6. Venetian Snares, “She”: Trying to out-arch Danzig’s own archness was a novel approach that worked for Venetian Snares, the pseudonym of Canadian breakcore artist Aaron Funk. The orchestral swells and distorted vocals are disorienting—by the time you start to wrap your mind around it, the 104-second song is already over. From 2003’s Winter in the Belly of a Snake.
7. Dropkick Murphy, “Halloween”: If you thought the Misfits packed a lot into under two minutes on the original, check out this version from the Dropkick Murphys’ second singles collection, which does it all in about fifteen seconds less. It’s enough to get your heart pounding in a different way than Danzig intended. If their “Shipping Up To Boston” has become the theme song to St. Patrick’s Day, this should definitely get a spin every All Hallow’s Eve.
8. Atom and His Package, “Where Eagles Dare:” A sweet programmed beat and perfect snide-punk vocals from geek-rock king Adam Goren makes this one of the best ever. And it turns into a freakin’ polka at the end! On his self-titled debut, it’s now hard to find, but worth it. Closing with “You ain’t no baby, I’m a son of a bitch?” Priceless.
9. Doleful Lions, “Astro Zombies:” Hard to pick a favorite cover of “Astro Zombies”—everyone from the Dead Milkmen to the Ataris to Pennywise to Rob Crow’s Pinback have done stand-up versions. But I give the Lions the edge for sheer inventiveness—it’s basically a campfire version, complete with handclaps and sing-along chorus. And make no mistake, these songs (along with, of course, the Ramones) are the future campfire sing-alongs of the postpunk generation. From 2000’s Song Cyclops Volume Two.
10. Gee-Off, “Night of the Living Dead”: Other than this version of what in my opinion is the most underrated Misfits song, and Phineas and the Lonely Leaves’ crazy “Attitude,” I wasn’t a huge fan of the Acoustic A.D. tribute record (one of umpteen such Misfits tributes at this point). I can’t even figure out who Gee-Off are, or if they still exist. But I love how they did this one, detuning their guitars until they sound almost slack-key. There’s reverbed male/female “whoas” on the chorus, and unlike the original, you can understand every word of Danzig’s other zombie epic.
.The Best Misfits Cover Songs Ever
