Search - Danzig :: Live on the Black Hand Side

Say it ain't so Glenn...

carlos@tatteredcover.com | LAKEWOOD, COLORADO United States | 05/20/2001

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Well, I've read all the reviews previous to mine, and this will be going to the negative side, as I really can't find a way of justifying the cost for the product. I love Danzig, period! But, that said, I don't understand why this came out sounding the way it did. I saw Danzig in 1994 and 2000, for those respective tours, and I was able to hear... everything! I'll abmit that the first disc, sounds alot better than does the second one. The first part of the disc, (8 songs recorded in '92 at Irvine Meadows, CA.), sounds about the best. it's the classic line-up and if I'm not mistaken, comes form the same show as "Thrall- Demon Sweat Live EP," 'nuff said! The second part of the first disc, (6 songs recorded in '94 at The Seattle Center Arena, WA.), starts to drop off in sound quality, but is still listenable. As an interesting side note, as the band is going into the song, "Going Down To Die," you can clearly hear Glenn say "... I got work to do...," and it sounds almost as if someone was maybe asking him for an autograph or somthing... kinda funny really... which leads into disc 2, recorded on tour in 2000... The second disc is where things take a turn for the worst... the sound levels are all off... at times one instrument's sound being too loud for the other and at other times, another intrument will be drowning out somthing else... but all the instruments overpowering Glenn's vocals. As a fan, that's what I paid to hear, that great voice... the thunder and power that Danzig posseses. Not that the band should be overshabowed by his voice either... there should be a nice blend in there. I hate to be so nitpicky but hey, I went out and bought it the day it came out... and had been waiting for it since it's release had been announced and postponed time and again. I was also a bit disappointed in the front cover artwork... and in fact, the back cover would have been a better design for the front. I'll have to agree w/ all previous reviewers, however, that the tracks chosen for the release are all excellent... but it would have been nice to hear them better. I can't justify the release in the way some were able to do... it can be described as raw or "live experience" sounding, but the simple truth is that it's best psrts sound demo-ee, and the worst sounding bootleg-ee. Still, I'll keep it as it is a part of the Danzig history, and I'm sure it'll get plenty of spins on the old cd player... I'll just have to turn it up real loud so i can hear Glenn... sigh. For those who have yet to buy this new release, "Thrall..." is a much better live representation of this great band,(and yes, they still are a great band!), even if it isn't a double cd, it kicks... and it has some nice studio gems too."

Here is a Just Review

Godless Agnostic | El Paso, TX | 10/31/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The Songs are all excellent. The First disc includes songs from shows at Irvine Meadows,CA in 1992 on their 'How the gods Kill' Tour, and at the Seattle Center Arena in 1994 on their 'Danzig 4p' Tour. The Sound Quality on the first disc is exceptional. I enjoy this first disc very much. It includes songs from the first four albums. This two part, first disc, manifests Glenn's dynamic musical styles and vocal ranges throughout his first few years with the band which bears his name.I also enjoy the second disc: with some VERY minor disappointments though. The songs are all presented very well, although, (and I say this with the fact that, instrumentally, the songs are recorded very well), the mic, at times, seems to have been fading on a couple of songs for reasons unknown. As I said, it's minor. This Second Disk includes songs from the Sixth album on their Satan's Child Tour. The songs are very unique, to say the very least. The tempo is a little faster and the sound is different if compared to the studio versions. That is what I really love about all of these songs, they are the same songs yet with a twist of cain, if you will.Another of my MINOR disappointments is that there are only one and a half songs that represented BlackAciDevil: 7th House and Deep, which is not really on BlackAciDevil but later was re-mixed and included with the title, Deeper. This is why I say "one and a half". It is regrettable that none of the other really good songs were included from that album, like, 'See all You Were', 'Serpentia', 'Hint of Her Blood', 'Come to Silver', and 'Power of Darkness'. I would have appreciated hearing at least two or three of those songs on this live compilation.I greatly appreciate that these Live double CDs are available to own. It is always good to hear the live versions. They bring a certain quality of reality and uniqueness to them. I like this live compilation, but I wish that they would have taken a little more care in preparing the sound for a live recording on the second CD. The first CD is quite clear and I enjoy it very much.Smage, the Godless Agnostic."

Biggest disappointment yet from Danzig

M. Nichols | West Chester, OH United States | 05/11/2001

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Many of us thought it couldn't get worse than 5: Blackacidevil. 6:66 - Satan's Child was somewhat reassuring; nowhere the glory of American Records-era Danzig, but far better than the previous misstep. Then comes this atrocity. By far the worst release ever by Danzig in any incarnation, and possibly the worst live release I've EVER heard.

First, it looked promising - two discs with three shows from all major incarnations of the band - the original Danzig lineup from '92, the addition of Joey Castillo in '94, and the current band from 2000. The set list is varied and well-selected. The performances and recording quality, however, couldn't be worse. Surprisingly, the worst of the bunch is the 2000 show, which takes up all of the second disc. It sounds like an audience bootleg taken from a tape recorder hidden under someone's clothes. The clarity goes in and out (imagine listening to a record while putting your hands over your ears, taking them off and so on) and the playing is just plain rotten - all across the board....."