All Hallow's E.P.

Even though it's just four songs long, All Hallow’s Eve is a key part of the AFI chronology. This EP was the second release with guitarist Jade Puget, who incorporated new elements of post-punk and goth into AFI’s already well-honed brand of punk. Anchored by a cover of The Misfits’ “Halloween” (with The Misfits being a dominant influence on AFI and vocalist Davey Havok in particular), the mini-album expands on the eerie themes of Black Sails in the Sunset. “Totalimmortal” is a love song to the dead, as Havok sings that he “can hear the taunting of the voiceless ones.” “All Hallow’s Eve” functions as a rejoinder to “Halloween,” establishing its own vision of that cool October evening: “Deadened branches stirred by whispers in the wind/Fall children fill the streets at dusk/At last, it all will begin.” Like The Misfits, AFI has worn black and white makeup onstage to enhance the effect of its music, but AFI's correlation to that seminal punk band is more artistic. All Hallow’s Eve uses horror-movie imagery and high-octane pop music to create a vision of punk rock that's unexpectedly soulful.