Kim Nekroman

Kim Nekroman of the Nekromantix with his trademark "coffin bass" of which he constructs himself. His DIY attitude and "elvis meets wolfman" looks are iconic of the Psychobilly subculture which he had such a large influence on.

Psychobilly brought back to life from the dead Rockabilly ghost

Charlton, Katherine. Rock Music Styles: a history. Boston: MacGraw Hill, 2008. Print.

Library Call Number (Music Library): ML3534.C45

Although this book was fairly basic and written in encyclopedic fashion, it provides an interesting viewpoint on psychobilly's formation. It talks about a "natural progression" into psychobilly because early punk guitar chords and beats were distorted, altered versions of old rockabilly classic. However, it assumes that psychobilly was formed in the UK and Germany however the focus of my assignment is that it truly began it's foundation in California.

The phrase "psychobilly Cadillac" was coined by Johnny Cash in a song of his and it unwillingly nfluenced a young Lux Interior to contact his future wife Poison Ivy and start a band called "The Cramps". I attribute this band as starting the psychobilly subculture and style however Charlton claims it was started by band "The Meteors", "Demented are Go" and "Mad Sin". Charlton also lists the "Nekromantix" as being founding fathers of pyschobilly in Denmark. This is an accurate statement in my mind except she does not explain their move to California and the profound influence they had there on future bands such as their spawned "Horrorpops" and northern California band  "Tiger Army". I feel that all of these bands listed in this annotation have a profound influence on the California psychobilly subculture but also on the rest of the worlds however Charlton has not shown this effectively. However, with this in mind, this is still a fundamental start to finding out more about psychobilly's creation and it is not as honed and specified as other sources consulted.

Tattoos: An Anthropology

Kuwahara, Makiko.Tattoo: an anthropology. Oxford; New York.2005. Print.

Library call number  (SS&H) : GN670 .K88 2005

This book provided an in depth journey into tattooing across the entire world. It covered ancient tattooing in Polynesia, which has been around since the dawn of time but also tattooing in Japan. This is important because Japanese imagery and tattooing had a profound influence on American Naval sailors of the 1940's stationed in Hawaii. This is where the infamous Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins had his "Wild Heart" tattoo shop set up. Kuwahara goes onto explain that due to racism against Japanese people from Americans during the era, it has been analyzed that these tattoos were a "primitive rebellion against mainstream American ideology". Thus, It fit's directly into Roy Shuker's "bricolage" theory. Also, this ideal is quite similar to that explained in "Habanera beats in Rockabilly Music" regarding young, white men using African beats in a predominately racist 1940's American south.

However, it goes on to further explain that these tattoos that "Sailor Jerry" created were the fundamental image basis of Rockabilly tattoos. The thin lined stylings and font used can can be seen in tattoos in not only the Rockabilly culture but also the Psychobily culture. With this in mind,  there is a directly visual, evolution of tattooing from different eras which ends directly in the Californian psychobilly scene.

Tattoos as "bricolage"

Tattoos have become synonomous with many different walks of life. However, in the Rockabilly and Psychobilly subcultures they are almost a uniform. The styles of tatooing are derived from old naval sailor tatoos from the early 20th century. It's almost as if this style crossed over into rockabilly culture as a form of bricolage.

Simpler forms that paved the way for rockabilly

Lewis, George. "Dirt Roads and White Lines: Identity and Place in the Country Sound of the Other California." Journal of Popular Culture 38.5 (2002) 194-208.

This journal article provides sound evidence of the birth of a Rockabilly culture. It suggests that "hillbilly" style country music which dealt with themes such as religion, redemption and human relationships was a base for a more "electrified" Rockabillly. This article particularly deals with what was occurring musically in California, which by now had a lot of migrants from depression ridden Oklahoma. "As regional differences in America have become increasingly less pronounced, and as Nashville TN has become more pop oriented and focused toward the production of grand-slam national radio hits, the evocation of region and place in country music has appeared to suffer."


Lewis provides an apt foundation for what was defined as Rockabilly in the previously listed work of Brewer. Assertions can also be made from this that those musicians who made rockabilly music, such as Sun Records' Elvis Presley and Carl Perkins, were doing so in order to rebel against the type of music Lewis refers to as hillbilly. Instead of singing about religion and redemption, the new breed of Rockabilly musicians started singing elusively about sex and rebellion. 


Although this article only deals with what was occurring in California, it alludes to a general consensus that spans America and other parts of the world as "regional differences in America became less pronounced".Another assertion can be made from this article that the psychobilly subculture of the future may have used the type of music within Lewis' research scope as a form of Shruker's bricolage which they overlaid with themes of horror, fantasy and science fiction. 

An unorthodox but equally interesting view on "the rockabilly beat"

Brewer, R. "The Use of Habanera Rhythm in Rockabilly Music." American Music. 17.3.(2005): 300-317.

Print.

This is an unorthodox viewpoint of rockabilly music in regards to how it is formed. Brewer claims that Habanera music (originating from 19th century Cuba - which was inhabited by a large population of slaves brought over from Africa) has had a profound influence on the percussion patterns primarily associated with rockabilly music. I find this quite interesting because rockabilly music is associated with "simple" hillbilly, skiffle and country music of the 1930's and 40's. These styles of music are not known for being musically complex or broad in their percussive range.

Brewer also gives a very apt definition of rockabilly music stating that it's "at present is typically defined as the hybrid of blues and country that has become rock and roll." The oddness of southern musicians of the time (who lived in entirely racially segregated regions) being interested in the music of African culture is also highlighted. It brings to mind similair notions of the "Mod" from working class 1960's London riding Italian scooters to "other" themselves in society. This article will be a good basis to correlate an argument of Rockabilly music creating a subculture that then paved the way for the Psychobilly subculture 30 years later.

Big In Japan!

One of the biggest followings of Rockabilly Culture is in none other than Japan! Tokyo especially. Rockabilly culture is most alive in one of Tokyo's oldest prefectures, Ueno.

In this image you can see the rockabilly subculture alive and well within a few males who are dancing in Ueno park. The heavily greased pompadours, cowboy boots and leather jackets complete the "uniform" of the Rockabilly subculture.

ROCK ON!