The Damned - The Black Album

"The Black Album" is definitely one of the best and most classic Damned albums. I've seen them five times over the years and they've performed at least one or two songs from it every show. I remember the very first time I saw them in 1991. I got to hang out during the soundcheck and I remember they played "Curtain Call" in it's entirety. I was blown away. I could have went home satisfied right then. As you can tell, The Damned occupy a very high place in my all-time faves (and my LastFM charts!).
This album is great from beginning to end. Although this release isn't much like "Machine Gun Etiquette", it still contains some real rockers in addition to some slower and darker material. Think of it as the halfway point between MGE and "Strawberries". If you're not that familiar with The Damned, it shouldn't matter a bit. This is as good a place as any to start. Probably their best line-up and some of their most inspired material. In retrospect, I'm surprised the production on this record has held up so well. So many bands of their ilk who found themselves on major labels after the initial punk explosion ended up suffering from some pretty dreadful production in the early 80's. This sounds pretty timeless, though, and even the keyboard sounds aren't goofy but serve the songs well.
It should be noted that this version is the American release that omits the live tracks that were later released on "Live Shepperton 1980" but includes "Curtain Call", which was omitted from the Big Beat release.

Tracks:

1. Wait for the Blackout
2. Lively Arts
3. Silly Kids Games
4. Drinking About My Baby
5. Twisted Nerve
6. Hit Or Miss
7. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
8. Sick Of This and That
9. The History of the World - Part 1
10. 13th Floor Vendetta
11. Therapy
12. Curtain Call

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The Flesh Eaters

Formed by Chris D., one of the founders of Slash fanzine, in 1977 The Flesh Eaters were one of the most unique and most underrated of the early punk/deathrock bands. With an ever-changing line-up that included members of X, The Blasters, and even Los Lobos, The Flesh Eaters were really the vehicle of Mr. D. who later was also one of the progenitors of cowpunk with his band Divine Horsemen. His voice could go from subtle deep croon to razor sharp scream and back again in the same phrase. The use of saxophone and vibes mixed with distorted guitars and dark lyrics put them in a class by themselves. The first song I heard by The Flesh Eaters was their track, "Eyes Without A Face" (not the Billy Idol song) from the Return Of The Living Dead soundtrack, and I was bowled over. I actually at first thought it was two singers switching off. Such is the strangeness of Chris D.'s singing style. "A Minute To Pray" was, I think, their second release and it's a pretty good representation of their work. I used to own a compilation album of stuff from all of their albums on cassette and I played it until it died. If I can find it again I'll definitely post it here. I think my favorite track from "A Minute To Pray" must be "See You In The Boneyard". My own deathrock band, Eutha Sixx used to cover this one way back in the early 90's, though we didn't have the sax and the xylophone.

Tracks:

1. Digging My Grave
2. Pray Til You Sweat
3. River Of Fever
4. Satan's Stomp
5. See You In The Boneyard
6. So Long
7. Cyrano De Berger's Back
8. Divine Horseman

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Samhain - Live 9/21/84

It's hard not to have any discussion about death rock without mentioning the music of Glen Danzig, particularly The Misfits and Samhain. Though these bands spawned their own sub-sub-genre known as horrorpunk, I would still have to group them in with death rock. I think the main difference between them and the west coast version bands is that they were a bit lonely up in New Jersey/New York. As The Misfits primarily focused on B-movies for their lyrical inspiration, with Samhain Danzig took it a step further. The music got a bit more sludgy and droning while the lyrics delved more into a literary exploration of macabre themes.
I was introduced to Samhain and The Misfits at about the same time when I was about fourteen years old. I remember riding around listening to their first album, "Initium", while I was still drinking Jolt Cola and smoking clove cigarettes for a buzz. Since all of these bands releases are pretty easy to find on the net I've decided to post this little gem. I found this on one of my favorite blogs, Scar Stuff. Jason, who runs the blog, recorded this way back in 1984 at the VFW in Kansas City. The show sounds better than any bootleg or official live release I've ever heard from Samhain and I'd say Danzig himself would be thrilled to have a copy. The set list includes stuff from "Initium" and "Unholy Passion", a couple of Misfits tunes, and even "Who Killed Marilyn?" (which I don't think I'd ever heard a live version of). This is a must-have for any fan of Samhain or the greater works of Glen Danzig and it's amazing that it hasn't found it's way to a bootleg release before now, particularly considering the fact that its sound quality is far superior to most of the pricey bootlegs out there.
Here's a link to Jason's original post where you can read his funny recounting of how this recording came to be.

Tracks:

1. All Murder, All Guts, All Fun
2. Macabre
3. Samhain
4. The Shift
5. The Howl
6. Die, Die, My Darling
7. Moribund
8. Halloween II
9. I Am Misery
10. Horror Biz
11. He-Who-Can-Not-Be-Named
12. Encore Clapping
13. The Hungry End
14. Who Killed Marilyn?

