The Classic Albums: The Misfits's 'Walk Among Us'

In the late 1970s, while the Ramones were shaking the musical foundations of the New York City music scene and etching themselves into the history books forever, Glenn Danzig, just across the Hudson River in Lodi, New Jersey, was stamping his own punk-ish take upon the scene. As singer and horror-obsessed leader of The Misfits, Glenn Danzig took the Ramones' sound and image and mutated it into a nightmarish punk and metal hybrid that every angst-ridden kid in Middle America could understand and relate to. The Misfits brand of horror punk rock, would later go on to influence countless bands from Marilyn Manson to The Murderdolls to AFI. In this next installment of "Classic Albums", Joe Matera speaks to Misfits founding singer/songwriter Glenn Danzig about the band’s highly influential album, 1982’s Walk Among Us which has gone on to become an all time classic.

UG: What was the songwriting process like for the album?

Glenn Danzig: It was done in a lot of different ways. The way I write songs has always different. Some times songs can come to me right away, while at other times, I may write the music first, or sometimes the lyrics may come first and then the melody follows. And I have always written this way and still do it this way.

Did any anything specifically influence your songwriting for that album?

By that time, my songwriting influences were at a stage where I wanted to do what I felt like wanting to do. My influences were all unleashed ages before that so literally at that time, it was all about what I was doing.

Were any of the songs written on an acoustic guitar?

No. They were all written on this guitar which I still have. The guitar was an old Danelectro kind of Silvertone guitar. And it had all been stripped so there was no paint on it and the pick ups were removed from out of it so it was kind of like a semi-hollow. And that was the guitar I was doing all my writing on until Danzig “1”.

Walk Among Us comprises songs that were recorded at various recording sessions and studios such as Mix-O-Lydian Studio and Newfound Sound Studios.

Yeah it was done all over place. Some were done at Mix-O-Lydian, some were done at Newfound Sound, and some were done at another studio too. I mixed it with Chris D of The Flesheaters and Pat Burnette at Quad Teck in Los Angeles. The reason we did it at different studios was because we were never happy with all the studios we’d go into. I don’t think anybody knew how to record what I was doing so we were always recording. I think eventually with all the stuff that had been recorded, I decided that I would put together the record myself and put it out on my own label Plan 9. But then I.R.S heard that we were doing the record and approached us about putting it out through them. And then we got a call and a letter from Slash Records saying they wanted to release it and that we should not do the deal with I.R.S because I.R.S, they felt, were terrible and wouldn’t pay us. While if we did the deal with Slash it would ensue that we would be paid. But in the end, it was all bullshit anyway.

"The way I write songs has always been different."

It has been noted that you overdubbed a lot of the guitars on the album?

Yes that is correct I played guitar on the tracks and on ‘Braineaters’ I actually played the drums! For the guitar parts I used lots of different guitars. I used a Gibson Les Paul Junior and I also used this guitar, which belong to this Beatnik guy called George who we knew, and who used to fix all the amps and stuff for us. He had this ’57 Gretsch Country Gentleman that he had put in Super DiMarzio pickups of which he would later rewound himself. According to George, he used to be friends with Les Paul and George Benson and all these guys so learned how to do all of this through them. And he also put this extra volume knob on this old guitar too. When George died, he gave that guitar to Steve Zing from Samhain who is actually in my band now and who still has that same guitar. So I used that guitar a lot on that record. Amp wise, there were lots of different stuff too like Marshalls and Fenders. For some of the songs I went through a Fender Twin and cranked it up by turning the master volume and regular volume all the way up. I also had this old Vox Phantom, which I still have but has all been taken apart. And it [Vox] didn’t have a tremolo bar on it anymore so I made one out of a bent screw driver and put it in there. And I did the tremolo that way with it on a number of songs.

Did you do multiply guitar tracks?

I tracked at least two tracks of guitar and sometimes three for each song. I would do a power chord track, a rhythm track, and a regular track.

