain on the reunion tour was such an honor. I had 
 forgotten how much I love and respect the band," Youth explained.

 Tracks like "Evernight" spew forth an adrenalized barrage of 
 savage build-ups and bulldance breakdowns, while "In The Hills" 
 and "Purevil" invoke the perfect atmosphere for a resurgence of 
 circle pits and stage-diving galore. Racy, raw, and haunting with 
 a dark, Danzig-esque cape blanketing the entire offering, SON OF SAM 
 hurls listeners back into the very bowels of genuine, punk-core evil.