Ace & the Ragers

Ace and the Ragers is an American band from the Cleveland, Ohio suburb of Chagrin Falls. Their style is devoted to the Origins of rock and roll, but they may be more popularly known to their cult following for their part in the rockabilly and swing revivals of the late 1990s. Ace and the Ragers also played shows anonymously under the guise of The Moonglows or The Swordsmen.

Ace and the Ragers were formed in 1993 in response to the growing number of local North Coast area punk and hardcore bands enjoying success without the benefit of major label representation or promotion. Inspired by bands like the Ramones, the Ragers stormed onto the scene by adopting a fast, noisy, and raw set of favorites from the 50s, played to a frenetic punk beat. That first set list consisted of covers of Rock Around the Clock, Blue Suede Shoes, At The Hop, Teenager in Love and Splish Splash, all played several times each, about 2 hours after the band was actually formed, and without the benefit of ever having actually played together (or having ever played their specific instruments) before the first note of the first show. The original Rager lineup was Todd Nelson on drums, Jason Borkowski (Ace) on guitar and vocals, and Bryan McCleery on bass.

The Ragers were then called upon to join a budding circuit for a bunch of fun little multi-band hardcore shows. Those first shows happened at spontanious DIY hardcore "festivals" in the VFWs and basements of houses in unsuspecting neighborhoods. The highlight of these years was a 'spirited' winter formal dance at a penitentiary school. By then the Ragers' set list had grown to several hundred different songs.

The Ragers played around Ohio sparingly while each member pursued primary interests in the other bands (on other instruments) that they were currently involved in.

As the next few years went by, the Ragers' lineup shifted several times as they honed their sound, which by 1995 had evolved more towards a Bill Haley and Little Richard inspired Rock and Roll, including a shift from Fender Bass to String Bass for Bryan, a move from Drums to Sax for Todd, and the addition of Adam Buxton on Drums, Joe Ryan on Saxophone, and later a 15 year-old Mike Molnar on Guitar. Their sound evolved away from punk and more towards their R&B influences, like Roy Brown, Wynonie Harris, Big Joe Turner, and Louis Jordan, as well as the classic country/rockabilly-type acts coming out of Sun Studios in the 50s (Elvis, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee and company).

By 1996, the Ragers were developing a growing catalog of original material, and were headlining regular shows at such classic (and many now defunct) Cleveland venues as The Grog Shop, Peabody's Down Under, and The Euclid Tavern. Later gigs at The Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, The Agora and The Odeon would follow. In 1996, the Ragers recorded their first EP Alien Baby, which is now out of print and very rare. 1998 saw the release of their first studio album, Light This Sucker Up! which rose to #103 on the CMJ College Radio Top 200, and the follow-up release Ace and the Ragers Steal Your Girlfriend in 2000. All Ace and the Ragers records have been released on Bryan & Jason's own Pin-Up Records, based out of Chagrin Falls, Ohio, and distributed through Hepcat Records in Irvine, California. To date the Ragers have sold tens of tens of records worldwide.

Touring years

From 1998 through 1999, Ace and the Ragers all quit their day jobs and toured heavily throughout the Midwest, Deep South, Canada and the East Coast, playing around 150 shows in that 2 year time. The Ragers visited a number of cities in Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Missouri, Ontario, New York, Massachusetts, West Virginia, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina. But the coolest little city in America, as stated by Ace and the Ragers themselves, was a little town (that they visited whenever they could) in Central New York called Alfred.

Later years

In 2000 (after the van broke down), Ace and the Ragers began settling down and playing private gigs, society events, and large Northeast Ohio events. The band decided in 2000 to go on a hiatus, as Mike had left to go on tour with Ronnie Dawson and a later stint with The Bellfuries, Bryan got married, Todd moved to Las Vegas to pursue the casino lifestyle, Jason moved to California to galvanize his Rock and Roll positioning, and Joe moved to State College PA to pick up a couple of graduate degrees, including most recently his PHD in Material Sciences. In 2003, Craig, Todd and Bryan formed the Punk band Tough Guy. Jason, Mike, and Craig then reconvened in Austin, TX in 2004 to form The Reasons. Todd joined up (on drums) with The Capgun Cowboys later that same year.

Ace and the Ragers try to get together at least once a year for some sort of reunion show, usually around the Christmas or Blossom Time seasons. In 2005, the Ragers recorded their 4th full length album, this one live, which is (as of 2006) still unreleased and unnamed.

Discography

• Alien Baby (1996), Pin-Up Records
• Light This Sucker Up! (1998), Pin-Up Records
• Steal Your Girlfriend! (2000), Pin-Up Records
• Untitled Ace and the Ragers Live Project (2009) Pin-Up Records

Current members

As of 2006:

• Jason Borkowski - Guitar, Singer, Songwriter (founding member)
• Bryan McCleery - Bass, and later String Bass (founding member)
• Todd Nelson - Drums (originally), later Alto and Tenor Saxophone (founding member)
• Joe Ryan - Alto (and later Baritone) Saxophone
• Mike Molnar - Guitar
• Craig Ramsey - Drums

If you want to know more over Ace & the Ragers please visit their official website.

HorrorPops

HorrorPops are a Danish psychobilly band that formed in 1996. The band's sound is rooted in psychobilly, pop punk, rockabilly, and new wave.

Band founders Patricia Day and Kim Nekroman first met when Day's now-defunct band, the punk rock group Peanut Pump Gun, opened for Nekroman's psychobilly band, Nekromantix, at a festival in Cologne, Germany in 1996. Despite both belonging to the subculture scene of Copenhagen, Denmark, the two had never met before, but they became friends over their mutual interest in alternative music. The two would eventually marry.

