Wednesday 13 – ‘Horrifier’ [Album Review]

It’s that time of year again when horror/punk icon Wednesday 13 emerges from his crypt and spooks the crap out of us with another slab of horror-drenched punk rock. Like everything else in Wednesday’s catalogue, Horrifier is a leave-your-brains at-the-door and prepare for an evening of shocks, screams and scares as the shock rock favourite provides the perfect soundtrack to your Halloween fun.

Like every good/bad horror movie, from the big Hollywood blockbusters to the bargain-basement b-movie classics, Horrifier ticks all the boxes. Right from the off, you know you’re in for a creepy, hide-behind-your-cushion kind of ride, which is exactly what we horror lovers demand from our frights. As with everything else Wednesday 13, the whole thing is wrapped up in that industrial/glam/punk rock splattered sound as the likes of “Exhume and Devour” and “You’re So Hideous” provide the perfect spooky musical treats on this splatter-platter.

Of course, the whole thing is over the top, but that’s the whole point. “Good Time To Be A Bad Guy” is Wednesday’s “No More Mr. Nice Guy,” but throughout Horrifier, there are plenty of other musical nods of appreciation to the Master of shock rock himself, Alice Cooper, while the artwork, the atmosphere and the attitude are pure B-movie horror fodder. All mixed together, you get an album that doesn’t take much effort on the part of the listener as Wednesday takes you on a scream-filled ride through “Hell is Coming” and “Halfway to the Grave.”

Despite a modern industrial, punk rock thump powering the soundtrack, the music, the aura, and the look of Horrifier still maintains that ’80s horror movie stench. Absolutely perfect for the time of year, what Horrifier lacks in originality, tracks like “Return to Haddonfield” and Wednesday’s own nod to Stephen King’s classic on “Christine: Fury In The Night” make this the ideal brain-devouring soundtrack for the month ahead.

Horrifier Track Listing:

1. Severed
2. Insides Out
3. Exhume And Devour
4. You’re So Hideous
5. Good Day To Be A Bad Guy
6. Return To Haddonfield
7. Horrifier
8. Hell Is Coming
9. Halfway To The Grave
10. Christine Fury In The Night
11. The Other Side

Run Time: 39:06
Release Date: October 7, 2022
Record Label: Napalm Records