Nekromantix

House of Blues, Anaheim

Well this show was something of a disappointment. I knew I was going to be in a little bit of trouble when I got one of their CD's on the cheap. Campy, gothic rockabilly ... and not really executed all that well. Kind of like some weird foreign Cramps ripoff. Anyway, I persevered and went to the show not really thinking much was going to happen. I figured that judging my the number of Nekromantix stickers I've seen on peoples cars they really couldn't be all that bad ... could they?

Truth be told, they weren't all that bad. They're not Horton Heat, they're not the Cramps, but they try. I can't say I really like their music that much and don't play that CD very often anymore, but their stage act was at least a little better. They're visually interesting and kind of a kick to watch, but there's something lacking. I don't know, when I look at Lux from the Cramps, I know he's just fucked up crazy and it shows in his act ... makes him believable. These guys are supposed to be all that ... grave robbing, gothic demon rockabilly dudes, but they don't come across as all that strange ... kind of like a bunch of uptight white-collar frat boys dressing up with some tats and hair gel for a night. The mostly under 21 crowd didn't seem to care and pretty much ate them up. Their sound was ok, and I suppose if I liked their music more I might have enjoyed the show a tad more. Unfortunately for me, their show seemed as thin and cheesy as Nekroman's coffin-shaped bass. Ouch. They're not very good at rockabilly, and they're really not all that goth, so if you're expecting that, stay home. But if you know 'em and like 'em, they are at least worth the price of admission.

The latest in June '06
Ok, so maybe I was a little harsh on them the first go-around. I went to this show largely out of boredom and a need to try and get out to see more music. I figgered it wasn't all that bad the first time, I could suck up a few tonic's and at least see a couple of new bands for the openers. In any event I was glad I went. These guys actually do put on a pretty good high-energy show and the crowd just eats these fuckers up. I'm still not a huge fan of their music and I left a little early since I had work the next day, but fuck I hate to admit it, they actually did rock. They actually seemed a lot more punk this time, but maybe that was just my sobriety taking notice of the music rather than the ice floating in my cup. So now I've changed my mind, these guys are definitely worth a go-see if you're into rockabilly, psychobilly or any of that billy stuff at all (idol excepted of course).

Oh, and if you like those rockabilly greaser-chicks, this is the show to see. My god these guys know how to attract them like flies.

You can find the Nekromantix homepage here.