Day and Nekroman decided to form a band where they could experiment with many genres outside of their normal bands, and decided to start by switching instruments. Nekroman taught Day how to play an upright bass, while she taught him how to play guitar. The two began auditioning for a drummer, with Nekromantix guitarist Peter Sandorff even being a possible choice. They eventually chose Niedermeier to drum, a friend of Day's and a member of the band Strawberry Slaughterhouse, and officially started HorrorPops in 1998. After touring for a while as a trio, the band recruited Niedermeier's old bandmate, Caz the Clash, as a second guitarist.

In 2000, Day recruited two friends, Mille and Kamilla Vanilla , co-workers at the body piercing shop she worked at to act as go-go dancers for the band's live show. The group also recorded a 7 song demo for use in a press kit, but it was somehow leaked to the public, and resulted in two of the group's singles becoming club hits in Denmark. The group spent the next few years touring Europe, until 2003, when they began recording 6 more demo tracks. During this time, Caz the Clash became a father and left the band to focus on parenting. He was replaced by another Strawberry Slaughterhouse member, Karsten. Hellcat Records, Tim Armstrong's (of Rancid) record label, decided to sign HorrorPops based on their demos. The band was able to release a vinyl single in September 2003, and began a U.S. headlining tour.

The band's first full-length album, Hell Yeah!, was released in February 2004, but problems with getting work visas resulted in the band having to cancel U.S. tour dates. The band was able to make up for this loss via an opening stint for the Offspring in Europe. Mille left the band a short while later to go back to school, and was replaced with Naomi. The band soon relocated from Denmark to Los Angeles, California. The band's second album, Bring It On!, was released on September 13, 2005. Their third album, released on February 5, 2008, is called Kiss Kiss Kill Kill.

Timeline

1996

Patricia's former band "Peanut Pump Gun" (indiepunk rock) was opening for Kim Nekroman's band "Nekromantix" (psychobilly) at the 1996 POPKOM in Cologne, Germany. Even though both bands were based in Copenhagen, Denmark neither of them had heard about each other before. The audience was a mix of psychobillies, punks and indierockers and the genre combination turned out to be a huge success. A few weeks after the show Patricia and Kim got together back in Copenhagen. Their mutual love for music like:"Blondie", "Depeche Mode" and "Siouxsie and the Banshees", Surf, Ska, Punk and Rock'n'Roll in general, led to the idea of forming a band with no commitment to any particular music style. They also wanted to do something that would take them out of the roles they already were known for and the first step towards that, was to swap instruments. Kim taught Patricia the basics on playing the upright bass and in return Patricia passed on to Kim from her guitar skills. Not long after, the duo were writing songs and a need for a drummer crept in.

1997/1998

After trying out different drummers suitable for the job (even Nekromantix guitarist Pete Sandorff auditioned), Patricia's long time friend Niedermeier (Strawberry Slaughterhouse) joined and "HorrorPops" was officially a band. After a bunch of shows as a trio the "HorrorPops" quickly achieved a cult status attracting a broad audience variety. Never afraid of trying out new things "HorrorPops" recruited a second guitarist "Caz the Clash from the north end of town " , Niedermeier's old band mate and Strawberry Slaughterhouse guitarist. The music came together and got a lot more aggressive.

1999/2000

The HorrorPops decided to bring in a couple of go-go dancers for their stage show, these being Day's co-workers, Mile and Kamila, when she had a job at a piercing shop. This was also the year HorrorPops recorded the album's first 7 songs (at Christiania's Ventura Recordings). These recordings, mainly intended for a band press kit when booking shows, were somehow copied and got multiplied all over the world. This led to the songs "Ghouls" and "Psychobitches outta Hell" becoming Copenhagen Club hits.
2001/2002

Mainly concentrating on live shows the HorrorPops built up a huge following and closed the year playing at the Legendary "Wild at Heart" club in Berlin, Germany.

2003

The demand for some kind of release motivated the HorrorPops to once again enter the Ventura Recording studio and lay down 6 more tracks. At this time Caz the Clash became a dad and he made the kid his priority........He got replaced by yet another Strawberry Slaughterhouse member Karsten. Hellcat Records were so impressed with the 13 songs and signed HorrorPops. A vinyl single containing "Ghouls" and "Psychobitches outta Hell" was released early September on Rancid Records and the full length album Hell Yeah got scheduled to hit the streets January 2004. With the single in hand HorrorPops ventured out on their first US tour as headliner for the "Aloha from hell tour" with 9 shows across California and Arizona. This also brought the first US interview to HorrorPops which happened to be with Vogue. With the band always finding humor in things and wanting to please 'the moms', HorrorPops ended up with a trendy and very funny article in Vogue. Later same year the band got a great preview of their upcoming show with Rancid in LA weekly and a fantastic show with Rancid and Tiger Army at the Wiltern, LA. This show brought HorrorPops out to a lot of new people.

