THE MISFITS — Static Age (review)

Album · 1997 · Non-Metal

4/5 · 2013-11-09
UMUR

"Static Age" is the debut full-length studio album by US punk act the Misfits. It was originally recorded in January/february 1978, but eventually shelved as a consequence of almost constant lineup changes in the early history of the band, a change in musical style, and maybe most importantly, because the band were unable to find a label that was interested in releasing the album. Many of the 17 tracks on the album have been released in various forms (on EPs, singles, compilations and boxed sets) over the years but it wasn´t until July 1997 that Caroline Records released "Static Age" in as close to it´s original form as possible. Only 14 out of the 17 tracks on the original master tapes were mixed by the band and engineer/producer Jave Achelis in 1978, so the 3 remaining tracks ("She", "Spinal Remains", and "In the Doorway") were mixed by Alan Douches and Tom Bejgrowicz in February 1997 before the final release of the album.

The recording of the album came about because Mercury Records released a Pere Ubu album on under the Blank Records label name. That label name was owned by Glenn Danzig though, and to prevent a legal struggle over the name, Mercury Records offered Danzig thirty hours of free studio time if he would turn over the trademark to the Blank Records name to them. A deal Danzig accepted. So "Static Age" was basically recorded live in the studio with only a few takes of each track and few overdubs.

Needless to say that "Static Age" sounds authentic, raw and "live". Stylistically it´s a pretty unique sounding punk release, which in addition to simple chord progressions, loud and aggressive bass playing and energetic drumming, features quite a few 50s rock´n´roll references. At times it´s very obvious to hear that Glenn Danzig was/are a great fan of artists such as Elvis and especially Johnny Cash (tracks like "Last Caress", "Teenagers From Mars" and "Angelfuck" are examples of that influence). His singing style is also rather unusual for a punk act, somewhat resembling the singing style of Jim Morrisson from The Doors albeit in a far more aggressive fashion. While the band would, later in their career, further and more extensively explore 50s horror movie lyrical themes and imagery, it´s already this early on a big part of their image, and for the time a very original image too boot. All tracks on the album are catchy and memorable and it´s safe to say that the Misfits at this point should be placed in the more melodic end of the punk spectrum.

In retrospect there are probably a couple of record labels, who originally turned this project down, that are not too satisfied with themselves. But some artists grow in reputation and popularity over the years, and in the case of the Misfits, they are probably much more famous today than they were while they were initially active (1977 - 1983). Overall "Static Age" is a great release by the Misfits. Fan, interested newcommer or whoever you are, this is a greatly enjoyable, unpretentious and honest US punk release and a 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.