Danzig
Danzig II: Lucifuge
© American Recordings
November 1 - 7, 2020
Year of Release: 1990
Rating:
Long Way Back From Hell
Snakes Of Christ
Killer Wolf
Tired Of Being Alive
I'm The One
Her Black Wings
Devil's Plaything
777
Blood And Tears
Girl
Pain In The World
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(Glenn) Danzig makes their debut this week, with the band's second release, Danzig II: Lucifuge. For Beavis & Butthead fans, Danzig was introduced
by them, with what would be his signature tune, "Mother." This song would become a classic in it's own (cult) right. With its lyrics, "Mother, tell
your children not to look my way..." it would become obvious that the frontman of Danzig (Glenn Danzig, named after him), would be one of those characters you
would be intimiated by. With his physical bodybuilder presence, and being "pissed off" (Beavis: "yeah, yeah, I wanna be pissed off like him. hehehe..."), intimidating,
fearful, and frightened by, that he would be. However, with "Mother" becoming a hit (thanks to Beavis & Butthead on that part), it would be interesting to
hear more of this band's music.
Danzig's music is dark, maybe Satanic? It's straight-out hard, rock and roll. The band's second album's album title, having "Lucifuge" made me think of
"Lucifer." However, it learning how this album got it's name -- It was originally to have been titled "777," which was one of the album's tracks. The title
"Lucifuge" is the imperative form of the Latin compound verb lucifugere, "to flee the light," derived from the noun "lux" (light) and the verb "fugere" (to flee).
If this title to to be taken literally, "Lucifuge" is thus a command: "flee to the light," a phrase included in the lyrics of the song "Girl." It could also be a
reference to the Grand Grimoire demon Lucifuge Rofocale. (Both "777" and "Girl" are tracks that would appear on this album.)
Demon? Satanic Demon? Hmm. Lucifer... As mentioned, Danzig's music is quite dark, and having lyrics that would definitely require the "Parental Advisory -
Explicit Content" label, as shown on it's album cover (and basically ON EACH OF Danzig's album covers).
As mentioned, Danzig's second album, is just straight-out hard rock, heavy metal. The opening track, "Long Way Back From Hell" does have it's
"Mother" moments, music wise. The next track is even better, "Snakes Of Christ" has his yell of "Crawling!" similar to his yells of "Mother!"
"Killer Wolf" gets into a more blues rock feel, and it works extremely well. "Tired Of Being Alive" has the ultimate Heavy Metal Rock style, and Glenn
Danzig's vocals makes it more, giving it it's Heavy Metal sound.
"I'm The One" tones it down a bit musicwise, having an acoustic guitar blues feel, and wow, it is very impressive! It's John Lee Hooker'ish. Then,
of course, Glenn kicks his vocals up a notch in parts, yet it's still acoustic blues. "Her Black Wings" returns to the hard rock, and keeps the album
moving greatly. It has that "keep it moving" feel. "Devil's Plaything" -- is this a ballad? Well, it's obvious, most hard rock albums have to have a
ballad or two. This song starts out like a ballad, but kicks into another hard, rock and roll tune, Danzig style. "777" has the Jim Morrison-esque
atmosphere. It's slow, bluesy, something that Morrison could have done. Yet, like in "Devil's Plaything," it turns into another great hard rock
power tune. "Blood And Tears" is more of a rock and roll tune, with its blues overtones. "Girl" returns with what Danzig does best: Hard Rock.
Heavy Metal Rock. Danzig's recognizable standout vocal abilities. It's just awesome. "Pain In The World" has a Black Sabbath feel, as in their first
album, and track of the same name. Again, this song is just moving.
I can see Glenn Danzig on television commercials, as "just an ordinary guy," then turning into his intimiating ways. Maybe he can be on one of those
Geico commercials, like we've seen other rock and roll stars. (Little Richard's Geico commercial is still the best.) With the TV show Leverage coming back
(minus Timothy Hutton' Noah Wyle [Falling Skies, The Librarians is replacing Timothy Hutton's character. Wyle and Kane are no strangers, they both
appeared in the TV show The Libraians.), I am hoping we can see Glenn Danzig as a guest star on the new Leverage. Why? Christian Kane, one of the
actors from Leverage has a strong resemblance to that of Danzig, especially both having long hair, and recognizable physiques. Glenn Danzig as a bad guy on Leverage,
or maybe Christian Kane's character, Eliot Spencer's long-lost brother. A good plot would be Glenn Danzig's bad buy character, and/or actually finding out that
Spencer has a brother he was never aware of. It's just an idea... Also to mention, Christian Kane is also into music, having recorded music of his own.
I have to admit, Danzig is a force to reckon with. Danzig II: Lucifuge is a powerful album. It's hard rock, blues, and it's all Rock and Roll.
Of course, there are lyrics not suitable for manhy, and you won't get to hear the music of Danzig on the radio. For underground radio station formats, and for
those stations who actually can play Danzig's music and the likes, Danzig's music does take you into a whole new direction. It has it's own world. As mentioned,
it's not for everyone. This album is quite an adventure. It definitely shows how rock music can be a driving force, and turn itself into another dimension.
Remember when Black Sabbath first started out, with their Satanic references; where their music would probably never be heard on the radio. Yet their popularity
would rise, and the band's frontman, Ozzy Osbourne, would become a household name. And, some of Black Sabbath's music would appear on Classic Rock radio formats.
Will Danzig's music get that chance? "Mother" would be one of those songs that would get the start, to be heard on Classic Rock Radio, if given that chance.
Beavis & Butthead pretty much made Danzig a recognizable name. But if you give the band's other songs and albums an open ear, yoy just maybe surprised.
For those who can actually listen to this kind of music, and enjoy it, it will definitely want you to hear more. What is interesting, is his latest release,
Danzig Sings Elvis, a tribute to Elvis Presley. An
interesting interview here,
on how Elvis, Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison were inspirations to Danzig.
Also to mention, that Glenn Danzig's former band was The Misfits. They were another band that you may not have heard of, as they were unique: An American
punk rock band often recognized as the progenitors of the horror punk subgenre, blending punk and other musical influences with horror film themes and imagery.
And yes, they will be reviewed here on WSVNRadio, when the time comes for them. Likewise, more of Danzig's albums will be on the way here for reviews.
Danzig is talented in its own right. His band IS a FORCE. May the force of Danzig be with you. They are worth listening to, and if you enjoy this kind of music,
you will not be disappointed.
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