Deadbolt

Although its members proclaim themselves purveyors of “voodoobilly,” San Diego’s Deadbolt doesn’t tread quite the same musical waters as psychobilly outfits like Mad Sin, with its overt co-opting of snotty punk-rock poses dressed in retro guise. Instead, the act’s music is closer to its obvious influences: Duane Eddy and Dick Dale. Long calling itself “the scariest band in the world,” Deadbolt evokes the campier aspects of the old EC Comics, where lurid, heavy-handed tales of horror and madness prevail. While much of the material is intended to garner a chuckle, there are moments that are genuinely weird and creepy. Lead singer Harley Davidson is a gifted storyteller whose lyrics splash Technicolor images right out of a Roger Corman movie starring James Dean. Although Deadbolt sports a collective grin that conjures the psychotic visage of the Joker, its visceral stage show and spooky guitar lines are lively in a way that belies its name.