With the pending release of the bands new album (Choose Your Scare, the review of which you can check out here) I thought it was about time I did the first deep dive into a band's past discography, something I will be doing more of in future - and there are few better bands to do that with than Rise From Your Grave. Sporting an inspired choice of a name (and throwing up memories of the classic Sega arcade game Altered Beast alongside the band's frequent referencing to classic horror video gaming), consistently excellent artwork and most importantly some great horror punk, a proper look at what is a very respectable - and pretty extensive - back catalogue from a band that deserves the attention of any self respecting horror punk fan, was definitely due.
Rise From Your Grave hail from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and for a decade now have been releasing horror punk with a pronounced metal influence. Thematically there's plenty of cosmic horror monstrosities and a sense of dread running through their library, especially in their earlier releases, with plenty of other horror movies, literature and games popping up, especially in later releases. Vocalist Tom Gaffron, guitarist Brandon DeLanzo, bassist Adam Kephart and drummer Justin Fantuzzo combine horror punk harmonies with a thrash metal backbone, painting vivid aural pictures positively dripping with terror and unnerving atmosphere. Let's take a look at RFYG's releases through the years - I'll pre-warn that almost certainly I've missed some references through these releases, made some mistakes, probably repeat my words too often as I grapple from talking about games for over a decade to music, as a complete non-musician. Feel free to send corrections over to me!
The debut album from Rise From Your Grave delivers melodic horror punk (catchy songs, some woah-oh choruses to singalong too, fast and unrelenting punk rock) with a strong thrash metal flavour as it enters the world with dread-filled tales of the unknown, creatures of the depths and an unrelenting feeling of doom broken up by some pretty great horror punk. Right from the off there's a sense of terror built up with something rising in opener 'From the Depths', a crunching punk metal song built upon an Eldritch horror tale (which would be more fully developed in second album 'Feast of the Eye'). 'I AM' builds on the cosmic horror feel in it's retelling of Harlan Ellison's 'I Have No Mouth, But I must Scream', a mid-paced doomy, post-apocalyptic horror punk song which again manages to balance the memorable and fun song writing of the genre with something altogether more terrible. There's a definite Samhain/Danzig feel to proceedings, that post-Misfits period where the comic book horror gave way to something a bit more serious - the demonic spawn in 'Thirteen' (with it's Friday the 13th influence) or the pain and madness in 'Bloody Hands' (Hellraiser) are both great songs, the latter especially is instantly memorable and catchy in the best traditions of the genre, but both have a dark and foreboding sense about them.
'Legions of the Night' does that balancing act between dark metal and punk well, even with some woah-oh's thrown in it retains a menacing feel, and takes inspiration from the classic gaming franchise Castlevania in it's tale of gothic romance and revenge - the video game world makes an appearance again in 'The Hunt' which dips even further into the mythos of ancient deities with a retelling of the plot of Bloodborne. RFYG of course wear their video gaming inspirations for all to see, which is still uncommon amongst horror punk bands, and these are two great songs which meld their sources with a Lovecraftian feel. 'Scream, Evil!' is an altogether thrashier number with the same themes (based on The Outsider by HP Lovecraft) but still changes it up and retains a horror punk vibe. 'Silence' dials up the atmosphere and plunges you into the abyssal depths with an effective as hell instrumental setting up the closing song 'In The Water' which is a suitable one to end the album on, mixing up everything that has gone before with a thrashy horror punk metal tale of madness and incomprehensible fear based on the events of the classic Silent Hill 2.
Arise shows that you haven't got to go back into the realms of 50s nostalgia or sing about zombies and vampires all the time in this genre. Cosmic horror is often touched upon by horror punk bands, but Rise From Your Grave delves into the murky depths more than most, even when taking references from non-genre pieces there is an unmistakeable darkness to proceedings, and the blend of thrash metal horror punk works very effectively indeed.
There are a couple of bonus tracks (included on Spotify) - a cover of The Communist Neckties (a former punk band of vocalist Tom Gaffron) 'Maggot Breath' which is ace, and an acoustic version of I AM which somehow just enhances the unremitting dread.
Some more scene-setting narration gives way to 'The Answer', for me the standout track on the album. With concept-like releases individual tracks can often get lost in the wider story telling, and whilst 'The Answer' does the same mix of metal and horror punk, it's time changes, memorable chorus and powerful sound just come together for a really good song. The waters calm and you can take a breather with the next song 'As I Crumble' which slows things right down and delivers a gothic doom metal song that - whilst not horror punk - as part of this concept works well.
The epic 'Human Plague' is next up and brings back the horror punk feel whilst retaining the all-powerful metal sound, and the album closes with 'Let the Darkness Fall' and 'My World Undone', both of which up the doom again delivering dark punk metal which effectively close out both the record and the story that has been told.
The Feast of the Eye is an album which needs to be listened to from start to finish, preferably in a darkened room with the wind howling and the rain clawing at the window. The songs are still good but lose something of their impact when not taken as part of the whole - the Lovecraftian influence is omnipresent throughout the record, seeping into every pause and every lyric, and remains an uncommon theme in the horror punk world.
