Psychobilly
Encyclopedia
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 advent of several notable psychobilly bands has led to its mainstream popularity and attracted international attention to the genre.
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.
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.
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.
'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.
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. Australia
n 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.
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 Brazil
ian 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."
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!"
and rock and roll
, as well as 1970s punk fashion
s. Other aesthetic influences include the scooterboy
and skinhead
subculture
s, although not all performers or fans choose to dress in these styles. Men often wear brothel creepers or Dr. Martens
boot
s and shave their heads into high wedge
-shaped pompadours
or quiff
s, 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 film
s and hot rod
culture. Tattoo
s are common among both sexes.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
that mixes elements of punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
, rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
, and other genres. It is one of several subgenres of rockabilly which also include thrashabilly, trashabilly, punkabilly, surfabilly and gothabilly
Gothabilly
Gothabilly , is one of several music and cultural subgenres of rockabilly. The name is a portmanteau word that combines gothic and rockabilly. The earliest known use of the word gothabilly was by The Cramps in the late 1970s, to describe their blend of somber, rockabilly-influenced punk rock...
. Psychobilly is often characterized by lyrical references to science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
, horror and exploitation films, violence
Violence
Violence is the use of physical force to apply a state to others contrary to their wishes. violence, while often a stand-alone issue, is often the culmination of other kinds of conflict, e.g...
, lurid sexuality
Human sexuality
Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
, and other topics generally considered taboo
Taboo
A taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any area of human activity or social custom that is sacred and or forbidden based on moral judgment, religious beliefs and or scientific consensus. Breaking the taboo is usually considered objectionable or abhorrent by society...
, though often presented in a comedic or tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...
fashion. It is often played with an upright double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
instead of the electric bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
more common in modern rock music. Psychobilly gained underground popularity in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
beginning in the early 1980s, but remained largely unknown in the United States until the late 1990s. Since then the advent of several notable psychobilly bands has led to its mainstream popularity and attracted international attention to the genre.
History
The evolution of psychobilly as a genre is often described as having occurred in waves. The first wave occurred in BritainUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
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
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
became popular, several rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
and garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
bands appeared who would influence the development of psychobilly. The term "psychobilly" was first used in the lyrics to the country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
song "One Piece at a Time
One Piece at a Time
"One Piece at a Time" is a humorous rockabilly song written by Wayne Kemp and recorded by Johnny Cash in 1976. It would be the last song performed by Cash to reach number one on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart.-Chart performance:-Plot:...
", written by Wayne Kemp for Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, which was a Top 10 hit in the United States in 1976. The lyrics describe the construction of a "psychobilly Cadillac." The rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band The Cramps
The Cramps
The Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
, who formed in Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
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
Flyer (pamphlet)
__notoc__A flyer or flier, also called a circular, handbill or leaflet, is a form of paper advertisement intended for wide distribution and typically posted or distributed in public place....
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
Carny
Carny or carnie is a slang term used in North America and, along with showie, in Australia for a carnival employee, as well as the language they employ...
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
Screamin' Jay Hawkins
Jalacy Hawkins , best known as Screamin' Jay Hawkins was an American musician, singer, and actor...
, 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
Sun Records
Sun Records is a record label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27, 1952.Founded by Sam Phillips, Sun Records was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash...
catalog. Their 1979 album Songs the Lord Taught Us
Songs the Lord Taught Us
Songs the Lord Taught Us is the debut studio album by the American garage punk band The Cramps. It was released in 1980 on Illegal Records.-Track listing:-Personnel:*Lux Interior - vocals*Poison Ivy Rorschach - guitar*Bryan Gregory - guitar...
is considered influential to the formation of the psychobilly genre.
First wave in Britain
The Meteors
The Meteors are an English psychobilly band formed in 1980. Originally from London, England, they are often credited with giving the psychobilly subgenre—which fuses punk rock with rockabilly—its distinctive sound and style...
, formed in South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...
