Do the creep, Kingston

The Creepshow is moving away from their older horror material

  • Arts
Sean McNab says the psychobilly genre is a lot more popular in Germany and the rest of Europe than it is in North America.
Image by: Supplied
Sean McNab says the psychobilly genre is a lot more popular in Germany and the rest of Europe than it is in North America.

The last time psychobilly punk rock band The Creepshow came to Kingston, some audience members started punching people next to them in the face.

So says Sean McNab, the stand-up bassist and singer of the five-piece Toronto-born band.

Their beat-heavy and mosh-worthy songs may have sinister undertones, but McNab insists the group is totally ordinary. “We’re not rockstars on a bus or anything, we’re just five douchebags that want to have a good time and play music,” he said.

One thing that sets The Creepshow apart from other musicians, next to their frightening band name, is their moniker stage performance names.

The lineup of the band includes ‘Sickboy’ on upright bass, ‘Ginty’ on keyboards, ‘Pomade’ on drums and ‘Hellcat’ on guitars and vocals.

Kingston has become a regular pit stop for the band since they formed in 2005 and they usually fill out their venue with both people who love their music and people who are just curious.

Initially, McNab would look out to only a 15-person audience, but year after year numbers grew to reach over 100.

“The last couple times it’s been pretty rowdy,” he said.

The band uses a stand-up base to channel 1950s musical spirit, which adds to their otherwise Buffy the Vampire Slayer-esque, charged sound.

When you listen to the band’s old musisc from 2009, you can see the juxtaposition between the scary song names, but sweet and sassy sound of the vocals.

In their seven years together they’ve gone through two different lead singers, both with sugary pop voices and tattooed femme fatale looks.

After lead singer ‘Hellcat’ got pregnant in 2007, her sister took over the singing in the band and she was given the stage name ‘Sin.’ McNab said recently, the group has strayed away from their previous horror-movie-inspired lyrics.

“We decided to tone it down a bit,” McNab said. “We still keep kind of a dark theme.” For the band, their psychobilly genre isn’t as popular in North America compared to overseas.

“For a while we toured more in Europe than anywhere else,” he said. “It just seems like there’s more of an appreciation for underground music there.” Germany, is a particular soft spot — it’s where the band got their shots with labels and booking agents back when they first got started.

“The genre psychobilly has been popular in the underground there for 30 years, and here it’s more of a new thing.”

The Creepshow plays the Mansion on Sept. 14. Doors open at 9 p.m.

Tags

Germany, psychobilly, The Creepshow, The Mansion

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