Released back in 2000 on cd format only, now reissued for the first time ever on vinyl.
Cheltenham’s Horror Punk/Death Rockers The Screaming Dead, whose name is drawn from the English title of the 1972 horror film “Dracula contra Frankenstein” is one of the few bands that managed to authentically straddle the line between punk and gothic / goth rock in the early 80s. Like The Damned, the band’s oeuvre includes purist three chord punk alongside more nuanced gothic rock pieces. And similar to kindred souls in bands like The Dark and Siekiera, Screaming Dead’s early aggressive approach gave way, later in their career, to a more measured and atmospheric gothic sound.
Songs like “Valley Of The Dead” or “Warcry”, which still sound very originally like punk rock, already have a dark melancholy in them that foreshadows darker things. With “Night Creatures” or “20th Century Vampire” they have succeeded in creating absolute masterpieces, these songs take you into the night and leave you there. Towards the end, saxophone and organ come into play, it gets poppier, but also more dramatic, but remains darkly melancholic. There’s a dirty undertone running through every song, which gives the overall work that extra punk touch. Screaming Dead from have created a new, very own sound.
(Bomb All Records)