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
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
themes in their music. They also articulated psychobilly's apolitical
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
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
Moshing
Moshing is a dance in which participants push or slam into each other. They also flail their limbs to breakdowns of hardcore punk and its sub-genres. It is most associated with aggressive music genres, such as hardcore punk and heavy metal...
known as "wrecking", which became synonymous with the psychobilly movement. The short-lived Sharks, formed in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
in 1980, followed closely behind The Meteors with their influential album Phantom Rockers. Another significant British band were the Guana Batz
Guana Batz
The Guana Batz are an English psychobilly band that was formed in 1982 in Feltham, Middlesex. It was one of the first psychobilly bands and is considered influential to its scene...
, formed in Feltham
Feltham
Feltham is a town in the London Borough of Hounslow, west London. It is located about west south west of central London at Charing Cross and from Heathrow Airport Central...
, Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
in 1983. Their first album, 1985's Held Down to Vinyl at Last, has been described by Tiger Army
Tiger Army
Tiger Army is an American psychobilly band that was formed in 1995 in Berkeley, California. Its constant member and lead song writer is Nick 13. The band have released a total of four studio albums.-History:...
frontman Nick 13
Nick 13
Nick 13 is the guitarist, vocalist, and main songwriter of psychobilly band Tiger Army as well as a solo artist in the Americana/Country genre....
as "the most important release since the Meteors' first two albums."
The Klub Foot
Klub Foot
The Klub Foot was a highly influential London nightclub in the Psychobilly scene of the early and mid 1980s.It was hosted at the Clarendon public house in Hammersmith until the pub was demolished as part of the redevelopment of Hammersmith Town Centre...
nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
, opened in 1982 at the Clarendon Hotel in Hammersmith
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is an urban centre in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in west London, England, in the United Kingdom, approximately five miles west of Charing Cross on the north bank of the River Thames...
, 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
Nervous Records
Nervous Records is a UK based rockabilly music independent record label. It was formed in 1979. Artists include Nekromantix, Restless, The Nervous Fellas, The Quakes and many more. The website sells CDs and mp3s. Nervous Records an independent record label based in the UK born out of years of DJ...
were there, signing bands all the time." A live compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
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
Batmobile (band)
Batmobile is a Dutch psychobilly band from Rotterdam and Breda that had its start in 1983. They are one of the best selling acts in psychobilly and they are the only psychobilly band that is still active in their original line up.-Band members:...
who emerged in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
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 GoDemented Are Go
Demented Are Go are a Welsh psychobilly band that was formed around 1982 in Cardiff. They were one of the earliest in the initial wave of bands to mix punk rock with rockabilly, and as a result, are considered to be highly influential to the psychobilly scene....
's debut album In Sickness & In Health
In Sickness & In Health
In Sickness & In Health is the debut album of Welsh psychobilly band Demented Are Go. It was originally released in 1986 on ID Records. The band did two interpretations of early Rock'n'Roll songs plus a cover-version of The Osmonds song "Crazy Horses"...
. The genre soon spread throughout Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, inspiring a number of new acts such as Mad Sin
Mad Sin
Mad Sin is a German psychobilly group that began in 1987.-Style:Mad Sin, formed in 1987, have been inspired by horror punk and B-movie, with a theatrical style. Without abandoning the psycho-horror lyrical content, their musical arrangements have widened to incorporate other variables...
(formed in Germany in 1987) and the Nekromantix
Nekromantix
The Nekromantix are a Danish-American psychobilly band formed in 1989 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Their music is generally structured around monster and horror themes. A central icon of the band's image is founder and frontman Kim Nekroman's "coffinbass", a custom-built double bass with a body in the...
(formed in Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
in 1989), who released the album Curse of the Coffin
Curse of the Coffin
Curse of the Coffin is the second album by the Danish psychobilly band the Nekromantix, released in 1991 by Nervous Records. A music video was filmed for the title track and received some play on the MTV program Alternative Nation...
in 1991. The Quakes
The Quakes
The Quakes are a psychobilly band from Buffalo, NY. They were formed in 1986. They are considered very influential to the current American psychobilly scene, but in the late 80's, there was no scene to speak of in the United States...
formed in Buffalo, New York
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City. Located in Western New York on the eastern shores of Lake Erie and at the head of the Niagara River across from Fort Erie, Ontario, Buffalo is the seat of Erie County and the principal city of the...
