Bride of the Devil

Album review

Wrapped up in a cover that pays homage to George A. Romero's Dawn of the Dead, Bride of the Devil, the 14th studio album from the Electric Six, arrived in time for Halloween 2018. And if it doesn't necessarily sound like it was created specifically with the spooky holiday in mind, it certainly fits well enough. With tunes like "Hades Ladies," "Witches Burning," "The Worm in the Wood," and the title cut, the band's traditional over-the-top energy and Dick Valentine's wildly melodramatic vocal style are put to good use in an effort to sound both sinister and rousing, and the band pulls it off in fine fashion. Bride of the Devil was produced by E6 keyboard man Christopher Tait (aka Tait Nucleus), so it's a bit of a surprise that it's the most guitar-centered album the band has made in quite some time. Most of the tunes are dominated by the six-string crunch generated by Da Ve and Johnny Na$hinal, and though this music is dance friendly in the traditional E6 manner, it also rocks hard and delivers a sweaty punch that's full-bodied and suitably wild. As that rare band that still believes in cranking out a new album every year, one could accuse Electric Six of having fallen into a bit of a formula with their anthemic tunes, grand-scale arrangements, and gloriously overstated lyrics, but one can just as easily chalk that up to having a distinctive style. And quality control is not a problem for this band; Bride of the Devil sounds as if the group sweated over it for many months, and both the songs and the performances possess the manic energy and stupidly clever/cleverly stupid outlook that E6 have elevated into an art form and a cottage industry. If you've been digging the Babylonian party train that is the Electric Six since they hit the scene with 2003's Fire, Bride of the Devil is an album that will reward your loyalty, and if the band has been off your radar in recent years, rest assured these songs will puzzle trick or treaters and go just great with spiked apple cider.
© Mark Deming /TiVo