| The Meteors |
|
| Background information |
| Origin |
United Kingdom |
| Genres |
Psychobilly |
| Years active |
1980-present |
| Labels |
People Like You |
| Associated acts |
The Legendary Raw Deal, P.Paul Fenech (solo), The Surfin Dead, Cherry and the Devil, The Outsiders, The Escalators, The Tallboys |
| Website |
Kingsofpsychobilly.com |
| Members |
P. Paul Fenech
Simon Linden
Wolfgang Hordemann |
The Meteors are a British psychobilly band formed in 1980. Originally from the United Kingdom, they are often credited with giving the psychobilly subgenre—which fuses punk rock with rockabilly—its distinctive sound and style. Though the origins of psychobilly are debated, The Meteors are the first band to self-identify as psychobilly, and are often credited with the distinction of being the only "pure" psychobilly band among fans of the subgenre.
Fans of the band (known as the World Wide Wrecking Crew (WWWC)) are known to use the slogan, "Only The Meteors are Pure Psychobilly," (often shortened to "OTMAPP")[citation needed]
Biography
The Meteors were started in 1980 by P. Paul Fenech (guitar and Vocals), Nigel Lewis (upright bass/electric bass) - later of The Tallboys, the Escalators, and the Zorchmen - see performance clip in "Trash on The Tube" feature on Youtube), and Mark Robertson (drums). Fenech and Lewis had played in rockabilly bands before, but left their former band, Raw Deal, in order to experiment with a new sound that mixed horror and science fiction lyrics with a punk rock-rockabilly crossover (as distinct from the slower, psychedelic rockabilly sound of the Cramps). This sound would later be called psychobilly.
The Meteors played their first show during Rockabilly Night at The Sparrow Hawk in north London, but after being heckled due to their cross between rockabilly and punk attitudes, decided to begin playing shows beyond just rockabilly clubs. They developed a loyal following known as "the Crazies, or Zorchmen" who invented their own dance style called "going mental," a cross between fighting, dancing and moshing. This would later be renamed "wrecking," and is still a staple of the psychobilly scene to this day. Coupled with Fenech's ritual of spitting (chicken) blood during performances, many clubs believed the band was dangerous and refused to book them. The band began playing at punk rock clubs alongside UK punk bands such as The Clash, The Damned and later Anti-Nowhere League and the UK Subs. However, unlike many punk bands, The Meteors would (and still very much do) insist that their shows be "a politics and religion free zone" in order to focus on having a good time instead of allowing disputes between fans to break out.
Due to their large cult following, The Meteors made a short film in late 1980 with comedian Keith Allen called Meteor Madness. It was released as a double feature with two-tone ska film Dance Craze in March 1981. The movie featured four songs, which made it onto the band's first vinyl single. In August 1981, the band were signed to Island Records and recorded their first full-length, In Heaven.
The Meteors have gone through many line-up changes since, with Fenech being the only original member today. The current line-up includes Simon Linden on bass and Wolfgang Hordemann (who, though not from the original line up, is the longest serving member by far after Fenech) on drums. They have 25 official albums, countless singles, and numerous re-issues and compilation appearances. They continue to record using their own recording studios (Fenech is a fully qualified sound engineer and producer) IN HEAVEN (based in an old church) and also MADDOG STUDIOS (a 58 metre high tower in Germany). These two studios are professional studios used by many bands from around the world. The Meteors have extensively toured Japan, Europe and Scandinavia, South America, and the middle east. At the time of writing, they have completed well over 5500 live shows (occasionally two per night).
P. Paul Fenech has also released six highly regarded solo albums and plays in many side projects including, the Legendary Raw Deal (rockabilly), The Surfing Dead (instrumental), Cherry and The Devil (rockabilly), The Outsiders (rockabilly). He is also a prolific and successful writer of horror film music and has written extensively for television and many other films (using a pseudonym). He is also a keen gardener and writes a weekly column under the pseudonym Percy Lupton. Nigel Lewis and Mark Robertson went on to play together in the Escalators, a psychedelic rock band which had minor success, then the Tallboys, a band best known for recording the song "Take a Walk" for the Return of the Living Dead soundtrack.