2004

Hell Yeah! was released with a bang February 10; the interest in the band grew amazingly and when they did their release show at Amoeba Records, it was packed to everyone in HorrorPops surprise. HorrorPops was then supposed to follow up with a grand U.S. tour, but got stuck in immigration paperwork and had to cancel the whole tour. The Offspring was just about to head out on their month-long European tour and with a 3-day warning HorrorPops got offered the chance to join them as main support. Horrorpops played every night for audiences numbering between 5000 to 16000 people, they then continued with their own 1 1/2 month headline tour in Europe. Shortly after the European tour ended, HorrorPops returned to the states to play the Jimmy Kimmel show and a few California shows, but realizing the work that lay ahead and how time consuming the band had become, Mille had to leave the band to go back to school. Mille got replaced by another good friend of the band, Naomi, who was quickly renamed NoNo. HorrorPops started touring the states, first on Punks VS Psychos, then as main support for Lars Frederiksen and the Bastards and then back to Europe for another tour. One tour took over the next in 2004 and the band to loved every minute of it. HorrorPops also played in a movie called The Punk Rock Halocust and therefore made them more popular. Karsten had to leave the band; he met the love of his life and wanted to spend every minute with her which was kind of hard to do with the band's tour schedule. HorrorPops played around 110 shows in 2004 and went back to Los Angeles to start work on their second album. They played one last show for the year in West Hollywood to announce their new guitar player.

2005

The HorrorPops second album, Bring It On!, was released featuring new rhythm guitarist, Geoff Kresge.
2006

The HorrorPops spent most of 2006 touring Canada, Asia, Europe, and the States, including a Warped Tour stint.

2007

According to HorrorPops MySpace page, as of mid-February, the HorrorPops were in the studio recording their third album. The album is titled "Kiss Kiss Kill Kill" and has a release date of February 5, 2008. Leaving the band is rhythm guitarist Geoff Kresge . The band is now back to its original three-piece arrangement. Several smaller tours have been promised with dates already confirmed and advertised.

2008

The aforementioned album, "Kiss Kiss Kill Kill," was released on Feb. 5 2008 and they began a currently ongoing North American tour. They began the tour with an electric show in San Luis Obispo, CA, USA where they have a fairly loyal following, and are currently touring with two bands from Los Angeles, CA. Their opening bands include Rocket, which is an all girl band, and The Pink Spiders, a pop punk band. They are on Vans Warped Tour all summer. After the release of their 3rd album, Kiss Kiss Kill Kill, they began to have much larger of a fan base.

Current lineup

• Patricia Day - vocals, Upright Bass
• Kim Nekroman - Guitar
• Niedermeier - drums

Discography studio albums

Hell Yeah!	February 10, 2004	Hellcat/Epitaph
Bring It On!	September 9, 2005	Hellcat/Epitaph
Kiss Kiss Kill Kill	February 5, 2008	Hellcat/Epitaph

Discography EP's and singles

Ghouls/Psychobitches Outta Hell	September 2003	Rancid Records
MissTake (CD Single)		Hellcat/Epitaph Europe
MissTake (Picture Disc)		Hellcat/Epitaph Europe	Picturedisc Limited to 500 copies and 500 signed copies under pressing. Only sold on Tour

Music Video's

2004	Ghouls	Unknown Director	Hell Yeah!
	Miss Take	Justin Purser
2005	Where You Can't Follow	Matt Heckerling	Bring It On!
2008	Heading for the Disco?	Octavio Winkytiki	Kiss Kiss Kill Kill
	Boot To Boot	Unknown Director
	Horrorbeach Pt. 2	Octavio Winkytiki

For more information over HorrorPops please visit their website.

Psychobilly

Psychobilly is a fusion genre of rock music that mixes elements of punk rock, rockabilly, and other genres. It is one of several subgenres of rockabilly which also include thrashabilly, trashabilly, punkabilly, surfabilly, and gothabilly. Psychobilly is often characterized by lyrical references to science fiction, horror and exploitation films, violence, lurid sexuality, and other topics generally considered taboo, though often presented in a comedic or tongue-in-cheek fashion. It is often played with an upright double bass instead of the electric bass more common in modern rock music. Psychobilly gained underground popularity in Europe beginning in the early 1980s, but remained largely unknown in the United States until the late 1990s. Since then the success of several notable psychobilly bands has led to its mainstream popularity and attracted international attention to the genre.

The evolution of psychobilly as a genre is often described as having occurred in waves. The first wave occurred in Britain in the early 1980s, the second wave took place at the end of that decade and spread through the rest of Europe, and the third crested in the late 1990s with the genre finding international popularity.

Origins

In the mid- to late 1970s, as punk rock became popular, several rockabilly and garage rock bands appeared who would influence the development of psychobilly. The term "psychobilly" was first used in the lyrics to the country song "One Piece at a Time", written by Wayne Kemp for Johnny Cash, which was a Top 10 hit in the United States in 1976. The lyrics describe the construction of a "psychobilly Cadillac." The rock band The Cramps, who formed in Sacramento, California in 1972 and relocated to New York in 1975 where they became part of the city's thriving punk movement, appropriated the term from the Cash song and described their music as "psychobilly" and "rockabilly voodoo" on flyers advertising their concerts. The Cramps have since rejected the idea of being a part of a psychobilly subculture, noting that "We weren't even describing the music when we put 'psychobilly' on our old fliers; we were just using carny terms to drum up business. It wasn't meant as a style of music." Nevertheless, The Cramps, along with artists such as Screamin' Jay Hawkins, are considered important precursors to psychobilly. The Cramps' music was heavily informed by the sound and attitude of 1950s American rockabilly, and they recorded numerous covers of songs from the Sun Records catalog. Their 1979 album Songs the Lord Taught Us is considered influential to the formation of the psychobilly genre.