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
Scooter (motorcycle)
A scooter is a motorcycle with step-through frame and a platform for the operator's feet. Elements of scooter design have been present in some of the earliest motorcycles, and motorcycles identifiable as scooters have been made from 1914 or earlier...
riding, the skinhead
Skinhead
A skinhead is a member of a subculture that originated among working class youths in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, and then spread to other parts of the world. Named for their close-cropped or shaven heads, the first skinheads were greatly influenced by West Indian rude boys and British mods,...
subculture, and 2 Tone
2 Tone
2 Tone is a music genre created in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s by fusing elements of ska, punk rock, rocksteady, reggae, and New Wave. It was called 2 Tone because most of the bands were signed to 2 Tone Records at some point. Other labels associated with the 2 Tone sound were Stiff...
ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
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
The Reverend Horton Heat
The Reverend Horton Heat is the stage name of American musician Jim Heath as well as the name of his Dallas, Texas-based psychobilly trio. Heath is a singer, songwriter and guitarist....
, formed in Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
in 1985. Their 1990 single "Psychobilly Freakout
Psychobilly Freakout
"Psychobilly Freakout" is a 7" single by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released in December 1990 on Sub Pop as part of the label's "single of the month" club...
" helped introduce American audiences to the genre. The band was heavily inspired by The Cramps
The Cramps
The Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
, 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 internationally
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
, indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
, goth rock, surf rock, country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
, and ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
. Psychobilly became popular in the United States, particularly in southern California
Southern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
, where punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
had thrived and remained popular since the 1970s. The area's large Latino community, which revered early rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
icons, also played a part, as did the popularity of bands like the horror-influenced Misfits and country/rockabilly-inspired Social Distortion
Social Distortion
Social Distortion is an American punk rock band formed in 1978 in Fullerton, California. The band currently consists of Mike Ness , Jonny Wickersham , Brent Harding and David Hidalgo, Jr...
, as well as a celebration of hot rod
Hot rod
Hot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. The origin of the term "hot rod" is unclear. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of "hot roadster," meaning a roadster that was modified for speed. Another possible origin includes modifications to or...
and motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
culture.
Tiger Army
Tiger Army
Tiger Army is an American psychobilly band that was formed in 1995 in Berkeley, California. Its constant member and lead song writer is Nick 13. The band have released a total of four studio albums.-History:...
, 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
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based Hellcat Records
Hellcat Records
Hellcat Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. The label, an off-shoot of Epitaph Records, was started as a partnership between Brett Gurewitz carp Bad Religion, the owner of Epitaph, and Tim Armstrong of Rancid, the latter of whom is generally responsible for...
, run by Rancid
Rancid (band)
Rancid is an American punk rock band formed in Berkeley, California in 1991. Founded by Tim Armstrong and Matt Freeman, both of whom previously played in the ska punk band Operation Ivy, Rancid is credited—along with Green Day and The Offspring—for reviving mainstream interest in punk rock in the...
's Tim Armstrong
Tim Armstrong
Timothy Lockwood Armstrong is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known for his work with punk rock bands Rancid, Operation Ivy, Downfall, and the Transplants. He is also the owner and operator of Hellcat Records.-Personal life:Armstrong was born November 25, 1965 and was...
, became home to many psychobilly acts, including Tiger Army, Devil's Brigade
Devil's Brigade (band)
Devils Brigade is an American rock band formed as a side project by Rancid bassist Matt Freeman in 2000. In Devils Brigade Freeman performs a mix of punk rock and psychobilly styles, singing lead vocals and playing a double bass in contrast to the backing vocals and electric bass guitar he performs...
and the Danish groups Nekromantix
Nekromantix
The Nekromantix are a Danish-American psychobilly band formed in 1989 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Their music is generally structured around monster and horror themes. A central icon of the band's image is founder and frontman Kim Nekroman's "coffinbass", a custom-built double bass with a body in the...
and HorrorPops
HorrorPops
HorrorPops are a Danish punk band that formed in 1996. The band's sound is rooted in psychobilly, pop punk, rockabilly, and new wave.-History:...
