Artist: "The Misfits"
Album: "Walk Among Us"
Genre: Punk Rock
Label: Ruby/Slash

Reviewer: Protoclown
Posted: 9/1/2008

Review: Walk Among Us is not the first album the Misfits recorded, but it is the first they released, and it's my personal favorite of their all-too-short catalog of material. It clocks in at a very short 25 minutes, but it makes a very fine driving album, due to the short, catchy, super-fast songs, and it's so damned good I'll often find myself listening to it twice in a row in the car (and there aren't a lot of albums I can say that about).

Featuring songs about martians, vampires, zombies, and serial killers, this is one of the albums that gave birth to the "horror-punk" genre. This album has a really harsh, raw sound, but it's not sloppy by any means. These guys played well together, and before everything all went to shit and the band fell apart, you can tell they really enjoyed playing together, which makes it all that much more a shame that everything went pear-shaped and the band broke up (the current incarnation may as well be a different band altogether). But they say that the brightest candles burn fastest, and as this album indicates, these guys burned brightly indeed.

There's not a single song on this album that isn't catchy and fun (and you will find yourself singing along with them, I promise you), but my favorites are "Vampira", an ode to Maila Nurmi's 1950s vampire character; a fun little ditty about a serial killer who decapitates little girls called "Skulls" (hey, I didn't say it was a happy album); "Devil's Whorehouse", driven by Jerry Only's frantic, thumping bass; and my favorite Misfits song of all, "Astro Zombies", where Danzig invokes his Elvis croon as he sings about alien zombies that rampage across the earth destroying everything in their path.

Some of the songs sound really dark and disturbing if you just look at the lyrics, but when combined with the catchy, fun music it's almost ridiculous how harmless and silly it all becomes. I doubt there's a person alive who's listened to the song "Skulls" and felt inspired to kill as a result. For people who are capable of taking this material in the tongue-in-cheek manner it's obviously meant to be seen in, this will prove to be an enjoyable experience from start to finish. This album isn't going to change the world or move you emotionally, but I guarantee you'll be physically moved as you catch yourself bobbing your head with the music and singing along.

Overall rating:
(Scored on a 0.5 - 5 pickles rating: 0.5 being the worst and 5 being the best)