In order to better explain "psychobilly", I'd have to explain "rockabilly". Rockabilly is this fusion of country and r&b which can be rooted back to Elvis Presley and British musicians Cliff Richards & the Shadows. Yes, those are the same Shadows of surf rock fame. One could say that there was a second big flare of rockabilly in 1979 when Queen released "A Crazy Little Thing Called Love" months after Lled Zeppelin's "Hot Dog". The first time that I ever heard Cliff Richard perform was his Golden Jubilee set that included "Move It" but in a cross-generational performance with Brian May, Phil Collins, and S Club 7 (as back up singers). I was floored, and surprised that songs like "Hot Dog" and "Move It" haven't had as much of a longevity in the Amercian lexicon as Queen's try at the genre.
Long Islander Brian Setzer gave us some new American rockabilly in the early 80's with his band the Stray Cats. "Rock This Town" may be the most enduring Stray Cats single. In my research, I found out that Setzer had joined Letterman side-man Paul Shaffer, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and Nile Rogers as contributors to Robert Plant's 80's project the Honeydrippers. Honestly, I didn't know that cover of Sea of Love" in a "Dawson's Creek" season 5 had Plant singing.
I'll use the mention of a WB network teen soap as a segue to a a late 90's rockabilly flare-up where the Cherry Poppin' Daddies and the Brian Setzer Orchestra both enjoyed some time in top 40 radio. That moment in pop culture history is honored in with the Brian Setzer Orchestra's guest appearance On the Nanny, It's the episode where through slight changes in the spelling of a character name, Fran Drescher reprised her Spinal Tap role of Bobbie Fleckman in a dual role performance. Through "Jump, Jive, and' Wail" and "Zoot Suit Riot", these musicians also rekindled society's interest in "big band" music and swing dancing. Pecking and clawing at the figurative egg (follow me with this analogy) was Reverend Horton Heat. Jim Heath and his band were establishing a presence in the rockabilly niche, but couldn't crack that shell and reach the public on a scale that their other contemporaries were. In what is specifically called "psychobilly", Reverend Horton Heat combines rockabilly with the loud rousing energy of punk. Think of what the Dropkick Murphies do for traditional Irish music. When the Surfrajettes mentioned him on social media, I could see how their surf roc crosses paths with Heath's rockabilly. It's like Cliff Richard and the Shadows, but listening to more of Reverend Horton Heat's music, I started getting this vibe that was like the Big Bopper crossed with Mike Judge. Personally, I thought that the lyrics could get very crass, but I absolutely loved the guitar playing with a tempo that reminded me of the Doors' "L.A. Woman".
Cut to early July 2023, and I'm at the City Winery Boston to see Jim Heath's guitarcraft, and an opening act from Vegas called the Delta Bombers. As usual, I sat in one of the outer seats of the venue. There's may tables stretching the length of the room, and I sympathize for the waitstaff trying to get between filled chairs in order to provide food. Across the table, and to my right was a young woman, and she was seated with some people who appeared a little bit older.
The lights dim, and the Delta Bombers start their set. There is spectrum in punk music where you can sense through varying levels the connection to mid-20th century top 40 rock. It's all validly punk, but those differences are part of why you can distingish a recording of the Sex Pistols from recordings or the Ramones. What I noticed immediately was that while Reverend Horton Heat brought a Dropkick Murphys level of roughness to a punk/blues rock sound, the Delta Bombers the Delta Bombers were relative Ramones. Like a modern Creedence Clearwater Revival (a CCR revival if you will), with a frontman in Chris Moinichen who reach down for some Jim Morrison vibes. There are songs can range from "Save Me" with a higher pitched twang, to something deeper and heavier like the Ballad of Big Al. The songs' contents can range from spirituality to malevolent narratives. The Doors influence becomes more explicit when the Delta Bombers covered "Break On Through (to the Other Side)".
After the Delta Bombers' set, everyone a Gen-X woman got up. This woman (let's call her "Margeaux"), and she looks across the table at me, asking "Are you friends with my daughter? You look like you may be one of her friends." Her daughter ("Marla") is apparently 19, and Margeaux asks how old I am. I tell her that I'm in my 30's, and she tells me how great a skin care routine I must have. It turns out that Margeaux's from New Brunswick and is visiting her daughter. I tell her that I had an ancestor who came from the Maritime Provinces, and we talk about Nova Scotian history and a trio of famous Boston Bruins trio from Kitchener, Ontario. When the daughter (let's call her "Marla") returns, Margeaux introduces me. "This is Ken. Ken's Canadian." I point out that I'm 1/8 Canadian, and Margeux affirms "You're Canadian.".
Reverend Horton Heat takes the stage, and when I say that they remind me of Mike Judge, it's that they come from a very similar to the cast of characters in King of the Hill and Judge himself when he appeared on "WTF with Marc Maron". Regionally, Judge and Heath have both lived in greater Dallas (with "Arlen" being based of the suburb of Richardson). Drawing from 33 years of albums, Heath and his band have many songs to draw from when putting together a setlist. Some of the most notable staples are the "Psychobilly Freakout" and the car culture "Galaxy 500". As the show's energy built up to the whole room singing along with "Let Me Teach You How to Eat", I was honestly most focused Heath's fingerwork. He's an extraordinary guitarist. Being so into the guitar playing is why I didn't react that much when I felt someone brush past the flared legs of my jeans. Naively, I assumed that it must've just been that the table is only so wide. Eventually these's a deliberate kick to my shin. I look over to my right, and with a little smile, Marla says "Sorry.". The encore led up to a cover of Motörhead's "Ace of Spades". The tempo and yelling in that famous metal piece lends itself well to punk bands which transmute that fervor into something of their own. At the end of the show, Marla asks if we can connect on Instagram, and Margeaux chimed in that Marla isn't usually that forward. Two months after the concert, I haven't heard back from Marla. Maybe next week. Maybe next month. To quote the team of Lennon & McCartney, "Tomorrow Never Knows". It was refreshing to chance upon a woman who that forward. Especially when I had my inserts in and was physically expressing my trans identity.
After the show, I got to speak with Jim Heath about psychobilly and the resurgence of surf rock. Both genres of music or continuing to celebrate the influence of surf rock kings like Dick Dale and the Shadows' lead guitarist Hank Marvin. Afterward, I got to meet Chris Moinichen and PJ Franco of the Delta Bombers, bought an off-white and maroon ringer tee with a cartoon wolf character. In the art's vintage mid-20th century feel, the wolf reminds me of the North Carolina State Wolfpack, and then you cross that with the "memento more" symbol of a skull and crossbones. Personally, I find it to be a macabre romanticization of society in the deep south, but that iconography can be open to interpretation. I then met Jim Heath after getting "the tee shirt with the radio tower". I explained my admiration for his guitarplgaying, and mentioned learning about him through the Surfrajettes. I left him with a recommendation for Daikaiju's "Laser Runner". For a psychobilly guitarist from Greater Dallas who just covered "Ace of Spades". I think that a surf metal band out of Alabama may draw interest.
Comments
Post a Comment