Hollywood Records, 9/20/96
--------------------------

   The Halloween 1996 release of Blackacidevil on Hollywood
Records marks the beginning of new chapter in the multi-faceted
artistic career of Glenn Danzig: singer, songwriter, comic book
company CEO - and many things yet unexplored. Unafraid to take
chances, as his evolution from early bands The Misfits to Samhain
to DANZIG has proven, Glenn Danzig, over the last year left his
former record label, put together a new band - which now includes
former Prong leader Tommy Victor on guitar - and is digging
deeper into his musical and lyrical psyche, constantly yielding
new and evocative surprises. "On Blackacidevil, I wanted to do
something that nobody else was doing. So I took an element of
industrial that I like here, and an element of techno there, then
mixed it with what I normally do," explains the man behind the
band name. "Then I'd still experiment with the different
directions - which I wanted to do anyway - and then watch what
happend when I mixed it  together."
   What happend was a combustion of sonic stylings combined with
a dark musical passion and machine-age vision that morphed into
songs like "Sacrifice," "Hint of Her Blood" and a wonderfully
re-worked rendition of Black Sabbath's classic "Hand of Doom."
Coincidentally, the first tour supporting Blackacidevil finds
DANZIG on the road with Ozzy Osbourne, at the special request of
the ex-Sabbath singer. Yet Blackacidevil isn't all that's been
occupying Danzig's time: Glenn has been busy, both creating the
fifth full DANZIG musical odyssey and working closely with
Verotik, his highly successful, cutting-edge adult comic book
company. "I don't like to waste my time and I don't like to waste
other people's time, so I try to just weave in and out of the
outside world and get back to my world as quickly as possible,"
says DANZIG of the hard work ethic that has clearly served him
well in a career  that has seen four acclaimed albums and an EP -
1988's Danzig, 1990's Danzig II - Lucifuge, 1992's Danzig III -
How The Gods Kill, 1993's EP Thrall/Demonsweatlive, and 1994's
Danzig 4p - plus the huge success of the track "Mother," which
oddly enough, hit big six years after  it's initial release.
Moody, controversial videos - often directed by Glenn who cites
surreal director Jean Cocteau as an influence - are also
prominent in the mysterious and varied DANZIG legacy. ("Am I
Demon?" "Her Black Wings" "How The Gods Kill" and MTV buzz Bin
clip "Mother '93" are just a few of the clips DANZIG has lensed;
home videos, too, where big sellers; the band's fanatical fans
snap up anything DANZIG does.)
   On Blackacidevil, it's indeniably DANZIG, though the sound
takes some unexpected, daring musical turns with human meeting
inhuman, as the noisy and almost apocalyptic feel of the lead-off
track, "7th House" make clear. Alice In Chains guitarist Jerry
Cantrell lends his talents to three cuts ("Hand of Doom:
version," "See All You Were" and "Come to Silver," which features
startling acoustic guitar work amidst higher-tech but never
sterile musicality); the rest of the guitar work of Blackacidevil
is Glenn's. Rounding out the band are the stellar players who
have been with DANZIG since 1995, drummer Joey Castillo and
bassist Josh Lazie; Prong singer/axeman Tommy Victor joined on
guitar a few weeks before the Ozzy tour, following
Blackacidevil's completion.  "DANZIG has always been set up, from
the beginning, so that I would never have to change the name of
the band again," explains Glenn. "It would be my name and if
people came and went, then that's the way it was." As for the
break with Glenn's long-time former bandmates, they wanted to
move in a more retro musical direction - and are now pursuing
those interests - while Glenn is moving inot the 21st century
with his decidedly Cimmerian approach and able use of technology
- rather than letting technology use him.
   The new line-up, label and open-minded musical attitude
allowed Glenn to experiment on Blackacidevil, which he produced,
with Bill Kennedy engineering. "I wanted to just keep expanding,
which is something I've done in my career all along. I wanted to
get more into technology, which is something that Samhain had
been doing." Glenn uses technology to complement his songs and it
never overshadows the visceral feeling of his material or his
instantly recognizable, impassioned vocals. It's not the first
foray into more experimental fare - on Danzig 4p, songs like
"Sadistikal" and "Can't Speak" were steeped in machine-age
stylings and even on Thrall, the experimental and nosiy "Violet
Fire" were the beginnings of a sometimes omninous and futuristic
but always dynamic sound that's more fully realized and
integrated on Blackacidevil.
   Glenn tosses out roughly 20 songs per record, working up the
basics in a lowtech home "studio." "I'm the kind of person who
will write a song and if I play it the next day and I don't like
it, I throw it in the fuckin' trash and never see it again.
That's it," he states. The result this time was 10 standout
tracks for Blackacidevil. "Once the song starts taking on a life
of its own I let it go and keep watching where it's going and
then see where I can add to it and make it more defined and
purposeful." According to Glenn, the first single "Sacrifice" is
"basically about sacrificing yourself throughout your life. It's
about killing yourself little by little." While "Hand of Doom:
version" is a rare cover song for DANZIG, Glenn makes the songs
his own, updating the feel and lyrics. Another track, "Come To
Silver," was originally penned for country great Johnny Cash
(Cash included DANZIG composition "13" on his American Recording
Album.) But DANZIG ended up keeping "Come To Silver," a song that
addresses the evils of the almighty dollar for himself. Glenn
appreciates the dark melancholy of story-telling artists like
Cash and also wrote a song, "Life Fades Away," for late singer
Roy Orbison, which appeared on the Less Than Zero soundtrack.
   Though music is Glenn's first love and main focus, he applies
much energy to outside projects, which besides Verotik - the
comic company he founded that boasts such renowned artists as
Frank Frazetta, Dave Stevens, and Nancy Collins - includes film
work. While Verotik has several film projects in development,
Glenn will make his own feature film debut in next year's
Prophecy II, Starring Christopher Walken. "There's more fighting
than talking," observes Glenn about his role. But that's fine by
him, as the singer has spent many years mastering Jeet Kune Do
and other martial arts.
   As the words to "Come To Silver" indicate, material gain is
not a motivation for DANZIG. "My world is happiness first and
then if money comes, fantastic," states Glenn. And he should be
happy with Blackacidevil, an album as enigmatic and powerful as
DANZIG himself. As the vocalist implores in the sinuous but
industrialized cut "Serpentia," "It's a bold new thrill/Why don't
you come on in." It's an invitation that's hard to resist.

