Movies And Metal

Posts Tagged ‘Samhain’

Ever since the classic Danzig line-up disbanded in 1994, it could be argued that the bands output has been, at best, patchy.  1996’s Danzig 5: Blackacidevil was a pretty terrible cacophony of industrial bleeps and forgettable songs, whilst 1999’s Danzig 6:66 – Satan’s Child had a few glimmers of hope, but ultimately failed due to a lack of a proper guitar player (frontman Glenn Danzig himself handled most of the guitar duties) and a severe lack of the atmospherics of old.  Danzig 777: I Luciferi and Circle of Snakes followed and nodded towards a more traditional Danzig sound, but it all seemed to be too little too late.

And now we get Deth Red Saaoth.  Along with the Evil Elvis, the band now feature former Prong guitarist Tommy Victor, Glenn’s former Samhaim bandmate Steve Zing on bass and ex-Type O Negative drummer Johnny Kelly, so the band’s pedigree is without question.  And it doesn’t take very long for opening track Hammer of the Gods to put you back in those early 90’s glory days, with Glenn’s clean, bluesy vocals underpinning one of the most stomping cuts that Danzig (the band) have done for some time (it could also be said that the heavier end of Rob Zombie’s output would be a good reference point, but let’s remember who was doing this first).  Second track The Revengeful does lean towards the band’s latter output with its pinched riffing and clunking pace, although it’s still better than anything from the previous few albums.  It’s also on this track where the album’s most obvious flaw starts to reveal itself, and that is the uneven production job, courtesy of Mr. Danzig himself.  There just seems to be very little oomph in some of the songs when you expect there to be some, and Danzig albums with little in the way of dynamics have become a bit too commonplace in recent years.

Anyway, regardless of sound issues, there are a few faith-restoring gems to be had here; lead single On a Wicked Night oozes an erotic swagger that has been sorely missing for a long time, and sounds a little like classic The Cult before Glenn’s powerful pipes crank the song up a gear, whilst Pyre of Souls: Incanticle sounds like it’s straight from a movie score, with the main man harmonising over a strummed acoustic passage before the song’s part two – Pyre of Souls: Seasons of Pain – kicks in with it’s epic, brooding verse and wicked guitar solos.

Overall, Deth Red Sabaoth can be called a huge step in the right direction rather than the complete return to form that many were expecting.  Much like Ozzy Osbourne’s recent Scream album, it starts off well and ends solidly but somewhere in the middle there’s a bit of a lull where some of the songs start to sound like filler material, or could even be labelled self-parody.  Considering the combined talents of all the band members there is a sense that they seem a bit underused here, but hopefully that will remedy itself if the line-up can stick together for a while and then maybe, just maybe, Danzig will become a cohesive unit that can make consistently great albums again.  On this showing, they’re on their way but not quite there yet.

Rating: 6/10

Standout Tracks: Hammer of the Gods, Rebel Spirits, Black Candy, On a Wicked Night, Pyre of Souls: Incanticle, Pyre of Souls: Seasons of Pain.

For Fans of: Rob Zombie, Ozzy Osbourne, The Misfits, The Resurrection Sorrow, Heaven & Hell, Type O Negative, Paradise Lost, Volbeat, Black Sabbath.

For more information on Danzig go to: www.danzig-verotik.com

Click on images to purchase Deth Red Sabaoth.

Hard to know where to begin with this one. In the expansive genre known as horror there are bad movies, so-bad-they’re-brilliant movies, and movies that just completely baffle the hell out of you. It’s probably safe to say that ‘Samhain’ (or ‘Evil Breed: The Legend of Samhain’ in the US) falls into the latter, mainly due to some quite bizarre editing decisions.

The movie begins with an American (the guy being Richard Grieco – he must need the money!) couple having it away in a tent. Of course, a noise is heard outside and Grieco goes out to investigate and very soon wishes he hadn’t. Cut forward a few days and a group of students and their teacher Karen (Bobbie Phillips) come to stay in an old house in the same area of the woods. Attempting to learn about Celtic traditions and other such stuff, the group run into Gary (Simon Peacock) the local caretaker who warns them to keep clear of the woods and stay on the paths (or for those with a memory ‘Keep clear of the moors and God be with you’, but that’s another movie) because of the foul beasties that roam the area. Anyway, the kids all go off in various directions and one by one, they get stalked by the inbred ancestors of the ancient cannibal clans that live in the nearby mines.

Based on the legend of Sawney Beane, as are so many other movies (‘The Hills Have Eyes’, ‘Hillside Cannibals’, etc.), there is actually a heart to this movie, as it does at least try to convey some sort of atmosphere. Unfortunately, it all falls flat due to the inability of the actors to actually act, and the absurd editing cuts. For instance, Jenna Jameson’s name is plastered all over the box and she is pictured on the cover, but she’s only actually onscreen for about two minutes. And within those two minutes, she doesn’t appear in the scene that’s on the front of the box, which just happens to be her death scene. That’s because her death scene has been cut out, which doesn’t explain why the last surviving character has a flashback of all the people who have died and Ms. Jameson’s face appears. And the two characters didn’t even meet!

You see what we’re dealing with here? Mention must also go to Phil Price, who plays the character of Steve, the aggressive, sexist, loudmouth jock who inexplicably gets the hottest girl of the group (that doesn’t happen in real life!). He gets a special mention because his ‘acting’ must surely go down in movie history as the least convincing performance since…well, ever.

But now for the good points, and there are some. The gore – and there’s plenty of it – is so ludicrously OTT that one can’t fail to get excited. Having your innards pulled out of your backside and then being strangled by your lower intestine does take some beating as far as movie deaths go. Also, the lovely Ms. Phillips as Karen is always a treat to watch and easily gives the best performance here.

Overall ‘Samhain’ is a mess of a movie, but, as previously stated, it does have a heart and it does desperately want to be considered as a credible movie. The acting is terrible, the script is bad, the ‘Scream’-style self-referencing is painfully wince-inducing and obvious and the editing is just plain nonsense. But the gore is great, there’s plenty of nudity, it isn’t as directly offensive as, say, ‘Gutterballs’ (very comparable production-wise) and it’s certainly a lot better than some other movies of this ilk (‘Hillside Cannibals’ anybody?). If you must watch it, get a group together, crack open a few beers and get ready to laugh, although maybe for the wrong reasons.

Rating: 3/10

Summary:  Low budget gore that tries but doesn’t quite deliver.  Worth looking at once for a giggle.

If you like this then try:  The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hills Have Eyes, Gutterballs, Zombie Strippers.

Click on DVD cover to purchase.