Psychobilly Education

[El_Shiznit]

Yeah Yeah, unoriginal title...

I've heard many people asking about bands such as Tiger Army, so I will go ahead and do a thread on their genre.

Psychobilly
Origins of psycobilly are as unknown as punk itself. It seems no one knows for sure, though common belief is that it began somewhere in Europe. But no one knows for sure, so don't quote me on that. So what is psycobilly to be exact? It is a mix of punk and good ol' 50's rockabilly. A lot of bands in the genre play mostly a faster version of rockabilly. More of the speed of fast punk. Makes sense right? Psychobilly isn't very well-known, however it does attract a large variety of fans. You have the punks, hardcores, greasers, and the class created by the music: psychos. As well as others, but the afore-mentioned make up the majority of the psychobilly fanbase. You could consider this a near direct throwback to the 50's, until you listen to some prime examples of psychobilly lyrics. Most speak of horror, death, demons, etc. They are pretty much the Misfits of Rockabilly. **On a side note, Misfits did release a psychobilly song entitled "American Nightmare."** Also, most psychobilly bands have a stand-up bass instead of a normal bass. This adds a unique effect and style to the music. There are only a few exceptions that do not have a stand-up bass. As there are only a few exceptions to the point I made about psychobilly's dark lyrics.

Good Psychobilly Bands:

Reverend Horton Heat
Blue Demon - http://www.soundclick.com/bands/1/bluedemon.htm
The Nekromantix
Tiger Army (most songs are exception to the lyrics statement)
Horrorpops
The Cramps (exception to the stand-up bass statement; in fact, on some songs there is no bass at all)
The Meteors
Batmobile
Mad Sin
Demented Are Go!
The Dead
Stray Cats

*If you feel like checking out others, here is a pretty comprehensive list: http://www.wreckingpit.com/psycho/bands.php3

**If a band isn't on that website or is not listed and you feel like mentioning them, post a link if you could, or see if you can soulseek it. I will add the band to the list above along with the link. Otherwise, I will not be adding any more to the list.

***One more thing, no spamming please!!!

[TheNowhereman42]

don't forget Demented Are Go!

and The Meteors

The Stray Cats

good job, you showed those hardcore/metalcore kids!

oh and i know that Reverand Horten Heat claims to have invented the genre, though it probably isn't true (They also break the dark lyrics rule)

why does no one ever say anything when I mention Demented Are Go!?

[BuddyBigsby]

Hahaha, what was there to show us? That we don't know what psychobilly is? Thank God, because you know we really were running around saying that we do.

[TheNowhereman42]

Originally Posted by BuddyBigsby

Hahaha, what was there to show us? That we don't know what psychobilly is? Thank God, because you know we really were running around saying that we do.

it was a joke, twat

please don't spam this thread

[Brain Toad]

Originally Posted by wreckingpit.com

1. What is Psychobilly?

THe easiest way to describe Psychobilly is to say it's a mixture of Rockabilly and Punk. One of the best descriptions of Psychobilly has been written by Ted Polhemus in his book "Street Style".

Psychobillies
From the book "Street Style", written by Ted Polhemus (ISBN 0-500-27794-X).
At first glance it is hard to imagine a more unlikely combination than Punk and Rockabilly, but the Psychobillies made a virtue of such apparent incompatibility. At the wonderfully named 'Klub Foot', the West London venue where the Psychobillies first came together as a subculture, their fusion of 1950s Americana and 1970s British Punk seemed both obvious and inevitable
To make the connection one must forget the soft drizzle of sentimentality which in the end became all too typical of the Rockabillies (Elvis singing about Teddy Bears in Vegas) and go back to the angry, licentious snarf of their early days. From this perspective it is clear that the thumping beat, the in-your-face sexuality, the deliberate shunning of prissy sophistication and the greasy quiffs of the early Rockabillies were in tune with Punk's gutsy spirit of raw rebellion. The Punks simply added a stylistic extremism, an assumption of gender equality and fetishistic trashiness which could not conceivably have existed in Memphis in the mid-fifties. The common denominator is rock 'n' roll energy in its purest form.
Although the slezoid music and style of the American post-Punk band The Cramps was clearly an inspiration, the first 100-percent-proof Psychobilly band was The Meteors, which formed in South London in 1980. With musicians consisting of one Rockabilly, one Punk and one psychedelic horror enthusiast, The Meteors constituted a complete microcosm of the subculture which would almost immediately form around it.
By 1982, with the opening of Klub Foot, the Psychobillies were more than simply the followers of a cult band. Their style has been termed 'Mutant Rockabilly' and it is an apt description - with cartoon quiffs sometimes dyed green or purple and always thrust out far beyond the expectations of gravity, aggressive studded belts ans Doc Martens, shredded, bleached jeans and leather jackets painted with post-nuclear-holocaust imagery. Here were creatures straight out of tacky comic books or ketchup-splattered horror movies brought to life (?) and waiting patiently for the last bus to Planet Zorch.
Needless to say, such an extreme styletribe never reached an enormous size and its bands (in time including the likes of Guana Batz, Demented are Go, Batmobile and the truly unbelievable King Kurt) never appeared on TV's Top of the Pops. It did however, quickly acquire members throughout most of Europe (especially Germany, Italy and Spain) and a large, dedicated following in Japan.
Stylistically, the Psychobillies' principal effect seems to have been on the Rockabillies - causing a shift towards battered denim workwear and away from fancy suits and pristine footwear. From there (and it should be remembered that the Rockabilly movement was huge in Britain in the early eighties) this look moved into the street mainstream in the form of the 'Hard Times' look.
At one level the Psychobillies exhibited an alarming fixation with violence and wanton destruction, but this was always tempered by a wonderful, surreal sense of humour, which made you smile, even as you crossed hurriedly to the other side of the street.

