Nick 13 is interviewed while out on the road!
When Tiger Army, the Berkeley-bred psychobilly band, emerged in 1996, only a few scattered groups were playing this musical hybrid, which combines the energy of punk with rootsy rock reminiscent of '50s pioneers such as Gene Vincent and Eddie Cochran.
Since then, psychobilly bands have grown substantially in number as well as popularity, though they're still a largely underground phenomenon.
"We were one of the first bands to tour heavily in the States that play in this style,'' says Nick 13, the vocalist, guitarist and songwriter for Tiger Army who took his name while in a previous band, Influence 13.
"Certainly we were the first psychobilly band to play in a lot of areas.''
In fact, Nick 13 had such a tough time finding like-minded musicians in the Bay Area during the late '90s that he moved to Los Angeles. Tiger Army -- which performs Sunday at the Catalyst in Santa Cruz -- has developed an impressive following there and in a few other places, though its fans are not widespread. The band will perform for five nights at the House of Blues in Los Angeles later this month.
"I am proud that we have moved from exclusively tiny clubs, where a few people had heard of us, to where we can play to 5,000 people in Los Angeles with these five House of Blues shows. At certain places around the country, we do pretty well.''
Born in San Jose and raised in Ukiah, Nick 13 got into punk rock as a young skateboarder. One of the first things he discovered was a connection between '50s rock, rockabilly and punk rock. He recalls hearing the Sex Pistols cover an Eddie Cochran song, which first opened his ears to roots rock.
Tiger Army's latest album, ``III: Ghost Tigers Rise,'' mines such influences as the '80s post-punk bands the Cure and Depeche Mode.
"A lot of times people mistakenly assume that we just play to one crowd, the rockabilly-psychobilly crowd,'' says Nick 13, ``but our music draws on so many different subgenres of rock 'n' roll. Our audience is a diverse group. You'll find young and old people from a cross section of rock 'n' roll at our shows."
"There are people who are into dressing in rockabilly or punk styles. There are some Goths . . . and some people who just look like the Jeff Spicoli character from `Fast Times at Ridgemont High."
Since the departure of original members Fred Hell and Geoff Kresge, the trio now includes drummer James Meza and bassist Jeff Roffredo.
"You would think that getting a new rhythm section would be a detriment to the band,'' says Nick 13, ``but actually this is as tight as Tiger Army has ever sounded on stage. Jeff is definitely one of the best stand-up bass players in the States. He and James were playing in a band together before they joined Tiger Army. So they have that natural rhythm section chemistry that is so important, especially in psychobilly, where you have the stand-up bass.''
Tiger Army
By Jon Matsumoto
Special to the Mercury News