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Welcome To Our Nightmare (2 disc set)

Way back before tribute albums were all the rage XXX Records came out with this little slab of gold. A double-disc tribute to Alice Cooper filled with some real legendary people in their own right. This must be exceedingly rare now because I don't think anyone who I've played it for in the last ten years or so haven't said something to the effect of "Wow, I've never even heard of this!" This came out in about 1994, if memory serves me well, and it's one of the few cd's I still have from that time that haven't been sold after ripping, haha!
Highlights from disc one include: Paul Cutler and Don Bolles (45 Grave) as Wallison Ladmoh doing a sweet version of "Levity Ball", Lydia Lunch's blistering "Black JuJu", an all-star supergroup called Bug Lamp including Keith Morris doing the "Second Coming/Ballad Of Dwight Frye" medley and even a pretty version of "Sun Arise" by the Flaming Lips.
Highlights from disc two include: Shadow Project's "Dead Babies/Killer", a guest appearance by Slash, and The Vandals "Poison".
The list goes on and I could spout praises for just about all the included bands. There are many tracks that have remained unreleased elsewhere and a few of these bands formed just for this project. I usually don't like to upload things in parts but this one is two discs so it makes sense. It will be on Mass Mirror so you can grab both at the same time. I'll be uploading disc one now and two will be coming asap.

Tracks:

Disc: 1
1. Reflected - Dramarama
2. Levity Ball - Wallison Ladmoh
3. Refrigerator Heaven - John Trubee & The Ugly Janitors Of America
4. Lay Down And Die, Goodbye - Of Cabbages And Kings
5. Caught In A Dream - Rubber City Rebels
6. Black Juju - Lydia Lunch & Rowland S. Howard
7. Second Coming/Ballad Of Dwight Fry - Bug Lamp 8. Sun Arise - Flaming Lips
9. Under My Wheels - Bulimia Banquet
10. Halo Of Flies - Haunted Garage
11. Chris Connelly - Desperado

Disc: 2
1. Dead Babies/Killer - Shadow Project
2. School's Out - Reverb Motherfuckers
3. Generation Landslide - Claw Hammer
4. Working Up A Sweat - Royal Court Of China
5. Teenage Lament - Tyla
6. Welcome To My Nightmare - Cold Ethyl
7. Cold Ethyl - Carnival Art
8. Only Women Bleed - The Hangmen
9. Serious - Sloppy Seconds
10. Clones - They Eat Their Own
11. The Vandals - Poison

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Download disc two

*** Disc one is now updated ***

Rudimentary Peni - Cacophony

I don't suppose Rudimentary Peni is generally considered a death rock band but it's hard to call this album anything else. "Cacophony" is the second album by Rudimentary Peni and it is a concept album based on the life and works of H.P. Lovecraft. Think of it as "The Wall" of deathpunk. The first time I heard this I was on a road trip with a friend. It was late at night and we had been on the interstate for hours just riding and listening to music. My friend had the cassette and he put it in and said something to the effect of "I know your taste and I think you'll like this". I was blown completely away! This is a fucking brilliant concept and it thoroughly rocks from beginning to end. Interspersed with strange gurgling and hissing noises, spoken word bits, and even a comical drinking song, "Cacophony" takes you on a journey through the mind of a literary genius. It's hard to believe it's a little three piece punk band doing it. Peni's other albums are some decent punk and their first, "Death Church", is great but they never equaled this one in my opinion.

Tracks:

1. Nightgaunts
2. The Horrors In The Museum
3. The Only Child
4. Architectonic And Dominant
5. The Evil Clergyman
6. Brown Jenkin
7. Crazed Couplet
8. Sarcophagus Listen
9. Lovecraft Baby
10. Dream City
11. C12 H22 O11
12. Zenophobia
13. Sunset For The Lords Of Venus
14. Beyond The Tanarian Hills
15. Imps Of The Perverse
16. The Dead Loved
17. Periwig Power
18. Kappa Alpha Tau
19. American Anglophile In The World
20. Memento Mori
21. Better Not Born
22. Arkham Hearse
23. The Old Man Is Not So Terribly Misanthropic
24. Gentlemen Prefer Blood
25. Sonia
26. The Day The Universe Ceased (March 15th 1937)
27. The Crime Of The Century
28. Musick In Diabola
29. Shard
30. Black On Gold

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45 Grave - Sleep In Safety

If there is one band that brought the horror rock of Screaming Lord Sutch and Alice Cooper into the punk rock era that band had to be 45 Grave. Composed of member of various late seventies punk bands like The Germs and Vox Pop, 45 Grave melded punk, psychedelic, and hokey Monster Mash style rock into one fierce conglomeration. With Dinah Cancer's distinct seething and screaming and Paul Cutler's intricate guitar work they were a force to be reckoned with in the L.A. punk scene. They were also one of the first death rock bands I was introduced to when the Return Of The Living Dead soundtrack came out. I immediately fell in love and amongst our little southern scene their records were much sought after. Following Enigma Records demise it became almost impossible to find "Sleep In Safety" and their other albums. My vinyl copy was given to me by a friend about ten years ago and I ended up getting it signed by Dinah when I went to see the "reunion" show in Atlanta a couple of years back. She was the only founding member there (Rikk Agnew from Christian Death was supposed to be on guitar but didn't show) but it was still nice to hear those songs live and see her sing them. She was also a very nice and gracious person to meet. Anyway, this is their finest and most together album and it's a pleasure to bring it to you. Oops, I'm actually missing one song so I made it up by adding four live tracks at the end. The missing song is Riboflavin and if I find it I'll repost.

