''Circle of Snakes'' is the eighth studio album by American heavy metal band Danzig. It was released on August 31, 2004. It is the first studio album by the band since their debut recording not to have a number incorporated into its title (though the debut has often since been retroactively called "Danzig 1").

Music and recording

''Circle of Snakes'' was recorded at Ocean Studios and Paramount Recording Studios, both based in California. As with the band's eponymous debut, ''Circle of Snakes'' features a somewhat stripped-down sound. For the recording of his vocals on ''Circle of Snakes'', Glenn Danzig sought out microphones that would give his vocals more bottom end. Danzig's vocals are less prominent on most songs; instead the guitars, bass and drums are at the top of the album's mix. The album also features a notably heavy guitar tone. ''Circle of Snakes'' marked the first Danzig recording to feature guitar work by

Tommy Victor Thomas M. Victor (born 1961/1962) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and producer. He is best known as the lead singer and guitarist for heavy metal band Prong, which he founded in New York City in 1986, as well as the guitarist for ...

Prong Prong or Prongs may refer to: * Prong, synonym of tine (structural), a branch or spike of various tools and natural objects * Prong (band), an American metal band * Prong (company), an iPhone accessories company in New York City * Prongs, British ...

. Victor had been an occasional touring member of the band since 1996.

Bevan Davies Bevan Davies is an American musician best known as the drummer for the groups Still Rain, Madfly, Comes with the Fall and Danzig while he is currently a member of MonstrO, a group he formed with former members of Bloodsimple and Torche. Prev ...

, previously a touring drummer for

Jerry Cantrell Jerry Fulton Cantrell Jr. (born March 18, 1966) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He is best known as the founder, lead guitarist, co-lead vocalist, and main songwriter of the rock band Alice in Chains. The band rose to internation ...

, also appears on the album. The album begins with "Wotans Procession", a

dirge A dirge ( la, dirige, naenia) is a somber song or lament expressing mourning or grief, such as would be appropriate for performance at a funeral. Often taking the form of a brief hymn, dirges are typically shorter and less meditative than elegi ...

-like instrumental track. The lyrics for the song "SkinCarver" suggest a serial killer with a fascination for human pelts. The song "Skull Forrest" originated from a dream experienced by Glenn Danzig, in which he walked "through a corridor full of bones and rotting corpses, and people's faces I knew." The track "1000 Devils Reign" is notably melodic amongst most other songs on ''Circle of Snakes''. It served as promotion for the album, finding airplay on the

Sirius Satellite Radio Sirius Satellite Radio was a satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Holdings. Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially lau ...

station Hard Attack. The track "Night, BeSodom" was originally tentatively titled "Devilsnight".

Reception

* ''

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

'' - "Glenn Danzig returns to his immediate post-Misfits roots with the stripped-down ''Circle of Snakes'', an 11-track chunk of brutality that forgoes the murky alt-metal and industrial meanderings that marred many of his mid-to-late-'90s offerings." * ''

KNAC KBUE (105.5 FM, "Que Buena 105.5/94.3 FM") is a commercial radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In te ...

'' - "''Circle of Snakes'' is a damn fine metallic rock record; and an excellent Danzig record. Label-changes, line-up changes, and time have not stopped this man from making great music." * ''antiMusic'' - "''Circle of Snakes'' is a heavy record. Everything you would want out of this band is here...From start to finish ''Circle of Snakes'' is full of ups and downs, darks and lights, but proves to be a completely satisfying album."

Music videos

A music video was released for the song "Circle of Snakes".

Track listing

All songs written by Glenn Danzig. # "Wotans Procession" – 2:23 # "SkinCarver" – 3:57 # "Circle of Snakes" – 3:07 # "1000 Devils Reign" – 3:47 # "Skull Forrest" – 5:06 # "HellMask" – 3:14 # "When We Were Dead" – 4:46 # "Night, BeSodom" – 3:28 # "My Darkness" – 4:21 # "NetherBound" – 3:41 # "Black Angel, White Angel" – 4:23

Credits

* Glenn Danzig – vocals, guitar, keyboards *

– drums * Jerry Montano – bass guitar *

– guitar

Charts

References

{{Authority control Danzig (band) albums 2004 albums Albums produced by Glenn Danzig