First wave in Britain

The Meteors, formed in South London in 1980, are considered the first verifiable psychobilly band. Their albums In Heaven (1981) and Wreckin' Crew (1983) are recognized as landmarks of the early years of the genre. The Meteors blended elements of punk rock, rockabilly, and horror film themes in their music. They also articulated psychobilly's apolitical stance, a reaction to the right- and left-wing political attitudes which divided British youth cultures. Fans of The Meteors, known as "the Crazies", are often attributed with inventing the style of slam dancing known as "wrecking", which became synonymous with the psychobilly movement. The short-lived Sharks, formed in Bristol in 1980, followed closely behind The Meteors with their influential album Phantom Rockers. Another significant British band were the Guana Batz, formed in Feltham, Middlesex in 1983. Their first album, 1985's Held Down to Vinyl at Last, has been described by Tiger Army frontman Nick 13 as "the most important release since the Meteors' first two albums."

The Klub Foot nightclub, opened in 1982 at the Clarendon Hotel in Hammersmith, served as a center for Britain's emerging psychobilly movement and hosted many bands associated with the style. Johnny Bowler of the Guana Batz describes the club as "the focal point for the whole psychobilly scene. You'd get people from all over at those gigs. It built the scene. Record labels like Nervous were there, signing bands all the time." A live compilation album entitled Stomping at the Klub Foot was released in 1984, documenting the club's scene and the bands who played there. At the same time psychobilly bands were forming elsewhere in Europe, such as Batmobile who emerged in the Netherlands in 1983, released their debut album in 1985, and soon began headlining at psychobilly festivals and at the Klub Foot.

Second wave in Europe

The second wave of psychobilly is noted as having begun with the 1986 release of British band Demented Are Go's debut album In Sickness & In Health. The genre soon spread throughout Europe, inspiring a number of new acts such as Mad Sin (formed in Germany in 1987) and the Nekromantix (formed in Denmark in 1989), who released the album Curse of the Coffin in 1991. The Quakes formed in Buffalo, New York in 1986, but had such difficulty building a following in their hometown that they moved to London the following year, where they released the album Voice of America in 1990. Another significant release of this era was the compilation album Rockabilly Psychosis and the Garage Disease, which acknowledged the genre's roots in rockabilly and garage rock.

The second-wave bands broadened the music's scope, with the introduction of new and diverse musical influences into the sound. Record labels such as Nervous and Crazy Love helped the genre to expand, although it still remained largely unnoticed in the United States, where the albums were poorly distributed and most psychobilly bands preferred to play weekenders than to tour. Nick 13 states that while other British youth trends such as scooter riding, the skinhead subculture, and 2 Tone ska crossed over to the United States during the 1980s, psychobilly did not. However, one American act that emulated the style was The Reverend Horton Heat, formed in Dallas, Texas in 1985. Their 1990 single "Psychobilly Freakout" helped introduce American audiences to the genre. The band was heavily inspired by The Cramps, and original Cramps members Lux Interior and Poison Ivy have both identified The Reverend Horton Heat as the latter-day rockabilly/psychobilly band most closely resembling the style and tone of The Cramps.

Third wave internationaly

The third wave of psychobilly began in the mid-1990s, with many acts incorporating influences from genres such as: hardcore punk, indie rock, heavy metal, new wave, goth rock, surf rock, country, and ska. Psychobilly became popular in the United States, particularly in southern California, where punk rock had thrived and remained popular since the 1970s. The area's large Latino community, which revered early rock and roll icons, also played a part, as did the popularity of bands like the horror-influenced Misfits and country/rockabilly-inspired Social Distortion, as well as a celebration of hot rod and motorcycle culture.

Tiger Army, formed in San Francisco in 1995, became the dominant American psychobilly act following the release of their 1999 self-titled debut. Their touring in support of the album helped to establish a foothold for psychobilly across the United States. Los Angeles-based Hellcat Records, run by Rancid's Tim Armstrong, became home to many psychobilly acts, including Tiger Army, Devil's Brigade and the Danish groups Nekromantix and HorrorPops, both of whom relocated to southern California in the early 2000s. Guana Batz members Pip Hancox and Johnny Bowler relocated there as well, moving to San Diego where they sometimes perform with Slim Jim Phantom of the Stray Cats under the name Guana Cats. Another notable California psychobilly band formed in the 1990s was The Chop Tops.

The genre remained vital in Europe, where new acts continued to appear. Asmodeus formed in Amsterdam in 1992, the same year the Kryptonix emerged in France, and the Godless Wicked Creeps formed in Denmark the following year. The Sharks re-formed in Britain, releasing the album Recreational Killer.

Battle of Ninjamanz formed in Japan in 1994 and Os Catalepticos formed in Brazil in 1996. Australian act The Living End formed in 1994 and scored a hit with the double single "Second Solution"/"Prisoner of Society" in 1998. It peaked for several weeks at #4 on the Australian charts and became the country's highest selling single of the decade. The Living End generally describe their style as "punkabilly" rather than psychobilly because they do not share the genre's fascination with horror imagery, though they do blend punk rock and rockabilly at fast tempos, use a double bass and share much the same fanbase as psychobilly.

Musical style

Musically, psychobilly is rooted primarily in two genres: late 1970s punk rock and 1950s American rockabilly. Tiger Army frontman Nick 13 explains: "The number-one misconception people have is that psychobilly is the same thing as rockabilly. Rockabilly is on the family tree, but it's a totally different sound and attitude." Psychobilly progenitors The Cramps acknowledge their music's deep roots in American blues, rhythm and blues, and traditional rock and roll.Alternative Press writer Ryan Downey notes that contemporary psychobilly also draws from other rock genres and subgenres: "Driven by the rhythmic pounding of a stand-up bass, the music swings with the snarl of punk rock while sometimes thrashing alongside speed metal or crashing headlong into country icon Hank Williams." Downey acknowledges that contemporary psychobilly's roots extend into 2 Tone ska, garage rock, hardcore punk, street punk and Oi!. Hilary Okun, publicist for Epitaph and Hellcat Records, notes: "The music appeals to fans of punk, indie, metal, new wave, goth, rockabilly, surf, [and] country." The influence of heavy metal on the psychobilly style resulted in the Nekromantix's 1994 album Brought Back to Life being nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of "Best Heavy Metal Album."

