Glenn Danzig is a giant. Not literally – he’s 5ft 3 in his bare feet. But he is a towering influence on today’s alternative culture.
Where punk, metal and hardcore meet with horror films, comics and the dark arts stands Glenn Danzig. Demon, demagogue, demigod, megalomaniac, punk primadonna, Napoleonic angry little man – from the late 70s with Misfits through the Samhain/Danzig career peak of the late 80s/90s, everyone had an opinion on the man. Today he still evinces a response from all-comers, whether it’s his political conspiracies or getting knocked out backstage by a member of a support band.
YouTube was made for those who can’t decide whether we love or hate Glenn Danzig but know we can’t get enough of him. It’s not hard to see why. Watch footage of him through the ages and Danzig consistently cuts a charismatic figure, all gym-buff pecs, steely stares and tantrums.
He’s a wide-necked, pouting warrior. A man who always appeared as if he were impatiently waiting for the rest of the imbecilic world to catch up. He is the man Metallica look up to and invite onstage, and his black velvet baritone croon remains as iconic-sounding as or Presley himself.
With Misfits he birthed the ghoulish horror/hardcore cross- over and his 1988 album, , was a punk/metal game-changer. The iconic video for Mother has had over 10 million online views and counting. His shadowy onstage demeanour and unpredictable behaviour made him the metal Jim Morrison, or more famously the Ev.
