Static Age (found unreleased Misfits album; 1978)
This article has been tagged as NSFW due to its language.
The Misfits are a New Jersey punk band that was formed in February 1977 by vocalist Glenn Danzig, drummer Manny Martínez, bassist Jerry Only and guitarist Franché Coma. The band would go through many lineup changes before they released their debut album in 1982, Walk Among Us. Two albums were recorded prior, but went unreleased. Static Age bares the distinction of being the first album recorded by the Misfits in 1978.
Background
In January 1978, the then lineup of the Misfits, Glenn, Jerry, Franché and Dr. Jim (drummer) recorded what would be their first album Static Age in C.I. Studios in New York City, New York with producer Dave Achelis. At least seventeen songs were recorded in February 1978. Due to time constraints, only fourteen of these songs were properly mixed. Additionally, a few recordings were ruined during due to accidents in the studio; the tapes for "Feline Nursery" and "In the Doorway" were irreparably damaged. While "Feline Nursery" was re-recorded during another take under the name "Spinal Remains", "In the Doorway" was not re-recorded. The album ended up being shelved because the band couldn't find any record label that was interested in releasing it.[1]
Availability
Four songs from the album ("Bullet", "We Are 138", "Attitude", and "Hollywood Babylon") were self-released on Danzig's own Plan 9 label through the Bullet EP in June 1978. The same four tracks, alongside a remixed version of "Last Caress" would be released on another EP entitled Beware in January of 1980. On the "Horror Business" single released in June 1979, features a re-recored version of "Teenagers From Mars" on the B-Side.[2] A mixdown tape of the fourteen mixed songs was leaked in 1990 and became the source of low quality bootlegs at this time.
After the band broke up in October 1983, several more tracks from the Static Age sessions were gradually released through compilation albums. Legacy of Brutality (released September 1985) featured remixes of "Static Age", "TV Casualty", "Hybrid Moments", "Come Back", "Some Kinda Hate", "Theme for a Jackal", and "Angelfuck", alongside the newly released tracks "Spinal Remains" and "She". These tracks were overdubbed with much of the original instrumentation replaced.[3][4] Various Static Age tracks appeared across Collection and Collection II, the latter of which introduced the song "Return of the Fly" when released on November 14th, 1995.
Formal Release
Before the reformation of the Misfits in October 1995, Only took Danzig to court to make a settlement statement to get the rights and the original recordings to Static Age.[5] The settlement was a success and the remastering process had a rocky start when producer Tom Bejgrowicz and Minor Threat guitarist Lyle Preslar received the tape from the 1978 sessions, it was deteriorating and falling apart by it's aging process. They had to put the tape in the oven and bake it, just to save it awhile longer. As soon as they ran the tape through the remastering equipment and up on a hard drive, it completely dissolved.
The box set The Misfits was released on February 27th, 1996 and included the album as it was originally mixed in 1978 (complete with static sound effect intro and outro). The album got a standalone release on July 15th, 1997 with a few tweaks: the original static sound effect intro and outro were removed, and "She", "Spinal Remains", and "In the Doorway" were mixed by Bejgorwicz to match the original album and added as bonus tracks. "In the Doorway" was completed by splicing in an undamaged part of the tape over the affected areas. "Feline Nursery" remains lost, as does an alternate take of "Bullet" that bassist Jerry Only alluded to. Additionally, the CD contains an unlisted bonus track of various studio outtakes.
The album is still on print on both CD and vinyl LP and is also available online on iTunes/Apple Music and Spotify as of 2022.
Track Listing
Preferring to the original versions.
| # | Song Title | Status | Found Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Static Age | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 2 | TV Casualty | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 3 | Some Kinds Hate | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 4 | Last Caress | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 5 | Return Of The Fly | Found | Nov 14th, 1995 |
| 6 | Hybrid Moments | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 7 | We Are 138 | Found | Jun 1978 |
| 8 | Teenagers From Mars | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 9 | Come Back | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 10 | Angelfuck | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 11 | Hollywood Babylon | Found | Jun 1978 |
| 12 | Attitude | Found | Jun 1978 |
| 13 | Bullet | Found | Jun 1978 |
| 14 | Theme For A Jackal | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 15 | She | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 16 | Spinal Remains | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
| 17 | In The Doorway | Found | Feb 27th, 1996 |
The cover of the "Bulllet" EP in which four songs from the 1978 sessions appeared on.
The cover of the 1995 compilation album containing the songs from the "Bullet" EP and "Return Of The Fly."
The box set the contains the Static Age album.
External Links
- Discogs page for the Static Age Demo EP. Retrieved 13 Jan '21
- Discogs page for Static Age. Retrieved 13 Jan '21
- Spotify page for the album. Retrieved 13 Jan '21
- Apple Music page for the album. Retrieved 13 Jan '21
References
- ↑ https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/misfits-static-age/
- ↑ https://www.punknews.org/review/15153/the-misfits-static-age
- ↑ https://longreads.com/2020/05/19/shelved-the-misfitss-12-hits-from-hell/
- ↑ https://www.misfits.com/info/discography.html
- ↑ An article on Static Age and it's development. Retrieved 30 Jun '20