Review - The Magnetic Monsters - Wrong Side of Town

 

The Magnetic Monsters

Wrong Side of Town

Album, released October 11th 2025

There seems to be something stirring in the North East of England. Fast becoming a formidable location for up-and-coming UK Horror Punk bands (with both Hellbound Heist and Haddonwood also from the region), there's clearly something horrific blowing up to the area from the gothic paradise of Whitby, as here comes The Magnetic Monsters with a debut album to welcome in the spookiest of months. The Washington-based duo (Conor Dutson and Alexandra Duston-Mitchell) deliver 11 tracks of straight up Horror Punk with clear inspiration from the masters of the genre, whilst not being afraid of putting their own spin on things. I'd been following the band on social media for a while, eagerly awaiting this release - so how did it turn out?

First impressions are really good. Opening with the title track and it's 'we are the living, we are the living dead' refrain, it's a catchy, energetic horror punk song in the 'classic' mould (including a few woa-oh-oh's thrown in for good measure) with a gothic tinge. Good lyrics (provided by the band on their Bandcamp - always welcome!) and a great introduction to the band. There's a bit of a change up for second track Forbidden Planet, taking us into the sci-fi B-movie world with an ode to the classic movie of the same name. I'm duty bound to like any song with this subject matter due to it being my brothers favourite movie (along with They Live! - another film which receives it's fair share of much deserved love in horror punk), but this is a bit of a banger. Both members of the band share vocal duties throughout the album which certainly gives it a distinct sound without being jarring, and this is another song in the classic horror punk style which will get lodged in your brain. 

Black Water follows, the shortest track on the album, and is another high-octane song which ticks all the boxes for the discerning horror punk aficionado whilst not quite scaling the heights reached by the two opening songs. Dear Lucy changes the pace significantly, a slowed-down gothic tale taken straight from Dracula which still manages to retain enough of a horror punk feel to not change genres completely. Big fan of classic literature in the genre, rather than just depending on the horrors of the silver screen, and the song does a good job of capturing the atmosphere of Bram Stoker's classics and the numerous letters sent throughout the novel. Last Night, the next track, returns to speedy punk rock with a tale of zombies that is good, catchy, fun. As with most of the album, there's a lot of reliance on themes that are very familiar to any horror fan - that's not a criticism, that is part of the fun of the genre. Zombie songs are a must for any self-respecting horror punk band and this is a good one, demonstrating the strong lyric writing that is clearly a strength for the duo. Worth pointing out that the production for the album is generally pretty good as well. Whilst it's a DIY affair (never a bad thing), it's of a good quality, bar a few rougher patches

By the Light of the Moon takes things in a seemingly lycanthropic direction and ticks all the boxes again. Horror Punk is nothing without a good atmosphere being present and that is done well here, a rollicking, fast-paced punk track with just enough creepiness and lyrical hooks to be memorable and one of the best songs on the album. Talking of atmosphere, next track No Monster has it in abundance. The albums required Frankenstein song, the tolling bells, thunder cracking and generally creepy gothic opening definitely sets a Universal Monster feel early on before settling into being another catchy track of classic horror punk. If anything this is one song where slightly better production would be good - it'd also make a superb basis of a music video. 

War of the Worlds returns to the world of classic science-fiction (and literature), takes the pace down again, and injects a metallic sound into the process - and I mean that in the literal sense, like gigantic metallic tripods stomping around. It's a decent change of direction before Graveyard Shift - an ode to working nights - injects some more fun into the proceedings. As someone who works night shifts all year round, it's hard not to agree with the sentiments here - and anyone burdened with working the same will probably share that feeling. Both songs can't quite match the heights of the best songs on the album, but are decent - although both could do with some meatier production. 

Say My Name is the penultimate track; an ode to Beetlejuice which returns to energetic horror punk with plenty of hooks, whilst the bittersweet Hopscotch delivers a hauntingly lovely end to the record with it's inspiration taken from Corpse Bride. A double Tim Burton appreciation to see the album out (always a rich vein of content for the genre) and our time with the record is over.

The Magnetic Monsters have delivered an accomplished, catchy and very likeable horror punk album which draws heavily from classics of the genre but never outlives its welcome. Sure there is a little bit of roughness here and there, and a couple of songs won't quite linger in the memory as long as others, but it's a strong debut that deserves your time.

The Magnetic Monsters can be found on Bandcamp here, where this album can be purchased for a very reasonable £7. Support your local Horror Punk scene!

The band also have a Facebook and an Instagram, as well as a Youtube channel if you kids like that sort of thing. 

I've embedded the album below via the always evil Spotify (calling a website evil in a horror punk context possibly gives the wrong impression...). As always with this blog, I won't review anything I've not parted with my own money for - but if any band out there wants to send across any demos, pre-releases or anything else I'll happily receive them (and then buy them myself afterwards!). I can be reached on Instagram.