psychobilly Archives - Vinyl From The Vault

The Reverend Horton Heat “Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em”

sfilzen — Thu, 21 Nov 2024 17:55:08 +0000

The Reverend Horton Heat “Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em” 1990. Sub Pop Records, 10″ LP on blue-gray marbled vinyl. We caught the Rev this past Friday in Madison at High Noon Saloon – sold out, wild show! Jim Heath and Jimbo are still rocking strong 35+ years on. They clearly still love playing live and seem to still adore each other.

Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em is hands-down my favorite release from the Texas psychobillies. Their debut, it was the only record I had heard the first time I saw them in ’93 (Madison, at the late great Club de Wash, Taz was still on drums); I listened the bejeezus out of it. I’m fairly certain Friday’s show led with the instrumental, “Bullet,” the LP’s first track.

Other tops from the record are “I’m Mad” and “Baby, You Know Who,” both wild psychobilly rompers, plus the spaghetti-western tinged almost-instrumental “Marijuana” on which Heath shows his finger-picking and shredding prowess, Jimbo relentlessly bass-slaps, and Taz keeps time with a crazed jungle beat. The album closer “Love Whip” is a sultry rockabilly song tinged with a bit of danger, harmonica and horns. And while “Eat Steak” is absolutely ridiculous, kitschy as hell, it still makes me laugh.

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“Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper”

sfilzen — Thu, 08 Feb 2024 17:59:31 +0000

“Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper” 1985. Enigma Records. The debut record from psychobilly duo Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper, spinning today in commemoration of Mojo Nixon who died yesterday at age 66 (b. 1957, d. February 7th 2024) from what sounds like a heart attack while on a cruise ship for the Outlaw Country Cruise tour. Irreverent and hilarious with an eye to sticking it to pop culture, southern culture and religion, Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper is lo-fi punk’d up rockabilly; the album was the duo’s demo tape. The lead track “Jesus at McDonalds” serves as great overview of the Mojo Nixon worldview on American culture and religion, the second track “Mushroom Maniac” kind of does the same for southern (and possibly hippie) culture and “Rockin Religion” needles at it all. Large sticks poking those nests to a rockabilly beat. “Moanin’ with Your Mama” is straight-up classic Delta blues and “Promised Land Tonight,” with prominent harmonica, is classic sad-eyed hill country Americana – it could have appeared on a Bruce Springsteen record — whom they cover with Springsteen‘s 50’s styled song “Big Payback” on Side B. My top track is “Guns to My Head” which features the upright washboard (Roper) prominently and has a wicked great beat and killer guitar hook (Nixon) and the slide guitar on the stomping instrumental “Mama Possums” is also great.

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The Reverend Horton Heat “Liquor in the Front”

sfilzen — Wed, 28 Jun 2023 17:58:59 +0000

The Reverend Horton Heat “Liquor in the Front” 1994. Sub Pop Records, on clear vinyl. The Rev’s third LP, produced by Ministry’s Al Jourgensen. Joe got a chance to see Reverend Horton Heat last week at Summerfest here in Milwaukee (I had to work so couldn’t go). After their set, which included a blistering cover of Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades” (video below), Joe wandered to the side/backstage area and sure enough, there was Jim Heath hanging out. This is the second selfie Joe’s snagged with him in the past few months (yes, I am totally jealous).

Since I wasn’t at the show, I’m not sure what the set list at Summerfest was (and can’t be bothered to look it up!) but when we saw them perform at the Rave this past October, the band focused on the tracks from Liquor in the Front. Mostly wild surf-meets-punk rockabilly, my top rockin’ tracks from LP include the breakneck “Baddest of the Bad” which is, according to the liner notes, “just a song about staying out late and drinking too much to recover from heartbreak,” the dark and menacing single from the record “One Time For Me” (#40 US Modern Rock Tracks), the monstrous “Yeah, Right” — “The lyrics are born out of me being an arrogant little shithead,” and “Rockin’ Dog” which “is one of the oldest Reverend Horton Heat songs…[Ronnie Dawson] liked that song and asked if he could record it…but he was on a European label and they never gave me credit. That always bugged me.” There are a couple of really excellent more mellow songs that I totally dig: “In Your Wildest Dreams” about which the Rev writes “…many of our songs have a strong Latin influence. Growing up in Corpus Christi, Texas, half of my schoolmates were Mexican-American…it reminds me of listening to Flaco Jimenez as a kid” plus their cover of “Jezebel” made popular by Frankie Lane (1951).