Psychobilly is commonly played with a simple guitar/bass/drum/vocal arrangement, with many bands consisting of only three members. Often the guitarist or bassist will be the lead vocalist, with few acts having a dedicated singer. An upright double bass is often used instead of the electric bass found in most rock bands. The use of the upright bass is influenced by 1950s rockabilly and rock and roll musicians. The bass is often played in the slap style, in which the player snaps the string by pulling it until it hits the fingerboard, or hits the strings against the fingerboard, which adds a high-pitched percussive "clack" or "slap" sound to the low-pitched notes.

Some acts have made their upright bass the centerpiece of their stage shows; some psychobilly musicians elaborately decorate their upright bass, such as Nekromantix frontman Kim Nekroman, whose "coffinbass" is in the shape of a coffin, with a headstock in the shape of a cross. Nekroman created his original "coffinbass" from an actual child-sized coffin, and has since designed new models to achieve better acoustics, as well as collapsibility for easier transportation. Another notable act to use a coffin-shaped bass is the Brazilian psychobilly band Os Catalepticos. HorrorPops frontwoman Patricia Day also uses an elaborately painted and decorated double bass.

The Cramps performed without a bass player in their early career, using two guitars instead. They did not add a bass guitar to their arrangement until 1986, and have used an electric bass since that time. Cramps guitarist/bassist Poison Ivy sees this as one of the distinctions that separate the band from the psychobilly movement: "I think psychobilly has evolved into a gamut of things... It seems to involve upright bass and playing songs extremely fast. That's certainly not what we do."
Lyrical style

Lyrically, psychobilly bands tend to favor topics and imagery drawn from horror and exploitation films, violence, lurid sexuality, and other taboo topics, usually presented in a comedic or tongue-in-cheek fashion reminiscent of the camp aesthetic. Most acts avoid "serious" subjects such as politics. Original psychobilly act The Meteors articulated a very apolitical stance to the scene, a reaction to the right- and left-wing political attitudes dividing British youth cultures of the late 1970s and early 1980s. This attitude has carried through later generations of psychobilly. Nekromantix frontman Kim Nekroman describes: "We are all different people and have different political views. Psychobilly is all about having fun. Politics is not fun and therefore has nothing to do with psychobilly!"

Fashion

Psychobilly musicians and fans often dress in styles that borrow from 1950s rockabilly and rock and roll, as well as 1970s punk fashions. Other aesthetic influences include the scooterboy and skinhead subcultures, although not all performers or fans choose to dress in these styles. Men often wear brothel creepers or Dr. Martens boots and shave their heads into high wedge-shaped pompadours or quiffs, military-style crops, or mohawks. The Sharks song "Take a Razor to Your Head" articulated the early psychobilly scene's code of dress, which was a reaction to the earlier British Teddy Boy movement: "When your Mom says you look really nice / When you're dressed up like a Ted / It's time to follow this cat's advice / Take a razor to your head". Women of the psychobilly subculture frequently model their fashions after B-grade horror films and hot rod culture. Tattoos are common among both sexes.

The Razorbacks

The Razorbacks were a Canadian rockabilly band that attained moderate national popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s. They made regular appearances on The Tommy Hunter Show on CBC during their popularity.

Discography

• Go to Town (1988)
• Live a Little (1989)

Matchbox

Matchbox is a British rockabilly band that formed in 1971 and is still active as of 2008.

Career

Formed in 1971 by Iain"Houndog"Terry,Fred Poke,Jimmie Redhead and Wiffle Smith(1).Since 1978, the line-up consists of Graham Fenton (lead vocalist), Steve Bloomfield (lead guitar, vocals) (ex The Count Four), Gordon Scott (rhythm guitar) (ex The Rocking Pneumonia, The Cruisers), Fred Poke (bass guitar) (ex Contraband), and Jimmy Redhead (drums) (ex The Cruisers, Contraband). The original line-up(2) was Wiffle Smith, Steve Bloomfield, Fred Poke, Wild Bob Burgos (drums) and Rusty Lupton on piano and rhythm guitar. Jimmy Redhead left in 1973. Smith left in 1977 and Lupton in 1978 to tour with Chuck Berry, and in came Gordon Scott (ex Cruisers) to cover for Rusty Lupton's departure. Rusty Lupton joined Cadillac to go on tour with Chuck Berry in 1978, after this tour Dick Callan then joined Matchbox on guitar, sax and violin untill approximately 1985, writing many of the band's B-sides.

The band's biggest hits include "Rockabilly Rebel" (Steve Bloomfield 1979), "Midnite Dynamos" (Steve Bloomfield 1980) and "Over The Rainbow" (adapted musical song, 1980). Their last Single "I Want Out" (Brian Hodgson/Ray Peters/Tony Colton 1983) from their album Crossed Line was produced together with Kirsty MacColl.