, both of whom relocated to southern California in the early 2000s. Guana Batz
Guana Batz
The Guana Batz are an English psychobilly band that was formed in 1982 in Feltham, Middlesex. It was one of the first psychobilly bands and is considered influential to its scene...
members Pip Hancox and Johnny Bowler relocated there as well, moving to San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
where they sometimes perform with Slim Jim Phantom
Slim Jim Phantom
Slim Jim Phantom is the drummer for Stray Cats. Alongside band mates Brian Setzer and Lee Rocker, he spearheaded the neo-rockabilly movement of the early 1980s.-Biography:...
of the Stray Cats
Stray Cats
Stray Cats are an American Rockabilly band formed in 1980 by guitarist/vocalist Brian Setzer , upright bassist Lee Rocker and Slim Jim Phantom in the Long Island town of Massapequa, New York. The group had numerous hit singles in the UK, Australia and the U.S...
under the name Guana Cats. Another notable California psychobilly band formed in the 1990s was The Chop Tops
The Chop Tops
The Chop Tops are a rockabilly trio from Santa Cruz, California consisting of Sinner , Shelby , and Brett . The band was formed by Sinner in 1995, Shelby joined in 1999, and Brett took over bass duties in 2008...
.
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
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
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1994 and Os Catalepticos formed in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
in 1996. Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n act The Living End
The Living End
The Living End are an Australian rock band from Melbourne, Victoria, formed in 1994. The current lineup consists of Chris Cheney , Scott Owen and Andy Strachan...
formed in 1994 and scored a hit with the double single "Second Solution"/"Prisoner of Society"
Second Solution/Prisoner of Society
"Second Solution" / "Prisoner of Society" is the third EP by Australian rock band The Living End. It was the best selling Australian single of the 1990s, and spent a record-breaking 69 weeks on the ARIA Top 100. It provided a breakthrough for the band, bringing them to the attention of the...
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
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
and share much the same fanbase as psychobilly.
Musical style
Musically, psychobilly is rooted primarily in two genres: late 1970s punk rockPunk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
and 1950s American rockabilly
Rockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
. Tiger Army
Tiger Army
Tiger Army is an American psychobilly band that was formed in 1995 in Berkeley, California. Its constant member and lead song writer is Nick 13. The band have released a total of four studio albums.-History:...
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
The Cramps
The Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
acknowledge their music's deep roots in American blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
, rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
, and traditional rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
. Alternative Press writer Ryan Downey notes that contemporary psychobilly also draws from other rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
genres and subgenres: "Driven by the rhythmic pounding of a stand-up bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
, the music swings with the snarl of punk rock while sometimes thrashing alongside speed metal
Speed metal
Speed metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that originated in the late 1970s from NWOBHM and hardcore punk roots. It is described by Allmusic as "extremely fast, abrasive, and technically demanding" music....
or crashing headlong into country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
icon Hank Williams." Downey acknowledges that contemporary psychobilly's roots extend into 2 Tone
2 Tone
2 Tone is a music genre created in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s by fusing elements of ska, punk rock, rocksteady, reggae, and New Wave. It was called 2 Tone because most of the bands were signed to 2 Tone Records at some point. Other labels associated with the 2 Tone sound were Stiff...
ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
, garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
, hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
, street punk
Street punk
Street punk is a working class-based genre of punk rock which took shape in the early 1980s, partly as a rebellion against the perceived artistic pretensions of the first wave of British punk. Street punk emerged from the Oi! style, performed by bands such as Sham 69, Angelic Upstarts, Cockney...
and Oi!
Oi!
Oi! is a working class subgenre of punk rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The music and its associated subculture had the goal of bringing together punks, skinheads and other working-class youths ....
. Hilary Okun, publicist for Epitaph
Epitaph Records
Epitaph Records is a Hollywood, California based independent record label owned by Bad Religion guitarist Brett Gurewitz. The label was originally "just a logo and a P.O. box" created in the 1980s for the purpose of selling Bad Religion records, but has evolved into a large independent record...
and Hellcat Records
Hellcat Records
Hellcat Records is an independent record label based in Los Angeles, California. The label, an off-shoot of Epitaph Records, was started as a partnership between Brett Gurewitz carp Bad Religion, the owner of Epitaph, and Tim Armstrong of Rancid, the latter of whom is generally responsible for...
