DeViCom Biography: The Cramps

The Cramps
f. 1976 in Ohio, USA

Formed in Ohio, USA, in 1976, the original Cramps, Lux Interior (b..Erick Lee Purkhiser; vocals), 'Poison' Ivy Rorschach (b. Kirsty Marlana Wallace; guitar), Bryan Gregory (guitar) and his sister, Pam Balam (drums), later moved to New York, where they were embroiled in the emergent punk scened centred on the CBGB's rock venue. Miriam Linna briefly replaced Balam, before Nick Knox (b. Nick Stephanoff) became the group's permanent drummer. The Cramps' early work was recorded at the famed Sun Records' studio under the aegis of producer Alex Chilton . Their early singles and debut album Lucky 13 blended the frantic rush of rockabilly with a dose of 60s garage-band panache and an obvious love of ghoulish b-movies. Bryan Gregory's sudden departure followed the release of the compulsive "Drug Train" single. Former Gun Club acolyte Kid Congo (Powers) (b. Brian Tristan), appeared on Psychedelic Jungle, but he later rejoined his erstwhile colleagues and the Cramps have since employed sveral, often female, replacements, including Fur and Candy Del Mae. Despite the groups's monumentum being rufely interrupted by a protracted legal wrangle with the IRS Records label during the 80s, the Cramps' horror-cum-trash style, supplemented with a healthy dose of humour and sex, has nonetheless remained intact througtout their career. However, the best eamples of their work can still be found on their early albums (and compilations), with songs such as "You've Got Good Taste", "Human Fly" and "I'm Cramped" perfectly capturing a moment in time in the evolution of alternative rock music. Next best is probably 1986's A Date with Elvis, which appealed beacsue the formula was still relatively fresh. Wary of outside manipulation, the Cramps continue to steer their own course to good effect by touring and recording, proving themselves the masters of their particular genre. Their live shows, especially, are rarely found wanting in terms of entertaiment alue. In 1991 Interior and Rorschach re-emerged fronting a rejuvenated line-up with Slim Chance (bass) and Jim Sclavunos (drums). Flamejob, released in 1994, showed that the group had become virtually a pantomine act,a fact that their most recent albums sadly confirmed.