In Defense of the '95 Misfits

Seeing as how the reformation of The Misfits in 1995 was probably more for financial reasons than anything else, I can understand why some people look at it with skepticism.  It's not exactly a secret that Danzig had far more success after the dissolution of the band than Jerry and Doyle, so it was bound to seem like a cash grab when after so many years it was announced that the band was coming back without Danzig at the helm.  You can't really defend the motives behind the band coming back, but that doesn't necessarily mean that the music they made wasn't worthwhile. It seems to have become hip to not like that era of the band but I can unabashedly say that I love it.

To clarify things, I have been a fan of this era of The Misfits for years upon years at this point but I have to admit that it took me quite a while before I actually got into them.  It was late into high school whenever I developed an interest in them, mainly through my buddy Travis, and my first year of college before I actually became obsessed with them.  This is important because you have to consider the fact that when I would look through the bins in a record store, I thought nothing of the fact that American Psycho was right beside Earth A.D. and I think it was this acceptance of both eras of the bands as something close to equal that makes me wonder why the second incarnation gets so much flack.  Of course now that the '95 era has gone the way of the original and we are left with what most people refer to as the Jerryfits I can understand a bit more. I shudder to think of some young kid wanting to get into the band and picking up Project 1950 or The Devil's Rain instead of one of the Collections of the original 7 inch records.  I'm sure this is what the hardcore fans of the original group were thinking when The Misfits came out with American Psycho, but to compare that music to what is passed as Misfits music now is insane to me.
It probably helps to not even think of them as the same band.  The original incarnation started as somewhat traditional punk rock with abstract and horrific lyrics and progressed into balls out hardcore that influenced the thrash metal movement.  Their status as one of the most important bands ever can't be denied, at least not in my eyes.  The reborn Misfits did away with the allegorical and satiric lyrical content that Danzig provided and were instead a metal-tinged punk rock outfit with fun songs paying tribute to horror films.  The original band did this too, but more often than not there was some subtext below the surface of Danzig's lyrics that the new group didn't bother with.  One could argue that that is what was wrong with the band but I personally don't always need political or social messages in my music and it's just fine for a band to play catchy songs about horror movies for me.
I've heard that Jerry asked Danzig to come back, but we all know how that went.  This left the band in need of a singer because who could imagine Jerry Only being the singer for The Misfits (see what I did there?).  They filled the slot with young Michale Graves, a then unknown, who IMO gave the new version the sound that sets them apart.

The fact that he doesn't sound like Danzig is what I like most about Michale and it's only on the track Day of the Dead, when he tries his best Danzig/Elvis-style vocals that I don't enjoy his delivery.  It's my understanding that Michale had already written the song Dig Up Her Bones prior to joining the band and I think it is safe to say that it is one of the stand outs of the American Psycho album and almost unquestionably the song that the '95 era Misfits are known for, so it is important to note his significance.  Michale's great vocals coupled with the catchy, somewhat heavier sound Doyle and new drummer Dr. Chud were going for work perfectly for me. It comes as no surprise to me that reportedly Jerry didn't like the heavier direction the boys were going in and tried to stifle it, casuing such gems as Dr. Phibes Rises Again and Devil Doll to not see light until the collection Cuts From the Crypt came out.  I can honestly say I love just about every song written during this period.  I even love the songs written as obvious attempts to cash in with then current movies like Tim Burton's Mars Attacks and Scream. 
I only feel compelled to write this because it annoys me to see what I feel is awesome music slagged off simply because it isn't what somebody expects.  The most annoying thing to me is when I hear that a lot of current horror punk bands don't like the '95 era.  To me it's very obvious that this era was very influential on the current horror punk movement and to me most of the current bands sound way more like the '95 Misfits than the Danzig era.  Sure,at one point it made sense to expect something akin to Last Caress or Skulls when you put on a Misfits record, but just because it doesn't sound exactly the same doesn't mean it isn't awesome.  The time when you should be surprised to not hear Danzig's voice when listening to a song by The Misfits is long gone and I feel the middle era band's music stands on it's own.