Everyone’s favorite goons have compiled their Christmas tracks off the Fleas Naughty Dog compilations and added a couple new tracks to this collection of Christmas favorites as only Grave Robber could perform.
For those unfamiliar with the band, Grave Robber is a horror-punk band in the vein of the Misfits and has been around for more than 10 years, releasing the epic first album Be Afraid in 2008. The band itself when performing are in full skeleton costume and led by vocalist Wretched, who has that smooth deep voice that provides a dark, instantly recognizable sound on all the albums. Musicians have come and gone from the band and rumors are that there are multiple versions of several of the characters as the inevitable personnel changes experience by bands have occurred over the years. Throughout their career, the band has been known for their clever B-movie horror references in their lyrics that are used to deliver a serious message about salvation, while at the same time providing some great choruses to sing along. All the releases are characterized by top notch performances and production and while some veer more toward the metal spectrums than punk rock, the band always seems to find its way back to the fast, driving punk rock first heard on Be Afraid.
Grave Robber has been on Rottweiler Records now for quite a while and the label has released seven different Christmas compilation albums full of various punk, metal, and other artists covering Christmas songs in their style or submitting new ones and most of the tracks on Scary Christmas to You have come from those comps. All of those songs are either fast punk versions of classic hymns like Joy to the World or Angels We Have Heard on High, which manages to make the Gloria refrain much like the extended Whoahs in other Grave Robber songs. One can just imagine the crowd singing along with that at a live show filled with bodies flying all over and a huge pile on at the front of the stage. Other songs previously released have come from popular Christmas music and tv shows, some of which like “Grandma Got Half Eaten by a Zombie” features the Grave Robber twist on things including references to the movie Zombieland.
New tracks include a cover of the Kinks “Father Christmas” and for me what is one of the best adaptations/covers ever in “Scary Christmas to You”, which is a masterful reworking of the Misfits classic track “Where Eagles Dare”. This song exemplifies the genius in what the band does, from the faithful, expertly performed feedback drenched music and great bass line to the inclusion of lines straight from the original song into a Christmas song appropriate for a much wider audience than the original track…all the while sounding much like it could be the Misfits…
While probably not for everyone, Grave Robber has compiled their Christmas tracks into one convenient package that covers traditional and not-so-traditional Christmas songs and originals. For me the new “Scary Christmas to You” makes this collection worth having.
Written by John Jackson
Rating: 8/10
Tracklist:
1. Have Yourself A Scary Little Christmas
2. We’re A Couple Of Misfits
3. You’re A Mean One, Mr. Grinch
4. Angels We Have Heard On High
5. Father Christmas
6. Grandma Got Half Eaten By A Zombie
7. Joy To The World
8. Scary Christmas To You
Band Members
Wretched – vokills, shovel
Carcass – bass, vokills
Viral – guitar, vokills
Plageu – smash doom tub
Release Date: Dec. 13th. 2019
Record Label: Rottweiler Records
Weblinks:Facebook / Bandcamp / Website / Twitter / Instagram / Bandcamp
Video for ‘Father Christmas’
Lyric video for ‘We’re a Couple of Misfits’
