The psychobilly legends The Cramps just saw three early albums going under the reissue treatment, and this sophomore album from 1981 sees the quartet's blend of garage rock, punk, voodoo blues and rockabilly spreading out across half originals and half covers.
Nick Knox’s thumping drums start “Green Fuz,” where the bright guitars and frontman Lux Interior’s unmistakable pipes guide the raw rock spirit. “Goo Goo Muck” follows with dueling guitars (no bass on this one), Interior’s deep pipes and the rich instrumentation giving plenty of blues nods.
Moving along, “Rockin’ Bones,” popularized by Ronnie Dawson, comes with rhythm and backing vocals alongside the head bobbin’ and toe tappin’ fun, while the dense guitar of “Voodoo Idol” complements the melodies, vocal acrobatics and pounding ideas. “The Crusher” exits this portion of the record with thick surf rock sensibilities that growl and thump with Poison Ivy Rorschach’s radiant guitar.
Starting the back half is the minimal “Don’t Eat Stuff Off The Sidewalk,” which is strong on atmosphere, and the retro-punk droning of “Can’t Find My Mind,” which still sounds great to this day.
Closer to the end, the dissonant “The Native Are Restless” has Interior howling amid the tuneful rhythm section and a mood you could dance to, and “Green Door” exits with bare versus busy bouts that make great use of Kid Congo Powers’ animated guitar playing.
The Cramps were most active in the ’80s and ’90s and eventually disbanded in 2009 when Interior died. Their presence has been consistent for decades though, due to their creative sounds that have sparked countless other bands in the surf-punk, horror-punk and punk-a-billy subgenres. Most recently, they’ve found their way onto the soundtrack of the show Wednesday, which has brought them legions of new fans.
There will never be another band like The Cramps, and if you missed this one the first time around, well, you’ve got no excuses this time.