There’s something inherently campy about psychobilly. I mean, when you mix 1950s rockabilly, punk, hardcore, metal, and surf rock into a tasty theatrical mélange, you’re bound to have your tongue firmly planted in your cheek.
We can probably trace the roots of psychobilly through Screamin’ Jay Hawkins to The Cramps and on through Reverent Horton Heat, who’s been called the “godfather of modern rockabilly and psychobilly.” Fronted by James C. Heath, who took on the stage name Reverend Horton Heat in 1986, the band has been a stalwart of the rockabilly scene for nearly four decades.
His songs are typically clever and sometimes sexually charged, such as “Let Me Teach You How to Eat”: “Let me teach you how to eat/ Teach you how to eat/ Let me teach you how to eat/ Teach you how to eat/ How to marinade the meat/ Marinate the meat/ Let me teach you how to eat/ Teach you how to eat/ It’s a culinary treat/ Culinary treat/ Let me teach you how to eat/ Teach you how to eat.”
This Saturday, Jan. 20, Numbskull and Good Medicine present Reverent Horton Heat at The Siren (7:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; $30 at goodmedicinepresents.com).
This promises to be a fun show, made more fun by opening act The Surfrajettes, an all-female Canadian instrumental quartet, whose members adopt the ’60s style of beehive hairdos, white go-go boots, and matching miniskirt outfits. Playing psychedelic and reverb-laden surf rock, these ladies are dripping with cool.
Also this week at The Siren, there’s a doubleheader on Saturday, Jan, 21, starting with The Sinners (2:30 to 5:30 p.m.; 21-and-older; free), who—according to organizers—”swirl rhythm and blues, a sprinkle of rock, and down and dirty stories to create a smooth, danceable concoction.”
Later that same evening, Tommy Castro and The Painkillers play (8 p.m.; 21-and-older; $29.81 with fees at eventbrite.com).
“The hardest thing to do,” soul-blues rocker Tommy Castro said in press materials, “is be yourself, take some chances, and bring your fans along with you.”
Castro has taken fans on quite a ride. He began playing professionally in Bay Area cover bands in the 1970s before breaking off on his own in 1991, releasing his debut record No Foolin’ in 1994. His most recent is Tommy Castro Presents A Bluesman Came to Town in 2021, with another 19 albums in between.
He’s been consistently delivering amazing albums since signing to Alligator Records in 2009. Great singer, ripping guitarist, and stellar stage presence—Castro’s the total package.
Texas twofer
Country fans take notice of a new band on the rise. Pecos & The Rooftops play the Fremont on Saturday, Jan. 21 (8 p.m.; all ages; $24.36 with fees at seetickets.us). They’re a close-knit group of friends from northeast Texas who came together while in college in Lubbock. The band includes Pecos Hurley (vocals/acoustic guitar), Brandon Jones (rhythm guitar), Zack Foster (lead guitar), Kalen Davis (bass), and Garrett Peltier (drums), and they’re touring in support of Red Eye, their three-song EP.
Dylan Wheeler opens the show. The self-described “broke ass kid” from Texas “is a perfect example of what the evolution of the Texas independent music scene looks like and the level of artist that it can produce,” according to his bio. “His music has all the singer-songwriter laden depth that lyric lovers covet, while his blending of both rock and alternative genres allows his original productions to feel comfortingly familiar whilst simultaneously breathing a gust of fresh air into a scene that has long been saturated by its country roots.”
Relive the folk revival
Hear classics from The Mamas and The Papas, the Byrds, Buffalo Springfield, The Doors, James Taylor, Carole King, Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne, Linda Ronstadt, America, the Eagles, and Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young when Live from Laurel Canyon: Songs and Stories of American Folk Rock comes to the Clark Center on Saturday, Jan. 21 (7:30 p.m.; all ages; $40 to $55 at clarkcenter.org). The 90-minute program offers a retrospective of music and stories of artists who lived in Laurel Canyon between 1965 and 1975.
“Similar to other legendary rock ‘n’ roll neighborhoods of the same era like Haight Ashbury in San Francisco or Greenwich Village in the NYC, Laurel Canyon was a community of artists who would forge new genres of music (folk rock) and forever change the look, sound, and attitude of American pop music,” according to press materials. “A time when an entire generation of youth felt abandoned by their own culture and were searching for a sound that helped define them, a sound that shared the protest and awareness of folk music and the attitude and look of rock music.”
More music …
Billy “Guitar Wiz” Foppiano plays the SLO Cider Company’s tasting room this Friday, Jan. 20 (5 to 7 p.m.), delivering crowd pleasing favorites perfect for dancing or listening. The man truly is a wizard on the guitar.
Also at SLO Cider, DJ B. TRU is back in the tasting room spinning an eclectic mix of music featuring mushroom jazz and roots reggae every Saturday, including Saturday, Jan. 21 (5 to 8 p.m.). ∆
Contact Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in Jan 19-29, 2023.