The Cramps

Holing up at the corner of rockabilly raunch and sick psychedelia, the Cramps gleefully embody all of early rock's sleaziest impulses. Their first release, Gravest Hits, (which has since been released on CD with Psychedelic Jungle) contrasts the itchy anxiety of "Human Fly" against an earnest cover of the Trashmen classic "Surfin' Bird." A similar dichotomy can be found on Songs the Lord Taught Us, where Lux Interior's Gene Vincent-meets-Fred Schneider delivery generates maximum friction against the brittle edges of the band's punkabilly instrumental attack. (Bad Music for Bad People combines the best of Songs the Lord Taught Us with highlights from Gravest Hits and Psychedelic Jungle). Sadly, neither the low-key Psychedelic Jungle nor the live Smell of Female is able to match that edgy chemistry, but the unrepentant sexism of A Date With Elvis almost makes up the difference; after all, where else are you likely to hear songs as tastelessly titled as "The Hot Pearl Snatch" or "Can Your Pussy Do the Dog?" Stay Sick! adds a few kinks to the Cramps' lyrics (e.g., "Journey to the Center of a Girl"), but musically, the group seems to have shot its wad, as the album's only original move is the rheumy cover of "Muleskinner Blues." But Look Mom No Head! not only picks up the tempo on most tunes, but brings in Iggy Pop for the thoroughly demented "Miniskirt Blues," then one-ups it with the single-entendre rocker "Bend Over, I'll Drive." If only Flamejob and Big Beat From Badsville could match their bad impulses with a similar sense of style. (J.D. CONSIDINE)

From 2004's