Fort Wayne’s undead headbangers The Lurking Corpses have been haunting stages nearly 25 years. Combining Misfits/Samhain punk rock goth with some serious love for early ’80s thrash, along with severed head nods to Alice Cooper, Gwar, White Zombie, and Corman-esque B-movie schlock for good measure. 

But make no mistake, The Lurking Corpses rock in a very serious way.

With original members Lord Vladimir Von Ghoul and bassist The Nameless Horror leading the way, The Lurking Corpses have been reanimated after a 10-year rest with mostly new (dis)members. The follow-up to 2014’s great Workin’ for the Devil sees the Corpses do what they do best — making chugging punk/metal rock n’ roll that’s still got plenty of meat on the bone.

There’s not much more you need to know. You like horror? Punk rock? Thrash metal? B-movie theatrics? Rob Zombie’s horror film House of 1000 Corpses? Then you will love Lurking After Midnight — to death. 

This 15-song assault to the senses will satiate your blood lust. 

“Boglin Lips” comes screaming out of the gates like a literal bat out of hell, touches of black metal, thrash, and hardcore punk for good measure. “Burned Alive” gives off Danzig vibes in the best way possible. Lord Vladimir Von Ghoul gives Glenn a run for his money here. “Black Dahlia” swings with some serious undead swagger, laying firmly between doo-wop and an Ed Wood film. 

This album never relents, from the punk rock ferocity of “Murder Sweet Murder” to the Mercyful Fate-ish doom of “Satan Is Real,” while “The Begotten” lays down a chugging doom groove that doesn’t relent. “My Sweet Lenore” gives us a proper metal ballad to close things out with a nod to the great Edgar Allen Poe.

So raise a glass to the return of the great Lurking Corpses. Bang thy head, till thou can’t bang it anymore.