How did you go about capturing your guitar tones in the studio?

Because it needed that roar, I found that when I put up a big amp too loud it was noisy and made it hard for the mikes to translate that in the recording. So I found that it was better to crank up a smaller amp like the Twin.

You are also credited as producer, so was it hard to be objective as musician and producer too?

No.

Do you want to expand on that?

Well it was a simple question and I gave you a simple answer.

Why didn’t you get an outside producer to come onboard?

Because we had tried working with producers before and it never worked out right. Also the producers wanted a ton of money and we didn’t have a ton of money at our disposal.

Did you have a musical template envisaged about how you wanted the album to sound?

It was all about trying to get what the band was doing onto the record. And I still don’t know whether we actually accomplished that! I guess it sounds okay and people dig it a lot now but I don’t think we were really happy with at the time.

The cover for Walk Among Us features the famous "Rat-Bat-Spider" that menaces the intrepid astronauts in 1959's The Angry Red Planet…

Yeah I did all the album’s art work and had this idea but at the same time, I had no idea how I was going to make it work. It was going to be us standing there with flying saucers and a bat spider. It was suppose to look different to the actual printed version though. I remember I flipped out on our label because it was suppose to be in all these different colors such as red, black and orange but the way it came out was truly awful. But they had already printed them anyway though they had not shown us any proofs beforehand. Because it was this little label, it was a really big nightmare working for them and we never got paid until we began threatening them with legal action.

"By that time, my songwriting influences were at a stage where I wanted to do what I felt like wanting to do."

The album’s songs clock in at just under 27 minutes, was that intentional on your part?

Yes because The Misfits songs were very rarely long. I think the longest song we did was ‘Come Back’ which was like five minutes or something. The songs were pretty much all about being in your face and over just as quickly.

Were there other songs recorded that never made the album?

Yes there were songs such as ‘Die Die My Darling’ and ‘American Nightmare’ which was a song that Doyle couldn’t play, so I ended up playing guitar on it instead and others too. A lot of them such as ‘American Nightmare’ ended up on the Legacy of Brutality record (1985).

The album has become an influential album on the hardcore and punk scene how do you feel about having that legacy?

It is very cool when you do something that at the time you are really trying to achieve…[sic] a change in things and when it does end up changing things, it is very cool indeed, so yeah. I think it stands on its own merit. There have been so many bands that have taken from The Misfits and sometimes even stolen from the Misfits. So you can only hope that people dig what you’re doing.

Interview by Joe Matera
Ultimate-Guitar.Com © 2009

Comments

[Wiegraf]

Whoa, nice.

[CptRevell]

Heh. The producer question made him seem irritated, or something.

[GuitarHero0715]

Misfits are soo good, but the bands they influence suck, usually.

Static Age ftw.

[de-fexxx666]

Good interview. I sort of expected Danzig just chucking around bullshit like it's a joke, but it's nice to see he took the interview seriously.

[RyanAirplane]

i like to imagine danzig talking like batman in the dark knight. hahaha

[xXBlack_PickXx]

awesome album

[Somnambulance]

GuitarHero0715 wrote:

Misfits are soo good, but the bands they influence suck, usually.

Static Age ftw.

I agree. I blame that on bands influenced by the Misfits usually listening to post-Danzig Misfits albums or post-Misfits Danzig albums. Both of which are pretty bad usually, excluding the first Danzig album and some Samhain in my opinion. Static Age, Walk Among Us, Earth A.D., man, the Misfits may have been the only flawless American hardcore/punk band (Lord knows the Ramones had a few really patchy albums).

[sexyresults1979]

RyanAirplane wrote:

i like to imagine danzig talking like batman in the dark knight. hahaha

"...Like you gotta take a shit or something."-Dax Shepard-Let's Go To Prison

[NubMonk]

I love Misfits. The Danzig era is definitely the best!

[Blind Messiah]

GuitarHero0715 wrote:

Misfits are soo good, but the bands they influence suck, usually.

