Take A Razor To Your Head: The Crazed

Here at Creases, we’re not afraid to dip a toe into other subcultures if the influences (and MA1s) fit. Last year one-time teenage Psychobilly Paul Wainwright published a book version of his at-the-time zine The Crazed, which carried interviews with the likes of The Meteors, Demented Are Go and Skitzo. The book itself, The Resurrection of The Crazed (Earth Island Books), is an altogether deeper dive into the subculture once referred to (by a compilation of the era) as The James Deans of the Dole Queue. Stevo dug out his dictaphone and recorded this with the author over a snakebite or several to hear more about stomping at the Klub Foot.

How did you get drawn into the world of psychobilly? You mention in the book you started out as a typical 2 Tone teen at your age. Meteor Madness was of course the less-remembered feature of a double bill, alongside Dance Craze.

I was into rockabilly and rock ‘n’ roll music from a young age, having many Pickwick Records compilation albums normally bought from Woolworths, which featured rockabilly classics mostly from the Sun Records archives. 2 Tone then came along and everyone I knew got into that, including myself. Then I heard The Meteors and everything changed in my teenage years. The excitement I initially felt when I heard those old rockabilly classics was now being felt again with this much more aggressive and contemporary sound that was psychobilly. I didn’t know anyone at the time who had seen Meteor Madness, although we all had the Meteor Madness E.P.  

How did that play out for others at the gigs you were attending? I know many went from skinhead and mod to psychobilly, not least as the look demanded similar in the form of MA1s, bleachers and Docs.

Most of the kids where I lived were already into rockin’ music and just moved into psychobilly, a few were initially into the Stray Cats and a couple dressed psychobilly but really preferred the more traditional 50s rockabilly. As psychobilly became better known and the popularity of the Klub Foot grew (the mecca of psychobilly) more and more people became attracted to it, crops were grown out to be replaced by bleached quiffs, mods/scooterists saw some of their mates replace their parkas with Meteors t-shirts, much to some purists’ annoyance. One mod I know still feels a resentment that her mates turned their backs on it to favour The Meteors and Guana Batz.

You took a Meteors song for the title of the zine? 

The Meteors were arguably the biggest psychobilly band on the scene. Their debut album In Heaven has gained a legendary status and definitely set the blueprint for what was to come. The album featured the song ‘The Crazed’ which was also a single off the album. I thought the song and the title were great and used it for the name of my fanzine. At the time The Meteors were my favourite band, although many other bands within the scene could also claim that title at certain times. I managed to interview them at The Angel Centre in Tonbridge when they played there in the 80s, it was my first face to face interview and an experience I will never forget and quite an achievement for a teenager trying to establish his fanzine.   

You interviewed Demented Are Go in the toilets of the Klub Foot. For our readership, can you describe a typical gig there, as it was the ground zero?

There wasn’t and still isn’t any other venue within the psychobilly scene that can touch the Klub Foot. For a teenage psychobilly it was a magical experience to attend and be part of it. All the main psychobilly bands played there, and many new bands established their reputations by gracing the stage including Frenzy, Demented Are Go and Torment, to name a few. It was also a great meeting place for all the psychobillies around the country and sometimes further afield to meet and mingle and discuss their favourite bands. The Klub Foot was the mecca for all things psychobilly and is always remembered fondly and with reverence with many if not all that attended there.

Do you think its demise is what hastened the demise of psychobilly itself as a presence? 

In my opinion the Klub Foot closing had a huge impact on the psychobilly scene within this country, although it did manage to travel successfully abroad and to America. The Klub Foot did reopen in the Boston Arms after the sad demise of the Clarendon Hotel, but it didn’t feel the same. The magic felt at the Clarendon had mostly gone. Arguably, some who joined the psychobilly scene because of the fashion would have moved onto the Madchester and Acid House scene.

You say in the book that putting out the zine was a way of having skin in the game within the subculture?

I don’t think that it is unusual for someone to produce a fanzine to gain some recognition and become part, however small, of the scene, especially if like me you couldn’t play an instrument. It is a great way to meet bands and have the opportunity to interview them. How else could you take up about 20-30 minutes of your favourite band’s time or get put onto the guest list and be given a back stage pass at gigs? For one of the recordings of the now legendary Stomping at the Klub Foot album series I was allowed to stand on the side of the stage during one of the bands’ performances whilst it was being recorded.

Did being a psychobilly ever cause you any subcultural grief?

No, in my experience there were no problems with other subcultures. I remember talking to a skinhead outside the Klub Foot. There was no bad feeling from anybody there.

I was interested in writer Nick Kemp’s comment in the book that it was the only really exclusively working-class subculture. It certainly coincided with the Youth Training Scheme in the 80s.

After spending the week in a factory or an office, psychobillies started their weekends by sculpturing their quiffs in front of the mirror using ozone-busting amounts of hairspray to hold it all into place. This led to them meeting their like-minded mates to often attend a gig and throw themselves around in the wreckin’ pit, often at the Klub Foot, whilst consuming copious amounts of snakebite. It was basically just about having fun and letting off steam whilst listening to some awesome music. Unlike some other genres, it didn’t need intellectualising about it – you either liked it or not.

You suggest that Restless had the most potential for chart success? It’s also mentioned that King Kurt were seen as more of a novelty act (with chart hits). Is that why there’s so few actial books on psychobilly?

It is not my opinion that King Kurt were more of a novelty act. That was taken from an interview and was an observation not an opinion from the interviewee. There are a few books on psychobilly: Craig Brackenridge’s Hell’s Bent on Rockin; Nick Kemp’s biography of Demented Are Go Kicked Out of Hell; Mark Robertson’s The Devil’s Rhythm about the early Meteors; Paul Wragg’s Ted’s, Rebels, Hepcats and Psychos, a comprehensive book on the rockin scene which includes a fair bit on psychobilly. Philip Doyle from The Klingonz wrote a book about his experiences. There are a few others. The music wasn’t taken as seriously as it should have been by the music press during the 80s which led to many bands being mostly ignored. I remember interviewing Skitzo, who were making a name for themselves after the release of their debut album, telling me that my interview was their first one.

What’s the scene like now? 

The scene is still going strong, even though a lot of the audience in this country are growing older. Bedlam Breakout, Pineda, Psychobilly Freakout and Ginger Meadham’s Psychobilly Kicks Back are all popular gigs/festivals that keep the scene alive. Dog Eat Robot is a fanzine that interviews and writes about many of the current and more established bands. A lot of the old bands are still touring, some very successfully including Guana Batz, The Meteors and Restless. New younger bands are emerging: The Deathcaps, Red Hot Riot and Psychotropix to name just three. For a scene that never broke out into the mainstream, the interest and enthusiasm is still there.

OK then, in the spirit of The Crazed, give us a Top 10…

It is impossible to give a Top 10, as some days a record can sound like the best sound ever which will soon be preceded by another one the following day.

I am going to list some of the songs I really loved back in the 80s:

‘Hills Have Eyes’ – The Meteors

‘Lady Bacon’ – Guana Batz

‘Head Driven Sinner’ – Torment

‘PVC Chair’ – Demented Are Go

‘Non-Stop Loving’ – Long Tall Texans

‘Paranoia’ – The Tranquilizers

‘Listen to what Archie Sez’ – Archie

‘Down in the Swamp’ – Restless

‘It’s Up to You’ – Get Smart

‘Wedding Ring’ – The Sting-Rays

Also, as an add-on, the 12’ E.P. The Inner Wardrobes of Your Mind by The Vibes is essential.