Eerie Von is best known as the bassist for the legendary death rock band Samhain and the follow-up band Danzig. Before he became an integral piece in Glenn Danzig’s musical universe, Eerie was just another punk rock kid and die-hard Misfits fan growing up in New Jersey. His first band Rosemary’s Babies released their debut 40 years ago. It hasn’t been available in roughly two decades.
“I liked The Misfits before I started the band, and Glenn taught me how to press a record,” Eerie tells Decibel. “The guitar player recently passed away and I thought it would be nice for his family. I also found one track left off the last CD and put it back on.”
Sounds of Death has been remastered, expanded and received a beautiful vinyl reissue treatment from Last Hurrah Records. Decibel is streaming three choice pieces of horror business from the collection below. The limited edition 12-inch LP at 45 rpm features twenty-six songs including tracks from the original Blood Lust 7-inch released in 1983, the Talking to the Dead CD released in 2004, and the previously unreleased track “Sanctioned Violence.” Five hundred copies are available: 250 in half translucent blood red, half black, and 250 in solid black vinyl. Preorders are available here.
“That people still care about this stuff blows my mind,” says Eerie, who is now working on a follow to his well-received photography book Misery Obscura. “I had to start somewhere. I just wanted to make a record and learn to be in a band. I wanted to be a musician playing what I wanted to play. Back then there was nowhere to do this in New Jersey. I could have been in a wedding band making $2,500 a weekend. But nobody ever thought about making a living off this. It’s just what we wanted to do.”
