This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Misfits' formation, and they are back with a vengeance. The band's new album, "American Psycho," once again proves that Halloween can be every day, as each song tells a tale of horror, death or an alien attack. In true Misfits style, every song is less than three minutes long, chock full of tempo changes, backup vocals and their trademark 1950s/punk mixture.
Even though Michale Graves has replaced Glen Danzig as the Misfits' frontman, the band has not been drastically altered. After one listen to "American Psycho," anyone can understand why the Misfits are truly the "famous monsters of punk rock." Many modern punk bands are just carbon copies of the Misfits; others have actually covered the group's songs. "American Psycho" just goes to show that the Misfits will never be rivaled.
The album is titled after the novel by Bret Easton Ellis. Being an absolutely disgusting and grotesque book, the Misfits accurately depict the story as Graves sings, "Sex puts me in the mood to make you die." Keeping with the theme of killing and death, "Day of the Dead" is a rockabilly tune with hints of Elvis and a big Las Vegas ending. The Misfits' uniqueness really comes out on this song, proving that this band can get away with just about anything.
The first single off "American Psycho" is "Dig Up Her Bones." The catchy rhythm of this song will make for great radio play and the kids are going to easily dig this one. Sounding a bit like the Offspring, Graves sings the chorus in a more melodic voice, "Point me to the sky above / I can get there on my own."
The best track on this album is "Crimson Ghost." Reminiscent of "Green Hell," this song is played in an old-school punk fashion. "Crimson Ghost" lasts less than two minutes, with spitfire lyrics and drumming to match. As it's a great song to jump around to, there will definitely be some bruises and broken bones produced when the Misfits do this one in concert.
If you are a die-hard Misfits fan, "American Psycho" should be in your record collection. If you are unfamiliar with the band and love punk rock, go buy this album. Just don't forget to check out some of the Misfits' older releases. The song "The Hunger" really tells why the Misfits have been able to last two decades, with the lyrics, "We are the outcasted, ancient descendants, the ones who've been calling."
- Brian M. Kemp
The Misfits look like pretty scary guys. They should meet GWAR someday.
According to one ancient "Saturday Night Live" sketch, when the average person thinks of Christmas, that person thinks of bells. If that is the case, then the average person might enjoy "Classical Sonos," a compilation of music performed entirely on handbells. With seven tracks of nine actually being Baroque works, the name "Classical" Sonos is a farce. However, excluding that trivial matter, the CD is worthwhile.
The repertoire featured on this album includes some of the most popular pieces of three famous composers: Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonio Vivaldi and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
There are a few key tracks to which listeners should pay close attention. First is song number one, Bach's "Toccata and Fugue in D minor" (BWV 565). It is undoubtedly Bach's most famous keyboard piece, and lends itself well to handbell arrangement.
Also noteworthy is "Jesu, Joy of Man's Desiring" (chorale from BWV 147), also by Bach. This is a popular piece, particularly near Christmas, and again, its fuguelike qualities make it especially suitable for a handbell choir. And last, but certainly not least, is the album's final track, the "Rondo alla Turca" (K. 331), or Turkish Rondo, by Mozart, which features the exotic sounds of a janissary band accompaniment, to go with its exotic theme.
On the whole, this is a worthy CD. Those who enjoy classical (and Baroque) music will certainly appreciate this album.
- Anitha Chalam
Handsome
Epic Records
Read the Handsome line-up: ex-Quicksand guitarist Tom Capone, ex-Iceburn vocalist Jeremy Chatelain, ex-CroMags drummer Pete Hines, and ex-Helmet guitarist Peter Mengede. You know you're in for a treat, and "Handsome" doesn't disappoint.
Fusing hard-core with straight-forward rock 'n' roll, Handsome manages to stay away from recopying the sounds of its members' former bands to create its own twist on the hard-core scene. The album is rather dark lyrically, but the music is upbeat, catchy and is full of enough hooks to catch even the smallest fish.
The opener and first single, "Needles," is indicative of the Handsome sound: hard and heavy. The lyrics, "It is dirty and sick / It is a part of you / You are down / You are in / It is a circle within a circle / A wheel within a wheel / It never stops," are quite cryptic, as are most of Chatelain's other observations.
The bass-driven "Swimming" is a statement that not everything that appears perfect really is: "The most successful man has an Achilles' heel / His painted pillars may crumble and peel / But he wears a smile / Spineless and mindless." The Quicksand-esque "Going To Panic" is one of the strongest tracks on the disc, and about as heavy as the band dares to venture on the record. After all, this is not heavy metal.
The punky "Dim The Lights" showcases Handsome's faster side, while tracks like "Lead Bellied" seem to drudge on and plod through. "Handsome" has its draggy moments, but seems to make up for them with other solid tracks.
