Danzig - How The Gods Kill
I embrace both my light and dark side… I definitely believe in a yin and yang, good and evil. My religion is a patchwork of whatever is real to me. If I can draw the strength to get through the day from something, that’s religion… I’m not trying to be preachy or tell people what to think.
“
| — | Glenn Danzig |
1992. Danzig III: How the Gods Kill
is the third album by band Danzig.
Eerie Von considers the album to be Danzig’s best, with the band at its peak and able to record most of the basic tracks for each song within a couple of takes.
John Christ noted how a lot of time was spent perfecting the guitar sounds for the album. For the quieter moments on the songs “Anything”, “Sistinas” and “How the Gods Kill”, Christ used a Strat guitar previously played by Jeff Beck.
The title song “How the Gods Kill” concerns a search for knowledge and an understanding of oneself. According to John Christ, “That was a real tricky song to write and record. It has so many level jumps and changes in the sound of the guitar. I had to go from a very soft section to a very loud section to an in-between section. If you listen closely, you can hear a hissing noise in the vocals in the intro because we were using a real noisy vocal preamp. We tried everything to get rid of it, but Glenn’s performance was so good that we decided to leave it - the mood was just right.”
The song “Sistinas” was written during a drum track recording session, as John Christ recalled: “We were in the studio recording drum tracks, and while we were on a break Glenn picked up my guitar and started getting an idea for a song. Then I came up with a little chorus part, and in about an hour or two we had the basic structure of the song. He wanted it to have a Roy Orbison type of vibe with some timpani and keyboards. We used an old Fender amp with a vibrato on it, and we cranked up the vibrato to get those really big chords - it was perfect for that song.
Blues legend Willie Dixon had agreed to guest on the track “Heart of the Devil”, but died before the recording session was scheduled.
The album’s cover is a 1976 painting called Meister und Margeritha (The Master and Margarita) by famous Swiss artist H. R. Giger.
Danzig III has more of everything, it’s heavier. One main thing one will notice is a difference in atmosphere, How the Gods Kill feels more decidedly sinister and evil with a lot of wide open parts for Glenn. this album is without his best work yet, its emotional and moody, but at the same time it has its moments of faster riffs and aggression.
It is a truly great album.
Glenn Danzig Eerie Von John Christ Chuck Biscuits
They’re right, this is a good one.