Band members 1971-2008:

• Line-up 1971-1975: Wiffle Smith, Iain "Houndog" Terry, Fred Poke and Jimmie Redhead(1)
• Line-up 1976-1977: Wiffle Smith, Steve Bloomfield, Fred Poke, Rusty Lupton and Wild Bob Burgos(2)
• Line-up 1977-1978: Steve Bloomfield, Fred Poke, Bob Burgos and Graham Fenton
• Line-up 1978-1980: Steve Bloomfield, Fred Poke, Graham Fenton, Gordon Scott Waters and Jimmie Redhead
• Line-up 1980-1981: Steve Bloomfield, Fred Poke, Graham Fenton, Gordon Scott, Jimmie Redhead and Dick Callan
• Line-up 1982-1985: Graham Fenton, Dick Callan, Jimmie Redhead, Gordon Scott and Brian Hodgson
• Line-up 1985-198?: Graham Fenton, Dick Callan, Jimmie Redhead, Brian Hodgson and Gerry Hogan

In 1989, Graham Fenton put together a band with Iain Terry, Bob Burgos, Howard Gadd and Greg Gadd. They called themselves Graham Fenton's Matchbox. They recorded six albums in the early 1990s. The original Matchbox line-up reformed in 1995. The band has been playing live all over Europe since their comeback, especially in Germany, France, Holland, Spain, Finland and Sweden. On occasions Iain Terry and Dave Dix are used as replacements for Bloomfield and Poke.

They have recorded only one album since their 1995 reunion.

Discography

• 1976 - Riders in the Sky
• 1978 - Settin' the Woods on Fire
• 1979 - Rockabilly Rebel(aka MATCHBOX)
• 1980 - Midnite Dynamos
• 1981 - Flying Colours
• 1982 - Crossed Line
• 1985 - Going Down Town
• 1998 - Comin`Home

If you want to know more over Matchbox please visit their own website.

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The Reverend Horton Heat

The Reverend Horton Heat is the stage name of Jim Heath, the bandleader of an American psychobilly trio from Dallas, Texas. Heath is a singer and songwriter, born in 1959 in Corpus Christi, Texas).

The group originally formed in 1985, playing its first gigs in Dallas's Deep Ellum neighborhood. Its current members are Jim "Reverend Horton" Heath on guitar and lead vocals, Jimbo Wallace on the upright bass, and Paul Simmons on drums. Through relentless touring and a manic stage show, they have established themselves as one of the most popular underground acts in America.

Their sound is self-described as "country-fed punkabilly." Their music is a mixture of country, punk, big band, swing, and rockabilly, all played loud and energetically with lyrics that are often very humorous, and they have achieved success within the genre and even in mainstream America, many of their songs being featured in video games and commercials.

Jim Heath played in a cover band called Southern Comfort with friends from W.B. Ray High School, his high school, before attending the University of Texas at Austin in the fall of 1977. At UT, he often entertained friends and dormmates and was often found playing in the stairwells at Moore-Hill Dormitory late into the night. Heath left school in the spring to join up with a touring cover band by the name of Sweetbriar. Three years later, former dormmate David Livingston, now in his senior year of school and at home visiting family, saw a familiar face on stage and reunited with Heath. David told Jim stories of the punk music scene in Austin and the acts playing at venues like Raul's and Club Foot. Once, while home on another visit, Livingston took Heath to a Dallas rock and roll venue, The Bijou, to see an act called The Cramps. After the show, a brawl between punks and rockers broke out in the parking lot. While Heath and Livingston escaped any involvement in the scuffle, Heath later claimed to have had an epiphany on that evening. Always a fan of blues and honky tonk, Heath returned the favor by taking Livingston and his wife to see The Blasters in Dallas at a venue known as the Hot Klub, starting his love for roots rock.

Heath had married a former bandmate from Sweetbriar, and together they had a child; they decided that the rock-and-roll lifestyle was over and that it was time to have real jobs. Around 1985, Heath was known as "Jim the Sound Guy" by those who frequented two warehouses that by night became music venues, Theater Gallery and The Prophet Bar. Heath used the old Sweetbriar PA system to earn extra money, running sound for bands such as the New Bohemians, End Over End, Shallow Reign and Three On A Hill. One night during a lull, Russell Hobbs, one of the original Deep Ellum visionaries and proprietors of these venues goaded him into getting up to play. He played alone, tearing through a version of "Folsom Prison Blues"; throughout the song, Hobbs hooted and shouted out, "Go Reverend."

Heath decided then and there to form a band and came up with the name Reverend Horton Heat, as an ode to Johnny Horton, using the shortened version of his last name, Heath. Soon, life on the road took its toll on the marriage, and his wife left with their child and dog. Jim's feelings upon the loss of his family are well documented in the song "Where In The Hell Did You go With My Toothbrush?" The Jimi Hendrix poster mentioned in the song was on the back of a door that Jim used for a practice room in the house he shared with his wife and child. The dog's name really was Smokey.

About this time, Livingston moved back from Oklahoma City, where he had lived since graduation. He began to book gigs for Heath and his new band, and they quickly won over the local music scene. They drew crowds to brand new music venues. Livingston continued to work with Reverend Horton Heat until 1989, when his own new family and day job required all of his attention, and Heath needed a real manager who could get him out on the road and into the studio. Jim and David remain close friends today, and a song that they co-wrote together back in the '80s, "Liquor, Beer and Wine," appeared on 1994's Liquor In The Front.

