From the same vaults that produced Orgy, the Faint, and Marilyn Manson, Californian quartet Death Valley High summon the hard rock spirits on their dance-friendly goth-industrial.
Their self-proclaimed "death disco" owes much to the late-'90s sound of those aforementioned makeup-loving groups, but Death Valley High were also influenced -- both sonically and aesthetically -- by post-punk like Joy Division and Bauhaus, industrial like Nine Inch Nails and Pigface, and punk like Black Flag and Samhain.
Formed in Sacramento by former Tinfed vocalist Reyka Osburn, drummer Adam Bannister, bassist Huffy Hafera, and founding guitarist Chris Sanders, DVH took its name by mixing Sweet Valley High and Tales from the Dark Side.
Their debut effort was released in 2007. The Similarities of the Loveless and the Undead unveiled their love for horror and spooky occult images, while the music leaned more toward the post-hardcore end of heaviness.
2011's follow-up, Doom, In Full Bloom, added the expanse and intensity of fellow Sacramento band Deftones (for whom Osburn helped co-write "Lucky You" in 2003).
After 2012's Survival Program EP, DVH unveiled Positive Euth. Their third album continued their sonic evolution, retaining their pop-leaning melodies and rhythm while increasing the focus on punk riffs.
A full embrace of that Orgy groove-goth sound was unveiled on 2016's CVLT [As FVK] (Minus Head). With new guitarist Daniel Ka$$hu, a reinvigorated DVH seized the industrial dance energy of their Wax Trax influences on singles like "Warm Bodies" and "Ick Switch." That year, they toured with major idols Killing Joke, Orgy, and Powerman 5000.
~ Neil Z. Yeung, Rovi