Jump to content

Gothabilly

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Jwgreen65 (talk | contribs) at 20:22, 15 December 2006 (→‎External links). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Gothabilly
Stylistic originsEarly Punk rock, Surf rock, Psychobilly, Death Rock, Gothic Rock
Cultural originslate 1970's United States
Typical instrumentsGuitar - Bass - Drums - Some more gothic rock influenced acts may incorporate violins and keyboards
Regional scenes
Mainly England and the United States
Other topics
Timeline of alternative rock

Gothabilly is a portmanteau which refers to the fusion of rockabilly music and the Goth culture. Gothabilly bands' lyrics include various dark themes sometimes including, but not limited to: Horror, the Supernatural/Paranormal, Vampires, The Occult, plus the standard rock fare of Dark Love songs, Sadness, violence,etc., with vocal styles that are similar to those used in classic rockabilly. Gothabilly also often draws visual and stylistic influences from camp 1960s "monster" themes, such as the television show The Munsters.

"Gothabilly" differs from "Psychobilly" in that Gothabilly music tends to be slower and more atmosphere-oriented than Psychobilly. Whereas most Psychobilly songs have rockabilly chord progressions played in a punk style, Gothabilly adds gothic influence, such as jangly guitars, organs, and often, acoustic instrumentation.

Origins

In the late 1970s, The Cramps helped to create a proto-gothabilly subgenre. However, the term "gothabilly" was not used until the early 1990's when Salon Betty frontwoman, Betty X. used the term in an interview with The Rocket newspaper. The terms Death Lounge and Deathabilly may also be associated with Betty X. It should be noted, however, that bands such as the Cramps were more influential to the Gothabilly genre as visual icons and stylistic archetypes, than they were musically in many cases. The Cramps musical style is/was closer in formula to the Surf rock sound of the early 1960s combined with the traditional "12-bar blues" format than to 1950's rockabilly rhythms or vocal styles. They also have been sometimes associated with Gothic Rock primarily because of their use of fetish clothing and outlandish makeup, including heavy, dark eyeliner on both male and female members of the group in their photos and live concerts, which is also popular in the Gothic subculture. The Cramps are also considered to be influential in the same sense to the Psychobilly genre.

Influential Acts

Current Performers

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gothabilly&oldid=94569789"