From Black Sabbath’s 1970 début to the present day, cover versions have always been part of the Metal furniture. They can appear as part of the album itself, tacked onto the end as bonus material, or in more recent times, even given a disc of their own to supplement Special Edition packages. In fact for some bands, covers almost come as standard. But to release an entire album of them? Well that could still be seen as a little unconventional.
It’s been done before, of course. Metallica even did it twice (well, once and a half), Slayer took a stab at it, Ozzy had a bash, and more recently Hatebreed threw their hat into the ring with surprisingly effective results. However, whereas those acts chose songs which came as no real shock to anyone, there are a couple of genuine surprises on Skeletons (Evilive/Nuclear Blast). Danzig does ZZ Top and Aerosmith? Really?
Yes, really. And what’s more, he does them well.
Kicking off with a rollicking version of the theme song to obscure 1967 biker flick ‘Devil’s Angels’ it’s pleasing to report that Danzig’s voice is still in fine fettle. The obscure movie theme, er… theme continues with the title song to 1969 movie ‘Satan’s Sadists’. A slow, bluesy number which allows Danzig to croon to his heart’s content, featuring lyrics he could easily have written himself.
Unsurprisingly, the album kicks off properly with the arrival of Elvis. Lifted once again from a movie soundtrack, ‘Let Yourself Go’ comes from the 1968 Presley movie ‘Speedway’, and this new version is an absolute thumper. As soon as it finishes, you want to go back to the start and listen to it all over again. And again. A satisfyingly heavy version of Black Sabbath‘s ‘N.I.B.’ follows. Not a patch on the original of course, and Tommy Victor’s pinch harmonics do start to become a little grating, but it’s a meaty enough version with Danzig’s stamp all over it.
Up until now, covering Black Sabbath, Elvis and low-budget biker movies should come as no real surprise. But Aerosmith? Taken from Get Your Wings (Columbia), ‘Lord of the Thighs’ sounds more like a Danzig original than an Aerosmith song by the time it ends. The Litter are next up for the Fonzig treatment. A psychedelic garage rock band from Minneapolis, their song ‘Action Woman’ from 1967 was their first hit, and once again not the most obvious choice of song to benefit from a Danzig overhaul. But yet again, the big muscular cuddly one comes up trumps.
It’s a case of so near, yet so far with ZZ Top‘s ‘Rough Boy’; an adventurous selection anyway, it so very nearly comes off thanks to Danzig’s voice (probably his best vocal performance on the record), but Tommy Victor’s constant pinch harmonics renders it irritating to the point of distraction. Even Zakk Wylde‘s ear piercing harmonics would have been easier on the ears than this. Also, the addition of a couple of needless “fucks” added to the lyrics distract you even further. Frustrating.
Danzig turns The Troggs classic ‘With A Girl Like You’ into a Misfits number with consummate ease, ‘Find Somebody’ by The Young Rascals gets a lively makeover, and the album closes with a suitably depressing version of The Everly Brothers‘ already melancholic ‘Crying in the Rain’.
Danzig’s voice is as strong (and divisive) as it always has been; a few minor wobbles and cracks here and there but nothing too bothersome. The production is nice and warm, and the album cover features a naked-from-the-chest-up porn star Kayden Kross in skullface make-up. Which is nice.
An interesting collection of songs, Skeletons should sit comfortably on the shelf alongside Danzig’s other releases, and surely without any of the ignominy of being referred to in the future as “oh yeah, that pointless covers album”. If you consider compilation album The Lost Tracks of Danzig (Evilive) to be worthy of inclusion in your record collection, then this should definitely be in there too.
8.0/10
GARY ALCOCK
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