Static Age ftw.

Not necessarily. If you're thinking of like Manson or AFI, then yea, the blow. But "She Dominates," by Blitzkid or "Rot," by Order of the Fly are excellent examples of great horror punk today in the underground. Then there are bands like mine who have a lot of Misfits influence without butchering the Misfits sound. I mean, I write like modern heavy metal, but with some of that same melodic feel Danzig sang on the early records.

[double_bass25]

this album is awesome. it's a shame this album (these specific recordings) isn't in the box set.

[joey gravez]

nice!!!
i just wish jerry could sing!

[Kyle Crabbs]

Somnambulance wrote:

GuitarHero0715 wrote:

Misfits are soo good, but the bands they influence suck, usually.

Static Age ftw.

I agree. I blame that on bands influenced by the Misfits usually listening to post-Danzig Misfits albums or post-Misfits Danzig albums. Both of which are pretty bad usually, excluding the first Danzig album and some Samhain in my opinion. Static Age, Walk Among Us, Earth A.D., man, the Misfits may have been the only flawless American hardcore/punk band (Lord knows the Ramones had a few really patchy albums).

Lucifuge and How the Gods Kill are good even if they are bit different than what he was doing before

[mo4form]

I always hated The Misfits and their [censorship]smart[/censorship] fannies. I'm sorry about writing something like this in the praise - I mean "comment" section, but new misfits, old misfits, misfits in general, they're god awful and what's worse is they're stuck in a subculture not a movement.
Burn your sacred cows, and deal with it.

P.S: Danzig is a certifiable A-hole.

[DualReaver]

Do you know who's fantastic? The Misfits.

i raped your mother today
and it doesn't really matter much to me
as long as she's spread

[The_lizard_king]

I'm not really into a lot of punk music but I do like The Misfits. It seems to be that Glenn Danzig gives a new definition to the word Badass.

[Cookie_Dog]

I fell in love with the Misfits when a friend said, "Dude, you like this song 'Where Eagles Dare.'" And he was right. That chorus is like the chorus of my life

[Crimson Ghost]

Somnambulance wrote:

GuitarHero0715 wrote:

Misfits are soo good, but the bands they influence suck, usually.

Static Age ftw.

I agree. I blame that on bands influenced by the Misfits usually listening to post-Danzig Misfits albums or post-Misfits Danzig albums. Both of which are pretty bad usually, excluding the first Danzig album and some Samhain in my opinion. Static Age, Walk Among Us, Earth A.D., man, the Misfits may have been the only flawless American hardcore/punk band (Lord knows the Ramones had a few really patchy albums).

i disagree, im a big fan of michale graves misfits, as well as danzig misfits. Jerry Only sucks though. American psycho and famous monsters are great albums. Danzig has released some great solo albums too. It's obviously a lot different than the misfits, but that doesn't make it bad

[ReldvS]

Danzig I II III IV are awesome. Ive liked Danzig thru all his different bands but each one , from Misfits, to Samhain to Danzig, were different from the next. I have met Danzig, and Chuck and John and they are typical musicians. They get irritated by fanboys , he was very cool to me and even offered me signed swag. He gets a bad rep but he can also be a dick to those who are stupid. He made fun of a friend of mine who was clearly a Danzig fan poser but did not hold that against me. Im still a huge fan of his music but really wish the crew from Danzig I would reunite. John Christ influenced my playing a lot and is often over looked as a guitar legend. These bad dudes where the templates for EVIL long before most. Even METALLICA was sporting Danzig shirts and Misfits shirts, long before the mainstream even knew who they were. You may love em or hate em, but you cant deny the influence they had on hugely successfull bands, not to mention Danzig has written songs for Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison to name a few. I say, Give the DEVIL his due...lol YOU FUCKIN ROCK DANZIG

[Gnomefry]

Cool. When I first quickly glanced at the title, I thought it said "The Misfits walk among UG." That'd be cool.

