There are very few musicians who have had the career that Glenn Danzig has had. Whether it be his stint with the horror punk outfit the Misfits or his gothic rock days with Samhain, there’s no questioning that Glenn Danzig has established himself as one of the most prominent figures in rock music. In fact, his band Danzig’s self-titled debut album is still considered one of the best heavy metal albums of all-time
After celebrating the 30th anniversary of his band Danzig, Glenn Danzig has once again released some new music in the form of a cover album dedicated to The King himself, Elvis Presley. Danzig Sings Elvis may be rather different from the previous Danzig material but this doesn’t mean that it’s any less impressive.
Evil Elvis
Danzig’s love for The King is no secret. So much so that Glenn Danzig has earned the moniker of Evil Elvis among heavy metal circles. However, this nickname isn’t only a reference to his love for Elvis Presley, but also his unique singing voice. His baritone voice and tenor vocal range has always been compared to that of Presley’s, which is what in part made his music so interesting.
Fans may be disappointed to know that this album contains very little (if any) material that one would associate with Danzig. This album is a straight-up ode to Elvis Presley. This is where most of the backlash from the album stems from. People’s expectations of what Danzig is may have ruined this album for them. However, if you take the album for what it is instead of what you wanted it to be then you may start to appreciate the good things about Danzig’s latest release. Danzig made full use of the overdrive pedal on songs like “Baby Let’s Play House”, delivering the crunchy rock n’ roll riffs that the rockabilly sound is known for. And while a lot can be said about the sloppy drumming on this track (and some of the others), you can’t deny that it adds a lot of character reminiscent of the “sloppy” drumming on Elvis Costello’s My Aim Is True. Now we’ll never know if this was intentional or not, but it’s important to remember that rock music is much more than tight instrumentals. Rock music is also about character, and no one can say this album is lacking in that department.
Overall
Considering this album has been in the works for over five years now, you can’t distance it from the high expectations attached to it. The album is far from perfect. There are definitely better Danzig records out there but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t a unique musical experience. Through these 14 tracks, selected from different stages of Elvis Presley’s career, we are exposed to a new way of listening to Danzig.
On this album, we hear Glenn Danzig pay tribute to one of his beloved musical heroes. That in itself makes the whole album worth listening to.
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