Customer Reviews

Graveyard Shindig

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a great disc if you get bored by the usual psycho and surf sound out there. Granted the vox are bit too Cramps-esque at times, but the lyrics are neat-0, like comic book versions of H.P. Lovecraft. I liked the original versions of some of the tracks, when I first discovered Creepniks on CD Baby. The vox were lower so they felt like they took a backseat to the music, and it felt more appropriate. But still, Shadow Over Elkhart and Zombie Stomp, also El Gringo Loco and How Do You Sleep?----all are kickass tunes that justify this purchase.

This collection of ghoulish tunes straight from Cassandra Peterson's cleavage owes a lot to Sergio Leone and Link Wray. The singer sounds like someone's put a clamp on his stones.

It's a novelty act.

What did MTV see in this? I give it 3 Stars I guess. 2 would be more like it. Should you buy it? Probably not.

It wasn't all that long ago that I was exposed to The Creepniks and their unique blend of wild west, surf-a-billy, and rock n' roll madness. Take The Red Elvises, The Route 66 Killers, and The Meteors, plow them down with a '57 Chevy, bury their mangled corpses in unmarked graves in the desert wastelands of left America, have a witch doctor perform a ritual to bring them back to life as flesh-crazed, guitar-weilding zombies of the night, and you have The Creepniks. Occasionally, Johnny, the singer, sounds a bit like the King---our favorite Memphis stiff, Elvis Presley!---with a slit throat and lungs punctured by shards of ribcage. That is, he has a deep, wavery, hip voice that, although cool and agreeable in a lot of ways, possesses a talent somewhat disproportionate to his fingers (which, let's be honest, play the hell out of a six-string). Speaking of playing the hell out of a six-string, the lead guitarist, Seth, puts down some amazing notework over Johnny's twangy rhythms. Jack provides the low-end on the thick strings of his bass, while Pablo rocks the drum kit like it's nobody's buisiness. These four Texans are what the music world too often lacks---diversity, experimentation, originality, and open-mindedness. Sadly, I think the Creepniks have since gone their separate ways. We can only hope for a reunion. And if not a reunion, I then hope that each finds his way into a new and equally great endeavor. The graveyards of America just won't be the same unless their sound continues in some way.

Check out Graveyard Shindig on Gravewax Records, though. I would dare say that you'll be glad you did.