[tinyer3]

Lol, kudos Danzig. Pissed off the interviewer lol

[KileManA7X]

FUCK YEAH BEST BAND EVER!

[C-C Beatroot]

I wonder how Dazig pronounces "Samhain"... even though most people pronounce it "sow-een" it's technically supposed to be "sa-veen" or "sha-veen" if you're a girl, though these days it's generally just "sha-veen".

The mistake is thought to be from Gerald Gardner (wiccan founding father) mispronouncing it, and his followers being too scared to correct him at the time

[Vedicardi]

back when looking emo was actually cool

[rockxaintxdead]

GuitarHero0715 wrote:

Misfits are soo good, but the bands they influence suck, usually.

Static Age ftw.

hey man totally agree. but thre are some good pants influenced by them (thought they are hard to find). the distillers is a good example.
misfits 4ever!!

[Ironpriest]

This is just freaky! I bought this album yesturday, good stuff though. The music reminds me of Green Day and the singing reminds me of Offspring and Metallica.

[Blind Messiah]

Vedicardi wrote:

back when looking emo was actually cool

This pertains how? Either you don't know what emo or horrorpunk are, or you're trolling.

[pkweon]

awesome band, awesome album

[pkweon]

Rancid69Sublime wrote:

Ironpriest wrote:

This is just freaky! I bought this album yesturday, good stuff though. The music reminds me of Green Day and the singing reminds me of Offspring and Metallica.

NO

+1

[StringTrigger67]

The Misfits are awesome and Glenn Danzig is a great vocalist. But Danzig is a Douchebag. He claims that he did all the work on the Misfits albums(which he didn't). He also thinks that he owns and is The Misfits. Which he is entirely wrong. No wonder Jerry doesn't like him any more. Danzig needs to grow up.

I loved this band when I was 15, not as much now though. They're still good every now and then though. The lyrics are laughably bad, in a cheesy way.

Checked.

[Nexium]

Hahaha, i Was listening to '*Walk Among us'' Album as i saw this this article and ofc i had to read it whit excitement!

[ElDiabloMuerte]

I wonder how Dazig pronounces "Samhain"... even though most people pronounce it "sow-een" it's technically supposed to be "sa-veen" or "sha-veen" if you're a girl, though these days it's generally just "sha-veen".

It's actually pronounced as 'Sow-in'. I would know, being Irish and it being the name of Halloween over here.

[ElDiabloMuerte]

The Misfits are awesome and Glenn Danzig is a great vocalist. But Danzig is a Douchebag. He claims that he did all the work on the Misfits albums(which he didn't). He also thinks that he owns and is The Misfits. Which he is entirely wrong. No wonder Jerry doesn't like him any more. Danzig needs to grow up.

Exavtly my point. In this interview, which is about a classic album by a classic BAND, he makes out that he did everything, in fact the only time he mentions another band member was to say Doyle couldn't play guitar. I mean, I know he isnt best friends with the others, but give credit where it's due. I'm done now.

[Skuzzmo]

You are also credited as producer, so was it hard to be objective as musician and producer too?

No.

Do you want to expand on that?

Well it was a simple question and I gave you a simple answer.


HAHAHAHAHAHAAAA.....

Yes, everything the Misfits have done (danzig/graves/only) is quality...

And yes...Danzig is bit of a Dildo.

[FearOfTheDuck]

It didn't mention Cliff Burton or Metallica in the Influence part, Danzig era Misfits are awesome

[Marlboro_Rob]

They need to reissue the Samhain box set! Amazing stuff, many MANY industrial bands today owe alot to Samhain wether they know it or not

[decayingdave]

Danzig says he is the Misfits because he IS the Misfits, michael graves turned it into a right nancy operation. I'd go so far to say that the joke of a band graves turned it into was more reminiscent of HIM than original, REAL Misfits.

