The Serpenteens - Dead Men Walking (Blood And Guts) Holy heck, I think we’ve found a boyfriend for Liverpool’s own Zombina and the Skeletones. Seriously these guys could just be the male fronted version of the UK’s favourite held-back-in-high-school horror popstrels. Granted, the New Yorkers have been around the block a few times having started out in ‘95 but what’s a little age gap between the living dead? Okay before I get too carried away with the notion of romance blossoming here’s the lowdown on Dead Men Walking. The Serpenteens debut on the infamous Blood And Guts label this features a mix of fresh meat and older rotten rockers re-recorded to higher standards than the band’s original sloppy demos. The overall vibe is a doo-wop infused blend of Misfits and straight forward garage punk. Simple melodies drive the thing and pure pop choruses lodge in your brain on numbers like fan favourite ‘(Please Be My)Zombie Bride’. If these tunes don’t get you hoppin’ you want to be checking for pulse.. although on second thoughts the lack of one could be a pre-requisite for a liking of the Serpenteens. Ditto a love of Wednesday 13, Rob Zombie and of course Zombina.

Dead Men Walking (Blood and Guts) by Ewan Wadharmi "If you can't stand the sight of blood, close your eyes when you read this comic book!" warned the '70's ads for the Kiss graphic novel printed in the band's own blood. As close to metal Kiss got at that time was their faces on a lunchbox, and I've often envisioned myself smashing Paul Stanley with his own licensed likeness whilst screaming "Kiss this, made-for-TV's Star Child!" Dead Men Walking brings back that cartoon version of hard rock I so eschewed as a critical youth. But whereas Gene Simmons had his waggling tongue dripping red corn syrup on the stage, Serpenteens keep their tongues in their cheeks. Covering such subjects as zombies, aliens, monsters, zombie aliens, werewolves, and zombies, the songs really span the Saturday matinee genre. Be advised: Singer Fang Alphamayle yields an amazingly rich, mature voice that truly must be heard to be believed. Somewhat resembling Ozzy, but really that doesn't begin to fairly describe it, except that I'd listen to him sing anything, anywhere. "X-Ray Eyes!" has a late '60s happy poppy garage sound and rousing, tight harmonies inexplicably reminiscent of Eddy Grant's pre-reggae band, The Equals (Baby Come Back). Go back a decade, as Serpenteens' doo-wop their unholy matrimony to "Zombie Bride." There's a killer gold-rush trip to "Hell California" on the spaghetti western tip. The rest of the disc is a fine mixture of Sabbath and Misfits featuring graciously round guitar work with thick outlines like comic strips, satisfying driving rhythms, and sneaky melodies. Did I mention great soaring harmonies? Hands off my copy. Get your own. (www.bloodandgutsrecords.com)

Kicking it since 1995, New York band The Serpenteens are a horror fuelled combination of horror lyrics and simple pop melodies that come together to create what they describe as 'Monster Pop' and it's great fun. In a scene where kids are eating up acts like Wednesday 13 and other horror influenced bands, The Serpenteens are a great addition to the fold and they've probably been doing it longer and better than most of the bands out there too. They have a great ability to drop great fun chorus'which instantly drill themselves into your skull and have you hooked by the second verse. Just check out 'X-ray Eyes' or the brooding 'Hell California' for just two of their instant blood fuelled classics. What gives these zombie loving rockers their own style though are their great fifties swing anthems such as '(Please Be My) Zombie Bride' which reminds me of early KISS when they had fun with tunes like 'Then She Kissed Me' back in the seventies. Anyone with a love of horror movies and good, fun rock and roll in the mould of early Alice Cooper, The Misfits and the mighty KISS right through to the current crop of horror rock bands should check out these monster music merchants!

The Serpenteens started 1995 as a two-man-project. They expanded ten years later with 2 additional band-members. The first 4-track-demo of the 2-man-band, which was promoted to the level of an "underground-hit" was called "Dead Men Walking". The New Yorker horror-rockers then had a follow-up CD with the same title and new songs as well as old ones with improved quality. Now they have a contract with Blood And Guts Records and are distributed by Cargo Music. The 12 songs are all catchy and melodic. After you hear them twice you will be able to sing along. The lyrics are blackly (dismal, dire, dready, frowning...?)and the subject matter is on diverse horror-movies or figures. The voice of Gee Grant comes across as convincing and coherent (harmonious?). In mid-October the SERPENTEENS will play with BLITZKID before they will travel back to Germany. Next year I would like to see both bands together in concert. That would be awesome and would be a great match. Conclusion: cooler horror-rock, which allows for different influences. I am positive about this and look forward to a gig in my neighborhood. Play-tips: "Silver Bullet" "Death Tripping!" "Hell California" "Satana" "More Than Human"