THEE MERRY WIDOWS
Biography
Thee Merry Widows are often credited as the world's first all-female psychobilly act. However the Dypsomaniaxe beat them to the punch by several years. However thee Merry Widows were the first American band to bring together the all-girl formula and the psychobilly sounds of their influences like Demented Are Go and Mad Sin. Add in some elements of Surf and Garage Rock, and you have a uniquely Northern California take on psychobilly.
Discography
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San Francisco’s all female rockabilly darlings Thee Merry Widows burst on the scene with 2005’s Revenge Served Cold, a 11 song LP with ghoulishly fun tricks and treats; their first album has them paying tribute to their favorite horror schlock films, like The Cramps-inspired “Grave Robbers (from Outer Space)” and “All Of Them Witches,” and psychobilly pleaser “Black Widow.” Although considered one of the first all female pysychobilly bands, Thee Merry Widows have a penchant for garage and surf music that sets them apart from the rest of the pack; listen to the reverb-drenched “Girl Assassins” and you can feel this is surf-y California rock n’ roll, played by ladies in latex, leather, fishnets, and red lipstick.
The album is presented here with bonus tracks originally only available on the European re-release. The bonus tracks include Thee Merry Widows’ homage to kinky dressers, “Fetish Queen,” and the ultimate middle finger to ex-boyfriends, “Suicide Ride.” Thee Merry Widows give another tip of the cap to one of their heroes with a cover of English proto-psychobilly band Demented Are Go’s “Holy Hack Jack.” The perfect companion music for wanna-be Betty Pages and James Deans, Revenge Served Cold makes you want to light a cigarette, put on a leather jacket, and comb your perfectly coiffed hair. Just make sure you check under the bed for things that go bump in the night. 
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The 2008 follow up to their first album, Revenge Served Cold, the campy, trampy, foot-stampy The Devil’s Outlaws, is Northern California’s fishnet-clad rockabilly lady rockers Thee Merry Widows’ homage to B-movies and all things ooky and spooky.
This album finds Thee Merry Widows hitting some new high points; the title track’s thumping upright bass sends shivers down the listener’s spine. The cover of Sloppy Seconds’ “I Want ‘Em Dead” is an instant sing-along classic. There’s even a duet with Daniel deLeon of fellow psychobilly fave The Rezurex, “Remember Me.” The slow tempo of “Elana’s Empty Tomb” gives singer Miss Eva von Slut a chance to unleash her inner Glenn Danzig-style wail. From the superb cover art to the American Werewolf in London-inspired lyrics of “The Howl,” everything about this album screams Thee Merry Widows love their exploitation films of the 50’s-70’s. “Theater of Blood” recalls the gory past of the Grand Giugnol, “Varla” is about the big-breasted Russ Meyers heroine from Faster Pusycat, Kill! Kill!. “The Bride” is a retelling of the Bride of Frankenstein from her perspective. “My High Heels” would be perfectly in place in a Quentin Tarantino film. For fans of the Misfits, the Cramps, or the Meteors, this record is a must have that infuses elements of sunny California surf and garage into the dark corners of horrorpunk and psychobilly. It’s a fun, cinematic ride that only the ladies of Thee Merry Widows could bring to life. Or is it back to life? 
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