Tracks:

1. Insurance From God
2. Evil
3. Party Time
4. Dream Hits II
5. Slice O' Life
6. Phantoms
7. 45 Grave
8. Violent World
9. Bad Love
10. Surf Bat
11. Procession
12. School's Out
13. Black Cross (live)
14. Fucked By The Devil
15. Akira Raideen
16. Sheila

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Super Heroines - Love And Pain

As far as I know, this is the third and final full album that the Super Heroines recorded. It was actually released in the early 90's on Cleopatra, years after it was recorded, thus it was known as their "lost" album. "Love And Pain" is a little more slick than "Souls That Save", their second album, but not by much. It's good representation and their are a few live tracks tacked on at the end that are just priceless. "Apathy" and "Chasing Bars" stick out the most rockin songs while "Children Of The Light" would have probably been the single if there had been one. I'm listening to it right now and I never get tired of Eva's unique husky voice and strangely innocent lyrics. I really wish that Cleopatra would have gotten around to reissuing "Souls That Save" instead of splitting off into about thirty sub-labels and dramatically changing gears. If you go to their site now you will see that they reissue and release stuff like Conway Twitty and Molly Hatchet. Oh well, I'm glad they did what they did in their first few years or we wouldn't have "Love And Pain" at all.

Tracks:

1. Children Of the Light
2. Remembering Love
3. Apathy
4. Chasing Bars
5. Generations Of Hypocrites
6. Warning
7. Tears Of A Star
8. Black Wedding
9. Black & Blue
10. Horses On Fire (Live)
11. Wed The Dead (Live)
12. Death On The Elevator (Live)

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Screamin Lord Sutch

It had to start somewhere and it may have very well been with this guy. Screaming Lord Sutch was a unique figure in the early British mod scene. His early work consisted of covers of American rock standards from Little Richard and Jerry Lee. He then went on to record some great psychedelic stuff with the likes of Jimmy Page and Jeff Beck before starting his own political party and running in dozens of elections. He committed suicide in 1999. This album is a great compilation of his earlier work that a friend made for me a few years ago. It's got his much covered classic "Jack The Ripper" and a whole bunch of other stuff. Sutch was an early architect of dark and theatrical rock and roll and his influence can be seen in bands like Alice Cooper and 45 Grave, among others. This compilation includes some of his best stuff from his earlier rockabilly to his work with Page and others in the "Heavy Friends".

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Shadow Project - Dreams For The Dying

This is the second album by Shadow Project following their self-titled debut. I'll try to post it here soon. These albums are hard to come by nowadays. Shadow Project released only three studio albums and one live album but they were sort of a super group of death rock. The band featured Rozz Williams (Christian Death) on vocals and Eva O. (Super Heroines) on vocals and guitar. Jill Emery from Super Heroines played bass and the band also featured some weird synth work from a guy named Paris who eventually went on to record his own stuff as EXP. In my opinion Shadow Project represented some of the best and most fully realized of Rozz and Eva's work. It's hard to describe their sound but it goes from hard rock riffs to poetry backed by soundscapes of synth in the blink of an eye. I was fortunate to see them on the tour for this album in Atlanta and the show remains one of the best I've ever seen. I even still have my poster signed by the late Rozz Williams. Anyway, here you go. If you like it come back and grab the first album. I actually think it's even better.

Tracks:
1. Static Jesus
2. Days Of Glory
3. Funeral Rites (With Equestrian Sympathies)
4. Zaned People
5. Thy Kingdom Come
6. Knight Stalker
7. Holding You Close
8. Lord Of The Flies
9. The Circle And The Cross
10. 23-13

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Lydia Lunch - Drowning In Limbo

One of Lydia Lunch's better albums and a selection from, I think, her best period musically. My favorite of her albums in "13:13" but I don't have a copy on cd or mp3, only on vinyl. Since I don't have the ability or inclination to rip my vinyl right now, I decided to post "Drowning In Limbo". A good portion of this record is instrumental. Kind of dreamy, melancholy, piano-based stuff. Lydia's voice arrives after much agonized anticipation, though, and she delivers as only she can. This would serve as a decent introduction to her early work, though it's not representative of her whole career, a good portion of which was very noisy guitar driven rock and about a baker's dozen spoken word albums.


Tracks:
1. Emerald Pale Has Disappeared
2. The Drowning
3. How Men Die in their Sleep
4. Lucy's Lost her Head Again
5. 3:20 Thursday Morning
6. A Quiet Night of Murder in Greenwich,
7. I Wish? I Wish
8. Friday Afternoon
9. 1000 Lies
10. Some Boys
11. Still Burning
12. What Did You Do

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