It was in the spring of 1989 that Jim Heath met and befriended Charles F. Reid Jr.(aka "Charlie Ray"). Initially a roadie for the band full time, his role was expanded to include the job of Booking Agent/Manager in the fall of 1989. Touring constantly throughout the Midwest and the West Coast, RHH quickly became a sellout act practically everywhere they played. In the fall of 1990 a bidding war ensued between Hollywood's XXX Records and Seattle's Sub Pop Records. After moving to Seattle to run The Vogue on 2nd Ave, Charlie Ray and attorney Barry Simons secured a two record deal with an option for three more, with Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman from Sub Pop. While present at the Reciprical Sound Sessions, which made up the majority of the debut album "Smoke'Em If You Got Em" and coordinating the photo shoot for the cover of the "The Full-Custom Gospel Sounds of the Reverend Horton Heat" with James Bland and routing the band to New York City for the "Psychobilly Freakout" video shoot, Reid's role as manager/booking agent came to an abrupt halt in April 1992. Immediately following Charlie Rays' firing from the band Jim hired Scott Weiss as his manager/booking agent, and Scott continues in that capacity.

Artistic and commercial success

While attracting a mostly cult audience, and having released almost a dozen studio albums, The Reverend's music has occasionally found its way into the main stream of American culture. "Big Red Rocket of Love" was used in a commercial for the Mazda Miata, and the instrumental which they often use to open their show, "Big Sky," was the music behind a commercial for Levi's jeans. A cover of the Guadalcanal Diary song "Watusi Rodeo" was in the Jim Carrey movie Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls. "Like a Rocket" (with altered lyrics) was chosen as the official Daytona 500 theme song for 2002. In 2005, the song "Eat Steak" was featured in television commercials for Boston Market, along with the song "Turkey Gotta Gobble" featured for Thanksgiving 2005. They were the theme band, with accompanying video, of the popular cartoon Johnny Bravo. "In Your Wildest Dreams" was also used in a commercial on the cable network, Showtime.

The song I Can't Surf was part of the soundtrack of the video game Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 3 published in 2001, and a slightly altered version of "Psychobilly Freakout" is featured in the game Guitar Hero II. "Psychobilly Freakout" was used on a commercial for Buell American Motorcycles. Their song "Baddest Of The Bad" is featured on the soundtrack to Tony Hawk's Proving Ground. The 1997 PC video game Redneck Rampage also includes two or their songs: "Wiggle Stick" and "Nurture my Pig!" The song Big Red Rocket of Love is also featured on the video game Motorstorm for the Playstation 3

Jim "Reverend Horton" Heath has a signature guitar from the Gretsch Guitar company, the 6120RHH. One of his favorite vintage guitars is a 1954 Gibson ES-175, which he rarely plays on the road since its wiring buzzes in certain venues. His favorite amplifier is the Fender Super Reverb.

Discography albums

• Smoke 'em if You Got 'em (1990)
• The Full Custom Gospel Sounds (1993)
• Liquor in the Front (1994)
• It's Martini Time (1996)
• Space Heater (1998)
• Spend a Night in the Box (2000)
• Lucky 7 (2002)
• Revival (2004)
• We Three Kings (2005)
• Laughin' and Cryin' with the Reverend Horton Heat (2009)

Discography collections

• Holy Roller (1999)
• 20th Century Masters - The Millennium Collection: The Best of The Reverend Horton Heat (2006)

Discography singles

• "Big Little Baby" (1988)
• "Psychobilly Freakout" (1990)
• "400 Bucks / Caliénte" (1994)
• "One Time For Me" (1994)
• "Lie Detector" (1998)
• "King" (1999)
• "It Was a Very Good Year" (2000)

DVD's

• Reverend Horton Heat: Live and in Color (2003)
• Reverend Horton Heat: Revival (2004)

Music Video's

• "Psychobilly Freakout" (Director: Michael Levine)
• "Wiggle Stick" (Director: David Roth)
• "One Time For Me" (Director: L.M. Talkington)
• "Jonny Quest/Stop That Pigeon" (Director: N/A)
• "Slow" (Director: Mike Drumm)
• "Lie Detector" (Director: Martian Nowak)

If you want to know more over the Reverend Horton Heat please visit there own official website.

The Meteors

The Meteors are a British psychobilly band formed in 1980. Originally from the United Kingdom, they are often credited with giving the psychobilly subgenre—which fuses punk rock with rockabilly—its distinctive sound and style. Though the origins of psychobilly are debated, The Meteors are the first band to self-identify as psychobilly, and are often credited with the distinction of being the only "pure" psychobilly band among fans of the subgenre.

Fans of the band (known as the World Wide Wrecking Crew (WWWC)) are known to use the slogan, "Only The Meteors are Pure Psychobilly," (often shortened to "OTMAPP")

The Meteors were started in 1980 by P. Paul Fenech (guitar and Vocals), Nigel Lewis (upright bass/electric bass) - later of The Tallboys, the Escalators, and the Zorchmen - see performance clip in "Trash on The Tube" feature on Youtube), and Mark Robertson (drums). Fenech and Lewis had played in rockabilly bands before, but left their former band, Raw Deal, in order to experiment with a new sound that mixed horror and science fiction lyrics with a punk rock-rockabillythe Cramps). This sound would later be called psychobilly. crossover (as distinct from the slower, psychedelic rockabilly sound of

The Meteors played their first show during Rockabilly Night at The Sparrow Hawk in north London, but after being heckled due to their cross between rockabilly and punk attitudes, decided to begin playing shows beyond just rockabilly clubs. They developed a loyal following known as "the Crazies, or Zorchmen" who invented their own dance style called "going mental," a cross between fighting, dancing and moshing. This would later be renamed "wrecking," and is still a staple of the psychobilly scene to this day. Coupled with Fenech's ritual of spitting (chicken) blood during performances, many clubs believed the band was dangerous and refused to book them. The band began playing at punk rock clubs alongside UK punk bands such as The Clash, The Damned and later Anti-Nowhere League and the UK Subs. However, unlike many punk bands, The Meteors would (and still very much do) insist that their shows be "a politics and religion free zone" in order to focus on having a good time instead of allowing disputes between fans to break out.