The fourth release from RFYG in just half a decade, The Silence Out of Hell is another trip into the dark and unfathomable depths of horror punk, although this time round things are a little different. The themes aren't all that different - as opening duo 'Leviathan' and 'The Deep' both dive once more into the cosmic, atmospheric horror the band had dealt in before - but the sound strips back a bit of the thrash influence. 'Leviathan' (based on The Fisherman novel by John Langan) for instance still has a metal edge, but this is just dark and twisted, and heavy, horror punk and this continues into the slower, brooding 'The Deep' (based on a novel of the same name by Nick Cutyer) which is an instantly memorable song. 'Crawling Inside' takes it's inspiration from the 2014 novel The Troop a tale of insect horror which bounds along on a punked up metal foundation of harmonies and melodic, enjoyable horror punk.
The upping of their horror punk game (and I mean that in the most traditional form of genre) is even more apparent in the infectious 'Hell House' (based on the novel by Richard Matheson, and another example of how fond RFYG are of dipping into the world of horror literature), a straight up banger of a song. There's still a metal influence but this is the band having fun, melodic, toe-tapping but hard hitting horror punk of the highest quality. 'Dunwich' is an altogether thrashier number which leans once more into the Lovecraft influence but still retains the energy and fun of a classic horror punk song, followed by 'Pieces of You' - which is a bittersweet sounding track very much in the style of the masters of second wave horror punk bands. It's a bit of a departure from the darkness the band are known for but shows the band can do the traditional sound just as well; it's highly enjoyable and any self-respecting genre fan will no doubt feel at home with drive-in's, dead lovers and - of course - the suggestion of an all-powerful 'something'. Indeed the song is part of a connected universe from the band ('The Lake') which features in later albums.
By now it's obvious that this isn't quite the same as the trilogy that came before it - 'Dead by Dawn' is a tremendous punk song, catchy as hell, barrelling along at some speed as the band take on Evil Dead. 'It's Me' is a similar tale - memorable, melodic horror punk with an injection of metallic venom and based on the Five Nights at Freddys game series. A trio of Silent Hill inspired songs follows - 'Withering Dreams' retains a certain cosmic-horror feel and sound, rattling along on a thrash-punk sound, whilst 'In The Water' is a re-recorded version of the song from the Arise album which has a more punk sound to it, but remains just as good as the original was, and the album closes with 'Back Home' (based on Silent Hill 3) which brings a little more dread and doom to proceedings whilst never losing the energy and pace the rest of the album brings. As someone who is a horror punk and video gaming fan I am ashamed to say I have never actually played Silent Hill - and so the references here went over my head (indeed as lots of references seem to - I definitely need to refresh my own horror knowledge I think!) but it's a cool concept to end the album tackling each of the original three games of the series. There is one more song here - the 'Restless Remix' of 'In The Water' is a straight up electro-goth-darkwave version of the song which is pretty good.
The Silence Out of Hell is the 'most' horror punk release from RFYG up to this point and certainly the most diverse in terms of horror themes covered. Because of that it may be more approachable for those who can't quite get on with the sheer heaviness and existential dread of the first three releases, but thankfully the band don't completely ditch that which made them rather unique.
Between their previous release and this, the band released a couple of singles - 'The Deep' is a different version than that which appeared on the album, sounding a bit rawer but nevertheless just as good, whilst a cover of the novelty Christmas song 'I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas' is about as far removed from their earlier themes as you can get, but is still a fun old punk metal cover.
We had to wait a few years before RFYG released their fifth 'proper' release but it was well worth the wait. Nine songs that do exactly what the title says - bringing a macabre collection of horrific tales to life/death with the bands signature mix of metal and punk, excellent song writing, and the more pronounced horror punk vibe that The Silence Out of Hell brought with it.
Album opener 'Ghosts In The Graveyard' is a gothic tale riding the horror punk melodies and atmospheric harmonies straight into your head. There's an old school horror vibe and the song sounds great, impossible not to be hooked immediately on a song that delivers a punchy horror punk sound with a pinch or two of metal influence, and the guest vocals of another excellent current band, Jason Payne of Arizona's Boogeyman, fellow purveyors of extremely well written horror stories within their song repertoire. 'Where Darkness Sleeps' wears the Thrash Metal element of the band with pride but there's plenty of 'woah-oh-oh's', excellent lyrics (inspired by Alan Wake, another video game that despite owning I haven't actually played much of!) and oodles of atmosphere. 'The King in Yellow' references the Robert W. Chambers book and once more shows the band's penchant for classic horror literature - the song is another quality thrashy punk track, and is followed by 'In Love With Evil' which returns to the sort of bittersweet territory that 'Pieces of You' did on the last album (and is set within the same band-created universe, The Lake, that that song was set in. It's classic horror punk but dripping with a sense of menace.