__________________________________________________________________________

Danzig Returns On Halloween With New Album 'blackacidevil' On 
Hollywood Records.

   Danzig returns with a bold new album, a new label and an in-progress U.S. 
tour with Ozzy Osbourne, which began September 14 in Columbia, MD. and will 
conclude October 26th in San Bernardino, CA.
   Blackacidevil-Danzig's first for Hollywood Records--is due out Halloween. 
Produced by Glenn Danzig and engieered by Bill Kennedy, the album features 
10 songs including the first radio/video cut "Sacrifice," the title track, 
"Serpentia," "Hint Of Her Blood," "7th House," "Ashes," Power Of Darkness" 
and an industrial-strength version of the Black Sabbath gem "Hand Of Doom," 
with new lyrics written by Glenn.
   The first single "Sacrifice" has been shipped to radio, with a video to be 
shot while the band are on tour. According to Glenn, the song is "basically 
about sacrificing yourself throughout your life. It's about giving a little 
more than you should be giving." He continues, "It's not about ritual 
sacrifice...It's a play on words, not about killing animals. It's more about 
killing yourself, little by little."
   Danzig has always stood for integrity. Glenn created DANZIG from the start 
with his own vision and spirit. He used his last name as the group's moniker 
so he would never have to change the name of his band again, whether or not 
band members altered. "DANZIG would always be about what I was writing and 
what I was thinking," Glenn emphatically states. "I will never compromise my 
musical vision."
   On blackacidevil, Danzig builds upon the dark, moody and pagan-themed 
hard music he's known for (over the course of four albums and an EP--1988's 
Danzig, 1990's Danzig II-Lucifuge, 1992's Danzig II-How The Gods Kill, 1993's 
Thrall-Demonsweatlive, and 1994's Danzig 4p) and incorporates some new sounds 
and technology into the mix. "I wanted to do something that nobody else was 
really doing. So I took an element of industrial that I liked here, and an 
element of techno there, then mixed it with what I normally do. I took the 
best elements of stuff. They're powerful when used properly. Then, I'd still 
experiment with different directions--which I wanted to do anyway--and then 
watch what happened when I mixed it together." For the album, Glenn played 
most of the guitars himself, except on "Hand Of Doom," "See All You Were" and
"Come To Silver," which features the work of Jerry Cantrell from Alice In 
Chains. Joey Castillo plays drums on the entire record, while new bassist 
Josh Lazie is on one song. Guitarist T
   As for the current tour, DANZIG was thrilled to be invited as Ozzy's 
special guests. "I'm a big fan of Ozzy's. Black Sabbath was the first band 
I saw when I was a kid. I was honored that he asked. A lot of people have 
been scared to take us out in the past. I think the only other bands we've 
gone out with were Metallica and Slayer early on."
   DANZIG has also channeled his distinct vision and talents into his comic 
company VEROTIK, which publishes numerous books including Death Dealer, 
Satanika, Verotika, Venus Domina, Devilman, Sunglasses After Dark and Jaguar 
God, among others. Writers and artists featured in Verotik's line-up include 
Nancy Collins, Lucy Taylor, Rex Miller, Grant Morrison, Graham Masterton, 
Ruthie Smith Barlow, Martin Emond, Edward Lee, Dave Stevens, Go Nagai, Duke 
Mighten, Stan Shaw, Eric Canete and Kim Hagan. This company--of which Glenn 
is publisher, editor, owner, writer, etc.--also has numerous film projects 
in developments.