From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Psychobilly is a genre of music generally described as a mix between the punk rock of the 1970s and the American rockabilly of the 1950s.

The genre is characterized by lyrical references to horror films, violence, exploitation films, lurid sexuality and other topics generally considered taboo — sometimes presented in a comedic, tongue-in-cheek fashion. Psychobilly music is often played with an upright bass instead of an electric bass.^{[citation needed]}

The term psychobilly was first used by Wayne Kemp when he penned the Johnny Cash song One Piece At A Time, a Top 10 hit in 1976. Although the song is not musically categorized as psychobilly, the lyrics refer to a "psychobilly Cadillac." The term came into use as a music genre a few years later, when the Cramps described their music as "psychobilly" and "rockabilly voodoo" on flyers advertising their concerts. Also called "Mutant Rockabilly". Although the Cramps rejected the idea of being a part of a psychobilly subculture, they — along with artists such as Screamin' Jay Hawkins and the Stray Cats — are considered important precursors to psychobilly. Specifically, it was the group's recorded version of "She Said" by Hasil Adkins that connected them to an earlier, more primitive rockabilly sound. Musically speaking, there are also antecedents in the garage rock genre of the 1960s and the pub rock scene of the 1970s.

The Meteors, who formed in South London in 1980, are considered the first verifiable psychobilly band. One member was part of the rockabilly subculture; another was part of the punk subculture; and the other was a horror movie fan. Their musical and lyrical ideas overlapped to create psychobilly as it is known today. The Meteors invented the idea that psychobilly should be apolitical, by encouraging their concerts to be "politics-free" zones to avoid disputes among fans, as was common in the punk rock scene of the time.

The Meteors' second LP, Wreckin' Crew. It is considered a classic and influential psychobilly album.

In 1982, a nightclub called Klubfoot opened at the Clarendon Hotel, Hammersmith, West London, creating a home for the UK psychobilly scene. The club was eventually demolished and replaced with offices and a bus station. Because the psychobilly scene has never become very popular, fans often organize weekenders in which many bands are featured on one bill. The first weekenders were organized in the UK in the mid 1980s. In the USA, they happen with frequency in Texas [1], New York, North Carolina and California.

Psychobilly has spread throughout most of Europe, (particularly Germany, Italy, Greece and Spain), Canada, and parts of the United States. It's also gradually spreading to Asia, especially Japan. The psychobilly music of the early 1980s (The Meteors, The Sharks, Demented Are Go, Batmobile) was similar to punk rock or 1960s garage rock (with obvious rockabilly influences), but the psychobilly of the late 1980s and the 1990s (Nekromantix, Mad Sin) had a different sound which was a bit harder. The psychobilly of the 2000s is closer to the American psychobilly sound.

For psychobilly girls, the "uniform" consists of updated 1950s fashion fused with a punk-rock sensibility and pinup aesthetic. Many rockabillly girls have tattoos of 1950s pinups, Las Vegas-themed cards and dice, skulls, and especially cherries. They favor full crinoline skirts, powerful colors such as black, red, and bright pink, horizontal stripes, gingham, and animal prints. It is very common to see psychobilly girls wearing pompadour-styled bangs and bandannas as headbands.

• List of psychobilly bands

• Baltimore Psychobilly - Internet radio show featuring psychobilly music

• Psychobilly hompage - The wreckingpit, the psychobilly homepage since 1995.

• From Psychobilly Land - Article on Origins

• Horror Garage Horror litmag that often features psychobilly bands

• Subculture Collective - Collection of three podcasts devoted exclusively to rockabilly, psychobilly and horrorbilly.