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The “Tonight We Unite” tour, which hits South Florida for a date at Miami’s Grand Central next Friday (July 27), is billed as a union of the psychobilly and punk rock worlds. Though under-represented by having just one band on the bill, the psychobilly genre nevertheless stands almost equal by virtue of the tour’s co-headliner, the mighty Nekromantix.
Nekromantix is perhaps psychobilly’s most popular and prolific band of the past decade. As co-headliners, the band is joining forces with thrash-punk icons The Casualties for this summer tour that offers a great underground alternative to Warped and other corporate packages. No stranger to South Florida (they played a jam-packed Monterey Club last September), Nekromantix appeal to punks and rockabilly fans of all ages with an incredibly tight array of fast-paced original songs with a macabre twist.
Just one look at the song titles and you know you’re in for a tongue-in-cheek good time: Bats in My Pants, I Kissed a Ghoul, and Bela Lugosi’s Star are just three of the catchy tunes on the band’s most recent album, What Happens in Hell, Stays in Hell (2011, Hellcat Records).
The band, which originated in Denmark in the late 1980s and now is based in Los Angeles, has seven other albums on its discography, including Return of the Loving Dead (2002), Dead Girls Don’t Cry (2004), and Life Is a Grave & I Dig It! (2007), all on Hellcat. The label’s owner, Tim Armstrong of Rancid, reportedly signed the band after he became a fan of the early European releases.
They may be the odd men (and woman) out on this punk-rock extravaganza, but Kim Nekroman (“coffinbass” and vocals), Francisco Mesa (guitar), and Lux (drums) will no doubt represent psychobilly proudly.
*** Friday, July 27 – “Tonight We Unite” featuring Nekromantix and The Casualties, plus Down By Law, Lower Class Brats, Flatfoot 56, and The Sheds. At Grand Central, 697 N. Miami Ave., Miami. (305) 377-2277. Ages 18 and older welcome. Tickets $15 in advance online at GrandCentralMiami.com and Slammie.MusicToday.com. $20 at the door, 8 p.m.
Past Atomic Grog coverage
* 10 things you may (or may not) know about the Nekromantix
Photos from past Nekromantix shows
* 2010 at Churchill’s in Miami | 2007 at Flavour in Coconut Grove
* 2007 at Respectable Street in West Palm Beach
Official sites
* Grand Central | Facebook | Nekromantix | Facebook