LiveWire Spotify Playlist #2 - Psychobilly
So, recently we brought you the first in our series of Lockdown Spotify Playlists. Our first outing was into New Metal bands, and new releases from more established acts, and we hope you enjoyed finding something new to like.
We’re pleased to bring you our second Spotify playlist, and today we’re diving headlong into the genre of Psychobilly ! What is Psychobilly I hear you ask, well, it’s a genre all of it’s own ! It’s loud and frantic and it takes the traditional Gretsch hollow body guitar and standing bass of the rockabilly style …… speeds it up to a frenzied pace, and mixes it with punk attitude and vocals.
Nick13, lead singer of Tiger Army once said of Psychobilly that the “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 legends The Cramps acknowledged their music's deep roots in American blues, rhythm and blues, and traditional rock and roll.
Psychobilly is often characterized by lyrical references to science fiction, horror movies (leading to lyrical similarities to horror punk) and a wide range of subjects often seen as taboo to mainstream music, however, it is often presented in a comedic or tongue-in-cheek fashion.
One of the first recognised Psychobilly bands were The Cramps, but the first wave in the UK was spearheaded by bands such as The Meteors, who are still going strong today, followed by the likes of Demented Are Go. Popular on the European continent, we have seen the rise of bands such as Mad Sin (formed in Germany in 1987) and Nekromantix (formed in Denmark in 1989). It has continued strongly in North America with bands such as Tiger Army, The Creepshow and The Brains bringing the genre to a wider more mainstream audience. Indeed collaborations continue to raise the profile of Psychobilly, such as the recent 2019 joining of Mark ‘Sparky’ Phillips from Demented Are Go and Switzerland’s rockabilly stars The Hillbilly Moon Explosion which resulted in “The Sparky Sessions” album and classic track “My Love Forever More”.
What’s great to see, is that the UK has a thriving scene at the moment. Special mention has to go to the work of In The City Promotions and the shows they put on in Stoke-on-Trent, attracting big names such as Demented Are Go, King Kurt, The Meteors, Spear of Destiny and many more to The Underground, a great old school venue. Check them out on Facebook for upcoming post-lockdown shows. If Psychobilly is a little too much for you, then Bristol has developed a countywide reputation as a centre hosting great Rockabilly shows, with the likes of US legends The Delta Bombers and The Reverend Horton Heat due in early 2021. There’s also a number of great UK bands coming through as well, such as The Two Step Goodbyes (included here) who have released two exceptional EPs “10,000 Volts” and “Age of the Atom”. I would have loved to also include The Mighty Interceptors, but unfortunately their album “Hide your Mind It’s…. The Mighty Interceptors” is not currently available on Spotify.
Not for everyone, but we hope this selection gives you an insight to the wild world of Psychobilly, and you find something you like…..
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/11n3mpo56vKIc6TP92lrW3?si=4Jhtl1fwSfy0qm-ktCK8Ug