Discography
Chart placings shown, unless stated otherwise, are from the UK Indie Chart.[1]
- 1981 Meteor Madness
- 1981 Radioactive Kid
- 1981 The Crazed
- 1981 Get Me To The World On Time (Clapham South Escalators)
- 1982 Island Of Lost Souls (Tall Boys)
- 1982 Mutant Rock (#4)
- 1982 Punky Party E.P. (Flexipop 25)
- 1983 Johnny Remember Me (UK Indie #2, UK Singles Chart #66)[2]
- 1984 I’m Just A Dog (#3)
- 1985 Fire, Fire (#7)
- 1985 Bad Moon Rising (#6)
- 1986 Surf City (#8)
- 1987 Go Buddy Go (#15)
- 1987 Don’t Touch The Bang Bang Fruit (#31)
- 1988 Rawhide
- 1990 Somebody Put Something In My Drink
- 1991 Chainsaw Boogie (MCD)
- 1992 Who Do You Love? (MCD)
- 1994 Chainsaw Boogie
- 1994 Hell Ain’t Hot Enough (MCD)
- 1997 Slow Down You Grave Robbing Bastard (7" & Pic7")
- 2005 25 Years Anniversary (Picture Disc)
- 2007 Hymns for Hellbound
- 2009 Hell Train Rollin
10"
- 1981 Meteor Madness (White Label)
12"
- 1981 The Meteors Meet Screaming Lord Sutch
- 1984 I’m Just A Dog
- 1985 Stampede
- 1985 Hogs & Cuties
- 1986 Wrecking Crew (Archive 4)
- 1986 Mutant Rock (#19)
- 1986 Surf City
- 1987 Go Buddy Go
- 1987 Don’t Touch The Bang Bang Fruit
- 1988 Somebody Put Something In My Drink
- 1988 Surfin’ On The Planet Zorch
- 1989 Please Don’t Touch
- 1991 Chainsaw Boogie
LP
- 1981 In Heaven
- 1983 Wreckin’ Crew (#1)
- 1984 Stampede (#6)
- 1985 The Curse Of The Mutants (#5)
- 1985 Monkey’s Breath (#4)
- 1986 Horrible Music For Horrible People by This Horrible Band (#5)
- 1986 Teenagers From Outer Space (#6)
- 1986 Sewertime Blues (#9)
- 1987 Don’t Touch The Bang Bang Fruit (#8)
- 1988 Only The Meteors Are Pure Psychobilly (#9)
- 1988 The Mutant Monkey And The Surfers From Zorch
- 1989 Undead, Unfriendly And Unstoppable
- 1991 Bad Moon Rising
- 1991 Madman Roll
- 1992 Demonopoly
- 1994 No Surrender (CD)
- 1995 Mental Instrumentals (CD)
- 1997 Bastard Sons Of A Rock’n’Roll Devil
- 1999 John Peel Sessions 1983–1985 (CD)
- 1999 The Meteors vs. The World
- 2001 Psycho Down!
- 2003 Psychobilly
- 2004 These Evil Things
- 2004 The Lost Album (CD)
- 2007 Hymns for the Hellbound
- 2009 Hell Train Rollin'
Live-Records
- 1983 Live (#3)
- 1985 The Meteors Live (#19)
- 1986 Live II
- 1987 Live And Loud
- 1987 Night Of The Werewolf (#17)
- 1990 Live III
- 1991 Encores
- 1992 International Wreckers (CD)
- 1996 Welcome To The Wreckin’ Pit (CD)
- 1996 International Wreckers 2 (CD)
- 2000 Psychobilly Revolution (CD)
- 2002 The Final Conflict
- 2003 The Meteors From Beyond
- 2004 Hell In The Pacific (CD)
References
- ^ Lazell, Barry (1997). Indie Hits 1980-1999. Cherry Red Books. ISBN 0-9517206-9-4.
- ^ Strong, Martin C. (1999). The Great Alternative & Indie Discography. Canongate. ISBN 0-86241-913-1.