2. What are the most popular bands for Psychobillies?

In the early eighties the most popular bands were: The Meteors, The Polecats, The Stingrays, Restless, and Batmobile. Those bands mixed Rockabilly together with Punk or 1960s Trash. In the late eighties new Psychobilly bands were formed that had a louder and more distorted sound. Typical bands were The Klingonz, Demented are Go, Nekromantix, Torment and Mad Sin. The only band not coming from Europe in those years was The Quakes. In the early nineties other American Psychobilly bands started to perform, but they didn't have typical European sound. Examples of American bands from the nineties are The Reverend Horton Heat, Los Gatos Locos, Tiger Army, and Barnyard Ballers.

3. What are must have albums for Psychobillies?
The following list is a mixed bag of the different styles in Psychobilly music:
The Meteors - In Heaven
The Meteors - Wreckin' Crew
The Polecats - Polecats are Go
Batmobile - Batmobile
King Kurt - Oh Wallahwallah...
Demented are Go - Go, go demented
The Klingonz - Psychos from beyond
The Reverend Horton Heat - Smoke 'em if you got 'em

4. What was the inspiration for Psychobilly music?

The inspiration for Psychobilly was of course the two music styles Rockabilly and Psychobilly. Bands that really inspired the scene were, among others: The Cramps, The Stray Cats, and Motorhead.

Proper definition of psychobilly ^

[El_Shiznit]

What? I didn't say anything of the likes.

And I know The Meteors also claim they invented the genre. That's why I say nobody really knows.

[Brain Toad]

I just felt like posting that. Found it when I was wondering the orgins myself after seeing a bunch of psychobillies at a car show, and they were wearing Batmobile shirts.

Old English psychobilly is so much better than the new stuff.

[El_Shiznit]

My fist line in my last post was actually directed towards BuddyBigsby, not you. But now I realize, his comment wasn't directed towards me, so everything turned out to be pointless.

[BuddyBigsby]

Originally Posted by TheNowhereman42

it was a joke, twat

please don't spam this thread

Responding to a comment with a valid question = Not spam. However, carrying this conversation further would be, so I'll shush after this.

[Sid]

Mmm.. old english...

[MILF Hunter]

I love the Meteors

[angry armadillo]

google "Blue demon" and look for a sound click site... I would do it myself for y'all but it's probably filtered (School PC's)


They are a well good psychobilly band I saw in Liverpool the other day.

Blue demon!

[El_Shiznit]

I have heard them before, and they are very good. Here's the link everyone:
http://www.soundclick.com/bands/1/bluedemon.htm

[angry armadillo]

The bass player is awesome, he plays a double bass in a slap style, I don't know how his hands survive!

[TheNowhereman42]

Originally Posted by angry armadillo

The bass player is awesome, he plays a double bass in a slap style, I don't know how his hands survive!

he's an andriod, for sure

[El_Shiznit]

Originally Posted by angry armadillo

The bass player is awesome, he plays a double bass in a slap style, I don't know how his hands survive!

When I saw Tiger Army a few weeks ago, their new bass player re-did the bass lines to some of the songs and used this style. He's pretty **** good. Hopefully this one will stay.

Their new drummer isn't bad either.

[thecasaulties]

i just downloaded some tiger army and i really dont like how they sound are there any other good ones? if not im going back to metal

[El_Shiznit]

First tell me which ones you downloaded, then I may be able to help you.

[thecasaulties]

**** the world,outlaw heart,power of moonlite and under saturns shadow

[El_Shiznit]

Hmmm, those songs are very different from eachother except for maybe FTW and Power of Moonlite.

I would try some traditional psychobilly songs by them to see if that's what you like more. Here's some examples:

Twenty Flight Rock
Neobamboom
Devil Girl
What Happens?
American Nightmare (Misfits cover)
Cupid's Victim

I don't think you will like them if you don't like these songs, or the ones you previously downloaded.