, notes: "The music appeals to fans of punk, indie
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
, metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, new wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
, goth, rockabilly, surf, [and] country." The influence of heavy metal on the psychobilly style resulted in the Nekromantix
Nekromantix
The Nekromantix are a Danish-American psychobilly band formed in 1989 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Their music is generally structured around monster and horror themes. A central icon of the band's image is founder and frontman Kim Nekroman's "coffinbass", a custom-built double bass with a body in the...
's 1994 album Brought Back to Life
Brought Back to Life
Brought Back to Life is the third album by the Danish psychobilly band the Nekromantix, released in 1994 by Intermusic Records. It was the band's first album to include drummer Tim Kristensen and only album to include guitarist Jan Daggry , replacing original members Peter Sandorff and Peek who...
being nominated for a Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
in the category of "Best Heavy Metal Album."
Psychobilly is commonly played with a simple guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
/bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
/drum
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
/vocal
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
arrangement, with many bands consisting of only three members. Often the guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
or bassist
Bassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
will be the lead vocalist, with few acts having a dedicated singer. An upright double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
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.
Kim Nekroman
Kim Nekroman is the bassist and lead singer for the psychobilly band Nekromantix and the lead guitarist of HorrorPops. He is married to Patricia Day, lead singer and bassist for HorrorPops.-On tour:...
, whose "coffinbass" is in the shape of a coffin
Coffin
A coffin is a funerary box used in the display and containment of dead people – either for burial or cremation.Contemporary North American English makes a distinction between "coffin", which is generally understood to denote a funerary box having six sides in plan view, and "casket", which...
, with a headstock in the shape of a cross
Christian cross
The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...
. 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 Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian psychobilly band Os Catalepticos. HorrorPops
HorrorPops
HorrorPops are a Danish punk band that formed in 1996. The band's sound is rooted in psychobilly, pop punk, rockabilly, and new wave.-History:...
frontwoman Patricia Day
Patricia Day
Patricia Day is the bassist and lead singer for the Danish rockabilly band HorrorPops.-Biography:Patricia Day, originally from Copenhagen originally performed with punk rock band Peanut Pump Gun. She met Nekromantix singer and bassist, Kim Nekroman, at the 1996 POPKOMM festival in Cologne, Germany....
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, science fictionScience fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and exploitation films, violence
Violence
Violence is the use of physical force to apply a state to others contrary to their wishes. violence, while often a stand-alone issue, is often the culmination of other kinds of conflict, e.g...
, lurid sexuality
Human sexuality
Human sexuality is the awareness of gender differences, and the capacity to have erotic experiences and responses. Human sexuality can also be described as the way someone is sexually attracted to another person whether it is to opposite sexes , to the same sex , to either sexes , or not being...
, and other taboo
Taboo
A taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any area of human activity or social custom that is sacred and or forbidden based on moral judgment, religious beliefs and or scientific consensus. Breaking the taboo is usually considered objectionable or abhorrent by society...
topics, usually presented in a comedic or tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...
fashion reminiscent of the camp aesthetic
Camp (style)
Camp is an aesthetic sensibility that regards something as appealing because of its taste and ironic value. The concept is closely related to kitsch, and things with camp appeal may also be described as being "cheesy"...
. Most acts avoid "serious" subjects such as politics. Original psychobilly act The Meteors
The Meteors
The Meteors are an English psychobilly band formed in 1980. Originally from London, England, they are often credited with giving the psychobilly subgenre—which fuses punk rock with rockabilly—its distinctive sound and style...
articulated a very apolitical
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
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
Nekromantix
The Nekromantix are a Danish-American psychobilly band formed in 1989 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Their music is generally structured around monster and horror themes. A central icon of the band's image is founder and frontman Kim Nekroman's "coffinbass", a custom-built double bass with a body in the...
frontman Kim Nekroman
Kim Nekroman
Kim Nekroman is the bassist and lead singer for the psychobilly band Nekromantix and the lead guitarist of HorrorPops. He is married to Patricia Day, lead singer and bassist for HorrorPops.-On tour:...
