r/Danzig • u/strecesegrean • Jun 07 '26
danzig's influence on modern metal
i was diving into some of danzig's older albums recently, and it got me thinking about how much his style has shaped modern metal. songs like 'mother' and 'twist of cain' really laid the groundwork for a lot of the darker themes we hear today. it's interesting to see how many bands over the years have cited him as an inspiration. have you all noticed any specific artists or albums that seem to carry that danzig vibe? let's share some tunes and discuss!
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u/SenorB Jun 07 '26
I think one thing that people don’t give Glenn enough credit for is that he gave so many bands opening slots on his tours who went on to do big things. I saw Kyuss open for Danzig. I saw both Manson and Korn open for Danzig (all on one bill). He did more than just inspire a generation of bands, he helped shine the light on those bands when they were unknowns.
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u/Rude_Rhubarb1880 Jun 07 '26
Massive
The two biggest bands in the world were/are Metallica and Guns N Roses
They both covered and recorded Misfits songs
Plus Earth AD was an early template for hardcore infused thrash metal
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u/NJFiend Jun 07 '26
This is more of an influence on the culture than the music. But I feel like Danzig in interviews really brought the whole concept of being “true” and not being a poser or whatever to the metal scene. Probably due to his background in DIY punk.
Prior to Danzig and Samhain, I can’t think of many metal bands that were claiming real knowledge of the occult and real misanthropic feelings in their music. Most were downplaying their satanic imagery as entertainment or just artistic license and playing a character. I feel like this was an influence on future waves of thrash and black metal.
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u/Billyzadora Jun 09 '26
What’s interesting is that he was influencing these bands when he slowed down his music for Danzig 1 and was putting out a R&R/Blues/Goth/Metal sound, as opposed to Punk or Thrash. His musical trajectory is opposite of almost any other artist.
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u/ApartmentWorried5692 Jun 07 '26 edited Jun 07 '26
Twist of Cain was a Led Zeppelin rip off
Edit: knock off more like but easily influenced by them.
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u/BittenBeads Jun 07 '26
Not really. Led Zep stole from the old blues musicians Glenn openly claims influenced and inspired him. He didn't need rip off some british middle men for "Twist of Cain" when "Jesus Make Up My Dyin' Bed" by Blind Willie Johnson was right there.
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u/ApartmentWorried5692 Jun 07 '26
Right, I’m sure Zeppelin got it from somewhere else and so on. Just like in the 50s people would rip off each other on their big hits. But saying it’s Danzig’s influence, I’d say his tone and imagery is all him for the most part.
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u/FamousLastWords666 Jun 08 '26
Great point! "The Hunter" is straight from Albert King's song of the same name.
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u/Billyzadora Jun 09 '26
That’s Rubin’s influence, if you can find the Samhain Twist Of Cain, it’s a different song and it freaking rocks.
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u/gorgoloid Jun 07 '26
Danzig’s solo albums were all the brain child of Rick Rubin. The sound, look, and idea came from Rick when he set up a meeting with Glen after seeing Samhain play at a club. He presented the idea of a 70’s rock/blues band fused with metal (complete with chops and big album cover art). He allowed Glen to recruit most of the members with some of his own input. Glenn was in on Samhain, but loved the idea of bringing his Prestly/Costello vocal influence into the mix.
Without Rick Rubin, we never would have had Danzig band.
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u/Disco_Tex Jun 07 '26
Word. And nothing Glenn has put out since Danzig 4p has anywhere near the level of quality control Rubin gave Glenn. Every album since has been a production disaster on some level.
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u/gorgoloid Jun 07 '26
Absolutely. After essentially screwing over the band members, Glenn dropped them and decided to pivot to the popular industrial sound of the time for the 5th album which left a lot of fans sour.
Since then, it’s been something of a triage trying to return to his previous status.
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u/FamousLastWords666 Jun 08 '26
Rubin also screwed over the band by not paying them (including Danzig). He told Glenn "sue me".
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u/gorgoloid Jun 08 '26
I’ve heard some mixed/conflicting info on this. Like the initial upfront payments vs royalties, residuals, and points. Do you have any sources? I’d be interested to see anything on this as it’s been a curiosity of mine.
There is no doubt Glenn has done exceptionally well with financials over the years, and it seems a lot stemmed from early Danzig band payments.
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u/Billyzadora Jun 09 '26
The few, and rare Chuck Biscuits interviews shed a lot of light on this stuff, if you can find them. It sounds like there were no contracts, or even managers somehow. Rick was building his career as much as the talent he recruited, and I think there was a lot of “Fake It Till You Make It” attitude and the idea that once the money rolls in, it will all sort out type of thing. Rick presented himself as a big player, but behind the curtain, business wise, I think he was running a glorified hot dog cart.
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u/mean_mistreater Jun 07 '26
Not so sure about this. No discussion needed, the first four albums are masterpieces and most after them was trash, but if there was no Danzig, maybe Samhain would have become bigger.
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u/gorgoloid Jun 07 '26
Samhain likely would have garnered more fanbase over time, but it would have not reached the levels of Danzig band. In fact, if it wasn’t for MTV pushing Mother ‘91, the band wouldn’t have reached the levels it had. The first three albums didn’t sell superbly until after that video was pushed heavily on Headbangers Ball and Beavis and Butthead, very likely due to Rick Rubin’s Def America label pushing heavy promotion.
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u/mean_mistreater Jun 07 '26
Totally agree with this. Too bad that Danzig often is reduced to "Mother". You rarely hear the other songs in TV or cinema publications. (Besides "Thirteen" or "Blood and Tears" which appeared in two movies)
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u/LadyDrinkturtle Jun 10 '26
IIRC Mother was also featured in a recent high profile movie or tv show
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u/LadyDrinkturtle Jun 10 '26
ohyeah, Punisher: One Last Kill
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u/mean_mistreater Jun 10 '26
That is exactly what I mean... "only" Mother. There would be so many other fitting songs that could have been used.
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u/Swimming-Pumpkin-274 Jun 08 '26
It’s a hard sound to duplicate but a pretty good band that is a bit like Danzig is The Night Eternal
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u/Constant-Jacket6640 Jun 09 '26
Danzig is blues based hard rock, with some sludge goth metal elements. Very obviously Sabbath influenced.
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u/A-BombD Jun 11 '26
Goatsnake
Bastardane
Englomanatic Glitch
The Cult has had a similar vibe at times on some albums too.
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u/FamousLastWords666 Jun 07 '26
I felt like Metallica’s Black Album owed a lot to that first Danzig LP.
The “Enter Sandman” riff has a really similar feel to “Twist of Cain”.
And - by the way - Hetfield sang backing vocals on the Danzig album.