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THE RECORD JOURNAL, 7/5/96 -------------------------- (review of 6/29/96 show) Misfits: Resurrection of the Living Dead Hallelujia!!! Once again, they walk among us. For many fans ( "Fiends" ), the Resurrection Tour will be their first chance to see the legendary Misfits live - which, for me at least, is great since I was a toddler when they were active. They formed in early 1977, going through a series of drummers and guitarists until they "just went away" in 1983, upon singer/songwriter Glenn Danzig's departure - right at the pinnacle of their career . The only constants in the band were bassist Jerry Only and Glenn. In 1980, Jerry's younger brother Doyle joined the band at the age of 16, who has remained in the band since. While Danzig went on to widespread recognition, it seemed as though the remaining Misfits would never receive the attention they deserved. Jerry and Doyle are the two "original" Misfits ( the drummers all came down with Spinal Tap syndrome), and were nearly invisible during their thirteen year lull - though not of their own choice. According to the band, Jerry and Doyle always were the Misfits and always wanted to be the Misfits, but certain circumstances prevented Misfits activity. Legal obstacles (such as the question of just who held the title to the "Misfits" name) settled, their thirteen year lull ended upon their "Resurrection" last year, appropriately enough, on Halloween with a surprise appearance in the middle of a Type O Negative performance in New York City. Word spread like wildfire, as did the questions. Will Glenn be reuniting with them? How will they replace Glenn? Will time have mellowed them? Will they "sell out"? Are they in it for the money (Sex Pistols, anyone?)? Will they come across as something of a poor tribute band? What can we expect? According to Jerry, "The same thing as before, only better." I couldn't put it any better. And as far as Glenn returning? Contrary to some rumors, not anytime soon! Glenn seems to be anything but considerate concerning the new Misfits, going as far as overdubbing their tracks on the recent Misfits Collection II, and then not even subjecting it to their approval before its release. In fact, Jerry and Doyle approached Glenn amicably, asking him if he would like to reunite with the Misfits, only to have security guards remove them from the hotel where he was staying. To find a new vocalist, they didn't have to look too far. Michale Graves was introduced to the Misfits by local Lodi, NJ producer Bob Allecca. Prior to the suggestion that he audition for the "new" Misfits, he had absolutely no exposure to the band, though he says " I stole a Misfits T- shirt from my brother once - but I had no idea it was a Misfits shirt." And upon first hearing their music? " I went out and picked up the yellow CD (Collection I ), put it on the first song ( She ), listened to a few bars and said 'These guys suck.'. That was my first impression of them, swear to God." Just as interesting about Michale is his age ( 21 - the other members are into their thirties), which draws many comparisons to a young Glenn Danzig. Some critics say that his looks, stage movements, and voice are mirror images of Glenn. Michale can't see why. " I can't help the way I look. But I've looked at pictures and it's like...woah! And I don't know how he moved on stage, or anything like that. I've never watched any video footage- I kept away just for that purpose...I don't need to mimic anybody; what I do is what I do myself. As far as my voice, I can't control the way my voice sounds either. Singing the old songs- Glenn wrote the melody lines, and I'm singing his melody lines, so of course I'm gonna sound somewhat like him. That's the way he wrote it, and that's the way they that it was intended to be sung. So if i kinda sound like him, then I guess I'm doing my job half right." The new drummer is Dr. C.H.U.D. (Cannibalistic Humanoid Underground Drummer - an homage to the 1980s low budget horror flick, C.H.U.D.), who far surpasses all those who came before him in terms of drumming ability and vocal ability., In keeping with the local theme, he is from Lodi, and even graduated high school with Doyle. Concerning their performance last Saturday at Hartford's Webster Theater, they hit the stage with an intensity the likes of which we have not seen in the past thirteen years. As far as time mellowing them out, they've only become more aggressive. They hit the stage and all hell broke loose! Ripping through the first half of their set, the second part consisted entirely of audience requests. Michale would point to an audience member, who would scream out his/her favorite song title, and then be invited onstage to sing along. Highlights included Bullet, Nike A Go Go, and the massive sing-a-longs Skulls, and We Are 138. Michale had to keep telling the security morons to let us go up on stage, however they remained quite uncooperative- this being my only complaint about the show. Never before have I seen such band/audience interaction - proving that the Misfits are not only THE most powerful live act out there, but also the most audience-considerate. Opening for the Misfits were Death Metal monoliths Cannibal Corpse, who went on first - while the Webster was filling up. They are touring to support their new masterpiece, Vile, which features the debut of new singer George "CorpseGrinder" Fischer. While there is some criticism of his replacing Chris Barnes, I was pleased to see just how well he fit into the band. Such classics as "Skull Full Of Maggots" and "Hammer Smashed Face" were given a "new life", if you will. His vocal style is rather similar to that of Barnes, only with more clarity and ferocity. Seeing them live, it is quite obvious why Cannibal Corpse is at the forefront of the Death Metal genre, and has been there for over half a decade. Expect them to remain there for a while to come. Next up was old favorites Anthrax. Whether your favorite style is punk, hardcore, death or speed metal - chances are that you somewhere have ties to Anthrax. Though many thought the band would go belly-up with the departures of former vocalist Joey Belladonna and more recently, lead guitarist Dan Spitz, they are alive, well, and apparently have been eating their vitamins, because their performance was amazing. Anthrax' delivery of songs new and old was flawless, and extremely energetic. Rhythm guitarist Scott Ian had the potential to incite a riot when he took over vocals for a cover of "Protest and Survive". Their brand of Stomp was warmly welcomed by the crowd. Much like the Misfits and Cannibal Corpse, Anthrax' not-so-new-anymore vocalist John Bush provided a vocal delivery far superior to that of former vocalist Belladonna. - Ryan Adams sidenote: Cannibal Corpse plays the El N Gee in New London this Friday (today ) with Jungle Rot. yeah, another side note...what ya gonna do? Misfits fans with Internet access ought to check out Misfits Central, THE Misfits Site on the 'Net. http://watt.seas.virginia.edu/~msk4m/