Review by Rachel Jablonski
I was in Iowa City tonight, first time there to check out the town. I thought I should find Gabe’s, a hole in the wall venue for shows, since I’m sure I will eventually end up there at some time or another. Though I knew I was in the general vicinity, I decided to ask the girl and two guys approaching me on the sidewalk for directions. “Excuse me,” I asked, “Could you tell me where Gabe’s is?” Without making eye contact and with little acknowledgement while walking right on by me the girl, probably in her early to mid 20’s, rudely replied, “It’s right down there where all the ugly kids are.” The comment very much annoyed me, who does she think she is? As I arrived at the venue I heard music, a show was going on. I walked into the venue, a complete dive but pretty big, as the show was coming to a close. The place was packed; the amount of show goers was impressive. I didn’t see any ugly kids however, just some kids supporting music.
It reminds me of a White Zombie shirt I used to have that read “Ugly Music for Ugly People.” The words, of course, can either be taken literally or rather as implying an idea of “dark music for dark people.” Either way the lightheartedness is humorous and appreciable. Along these same lines, displaying rock music and “ugly” lyrics, is Wednesday 13, a band “serious about not being serious” as their bio reads, that has a sincerely lighthearted aura.
Intertwining punk, rock, pieces from horror films, and catchy choruses, Wednesday 13’s Transylvania 90210: Songs of Death, Dying, and the Dead is an escape from horrors of reality, yet there is a reminder that these escapes are merely fictitious. The following audio recording contains songs of death, dying, and the dead. To avoid fainting keep reminding yourself it’s only a recording…are the words that begin the album after the initial sounds of static, chimes like church bells, the deep drowning of an organ, and fire and tornado alarm-like buzzes in “Post Mortem Boredom.” This intro transitions right into a heavy, guitar-driven song called “Look What the Bats Dragged In.” Complete with a fast paced tempo and even a guitar solo, the song immediately hints at the central part of Wednesday 13 – the consistent lyrical symbols of Halloween and horror films with words such as “cemeteries,” “dead,” ”zombies,” etc. contrasted with rock based, but lighthearted musical compositions.
One of the most playful songs on the album is “I Walked with a Zombie.” Vocalist Wednesday, also of Murderdolls fame, sings See you in the graveyard at midnight, such a horrifying delight, your ice-cold touch it feels so right, and just last night… before the very catchy chorus line I walked with a zombie… The song again uses monster-type lyrics in combination with a very punky, poppy sound. Vocally, Wednesday reminds me of a mixture of Whitfield Crane (Ugly Kid Joe/Medication) and Andrew W.K. and at times the presentation could be compared to that of Rob Zombie due to the nature of the ideology, “House by the Cemetery” has the most Rob Zombie feel of all the tracks.
In short, Transylvania 90210 is a feel good rock/punk album with monster movie-like descriptive lyrics and catchy tunes. The lightheartedness of the album is contagious whether the listener is “ugly" or not.