Due to their large cult following, The Meteors made a short film in late 1980 with comedian Keith Allen called Meteor Madness. It was released as a double feature with two-tone ska film Dance Craze in March 1981. The movie featured four songs, which made it onto the band's first vinyl single. In August 1981, the band were signed to Island Records and recorded their first full-length, In Heaven.

The Meteors have gone through many line-up changes since, with Fenech being the only original member today. The current line-up includes Simon Linden on bass and Wolfgang Hordemann (who, though not from the original line up, is the longest serving member by far after Fenech) on drums. They have 25 official albums, countless singles, and numerous re-issues and compilation appearances. They continue to record using their own recording studios (Fenech is a fully qualified sound engineer and producer) IN HEAVEN (based in an old church) and also MADDOG STUDIOS (a 58 metre high tower in Germany). These two studios are professional studios used by many bands from around the world. The Meteors have extensively toured Japan, Europe and Scandinavia, South America, and the middle east. At the time of writing, they have completed well over 5500 live shows (occasionally two per night).

P. Paul Fenech has also released six highly regarded solo albums and plays in many side projects including, the Legendary Raw Deal (rockabilly), The Surfing Dead (instrumental), Cherry and The Devil (rockabilly), The Outsiders (rockabilly). He is also a prolific and successful writer of horror film music and has written extensively for television and many other films (using a pseudonym). He is also a keen gardener and writes a weekly column under the pseudonym Percy Lupton. Nigel Lewis and Mark Robertson went on to play together in the Escalators, a psychedelic rock band which had minor success, then the Tallboys, a band best known for recording the song "Take a Walk" for the Return of the Living Dead soundtrack.

Discography singles

• 1981 Meteor Madness
• 1981 Radioactive Kid
• 1981 The Crazed
• 1981 Get Me To The World On Time (Clapham South Escalators)
• 1982 Island Of Lost Souls (Tall Boys)
• 1982 Mutant Rock (#4)
• 1982 Punky Party E.P. (Flexipop 25)
• 1983 Johnny Remember Me (UK Indie #2, UK Singles Chart #66)^[2]
• 1984 I’m Just A Dog (#3)
• 1985 Fire, Fire (#7)
• 1985 Bad Moon Rising (#6)
• 1986 Surf City (#8)
• 1987 Go Buddy Go (#15)
• 1987 Don’t Touch The Bang Bang Fruit (#31)
• 1988 Rawhide
• 1990 Somebody Put Something In My Drink
• 1991 Chainsaw Boogie (MCD)
• 1992 Who Do You Love? (MCD)
• 1994 Chainsaw Boogie
• 1994 Hell Ain’t Hot Enough (MCD)
• 1997 Slow Down You Grave Robbing Bastard (7" & Pic7")
• 2005 25 Years Anniversary (Picture Disc)
• 2007 Hymns for Hellbound
• 2009 Hell Train Rollin

12"

• 1981 The Meteors Meet Screaming Lord Sutch
• 1984 I’m Just A Dog
• 1985 Stampede
• 1985 Hogs & Cuties
• 1986 Wrecking Crew (Archive 4)
• 1986 Mutant Rock (#19)
• 1986 Surf City
• 1987 Go Buddy Go
• 1987 Don’t Touch The Bang Bang Fruit
• 1988 Somebody Put Something In My Drink
• 1988 Surfin’ On The Planet Zorch
• 1989 Please Don’t Touch
• 1991 Chainsaw Boogie

LP

• 1981 In Heaven
• 1983 Wreckin’ Crew (#1)
• 1984 Stampede (#6)
• 1985 The Curse Of The Mutants (#5)
• 1985 Monkey’s Breath (#4)
• 1986 Horrible Music For Horrible People by This Horrible Band (#5)
• 1986 Teenagers From Outer Space (#6)
• 1986 Sewertime Blues (#9)
• 1987 Don’t Touch The Bang Bang Fruit (#8)
• 1988 Only The Meteors Are Pure Psychobilly (#9)
• 1988 The Mutant Monkey And The Surfers From Zorch
• 1989 Undead, Unfriendly And Unstoppable
• 1991 Bad Moon Rising
• 1991 Madman Roll
• 1992 Demonopoly
• 1994 No Surrender (CD)
• 1995 Mental Instrumentals (CD)
• 1997 Bastard Sons Of A Rock’n’Roll Devil
• 1999 John Peel Sessions 1983–1985 (CD)
• 1999 The Meteors vs. The World
• 2001 Psycho Down!
• 2003 Psychobilly
• 2004 These Evil Things
• 2004 The Lost Album (CD)
• 2007 Hymns for the Hellbound
• 2009 Hell Train Rollin'

Live-records

• 1983 Live (#3)
• 1985 The Meteors Live (#19)
• 1986 Live II
• 1987 Live And Loud
• 1987 Night Of The Werewolf (#17)
• 1990 Live III
• 1991 Encores
• 1992 International Wreckers (CD)
• 1996 Welcome To The Wreckin’ Pit (CD)
• 1996 International Wreckers 2 (CD)
• 2000 Psychobilly Revolution (CD)
• 2002 The Final Conflict
• 2003 The Meteors From Beyond
• 2004 Hell In The Pacific (CD)