Reverend Horton Heat

The Reverend Horton Heat are undoubtedly one of the most popular rockabilly and psycobilly bands, helping to popularise the genre after The Cramps first brought it into the fore. His wild showmanship, wicked sense of humor and tales of debauchery and excess make Jim Heath and his band exciting and entertaining, helping to explain their loyal and enthusiastic fan base.

Having worked as a sound engineer around Dallas and Austin, Jim Heath became inspired by the growing punk and roots rock scene. Having made an impromptu performance of "Folsom Prison Blues" at one of Dallas' clubs, Heath decided to commit to music and form a band. Naming themselves Reverend Horton Heat, an ode to Johnny Horton, the band began playing music at various venues around the Southwest, especially in Oklahoma City, in 1985. Building a loyal following and creating hype after selling out venues across the midwest and west coast, the band were soon at the centre of a bidding war in 1989, with Sub Pop becoming the chosen record label. By this time, the band had solidified their lineup to include bassist Jimmy Wallace and drummer Patrick "Taz" Bentley.

The band became an underground hit through their Sub Pop releases, with 1991's "Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em" and 1993's "The Full Custom Gospel Sounds of the Reverend Horton Heat" building an enthusiastic fan base. The band then drew the attention of major label, Interscope, beginning with 1994's "Liquor in the Front." Their next two records, 1996's "It's Martini Time" and 1998's "Space Heater," were highly profitable for the label. Although the band soon left Interscope for independents, maintaining a huge following on the live circuit. The band continued to release records regularly, achieving their highest chart position with 2014's "REV," which peaked at 111 in the US Billboard 200 and number two on the US Heat chart.

Originally formed under the moniker Johnny Peebucks and the Swingin’ Utters in 1987, the band remained with the name until 1994. Comprised of singer and frontman Johnny “Peebucks” Bonnel, guitarist/accordionist Darius Koski, bassist Kevin Wickersham, and drummer Greg McEntee, the group moved from Santa Cruz to San Francisco soon after their formation and began recording material for the labels Side One, IFA Records, and New Red Archives.

Johnny Peebucks and the Swingin’ Utters’ debut release surfaced in 1992 as the full-length “Scared”, however it was the record’s follow-up, “The Streets of San Francisco”, that propelled the California-natives to punk-rock notoriety. Released in 1995 under the Swingin’ Utters moniker and produced by Lars Frederiksen, the album won the Best Debut Album Award at the Bay Area Music Awards. In both promotion and support of “The Streets of San Francisco”, the band were invited to tour as a part of the first annual Vans Warped Tour, as well as alongside Rancid on a national tour.

Following a move to Fat Wreck Chords, Swingin’ Utters’ third full-length album “A Juvenile Product of the Working Class” was released in 1996. Taking the name from the Elton John song ”Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting”, the record proved another popular release, and paved the way for their subsequent album “Fiver Lessons Learned” in 1998. Following the release of their self-titled, fifth studio album in 2000, the band embarked on a national tour with The Damned and Dropkick Murphys, before heading to Europe with Rancid. A sixth album arrived in 2003 entitled “Dead Flowers, Bottles, Bluegrass, and Bones” before Swingin’ Utters took a six year break from recording and touring.

In their absence, fellow punk rock band compiled the tribute album “Untitled 21: A Juvenile Tribute to the Swingin’ Utters”, released by Red Scare Industries. In 2010 the band returned to issued the EP “Brand New Lungs”, followed in 2011 with the full-length “Here, Under Protest”. Released in early 2013, the group’s eighth studio album “Poorly Formed”, marked the arrival of bassist Miles Peck, and was supported by an Australian tour alongside Dropkick Murphys and Frank Turner.