Local Review: ZOMBIECOCK — Elegy

ZOMBIECOCK
Elegy
ZC RECORDS
Street: 07.15.2026
ZOMBIECOCK = The Misfits x NOFX 

Elegy is the latest album from SLC horror punk band ZOMBIECOCK. It is raw and driving punk that asks the question, “If Silent Hill 2 and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 had a love child, what would the soundtrack be like?”

I put on the album, and by the second track I want to throw on my Vans Sk8-His and ride to the (skate) spot and grab a six-pack (of beer) on the way. While not the most original sound of all time, it’s a tried-and-true combination of fuzzy, blown-out, distorted guitars, big and loud drums and in-your-face vocals that are catchy and will have you singing along before you realize you’re doing it.

The album opener sets the tone for the album with some field recordings, storm sounds and a touch of waterharp samples (look it up, it’s cool) reminiscent of a horror movie score. This leads into some big guitar chords and the vocal refrain, “sing with me this sweet energy, and we can live forever.” It’s catchy, it’s camp and it leads very nicely into what is probably the best song on the album, “Patient Zero.”

Galloping drums and a metallic leading guitar lead us into the first big drop of the album. CAUTION: When the cymbals and snares land after the intro, you will spontaneously mosh, wherever you happen to be. It’s a hooky track, and like all good punk songs, it doesn’t overstay its welcome.

The vocals, provided by Alex Hansen with backing vocals from Willie “Wolfbite” Hatton-Ward and Ryan Davies, do a lot of the heavy lifting with these tracks. The only problem is that the vocals, for a few of the songs in the meat of the album, are mixed a bit too far back to be intelligible. Yells and screams with big, sing-along choruses when they are in front of the mix are incredible and will transport you (or me in this instance) from your boring day job into the (mosh)pit.

The middle section of the album drags a bit for me. Some of the mix problems are most apparent here. I want to be clear that this is a small gripe. “Blackmoor,” “Witching Hour” and “Beelzebudz” are still ragers but could be brought a bit more back to life. Think “George A. Romero zombies vs Danny Boyle zombies.” Both are good, but one definitely seems more animated than the other. By the time the ripping solo on “Cash Grab” lands, we are back into the fray.

The instrumentation in some of these tracks, while solid, does lack a bit of range. The guitar tones on this album are reminiscent of that time in punk rock where the distortion tones stopped sounding like ass and started to sound beefy and full. I would never go so far as to call them metalcore but there is without a doubt a metal-esque tone to these tracks. I think most people will prefer this tone, although sometimes I do miss the thin but cutting tones of older punk guitar tones.

The lyrics and some of the backing vocals are the only elements of the album that feel horror-esque to me. In general, what I want from horror punk is to feel like the villain or the victim (both?) in a horror movie. It’s a tough sound to nail. Too many sonic horror movie references, aka church organs or theremin wobbly synth lines, and you dip into corny territory. Too little, and you sound like every other band. Nowhere on the album do they nail that feeling as hard as they do on “Iron Liver.” Spooky backing vocals bring back that horror movie camp feel that is missing from the middle section of the album. “Iron Liver,” ostensibly a drinking song, has what are my favorite parts of the ZOMBIECOCK sound. The riffage and vocal melodies make the track a standout for me.

The album closes out with “Back From the Dead,” a bonus track on the album. Composition credit is split between Willie Wolfbite and Clayton “Goose” Holyoak of “Every Time I Die” fame. A rager with catchy riffs and pummeling drums, the band sends off the album on a crazy high note. –JP

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