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DIEMONSTERDIE :
HONOR THY DEAD
When a band writes a song about one of the most insane, blood-soaked horror movies of all time, Peter Jackson's zombie-choppin' masterpiece "Dead Alive", you know you're gonna be in for one helluva good time! Diemonsterdie come at ya from Salt Lake City Utah, home of the 2002 winter Olympics, and thousands of religious nut-jobs. "Honor They Dead" is the band's third album, well, sort of the second, but you could also call it the fourth... let me explain. Three of the band members of Diemonsterdie were first in a Horror-Punk band called "Casa Diablo". They released one album called "The Continuing Mission To Destroy Rock And Roll." They then took time off and came back as Diemonsterdie and recorded "No Future For The Weak". This ended up sitting in the can, and they went on to record another album's worth of material, which would surface as "What Is And Shall Always Be". So, WIASAB was released first, then Honor They Dead, and now, according to the band, NFFTW is supposedly finally going to see the light of day. The band is, as you've already guessed, a Horror-Punk outfit, but for a change, they aren't a Misfits clone (not that there's anything wrong with that). Although they have opened for the legendary 'fits, as well as ex-Misfits vocalist Michael Graves (now defunct) band "Graves". The sound here is very melodic, but that's not to be misinterpreted as being soft. I mean that the songs, while being mosh-inducing, are at the same time full of catchy hooks, and easily remembered rhythms. Although I called them Punk, there are also large doses of good old-fashioned Rock n' Roll as well as Heavy Metal that creep into the bands songs whenever they deem it appropriate. Plus one could make arguments that they hear traces of Death-Rock, as well as Gothic elements. The vocals show a vide variety, at times Mr. Zero Delorian can croon with the best of them. At other times he sounds all clean and crisp, and at others all harsh and gritty, almost like Boo Gruesome from Eerie Ln.. If you're into this scene (and since you're reading this, you probably are), and down with bands such as Blitzkid, then it's a no-brainer that you need to pick this up ASAP! For more info, check the band out at diemonsterdie.net.
RATING = 8.5 Horror-Punk (Released 2004)
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DIEMONSTERDIE :
ONLY THE DEAD WILL SURVIVE
The living dead of Utah are back once again to regale you with morbid tales of zombies, the grim reaper, and other things that go bump in the night. Now, before I dive into the new one, I want to make a comment on last year's "Honor Thy Dead". After living with it for a year or so now, I just have to acknowledge its incredible staying power. I played that thing for months after posting that review, and to this day, I still pull it off the shelf on a semi regular basis. Now, I do not go back and re-grade discs I've reviewed in the past, if I did that I'd never get any rest, so the 8.5 will stand as the official rating. But let it be known, if posting the review now, I'd give it a 9, or maybe even a 9.5! Anyway, that's the past, let's jump into the present with "Only The Dead Will Survive". Musically, jack-shit has changed with the band's sound, and that my friends is a good thing. This essentially picks up right were HTD left off. The vocals from Zero Delorian are easily recognisable, deep, and surprisingly unique given the band's chosen genre where 99% of the singers try to sound like Danzig clones. The difference between the two albums seems to be a lack of standout tracks on the later. Now, don't misinterpret that. OTDWS is a fantastic disc, but the name of the game is consistency. Among the 14 tracks included, not one is a clunker, they're all insanely catchy, and worthy of praise from anyone who digs the Horror-Punk scene. However, there is no big song here. It doesn't have that one or two tracks that just seem to break free of the others and force you to hit the replay button over and over on your disc player. On HTD, there were a couple, the most infectious of which was "Dead Alive", holy tap-dancin-christ, I must have played that song 200 times! That being said however, there are a couple here that almost break out of their rusty shackles, "October Slowly Dying", and "When The Reaper Calls" both have the potential to breakout over time. So, right now I'd have to say that OTDWS is great, but if choosing between the two, I'm still partial to HTD. But, who knows how that might change by next Halloween?
RATING = 8 Horror-Punk (Released 2005)
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DIEMONSTERDIE :
FALL TO YOUR KNEES
Hello fellow music fiends. I know it's been a while since I've blessed you all with my musings on some creepy-ass underground platter, but some old acquaintances are releasing a new CD, and since they're celebrating 10 years as a band, I thought they deserved a little attention. Utah's most hated sons, DieMonsterDie (obviously taking their name directly from the '65 Karloff movie, or indirectly via the Misfits song), are back for another round of ghoulish, hell-bound, audio overload. I've been personally following these costumed cats since their '04 release entitled "Honor Thy Dead", which still stands as a career high point in my book. Sorry guys, I just love that disc... hell, that thing is so good, it's almost porn. Anyway, as you can see above, I also dug their follow up "Only The Dead Will Survive". After that they re-released Honor Thy Dead with some bonus cuts, and then followed that with a new studio recording "A Great And Terrible Loss" in 2008. (Plus they did a split 7" with Germany's The Crimson Ghosts). I never officially reviewed AGATL, but to my ears, it was a bit of a misstep for the band. Not a big misstep, but the disc seemed to be lacking the hooks I had come to expect from these guys, and some of the lyrics seemed a bit awkward and... .well, clunky compared to past efforts. So, here we are with the follow up, which to me, was either going to put these guys back to the front of the Horror-Punk wolf-pack, or signal an imminent decline into mediocrity. I am very pleased to announce that they have indeed managed to regroup, get their shit together, and force their way back to the top of the heap. The hooks of old are back.... big ones... the kind that dig into your chest and rip out big meaty, blood-soaked hunks of gooey flesh. The songs have that extra something that just makes them stick in your head almost instantaneously. The first time you hear tracks like "She Looks Like You", it seems like you've known these songs for years. On AGATL, the songs had a bit of an issue with them sounding very much like the one that preceded it. On Fall To Your Knees the tracks seem to have a much greater variety. One will sound like a typical Horror-Punk ditty with soothing vocals, and then the next will have a Metal feel, and vocalist Zero Delorian will shift from his haunting crooning and begin to channel Lemmy Kilmister or Adam Neal (Hookers/Blade Of The Ripper/Brothers Of Conquest). This switch up will often happen mid song as well, so you never quite know what you're in for. The end result is an exciting, entertaining disc, that never gets bogged down. This sucker will be out via Dr. Cyclops Records as a digital download, CD, and limited edition vinyl for you true punks that actually own a turn table. So what else can I say? Good work guys, and here's to another 10 years of blood and guts. If ya wanna check these guys out, haul ass over to their MySpace page at myspace.com/diemonsterdielives Now, at the risk of sounding like a total douchebag shill, I also wanna pimp the band's label for a second, Dr. Cyclops Records is a very cool little indie Horror-Punk label. They have some killer bands other that DMD on their roster such as the Crimson Ghosts, The Night Shift, The Dead Next Door, and Left For Dead (R.I.P.). They only charge $5 for album downloads, and they always seem to have a deal where if you buy multiple items, they give ya free shit on top. So help keep our bloody genre alive, and check 'em out.
RATING = 8 Horror-Punk (Released 2010)
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