"Circle Of Snakes" is more or less a landmark in the discography of Danzig. The albums up til now have been tied together by a thematic concept which was finally closed with the release of "I Luciferi" in 2002. Now our dark Elvis is free to create anything he likes and does not have to link it to a certain sound or lyrical concept. This is the background history that leads up to album number eight, anno 2004. Line-up changes is something that we are used to by now but Glenn never had the intention of maintaining a solid line-up for the band but keep it as more of a solo project which is more or less what it is. He is the creative leader and he alone is the one who adds the unique Danzig atmosphere and sound to each album. If he suddenly was to invite other song writers to the band there would no longer be a Danzig. Who could classify Danzig and put the music into a specific genre? It's almost impossible and there is a reason for this.

For the recordings of "Circle Of Snakes", Danzig have welcomed back a long-time friend and former member of the band namely Prong's song writer and band leader Tommy Victor who handle the guitar duties. The rhythm section is now made up of Jerry Montano (Deadlights, Nothingface) on bass and Bevan Davies (Comes With The Fall, Jerry Cantrell) on drums. With this brand new line-up, which is debuting with this album, he maintains his strong ties with the punk and blues rock communities. The performances of his three band mates are flawless but there will be many different opinions regarding the production of this album. The reason is that Glenn himself has either decided to go for a rough and unpolished sound or simply didn't have or wish to spend the money on a more professional recording (it was in fact recorded at Paramount in Los Angeles so it can not be the studio). Some of you will probably hate the sound and some will love it. I find myself standing somewhere inbetween as usual. The somewhat muddy sound does adds a punky touch and if you like his work with The Misfits and Samhain you may enjoy that but in my opinion the bass in particular ruins some of the experience.

On to the actual music now. The album opens up with "Wotans Procession", a Wagner-esque intro that could be seen as a tribute to his European label home Regain Records and his new-found buddies Marduk, both located in Sweden. A worthy intro to a black metal album and a suitable beginning to what is definitely one of the darkest, heaviest and most sinister Danzig albums so far. While the basic riffs are generally rooted in metal and stoner rock, Glenn does not fail to let a more playful bluesy side of himself shine through in several songs. His own vocals, beyond imitation as always, add the final touch to make the album complete. It sounds, smells and looks like Danzig and there is no mistake about it - there is still only one king of darkness. There are many princes but only one king and who will be next in line to carry the crown only time will tell.

It is extremely difficult, in fact close to impossible, to pick one single item from this collected treasure that stands out as a finer example of Danzig's art than any other. There are however two tracks that stand out as notably different from the others. The first is of course the powerful and majestic intro. The second is the closing song "Black Angel White Angel" where he indulges in more melodic, traditional rock singing, with a surprisingly good result. I'm not saying that these are the best songs on the album, especially since I can't possible decide on that after having listened to the album several times, but they are the most different ones. Another man who deserves to be mentioned in this review is the cover artist Dorian Cleavenger who has done a wonderful job with the medusa-like figure on the front cover. He usually works for Glenn's comic book company Verotik. This is, in short, an album worthy of carrying the Danzig name.

written by Vincent Eldefors

Playing time: 42.21