[Gibson_SG_uzr55]

Haha I love Glenn Danzig and the Misfits. Danzig has some good solo stuff too

[DanTheAutomator]

decayingdave likes boys. no i'm kidding, but yeah michael graves is a ****.

[Johnny-go-go]

Blind Messiah wrote:
If you're thinking of like Manson or AFI, then yea, the blow.

Actually, Marilyn Manson is a really cool.....punk really. He has a totally punk attitude and his music is alright. Lol. AFI on the other hand are actually really good. I get that people hear Miss Murder or Girls Not Grey and think the worst, but listen to their old stuff and even their horrorpunk stuff like Fall Children.

Crimson Ghost wrote:
i disagree, im a big fan of michale graves misfits, as well as danzig misfits. Jerry Only sucks though. American psycho and famous monsters are great albums. Danzig has released some great solo albums too. It's obviously a lot different than the misfits, but that doesn't make it bad

I agree. Michale Graves is actually pretty awesome. I mean, you can't beat the original Misfits, but I think Michale was the best replacement they could have got, and he did alright. He IS kind of an idiot though, I'll admit that. And I personally don't really care for Danzig's solo stuff.

[AngelWolf]

definitely a classic album

[Woehlke666]

ReldvS wrote:

Danzig I II III IV are awesome. Ive liked Danzig thru all his different bands but each one , from Misfits, to Samhain to Danzig, were different from the next. I have met Danzig, and Chuck and John and they are typical musicians. They get irritated by fanboys , he was very cool to me and even offered me signed swag. He gets a bad rep but he can also be a dick to those who are stupid. He made fun of a friend of mine who was clearly a Danzig fan poser but did not hold that against me. Im still a huge fan of his music but really wish the crew from Danzig I would reunite. John Christ influenced my playing a lot and is often over looked as a guitar legend. These bad dudes where the templates for EVIL long before most. Even METALLICA was sporting Danzig shirts and Misfits shirts, long before the mainstream even knew who they were. You may love em or hate em, but you cant deny the influence they had on hugely successfull bands, not to mention Danzig has written songs for Johnny Cash and Roy Orbison to name a few. I say, Give the DEVIL his due...lol YOU FUCKIN ROCK DANZIG

I Absolutely agree. Danzig is an artist and even though I repeatedly watched and laughed at the youtube video of him getting knocked out backstage, i am still a huge fan. I totally get why some people would not like Danzig, but they don't see him as an artist and performer because thats how he sees himself. Its like opera. if you know the story, its great, but if you don't get it you never will. And the phrase "templates for evil" is just ****in great. and true. these guys really did set the bar for satan and the influence of that is seen everywhere.

[StringTrigger67]

decayingdave wrote:

Danzig says he is the Misfits because he IS the Misfits, michael graves turned it into a right nancy operation. I'd go so far to say that the joke of a band graves turned it into was more reminiscent of HIM than original, REAL Misfits.

Now you are totally wrong. Graves did not make the misfits a joke decayingdave. The post danzig misfits wanted to lighten their music. They didn't want to keep making REALLY dark music. Thats why they chose Graves. So what your doing is saying the misfits are a joke. You don't know what your talkin about so just shut up.

[arrell]

You can tell you're a big Misfits fan, when none of the information from this interview is new to you.

[hawkdude9]

i never knew danzig played guitar on this album, news to me! lol

[JesterShred]

mo4form wrote:

I always hated The Misfits and their [censorship]smart[/censorship] fannies. I'm sorry about writing something like this in the praise - I mean "comment" section, but new misfits, old misfits, misfits in general, they're god awful and what's worse is they're stuck in a subculture not a movement.
Burn your sacred cows, and deal with it.

P.S: Danzig is a certifiable A-hole.

I don't really know danzig all that well, he's not a buddy of mine, so i can't contest to him being an a-hole, but, you're totally right about the misfits sucking. whats good about stupid monster lyrics about nothing, and 2nd rate guitar playing? at least when he went off and did his Danzig thing the guitar player actually had played before...