Cramp’s frontman Lux Interior Dies…
In the early morning hours of Wednesday February 4 2009, the world of rock and roll lost one of its most original, dynamic, freakish and underrated frontmen of all time – LUX INTERIOR (born Erick Lee Purkhiser) of the pioneering garage/punk band the Cramps.
I was lucky enough to see the Cramps perform at Motherf*cker (the now defunct NYC dance party) during late 2006. Seasoned veterans by then, I cannot erase the images of Interior as he threw himself about the stage like a deranged ragdoll with reckless abandon or performing fellatio on his mic. (in between songs he would chug red wine, naturally).
The Cramps was the bastard love child of Interior and guitarist Poison Ivy (born Kristy Wallace, later his wife). They eventually left California and traveled east in the mid 1970s with their band to become part of the nascent punk scene that revolved around venues such as Max’s Kansas City and CBGBs in lower Manhattan.
While the bands that inhabited the NYC milieu were initially varied – both visually and sonically (think leather-clad Ramones, spastic Talking Heads or the glamorously trashy Blondie), the Cramps truly stuck out, as they were simultaneously campy and menacing. Their look and sound was a melting pot of references and aesthetics, from 1950’s B-horror movies and sadomasochism to rockabilly and double entendres (“Can You’re Your Pussy Do the Dog?” Ahem.)
Like many bands associated with punk rock, the Cramps never achieved commercial success. However, songs like “Human Fly”, “I Was A Teenage Werewolf” and “Goo Goo Muck” are engrained on a generation of listeners. Even without a gold record under their garter belt, many credit the genre of “pyschobilly” or “horror rock” to the band.
Recommended viewing, the grainy clips on YouTube of the band in the late 70’s performing a show for patients at the Napa State Mental. A few songs in, you almost can’t tell the difference between the band and the incarcerated. Take that, Live Aid.
One reviewer put it best, describing Interior’s voice as “the psychosexual werewolf/ Elvis hybrid from hell”. Somewhere out there, the afterlife just got a little kinkier. — Daniel Alonso
STEPHEN SPROUSE: Rock On Mars
How many people can say they designed stage outfits for their downstairs neighbor [Blondie’s Debbie Harry], collaborated with artists and designers, [Keith Haring, Marc Jacobs, etc.] and hobnobbed with icons of the art world [Andy Warhol]. Well, STEVEN SPROUSE could.
ROCK ON MARS is a retrospective exhibition of Sprouse’s (1953-2004) wide range of work, from neon clothing, pop-influenced paintings, fabrics designed for Knoll, fashion sketches displayed under black light and a floor to ceiling wall of Polaroids.
Stephen ’s name is synonymous with 1980s New York City. He successfully fused the downtown punk rock/club kid sensibility associated with haunts like CBGBs and Mudd Club with uptown quality and recognition. His fashions were instantly recognizable and added much needed character to a city that was known for embracing an all-black uniform. For Sprouse, it wasn’t just a little splash of color – it was an all out day-glo assault.
His professional career ebbed and flowed but he experienced a resurgence when he joined forces with Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton with his graffiti-ed monogram bags in 2001. Jacobs resurrected his late friend’s designs for a new limited edition collection now available in Vuitton stores across the globe.
The show at Deitch Projects also coincides with The Stephen Sprouse Book, the first major book detailing Stephen’s work. The publication is available in four different day-glo colors, a subtle homage to the 1987 Rockbird album cover he designed for Miss Harry. – Daniel Alonso
Rock on Mars Exhibition: January 09, 2009 — February 28, 2009
Deitch Projects . 18 Wooster Street. New York, NY 10013 (212) 941-9475
THE RAVEONETTES: Live at Webster Hall 1.17.09
The Jukebox Churns Out Songs About Sex
It may have been record freezing cold temperatures in New York City last night, but it could not get cooler inside Webster Hall where Danish group THE RAVEONETTES headlined.
Guitarist/vocalist Sune Rose Wagner and his cohort, the striking Sharin Foo (also on guitars/vocals), brilliantly served their sound to a hungry audience. That sound being the trashy love child of early American rock and roll and distorted post-punk -- plenty of feedback please.
Unlike previous U.S. tours which took a much more minimalist approach, with Sune and Sharin taking turns on guitars and drums, on this go they brought a four piece band on the road to strengthen their towering wall of sound.
The set tended to focus on their latest release, last year’s Lust Lust Lust. However, the band did touch upon tracks from earlier albums such as 2002’s EP Whip It On and 2005’s homage to classic rock and pop from decades past, Pretty in Black. Highlights from the night included the girl group style of “Dead Sound” and “Love in a Trashcan” to the toe-tapping electro rock of “Twilight.” They ended the night with an encore of the oh-so-sexy “Aly, Walk With Me”.
You can catch the band tonight in Washington D,C, at the Black Cat. They end their short tour later this month on the West Coast in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
More tour dates, photos and info via The Raveonettes.com. Head on over to BrooklynVegan for some high quality photos from the show!
