Samhain

Glenn Danzig, lead vocalist of the Misfits, originally planned Samhain as a darker side project to the uptempo horror punk of the Misfits. However, once the Misfits dissolved in 1983, they became his full-time band. They would probably be considered something like goth metal today, but I'll be upfront in that I have no clue how to label metal. Samhain always tried very hard to maintain a morbid atmosphere, which often flew off into hilarity territory - like watching a bad 50's horror movie. They were surprisingly picked up by a major label in 1988, and changed their name to Danzig and their style to metal. Oh, and if you want to look cool in front of that record store clerk cutie, it's pronounced "Sah-winn," not the way it's spelt.

Initium (1984) 8 Thumbs Up

"YOU THINK YOU KNOW PAIN? YOU KNOW NOTHING!!!" Initium opens with Danzig ranting about how evil he is over spooky-sounding wind, and unless you wear bondage pants and black lipstick, the CD is immediately off to a shaky start. Did I mention the cover is the three members of Samhain covered in white face paint and blood? Yeah. But Samhain quickly recovers with the next track, a fast metal bit called, um, "Samhain!" The next song, "Black Dream," could've been an Earth A.D.-era Misfits song if not for the annoying "morbid" bell chime in the background. That bell chime hangs around for the rest of the album, so you better get used to it. The best song on the album, by far, is "All Murder All Guts All Fun," which is back to the basic Misfits attitude of having fun with darkness. Woo! "He-Who-Can-Not-Be-Named," despite the lame title, is another Misfits-y track complete with a "woooahh" chant. There's even a cover of the Misfits' "Horror Business," cleverly renamed "Horror Biz" and infinitely crappier than the original. Get the feeling poor Danzig can't move on?

The main drawback from this album is that it's so sludgy, and most of the time, Danzig randomly screams in no key at all, when you know as well as I do that he can actually sing. And when it isn't frustrating sludge metal, it's just the Misfits slowed down. There's also entirely too much background noise, from that freaking bell chime to the other members of the band moaning and screaming in an attempt to mimic the undead over every chorus. This album is far better if you go into it with a fun attitude. If you expect it to be some sort of serious metal classic, you will probably eject it in about 5 seconds.

Unholy Passion [EP] (1985) 7 Thumbs Up

This EP is one bitch to locate. It was out of print for years, then when Samhain's vinyls were re-released on CD, it was packaged with Final Descent. Then it was packaged with Initium. Then you had to buy the entire Box Set to get it. Now you have to buy it on its own. For all the trouble you go through, it's not even that great. "All Hell" is another crappy, sludgy cover of a Misfits' song, in this case, "All Hell Breaks Loose." Is Samhain destined to just cover the Misfits their entire career? Another track is "Misery Tomb," which is nothing but the band screaming like they're being tortured over a vague bass beat. Lame, even for Samhain.

They've fallen into the trap of making frustratingly slow "morbid" metal all over again. Title track "Unholy Passion" wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't so slow! "The Hungry End" isn't bad, though, and neither is "I Am Misery." The production is pretty shoddy, with the guitars turned far too low in the mix. Don't waste your time or energy looking for this EP, because you'll be sorely disappointed and probably pay way too much for it.

November-Coming-Fire (1986) 9 Thumbs Up

This is more like it! Samhain is still trying to be ridiculously evil, but there's more rock and less sludgy studio effects. It opens with weird instrumental track "Diabolos '88," before seamlessly flying into the cool hardcore sound of "In My Grip." "Mother of Mercy," "Let the Day Begin," and "Kiss of Steel" still have laughably spooky lyrics, but they're so hidden underneath fast metal that's oddly close to what Danzig the band would be doing within 2 years that it doesn't matter. There's yet another cover of the Misfits, a slowed-down metal cover of "Halloween II" that trounces the original. Of course, "Halloween II" was pretty lame to begin with, so that isn't very hard to do.

Some tracks, like "To Walk the Night," (which all my friends found absolutely hilarious, and that isn't the intended reaction) are still pathetic when you consider they're supposed to be serious. But in order to enjoy Samhain, you have to accept that their most predominant quality was taking themselves far too seriously. Just roll with the punches, enjoy the ride, skip the lame tracks, and November-Coming-Fire magically becomes an amazing record. Oh, and closer "Human Pony Girl" is one of the best tracks Samhain ever put out. Do you dare challenge me?

Final Descent (1990) 8 Thumbs Up

This was released after Samhain was no more. It's just a collection of demos and other material they never got around to releasing. Let's face it, it was just put out so Danzig could make some money off the band Danzig's rapidly increasing success. Most of it has that "wasn't good enough to be put on the other albums feel." But that said, I actually liked hearing "Lords of the Left Hand" done twice - once in Samhain's slower style, and once in their fast rock style. "Descent" is also a really cool track that makes you want to jump around the room and become a serial killer.

Fans of Danzig will like hearing "Possession" and the ever-awesome "Twist of Cain" done in Samhain's slow, stripped-down lo-fi style, even if the Danzig versions had cooler riffs. You even get to hear what "Trouble" was like before it was included on the Thrall - Demonsweatlive EP. This is really only for a fan of Samhain, and not for someone who just wants to check out the band.

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