I’m not sure you’re going to find a more informative, quick and fun read than This Music Leaves Stains: The Complete Story Of The Misfits by James Greene Jr. You certainly are not going to read a better bio of the seminal horror/punk/rock band from Lodi, New Jersey — the one and only Misfits.
Led by the seemingly always dour Glenn Danzig (real last name “Anzalone”), who would go on to MTV infamy with such clips as “Mother” and his beefy, scary image and low-range vocals — the Misfits fed and contributed to the genre of horror rock with a do-it-yourself ethos few before or since have managed.
Because they hail from my home state, I admit a passing interest in the Misfits, even though punk came a bit too late in my musical taste development to ever strike a profound chord with me. Yet, as a fan of the same 50s horror movies they were into — even if the music doesn’t speak to me — I find the whole theatricality of what this band created and how they survived in one form or another through the years an inspiring story.
I came away completely captivated by this book largely because it is just so damn well researched. The Green’s Annotated Misfits Discography 1977-2012 at the back of the book is worth its weight in gold, in light of the fact that the Misfits have had so many rumored releases over the years. At the same time, it moves along more like a novel than a biography.
Certainly the Misfits have seen their share of inner band upheavals, mainly when Danzig left for more lucrative offers and bigger fame. Through it all, that Crimson Ghost logo has survived decades, glaring out from stage banners, EP covers and even sneaker endorsements.
The touring schedule, self-pressed records, compilation albums released by independent labels, rumors of reunions, even backstage fights — it’s all the stuff of a hard working, ‘meat and taters’ American rock and roll band, evolving from late night horror movie reruns, garage practices and the instinct to survive.
Greene sums it all up in the very last sentence of this soft-cover, 200-page tome: “The Misfits transcend punk rock to be a true piece of Americana, a musical roadside attraction worth more than a few stops on the dark highway of life.” To that end, This Music Leaves Stains: The Complete Story Of The Misfits is a rock and roll tale filled with the kind of mayhem and adventure you don’t want to miss.
~ Ralph Greco, Jr.
