Still voluntarily lost in the depths of a persona he first adopted at least 30 years ago, WEDNESDAY 13 knows exactly who he is. Pitch-black humor remains one of his most effective weapons, but in keeping with the darker, heavier spirit of his last few albums, “Mid Death Crisis” is also no laughing matter. The shift to a more overtly metallic sound on 2017’s “Condolences” was a master-stroke that continues to reap rewards, and WEDNESDAY‘s records now sound as gritty and hostile as the twisted horror flicks they plunder for inspiration. The essence of what he does remains the same, of course, but as time slithers on, WEDNESDAY 13 is getting nastier, and it suits him.
Always different, always the same. WEDNESDAY 13 has such a recognizable identity, both musically and visually, that it would have been easy for him to run out of ideas and descend into self-parody by now. Pleasingly, the opposite has happened, and he keeps finding new ways to bring nightmares to life. Although still rooted in the macabre metal of 2022’s “Horrifier”, “Mid Death Crisis” takes a stripped down and sleazy, punk-as-fuck approach, and the hooks leave deeper, dirtier scars as a result.
Let us not forget that this is all riotously entertaining, too. WEDNESDAY 13 might be carrying a chainsaw, but he is still a showman at heart, and “Mid Death Crisis” is full of the same singalong gems that have long been his stock-in-trade. Every song comes with a giant, rabble-rousing chorus, even if that song is also about chopping people’s heads off. Often drawing from the heavier end of the hair metal spectrum — that’s W.A.S.P. , TWISTED SISTER and, at a push, RATT — these are some of the snottiest and most infectious songs WEDNESDAY 13 has written in years. “Decease and Desist” kicks over the first gravestone, with muscular riffing and speed metal venom propelling everything along. Recent single “When The Devil Commands” summons the ghosts of ’80s censorship, marrying gleeful blasphemy with arena-ready cock rock. “Decapitation” is an insanely catchy song about chopping people’s heads off, and requires no further explanation, while “Xanaxtasy” is a genuinely unsettling paean to drowning in downers, set to a swaggering, Sunset Boulevard pulse. On slower, creepier songs like “In Misery” and “I Hurt You”, WEDNESDAY 13 becomes the antichrist of romantic leads, growling menacingly over spiky goth metal like some deranged, priapic agony uncle. In contrast, the closing “Sick and Violent” is a full-bore, street-punk assault that has a twinkle in its eye and a switchblade in its back pocket.
As much as WEDNESDAY 13 is a known quantity with a tightly defined musical identity, he is also a master of subtle reinvention. “Mid Death Crisis” is the latest episode in a compelling saga wherein one enigmatic ghoul remains hell-bent on reinventing the horror metal wheel, one crumpled, headless corpse at a time. The monster is real and still evolving. Scary shit.
Source: blabbermouth.net
