Lo…. The menacing voice of an angel… or is she a demon? Nigh, it’s just the spook fest known as 45 Grave. They weren’t Goth, but they added something to that scene, they weren’t hard core, but they had some of that So Cal hardcore sound, mostly in the surf elements in the guitar, while it’s not to the obvious level of influence of Radio Birdman or Agent Orange, it’s in the sonic space also occupied by early Dead Kennedys and T.S.O.L… speaking of the True Sounds Of Liberty, 45 Grave also were not afraid of the electric Organ/ Key Boards giving them a garage rock feel at time. As with most of the best horror bands they were on their own weird lyrical trip, singing about the very real horror of child abuse and violence, but also not afraid to step up and do a punked out cover of Riboflavin… an obscure song in the vein of The Monster Mash (and I think that is the second bad pun I have made in this series of entries). Their first album Sleep in Safety has been reissues and includes their cover of Alice Coopers Schools Out as a bonus track. 45 Grave lead singer Dina Cancer is currently touring with a new line up of the band, and put on a good show, so if they come to your town it’s a good night out.
Speaking of a good night out, the next entry is gonna be: The Groovie Ghoulies
My Trusted MOGs
I was a senior in high school the weekend 45 Grave played 3 sold out dates at the Whiskey. They were my FAVORITE band at the time! They were metal, punk and garage all in one. Best fucking drummer (Don Bolles of the Germs) and of course Paul Cutler on guitar. I was editor of my school paper and did a review of the show I saw. I remember comparing Cutler to Alvin Lee and Bolles to Ian Pace. Hell Comes to Your House is a killer LA comp LP if you can find it.