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The Cramps “A Date With Elvis”

sfilzen — Mon, 20 Feb 2023 17:32:54 +0000

The Cramps “A Date With Elvis” 1986. Today, February 20th, is Cramps’ guitarist/songwriter Poison Ivy’s 70th birthday (b. Kristy Wallace, 1953). Originally released on UK label Big Beat Records, this copy is the 1990 reissue on red vinyl from Enigma Records and has four bonus tracks. Swampy, campy punk’d up psychobilly, A Date With Elvis was The Cramps’ third studio LP. It’s also the first record to feature Poison Ivy on vocals: on both “Kizmiaz,” a sneakily sweet garage-psych song that is also hilarious, and the bonus track “Get Off the Road” (a track credited to H.G. Lewis, a filmmaker known for his horror films). The record charted only in Australia, at #98. The Cramps released two singles in the UK from A Date With Elvis: one of my favorites “Can Your Pussy to the Dog?” and “What’s Inside a Girl?” The bonus tracks on our copy are the b-sides from the 12″ singles of those two releases. My other top pick is the frenetically choppy “Cornfed Dames.” The original release includes two cover tracks: the traditional song “Chicken” and the bluesy Charlie Feathers track “It’s Just That Song,” both Cramped-up to make a little evil.

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The Reverend Horton Heat “The Full Custom Gospel Sounds of The Reverend Horton Heat”

sfilzen — Tue, 11 Oct 2022 22:08:25 +0000

The Reverend Horton Heat “The Full Custom Gospel Sounds of The Reverend Horton Heat” 1993. Sub Pop Records. Signed by the Rev (Jim Heath) and Jimbo Wallace; “Coke bottle clear” reissue, 2022. We picked up the Reverend’s second LP — and Joe got it signed — this past weekend at the Rave when they played with the Toadies.

Joe and the Rev

Reverend Horton Heat at the Rave

We saw Reverend Horton Heat back in ’93 in Madison at Club de Wash when they toured for this LP. I don’t remember that much about the show, but I do remember Jimbo hanging out at the bar by us either before or after the show — I think he was being very funny and very crass. We’ve seen the Rev several times since, including in ’96 when they also played with the Toadies; both bands opened for Butthole Surfers. (Gibby Haynes of the Buttholes produced Full Custom Gospel Sounds.)

They played a great set at the Rave: while the main focus of their show was their performance of the entirety of Liquor in the Front (1994), they did play songs from some of their other albums, including Full Custom Gospel Sounds.

Full Custom is, of course, rockabilly and psychobilly. The sort-of more mellow, rockabilly-leaning songs like “Beer:30” and “Bails of Cocaine” are great, witty and irreverent. But the wilder psychobilly songs are the best: “Big Little Baby” is a rollicking great time; that track was first released in ’88 as a 7″ on Four Dots Records (pre-Jimbo: “Swingin'” Jack Barton is on upright bass and Bobby Baranowski is on drums). The album opener “Wiggle Stick” is hilarious and, fittingly, was showcased on Beavis and Butthead (season 4 episode 3 “Trouble Urinating”). But my favorite is “400 Bucks” which I was able to catch on video Saturday night:

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The Cramps “Psychedelic Jungle”

sfilzen — Thu, 21 Oct 2021 17:30:33 +0000

The Cramps “Psychedelic Jungle” 1981. I’m spinning The Cramps’ second LP today, October 21st, on what would have been singer Lux Interior’s 75th birthday (b. Erick Lee Purkhiser 1946, d. 2009). Psychedelic Jungle is a psychobilly punk blues 50-50 mix of covers and originals, including one of the band’s most iconic tracks, the cover of “Goo Goo Muck” (originally by Ronnie Cook and the Gaylads, 1962) which gained notoriety in ‘86 as part of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 soundtrack. Other notable covers include “Rockin’ Bones” originally by rockabilly great Ronnie Dawson (1959), the Bo Diddley-beat “Jungle Hop” by Kip Tyler and the Flips (1958) and “The Crusher” (a MKE-area favorite – we even have an annual Crusherfest) by the Novas (1964). The Cramps originals like “Caveman,” “Don’t Eat Stuff Off the Sidewalk” and “The Natives are Restless” are creepy, weird and perfect for pre-Halloween listening.

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Nine Pound Hammer “Hayseed Timebomb”

sfilzen — Thu, 30 Sep 2021 17:00:12 +0000

Nine Pound Hammer “Hayseed Timebomb” 1994. Crypt Records. High-speed cowpunk/psychobilly from Kentucky, Nine Pound Hammer’s Hayseed Timebomb was their third release and their last LP for 10 years (they broke up for awhile when guitarist Blaine Cartwright left to form Nashville Pussy). This record has been in the should-it-stay-or-should-it-go pile for awhile now so I’m finally giving it a real listen. Thankfully most of the record leans toward Motörhead-influenced heavy garage punk (a sound more fully realized with Cartwright’s Nashville Pussy) than the cow part of cowpunk on bangers like the title track “Hayseed Timebomb,” “Run Fat Boy Run,” “Devil’s Playground” and the impossibly fast “Steamroller.” I’m less fond of the hillbilly-forward songs like “Stranded Outside Tater Knob” (although that’s a great title), their reworking of the old-timey/traditional “Wreck of the Old 97″ and “Shotgun in a Chevy.” I’m not sure how often I’ll listen to Hayseed Timebomb but there’s enough good stuff on the record to keep it.

