On their new album—the title, of course, alludes to the famous Las Vegas tourism slogan—Danish-American psychobilly trio Nekromantix seem content to create music with a tongue-in-cheek horror shtick.
Sexy new drummer Lux, a YouTube sensation known for her technical prowess and the fact that she plays the kit in high heels, brings a precise, forceful and metallic wallop, resulting in what's arguably the best-produced and most-aggressively arranged effort by a band that's been doing this for 20 years.
"Bela Lugosi's Star" is a wild tale of a mad scientist's plot to save the planet by destroying humanity, but not before "cruising down Hollywood Boulevard." "I Kissed a Ghoul" is just what its title suggests—a love story gone terribly awry once the song's Jäger-goggled narrator discovers that his girlfriend-to-be sitting at the bar is a bit, um, spoiled. Still, admits bassist/frontman Kim Nekroman: "I kind of liked the bitter taste of her rotten upper neck." Yuck.
Musically speaking, Hell reaches a fever pitch with the speedy riffing of the hilarious "Bats in My Pants," which will appeal to both metalheads and hard-core punks, as well as comedy-rock fans of Tenacious D.
Live, the current Nekromantix lineup is unbeatable—there's no better band toiling in this strange subgenre, where the Stray Cats meet the Misfits. If you dig psychobilly, Hell is pure heaven.
