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The Undead

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For the 1957 movie, see The Undead (film). For other uses, see Undead (disambiguation).
The Undead
The Undead in 2014
The Undead in 2014
Background information
OriginNew Milford, New Jersey
GenresHorror punk, hardcore punk, New York hardcore
Years active1980–present
LabelsStiff, Post Mortem
MembersBobby Steele
(See #Lineups)
Past members(See #Lineups)

The Undead is an American horror punk band formed in October 1980 in New Milford, New Jersey by Bobby Steele (vocals and guitar), Chris "Jack" Natz (bass) and Patrick Blanck (drums). Steele (then of the Misfits) and Natz had been playing with drummer Richie Matalia as a side-project called The Skabs. When Matalia departed and Steele was fired from his main band the Misfits, the trio of Steele, Natz and Blanck formed The Undead.

History

The Undead live in Indianapolis, Indiana, 2000

They released their first EP, 9 Toes Later, in 1982. A few months later, Natz and Blanck left the band, replaced by Brian "Payne" Aliano on bass and Bobby Savage on drums. This lineup released the Verbal Abuse single in 1983. Steve Zing (of Mourning Noise and later Samhain) then took over as drummer. Between 1983 and 1986, Aliano and Zing performed with the band intermittently, while many other musicians played in The Undead for short periods. Aliano and Zing finally quit the band in December 1986. Since then, the band has not had a steady lineup. One-time bassist Inger Lorre went on to front The Nymphs.

The Undead have released numerous singles and EPs, but only three full-length studio albums: Act Your Rage (1989), Til Death (1998) and Dawn of the Undead (1991, 2006). The group went on hiatus from live performance between late 2002 and early 2006.

Return of The Undead

2006 saw a return of The Undead to the music scene with a lineup of Steele on guitar and vocals, Joel Gausten on drums and Joff Wilson on bass. They played CBGB on Saint Patrick's Day (also Steele's 50th birthday) as well as a free show at Tompkins Square Park in June of that year. September 2006 saw the remastered rerelease of Dawn of the Undead. Band profits were used to fund Steele's lawsuit against his landlord who allegedly ignored his demands to fix weather-related water damage to Steele's apartment. Wilson left the band in July 2007, and Gausten in September 2008 (the latter became involved in the experimental project Effectionhate).

The Undead recorded their own version of the infamous "lost" Misfits album, 12 Hits from Hell, and made the full recording available as a stream on the band's website on October 31, 2007. This release was quickly followed by a new single, a cover of the Misfits' "Halloween," on Germany's No Balls Records.

Former drummer Blanck (who later played in the bands Damage, Virus and The Blacksnakes) died on January 2, 2001 in a diving accident in the Dominican Republic. Ex-bassists Roxy Michaels and Olga de Volga died in 2005 and 2008, respectively. Original bassist Natz later played in Virus, The Blacksnakes and Cop Shoot Cop.

Steele released a solo album called Bobby in 2009. He reformed The Undead again in late 2012 with Paul Mauled (bass), Serial Bill Gotta (drums) (of The Bad Whoremoans) and Diana Steele (keys and vocals). In 2015, Boris was recruited to play drums. The band released the album "The Morgue... The Merrier" in October 2015.

Releases

Albums

  • Never Say Die - LP (1986); cassette (1987)
  • Act Your Rage - LP, cassette (1989)
  • Dawn of the Undead - LP, CD, cassette (1991); remastered CD (2006)
  • Live Slayer - LP, CD, cassette (1992)
  • The Undead - Cassette (1995)
  • Til Death - LP, CD (1998)
  • Still The Undead After All These Years - CD (2007)
  • 12 Hits from Hell - Uncovered - digital-only (2007)
  • Bobby (aka Bobby Steele) - CD (2009)
  • The Morgue... The Merrier - CD (2015)

EPs

  • 9 Toes Later - 7" EP (1982)
  • Slave to Fashion - 12" EP (1992)
  • Times Square - split 7" EP (2000)
  • Third World U S A - 4-song EP(2002)
  • Rockn'Roll Whore - 4-song EP (2002)
  • Be My Ghoul Tonight - 4-song EP (2003)
  • I Made a Monster - 3-song EP (2009)

Singles

  • "Verbal Abuse" - 7" single (1983)
  • "Never Say Die" - 7" single (1985)
  • "Invisible Man" - 7" single (1992)
  • "Evening of Desire" - 12" single (1992)
  • "There's a Riot in Tompkins Square" - 7" single (1993)
  • "Halloween" - 7" single (2007)

Lineups

Current lineup

  • Bobby Steele - guitar, vocals, bass (1980-current)
  • Paul Mauled - bass (2007, 2012-current)
  • Boris - drums (2015-current)
  • Diana Steele - keyboards, vocals (2014-current)

Former members

Guitarists

Bassists

  • Chris "Jack" Natz (1980–1982)
  • Brian "Payne" Aliano (on and off between 1982–1986)
  • Olga de Volga (1983)
  • Inger Lorre (1984)
  • John Fiore (1986)
  • Tom (1987)
  • West Rocker (1987, 1988)
  • Pete Lisa (1987)
  • Tim Taylor (1988–1990)
  • Rich Pressley (1990)
  • Jim Joyce (1990–1992)
  • Phil Portuesi (1993)
  • Brian (1993)
  • Anthony D'Amico (1993–1995)
  • Jay Von Hack (1996)
  • Will Harper (1997, 1998)
  • Greazy Tony (1998)
  • Mr. D (1998)
  • Ian Lawrence (on and off between 1998–2000)
  • Rahne Pistor (on and off between 1998–1999)
  • Bryce Bernius (on and off between 2000–2006)
  • Roxy Michaels (2002)
  • J~Sin Trioxin (2002)
  • Argyle Goolsby (2002)
  • Joff Wilson (2006–2007)
  • Hiromu C Yanagiya (2008–2011)
  • Zombie Alex Kopec (2010-2011)

Drummers

  • Patrick Blanck (1980–1982)
  • Bobby Savage (1982–1983)
  • Steve Zing (on and off between 1983–1986)
  • Robo (1983)
  • Vinnie Signorelli (1984)
  • Adolfo Galella (1986)
  • Rich Matalian (1986)
  • Stacey Morris (1987)
  • Tony DiLeo (1988–1989)
  • Eddie Enzyme (1989–1990)
  • Steve Sloppy (1990, see Sloppy Seconds)
  • Joe Darone (1990–1992)
  • Jeff O'Hara (1993, 1993–1994)
  • Ratty (1993)
  • John Rosado (1994–1995)
  • Atom Cheeze (1996)
  • Mormo Stinkbat (1997, 1998)
  • Sébastien DeChamplain (1998)
  • Gram Slam (on and off between 1998–1999)
  • James "Jaw" Alexander (1999–2000, see The American Plague)
  • Joey Image (2000–2002)
  • Angel Bartolotta (2001)
  • Billy Bones (2002)
  • Joel Gausten (1998–1999, 2002, 2006–2008)
  • Hitomi (2008–2010)
  • Serial Bill Gotta - drums (2010-2015)
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