Any fan of Handsome's "ex-bands" will appreciate this record, as well as anyone else who likes music with a hard-core edge, yet with enough melody to be tolerable.
- Colin Bartos
Going to Ben's
Yikes! Records
Guitar rock is not dead! Of course we've always been bombarded with Nirvana and Bush and a lot of other power-chord-playing wannabes, but real guitar rock has all but died out on the radio these days. The only new guitar rock we hear is being put out by bands that are mere shadows of their former selves.
Are we all better off because of this? Probably so, but don't you just long for one band that only sings about fast cars and loose women? A nice, new, refreshing break from the meaningfulness of everyday life? Well, Monkey Chuck is that band. Almost.
Monkey Chuck has the right idea. This group wants to be that good ol' rock 'n' roll band we've been itching for. Unfortunately, it's not. You see, the members of Monkey Chuck are smart. They know that straight-ahead rock bands aren't en vogue right now. They know that without a gimmick, they will wallow in obscurity, destined to play BTO covers at weddings and local bars the rest of their lives. So they've tried to do what so many others have tried in the past - they get their groove on. But like the countless bands before them who tried to turn the funk up a notch, Monkey Chuck failed miserably. Thus another band with promise falls prey to the call of the funk. A good idea gone awry.
But you, the record-buying public, shouldn't boo and hiss at Monkey Chuck as you see the band members walk down the street. Do not point your finger and say "Bad Monkey Chuck!" Instead, pray for them. Pray that Monkey Chuck bucks the system and goes ahead with rockin' songs like "Can't Go Back," instead of more covers of "Play that Funky Music, White Boy." And when the band does right its past wrongs, please support it, because no one should be forced to play "Takin' Care of Business" for the rest of their lives.
- Tyler Brubaker
Dr. Octagonecologyst
Instrumentalyst (Octagon Beats)
Dreamworks Records/Bulk Recordings
Originally released as a self-titled album in 1996 with only 30,000 copies pressed, Dreamworks Records has re-released Dr. Octagon's debut album as "Dr. Octagonecologyst" and an instrumental version entitled "Instrumentalyst." After receiving critical acclaim from Spin in its "Top 10 Records You Didn't Hear" and The New York Times' "Top 10 Records of 1996," it seems appropriate to allow Dr. Octagon to reach the masses.
Using scratching like a scalpel and rhyming as a way to penetrate the skull, digging deep into the listener's chemical composition, Dr. Octagon sets up his "church of the operating room." An innovative combination of minimalist beats, futuristic sounds and even porn-flick samples with a rhyme style that stands alone, puts "Dr. Octagonecologyst" years ahead of its time. With the direction of the Automator's production, rhyming of emcee Kool Keith (of the 1980s group Ultramagnetic MC's) and DJ Q-Bert on the turntables, this is one doctor that everyone should receive a check up from.
Twenty tracks make up "Dr. Octagonecologyst," and there are 17 on "Instrumentalyst," three of which are previously unreleased and many others have been extended or re-mixed. "3000" opens both albums with its ray-gun and spaceship sounds creating the perfect set-up for the following track "Earth People." On this song Kool Keith rhymes, "Earth people New York and California / Earth people I was born on Jupiter," to break up and possibly mock the East Coast/West Coast tension that is present in hip-hop. Dr. Octagon proves to transcend these simple categories by not dwelling on rivalries, while at the same time creating a whole new world.
"No Awareness" is a lesson in some type of astrophysics, as Dr. Octagon concocts a chemical and mathematical experiment in the rhymes. "Real Raw" presents scratching that transforms into a hyper-techno beat, then slows down to the rap, "I get real raw / Make arrangements on your face." "Halfsharkalligatorhalfman" is an frightening tale of a man named Mr. Gerbik, who is some type of freak-show killer, and "I'm Destructive" includes rhymes layered over a Slayer-like guitar sample.
The best song on these albums is "Blue Flowers," a rhyme about mental patients. On this track Kool Keith paints a beautiful picture of "blue flowers," "raining green" and "the garden of orange tomatoes," rhyming over samples from Flesh Gordon as the Automator plays the violin. The symphony meets urban artists on this song, with the end result being a fresh, new style of music.
"Dr. Octagonecologyst" and "Instrumentalyst" are two albums that definitely need to be checked out by anyone who digs experimental music, especially hip-hop. It's real easy to do so, or as Dr. Octagon puts it, "Your insurance is high, but my price is cheap."
-Brian M. Kemp
Kool Keith, of Dr. Octagon, is standing around looking cool.
Summer Orientation 1997
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