SPOT – Misfits-EP

Artist: SPOT

Title: In The Night of the Living Dead When All Hell Breaks Loose Hate Breeders and Astro Zombies Turned Me Into a Martian With Twenty Eyes in My Skull (aka Misfits-EP)

Year: 2005

Release: EP / Digital

I feel like I need to start this review with a disclaimer: I’m neither a fan of the band (or should I say ‘brand’?) called Misfits, nor of anything horror-punk related. But whatever I may think of them, the band has had a lasting impression on hardcore punk music that’s still haunting us four decades later.

The Misfits have inspired bands from nearly every corner of the underground and mainstream rock music scene. From My Chemical Romance to AFI, Senses Fail and Saves The Day, and from Metallica to Sick of It All, Earth Crisis, Snapcase, 108, and even Refused, innumerable bands have paid their tribute with passionate covers of Misfits classics. Therefore, in the spirit of Halloween, this piece is a time travel through Bulgaria in an attempt to unearth a Misfits covers EP you probably haven’t heard about (I guess even many Bulgarians haven’t paid much attention to that one).

In October 1982, Misfits recorded their infamous Spot Session demos at Unicorn Studio in Santa Monica, CA, apparently right after playing a gig, starting at midnight and having to be done recording by 6 am. Fast forward to 2005, a Bulgarian skate punk band called Spot (often capitalized as SPOT) recorded a session with Misfits covers in a single take, because why not?

The band formed as Counterfit in the mid ’90s by a bunch of skaters in the northern border town of Ruse on the Danube river. Somewhere along the way they changed their name to SPOT and started playing energetic punk-rock with great socio-political lyrics and a huge influence by bands like Good Riddance, Propagandhi, and Millencolin. SPOT were among the first local bands I heard when I was around 13 or 14, and also one of the first bands to be featured on DIY Conspiracy when the site launched.

By the time of recording these Misfits covers, SPOT have already released two albums, namely The Ultimate Guide Of Modern Dancing (2003) and Waiting For The Inevitable (2004), as well the ultimate Bulgarian pop-punk classic, their 4-Way Split with the bands Maniacal Pictures, Plastic Bo. and Crowfish. Now, as I’m not a huge fan of the New Jersey’s horror-punk classics I can’t say much about the Misfits covers as such, but I was really impressed by the catchiness of SPOT’s sound, and I still am today. Although cover versions, these songs capture all the energy of a band like SPOT. It’s fast, melodic and anthemic skate punk at its best. Take a listen and let all hell break loose… Happy Halloween! 🎃 🧟 👻 🧡 🕷

Source: diyconspiracy.net