There's a trip into the world of cryptids and alien encounters in the next track, 'Phantom of Flatwoods', which references the infamous encounter with something in West Virginia back in the 50s. A rampaging horror punk number which despite the change of source inspiration somehow still fits in with that Lovecraftian influence quite well. This melding of different cultural references with the sense of dread continues into the extremely fun 'Run, There's Robots!' - b-movie sci-fi horror punk the band still paints that picture of something altogether unknown permeating their lyrics. 'WendiGo-Go' comes next and is a belter of a song - fast paced horror punk with a metal lining it's another example of taking a video game inspiration (Until Dawn in this case) and really tuning into the cosmic horror-elements. Just to reiterate that this album is wider in scope than earlier releases 'The Twilight Zone' is another excellent song and somewhat of a love letter to the classic series, with numerous references to a variety of different episodes included for fans.
The album closes with an acoustic reprise of 'Ghosts In The Graveyard' which is a rather mellow way to end things on - it's just as atmospheric and gothic as the original version. Taken as a whole, Tales of Terror really is rather excellent. Still steeped in Lovecraft, it's wider variety of source material means it's more approachable, the horror punk is just that little bit more punkier (whilst never losing the Thrash influence entirely) and the songs remain expertly crafted both musically and lyrically.
Several singles emerged between 'The Silence Out of Hell' and this release - the first was a 2021 redux of 'I AM' from their first album, which sounds slightly better than the original but isn't really all that necessary, whilst a year later came 'Fate' which touches on the band's usual themes as it delivers a punchy slice of melodic hardcore punk. The band reimagine old songs each time they gear up for a new album and this was the case with their 2022 version of 'Depths of Hell' which originally appeared on The Void EP. The song was an outlier on that release, but a damn good song and the 2022 version is marginally better.
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| Fate |
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| Depths of Hell (2022 Redux) |
'Hell House' comes next (originally from The Silence Out of Hell album) and hasn't changed a massive amount other than an improved production - it's still toe-tappingly great horror punk. 'It Cannot Be' (originally on The Feast of the Eye album, and taking lyrical inspiration from The Beast in the Cave by HP Lovecraft) is another song which has seemingly been 'punked' up from the original version, and I do like this version better. 'Bloody Hands' originally appeared on the Arise album but this time appears with a guest appearance from the always excellent David Phantom from Evelyn's Casket and continues the punking up - although to be fair the original was already pretty great melodic horror punk. 'Scream, Evil!' (also originally on Arise) had a real Samhain/Danzig-esque and thrashy quality to it originally and this version maintains much of that whilst once more upping the punk-quota slightly. Still a bloody good song.
'The Deep' is actually the third version of the song released after both a pre-album version and an appearance on The Silence Out of Hell, and is the best of the trio. Better production really works with what was always an underlying dramatic feel to the song, and the less raw sound just brings the song to life. 'It's Me' is another song from the band's fourth release and again benefits greatly from better production, a slightly less metal feel to the song and a delivery of what is, by now quickly becoming, the band's distinct horror punk style. 'One Last Breath' is another track from The Void EP and it retains it's breakneck hardcore punk speed and ferocity whilst greatly improving the production, giving more body to the sound which, in hindsight, did have an 'echoey' feel originally.
'Pieces of You' was a bit of a trad-horror-punk outlier in it's original form on The Silence Out of Hell but remains one of the very best songs RFYG have released - it's that tint of nostalgia, bittersweetness and tongue in cheek macabre humour, and this version again gives more depth to the sound. 'The Hunt (originally on Arise) feels slightly softer than it's first incarnation, but just as good, whilst 'Back Home' is another example of taking the more 'hollow' sound from The Silence Out of Hell and filling it out, but still retaining the sense of dread. Album closer 'As I Crumble' is better suited as a pace-changing, sombre end to the record than in it's original position on The Feast of the Eye - it still sounds like an alt-metal, post-grunge, gothic funeral song and works well as a slow ending to proceedings, but I think it maybe works better as part of the greater concept as originally intended (although it is based on A Short Stay in Hell by Steven L Peck).
Not quite a 'Best of' release (and I would personally say some of the band's best songs from previous releases aren't here), the album does feel like a rebirth, a reintroduction maybe to the band and what seems to be a shift away from outright doom and dread into more accessible - but still great - horror punk. If it's your first taste of RFYG then you'll be happy, but there's something to be said about the dark and oppressive feel of their earlier releases too.
(if you purchase the album you also get three more re-recorded songs - 'Depths of Hell', 'I AM' and 'In The Water'. The first two both saw 'redux' versions already released and remain strong songs in the band's library, whilst 'In The Water' originally appeared on Arise and appears here in extended form and following the same changes as the rest of the album. These tracks also appear on Spotify as 'Bonus Tracks from Hell').
Between The New Flesh Reborn and the previous years Tales of Terror, the band released several singles. First up was a mid-paced horror punk cover of the eternal classic 'Monster Mash'; not the first band to cover the song of course, but this is the band having fun and worth a listen. Building up to The New Flesh Reborn saw a trio of singles released from the album - 'The Creature', the version of 'Bloody Hands' with David Phantom and 'It's Me' were all strong showcases of what the full length would bring and yet again, can't complain when you get new RFYG cover artwork!
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| Bonus Tracks from Hell |
Thirteen + Ghosts in the Graveyard (Singles)
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