Metalfest Magazine #1, 7/96
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The Misfits

They're baaack!  Originally together from March 1977 to October 1983, the
Misfits earned the majority of their fans after they broke up.  A few years
after their breakup, Metallica gave the Misfits all sorts of plugs and when
Metallica got huge, they covered Misfits anthems Green Hell and Last Caress.
Hell, 8 out of 10 metal and punk bands have covered a Misfits tune sometime
or another and the other 2 just don't have a god damned clue.

Originally, the Misfits was founded by Jerry Only, Glenn Danzig, and Manny,
who was only with the band under a year.  They went through two other
guitarists before officially recruiting Jerry's brother, Doyle.  The Misfits
went through a bunch of other drummers before splitting up.

After the band broke up, everyone went their own ways, with ex-singer Glenn
Danzig starting Samhain and then Danzig, and Jerry and Doyle formed Kryst
the Conqueror.  In 1993, they hooked up with drummer Dr. Chud (Cannibalistic
Humanoid Underground Drummer) who graduated high school with Doyle in 1982.
Chud also played in local Jersey bands Sacred Trash and Sardonica.  With the
idea of starting the Misfits up again, Doyle and Jerry went through all
sorts of legal bullshit with the Evil Elvis money hungry rockstar, Glenn
Danzig to obtain the rights to work as the Misfits again and reformed in
1995.  They've replaced the Elvis wannabe with a 21 year old singer, Michael
Graves, who until the day he auditioned for the Misfits , never even heard
them.  Graves does a fine job of pulling off the old Glenn Elvis rockabilly
vocals on most of the songs and they say that he is way better than little
Elvis when he was that age, so give it a couple of years and I'm sure that
Michael will put greedy old Glenn to shame.

The Misfits' comeback was over the course of 3 surprise performances around
Halloween '95, one intended to be a listening party for a Misfits album that
should have been released way back in 1988 and the other two performances
during Type O Negative's encore.  They've recently released a four song box
set that comes in a groovy coffin shaped box and includes almost everything
you need to fully appreciate the Misfits.  Forget about the generic yellow
skull collection CD, buy the box set.  It's way worth it.

They're playing all of the classic Msifits tunes and have not lost their
look, sound, or attitude one bit.  Their new songs are also set in the same
style that we all know and love and they still sport the thick black paing
rings around the eyes, skull face, and the traditional devil locks.  Their
cryptic stage set is greater than ever.

The Misfits brand of brutal ghoul punk is one that can not be duplicated.
Packed with 3 or 4 chords if they feel like it, sing along choruses, songs
that never last more than three minutes, and all sorts of cool horror movie
and television imagery, the Misfits will never be confused with the likes of
today's
suck-ass-wanne-be-pund-rock-but-are-really-a-bunch-of-lowlife-loser-dork-sis
sies-who-copy-everyone-else-bands, nor trendy horror glam metal geeks who
like to play cover tunes.  The Misfits are gods.  Like Black Sabbath is to
metal, Misfits are to punk.  Music with a bite.  Doomy yet melodic.  They
are as punk as punk gets.  They ignore everyone's standards.  Fuck record
labels, fuck the whole punk thing, just fuck it all.  The only thing you
must never forget is that the Misfits rule.

by Darlene Daniels