Samhain Live 1984 at the Stardust Ballroom DVD (NR) +Movie Reviews

Tis the season for Samhain

Buckley666 | NYC | 08/30/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The only thing I can say after watching this classic Samhain set is (...)amazing." Don't expect a great edit or necessarily great camera work, but the footage is untouchable. We've all seen terrible live bootlegs floating around. Good thing the Samhain boxset released in '99 helped bring some quality Samhain footage to the fans. Now this is just the icing on the cake. Samhain live and raw. Upfront, closeup, sweat and all. If you were not lucky enough to be there, you will definately want to watch this.

Some really incredible live footage of Glenn Danzig circa '84 at the Stardust Ballroom in Hollywood, CA as well as killer footage of Eerie Von, Steve Zing, and Damien. They all look so young while you notice Glenn being the one behind the driving brutal force of Samahin. Hear Samhain play killer tracks from both "Initium" and "Unholy Passion." Also some old classics make it to the setlist such as "Die, Die My Darling" and "Horror Biz", Samhain style. Some classic moments as well where Glenn smiles and cracks a joke to the camera. And wait until you see the band go into "Archangel". Some of the best footage I have ever seen.

There is no question this will be a must for any Misfits - Samhain - Danzig fan.

(...)"

Completely blown away by this am i

D. Brockett | zipolite mexico | 12/09/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"of all the glenn danzig related bands SAMHAIN was always my favorite. more serious than the Misfits, and definitely less cock rock silliness than what DANZIG finally became (although the first danzig cd packs serious wallop, as i am sure you know) I swear if i would have had this in the late 80s when i lived and breathed this stuff, i would have thrice soiled my trousers . it is that bad ass.

i tried to watch this pretending like i had never seen or heard them before. it wasnt easy. i cant imagine what it must have been like for those who were there. The songs are awesome. the sound is pretty good by the third song. Some of the songs are so intense and tight that the hairs literally stood up on my arm. 'the hungry end', 'unholy passion' and 'black dream' are soulcrushing. 'the shift' is awesome but then eerie von totally screws up 'the howl' on the second verse. pitty too, because it started out SO GREAT! Steve Zing is the most amazing here. his enthusiasm for playing is awesome. he is totally into it. and his performance is flawless. I always thought that the coolest drumbeats ever were to be heard on INITIUM and UNHOLY PASSION records. Damien is perfect on the guitar. all those weird spooky chords. and damn, the man can downpick faster than anyone i have ever seen. Danzig's vocals are mostly pretty good here. he is intense, often seeming like he is barking rather than singing to the crowd. a great performance by him (not to mention a rare smile or two) on 'archangel' and then the last cut, 'moribund' rips you in two. SO good for the SAMHAIN freak."

Samhain the way they were meant to be: raw and powerful

N. Durham | Philadelphia, PA | 11/09/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This concert DVD captures Samhain at the Stardust Ballroom in 1984 (or is it 1985?), and as you can imagine, it catches them the way they were meant to be seen: raw and powerful. Yes, the audio and video quality aren't anything special, and yes, the cameramen take a while to find some safe ground, but underneath all that you get the godfather of ghoul rock Glenn Danzig and co. playing an incredible show that even includes some Misfits favorites. The biggest drawback is the DVD itself, which is bare bones and devoid of features besides the concert itself (which is less than an hour long), and considering the list price of the DVD you'd figure there would be some extras thrown in. That aside, for fans of Samhain, Danzig, or the Misfits, this is definitely worth picking up to see the band at their rawest and heaviest."

Got Anything Better?

D. Plank | Ft Worth, Tx United States | 10/23/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This DVD is supposedly the full show of an old video filmed by Flipside Magazine that floated around most of the late 80s and early 90s. As with all Flipside videos you get the idea that you are at the show, people bumping into the cameraman, sketchy inconsistent sound, random shots of the floor and ceiling etc. Despite all the flaws and problems with the DVD that the previous reviews retentively pointed out this DVD is a good watch. In some ways these imperfections lend the DVD an endearing quality...and if you have anything better then share it with the rest of us, if not..."

"Live 1984" Or Is It Really "Live 1985"? Who Really Cares!

doggiedogma | Mob Town USA | 10/10/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The cover of the DVD says "Live 1984" but the opening credit on the DVD reads "11/21/85". For some reason the makers of this DVD either have no editors or they never even watched the DVD. Therefore, you don't know if the cover date of '84 is right, or if the inside opening credit of 11/21/85 is correct. I'm going with the opening credit date of 11/21/85.

Regardless of not knowing the exact year of the show, this DVD is a fantastic document of a young Danzig post-Misfit and pre- solo. While the audio and picture quality are not superb, it is a pretty decent recording. The opening of the concert is very chaotic as the camera people are scurrying for position, and trying to avoid human missiles. It takes a few songs for the camera operators to find safe and clear spots for filming (2 cameras are used). The rest of the concert is nicely filmed.

The audio is pretty shabby in the beginning but gets cleaned up and sounds clear for the 2nd half. Danzig is hard to understand as he slurrs and grunts his words so this doesn't help matters. Also, the lights go out on the band twice during "Macabre", and at the end of the song Danzig yells at the lighting people, "Hey! Whoever is turning those f%cking lights off. Leave 'em on!" Then they play "Die, Die, My Darling", and the lights go off again right at the beginning of the song! But Danzig and crew don't flinch, and blister through this Misfit's classic as the crowd at the "Stardust" goes completely crazy! Danzig whips the audience into a raging frenzy of sweat soaked, churning flesh.

Watching this concert takes you back in time to the influential era of the 1980's when bands where taking music into new directions. Samhain and The Misfits were two ground-breaking bands from this period, and the lynchpin for both bands was Glenn Danzig. Helping to create and define a new style of metal that is just now being acknowledged and recognized as the template for current metal.

While there are flaws to this DVD, such as: 1) the barebones, no frills, "here's the DVD and only the DVD" packaging 2) the spotty audio and picture quality and 3) the short running time of 48min.; these are more than made up for by getting to witness a truely influential band and musician (Danzig) in their/his prime. The band is great, Danzig is fantastic, and the crowd is wild. A memorable and historic night luckily captured for all true music lovers to witness and enjoy.

But then again as Danzig points out to the crowd, "I've been told if you parked across the street your cars are being towed. But I don't care because I didn't park there."

"Go. Go. Go. Go. Go!"

"

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	Samhain - Live 1984 at the Stardust Ballroom Genres: Music Video & Concerts NR 2005 0hr 48min "Here it is, a moment in time, courtesy of Al Flipside who documented the first Samhain L.A. show at the now demolished Stardust Ballroom on Sunset in Hollywood. There is no overdubbing or audio correcting, just the raw ... more »live show in all of its pandemoni « less
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