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The Cramps “Stay Sick!”

sfilzen — Tue, 17 Mar 2020 00:06:48 +0000

The Cramps “Stay Sick!” 1990. Enigma Records. (Posting for plague and quarantine season, but please don’t really stay sick!) Produced by Cramps guitarist Poison Ivy, Stay Sick was The Cramps fourth studio LP; this copy a 1993 reissue on Big Beat Records with 3 bonus tracks: “Her Love Rubbed Off” (a Carl Perkins cover), “Her Love Rubbed Off (live)” and “Bikini Girls With Machine Guns (live)” – those last two recorded at the Ventura Theatre in 1990. Stay Sick! was also one of The Cramps more successful releases – its single “Bikini Girls With Machine Guns” went to #35 in the UK. Despite the title, there aren’t a lot of plague/sickness/general feelings of illness tracks on the album. It’s the Cramps-style psychobilly they do so well, with lots of slappin’ bass and double-entendre lyrics (i.e. “Daisys Up Your Butterfly”). I’m super-familiar with lots of tracks on this record because I’m pretty sure a guy I was dating in ‘92 made a mixtape with a bunch of the songs, and despite being super-relieved that guy is loooonggg gone, those particular tracks are my favorite: “Bikini Girls With Machine Guns,” “Shortnin’ Bread” (a Cramp’d up rendition of a traditional African-American folk song that dates back well over 120 years but was first written down by James Whitcomb Riley in 1900 ) and “Mama oo Pow Pow.” Other top tracks that I like but didn’t make it on to that mixtape are “Journey to the Center of A Girl” (such a great groove!), “Saddle Up a Buzz Buzz” and “Mule Skinner Blues,” originally by Jimmie Rodgers in 1930. “Mule Skinner Blues” has a particular soft spot in my heart because The Fenderman covered it in 1960, initially releasing it on the Wisconsin-based label Cuca Records which I wrote the history of for my master’s thesis; The Fenderman’s version of “Mule Skinner Blues” hit #5 in the US #32 in the UK.

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Honeymoon Killers “Turn Me On”

sfilzen — Thu, 25 Apr 2019 20:45:57 +0000

Honeymoon Killers “Turn Me On” 1987. Buy Our Records. Noise-rock via New York/New Jersey, Turn Me On is the band’s fourth studio LP, this one particularly notable for Cristina Martinez on guitar (and some vocals). She must have been only around 16 years old at the time; a couple of years she later joined Jon Spencer to form Boss Hog (their EP Drinkin’ Lechin’ & Lyin’ from ‘89 also features Honeymoon Killers’ founder, guitarist and frontman Jerry Teel). As noise rock, Turn Me On is definitely noisy, full of distortion and growling, but it also has a dark psychobilly/campy horror movie vibe, especially on tracks like “Dolly w/a Dick,” “You Thrill Me,” “Fingerlickin’ Spring Chicken” and “Octopussy,” making the album far more melodic – catchy at times even! – than a lot of other noise rock albums. “Choppin’ Mall” is particularly great, with a Bo Diddley-esque rhythm and a harmonica solo that portends the punk blues sound of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (Mr. Judah Bauer!). Punk blues with a lot of crazed feedback and distortion is also present on “Dazed ‘n’ Hazey” (a great track!). I’m not as fond of the less melodic noise rock track “Flophausen” but other than that I’m super-psyched to have this record in our collection (it’s a recent acquisition, found on Record Store Day when our local record shops bring out the really cool stuff).

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The Vendettas “The Vendettas”

sfilzen — Wed, 12 Dec 2018 16:50:29 +0000

The Vendettas “The Vendettas” 1997. 360 Twist Records. Psychobilly garage punk from the late 90′s (and not to be confused with many, many other groups with the name The Vendettas including a cover band from Ireland, a hard rock band from Australia, a wedding band from Liverpool and a thrash metal band from Germany). This album has been sitting in my to-do box for so long I can’t remember if it’s something we picked up relatively recently (ie in the past year) or if it’s been in the Vault for awhile and we’re considering getting rid of it. Anyway, it’s pretty good, if somewhat repetitive, rockabilly with a snotty punk edge, the alternating male-female lead vocals recalling, at times, X’s John Doe and Exene Cervenka. The bright, twangy rockabilly guitar style makes the album not as dark as psychobilly kings The Cramps (though one track is very Cramps-esque: “Gasoline”), more along the lines of Reverend Horton Heat, just a bit slower (not much though, a good example is the track “Better Living”). There are even some gently swaying rockabilly ballads like “Please Kill Me” – though the title and vocals belie the romantic sentiment of the music. I’ve been unable to find any audio links for those songs, or any other on the LP.

The Vendettas was the band’s only LP recording but it looks like the group put out a 7″ in 2004 on Bang! Records. Its members were or are now involved with other bands: singer and rhythm guitarist Buffi Aguero recorded with Subsonics (on drums), The White Lights and Tiger! Tiger! (most recently in 2018); drummer Susanne Gibboney is also in Tiger! Tiger! and recorded with Lust in ‘99; and lead guitarist and vocalist Johnny Vignault was on the same Lust record and also was in The Lost Crusaders (most recent recording from ‘08). On the album Craig Bower is credited on bass and organ but no mention is given to him on what he may have done since.

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