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 rockabillyRockabilly
Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music, dating to the early 1950s.The term rockabilly is a portmanteau of rock and hillbilly, the latter a reference to the country music that contributed strongly to the style's development...
and rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
, as well as 1970s punk fashion
Punk fashion
Punk fashion is the clothing, hairstyles, cosmetics, jewelry, and body modifications of the punk subculture. Punk fashion varies widely, ranging from Vivienne Westwood designs to styles modeled on bands like The Exploited. The distinct social dress of other subcultures and art movements, including...
s. Other aesthetic influences include the scooterboy
Scooterboy
A scooterboy is a member of a subculture based on motor scooter riding, particularly Vespas and Lambrettas. Scooterboy culture originated in the late 1960s in the industrial north of England and resurfaced nationally in the United Kingdom around 1979 or 1980 at the time of the mod revival...
and skinhead
Skinhead
A skinhead is a member of a subculture that originated among working class youths in the United Kingdom in the 1960s, and then spread to other parts of the world. Named for their close-cropped or shaven heads, the first skinheads were greatly influenced by West Indian rude boys and British mods,...
subculture
Subculture
In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong.- Definition :...
s, although not all performers or fans choose to dress in these styles. Men often wear brothel creepers or Dr. Martens
Dr. Martens
Dr. Martens is a traditional British footwear brand, which also makes a range of accessories – shoe care products, clothing, luggage, etc. In addition to Dr. Martens, they are known as Doctor Martens, Doc Martens, Docs or DMs...
boot
Boot
A boot is a type of footwear but they are not shoes. Most boots mainly cover the foot and the ankle and extend up the leg, sometimes as far as the knee or even the hip. Most boots have a heel that is clearly distinguishable from the rest of the sole, even if the two are made of one piece....
s and shave their heads into high wedge
Wedge (geometry)
In solid geometry, a wedge is a polyhedron defined by two triangles and three trapezoid faces. A wedge has five faces, nine edges, and six vertices.A wedge is a subclass of the prismatoids with the base and opposite ridge in two parallel planes....
-shaped pompadours
Pompadour (hairstyle)
Pompadour is a tall style of men's haircut which takes its name from Madame de Pompadour.There are Latin variants of the hair style more associated with European and Argentine tango fashion trends and occasionally with late 20th century musical genres such as rockabilly and country.The pompadour...
or quiff
Quiff
The quiff is a hairstyle that combines the 1950s pompadour hairstyle, the 50s flattop, and sometimes a mohawk. The etymology of the word is uncertain but may derive from the French word "coiffe" which can mean either a hairstyle or, going further back, the mail knights wore over their heads and...
s, military
Military
A military is an organization authorized by its greater society to use lethal force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. The military may have additional functions of use to its greater society, such as advancing a political agenda e.g...
-style crops, or mohawks
Mohawk hairstyle
The mohawk is a hairstyle in which, in the most common variety, both sides of the head are shaven, leaving a strip of noticeably longer hair...
. 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
Teddy Boy
The British Teddy Boy subculture is typified by young men wearing clothes that were partly inspired by the styles worn by dandies in the Edwardian period, styles which Savile Row tailors had attempted to re-introduce in Britain after World War II...
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
B movie
A B movie is a low-budget commercial motion picture that is not definitively an arthouse or pornographic film. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified a film intended for distribution as the less-publicized, bottom half of a double feature....
horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
s and hot rod
Hot rod
Hot rods are typically American cars with large engines modified for linear speed. The origin of the term "hot rod" is unclear. One explanation is that the term is a contraction of "hot roadster," meaning a roadster that was modified for speed. Another possible origin includes modifications to or...
culture. Tattoo
Tattoo
A tattoo is made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment. Tattoos on humans are a type of body modification, and tattoos on other animals are most commonly used for identification purposes...
s are common among both sexes.
See also
- Hasil AdkinsHasil AdkinsHasil Adkins was an Appalachian country, rock and roll, and blues musician, though he was frequently considered rockabilly and sometimes primitive jazz...
- Timeline of alternative rockTimeline of alternative rock__NOTOC_1980 - 1981 - 1982 - 1983 - 1984 - 1985 - 1986 - 1987 - 1988 - 1989 - 1990 - 1991 - 1992 - 1993 - 1994 - 1995 - 1996 - 1997 - 1998 - 1999 - 2000 - 2001 - 2002 - 2003 - 2004 - 2005 - 2006 - 2007 - 2008 - 2009 - 2010 - See also- 1979 :* Newly formed bands...
- List of psychobilly bands