"Kiss Kiss Kill Kill" by HorrorPops

I'm feeling HorrorPops, especially some of their darker stuff. HorrorPops are a Danish punk band, whose influences are mostly rockabilly and psychobilly. Especially when you get into more horrorbilly stuff (like Nekromantix and Calabrese), a lot of the songs are cinematically inspired. On the album, "Kiss Kiss Kill Kill," there are several songs inspired by classic movies. Most notably in my mind was "Thelma & Louise," which draws on the film to paint a picture of a pair of freewheeling girls on a joyride (when, in reality, the ending of the movie was much more tragic). The titular song itself, which I'm featuring today, takes it's name from a campy Euro-Spy movie made in the mid-60s that featured two American police detectives in Yugoslavia. Just judging by the movie poster, it looks ridiculous - but, then again, I'm the type of person who likes to watch awesomely bad movies.

In this shiver of symphony

the closing shadows turn like a still

a thousand feet across the floor

and in a second I'll never grow old

quiet now quiet now

crying I won't stop

the quivers running down my mind

ha-ah-ah-ah-oh-oh-oh!

close enough

close enough

and I'm feeling tired

(kiss kiss kill kill)

(kiss kiss kill kill)

The actual song lyrics, however, sound more like something out of a dimestore vampire novel. I couldn't find much on the lyrics meaning, so I'm going to go a little rogue and write my own interpretation. The singer is in love with someone who drains her....and she realizes it. But she doesn't want to let go. If he/she's going to kill her, she welcomes it. Like a soft kiss. I always thought that was the most disturbing part of the most recent spate of vampire/werewolf romances. It's like the collective unconscious believes that love has to be painful and even dangerous. Or maybe it's just the same story - we want to believe love changes people for the better, even when we (literally) love a monster. Even after they've done the absolute worst thing they could to you (like murdered you for your tasty tasty blood, metaphorically speaking). Coincidentally, classic rockabilly films usually center around a high-class girl falling for a "greaser." And, wouldn't you know it, the girl usually gets her heart broken.

Just a brief rundown on rockabilly - it's one of the earliest forms of rock'n'roll, which took hold of America during the 1950s, especially in parts of the South. It mixed elements of country music with that of blues. The name itself is a combination of "rock" and "hillbilly," as if you couldn't have figured that out yourself. The sound was popularized by Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, and - of course - Elvis Presley. One of my first loves. Did you know that Elvis was assigned to the 10th Mountain Division when he was drafted into the Army? Well, I do....but that's because my dad would bring it up all the time because he was also in 10th Mountain Division. Regardless, Elvis was one of my favorite artists growing up, because his sound and his voice was so unique.

Nowadays, rockabilly has become synonymous with the subculture that it birthed. There's a particular style that goes with it, of which I'm quite fond. Femmes have their choice of dressing like a Pink Lady or, if they're feeling fancy, they can squeeze themselves into a "wiggle" dress (this is the actual technical fashion term for that style). In recent years, there's been an explosion in rockabilly style, so if you're life is conducive to dressing in pencil skirts and shimmy dresses all the time, you have plenty of options. Even if you can't do that, a few fit & flare shirt dresses go a long way if you're going for the look (and they're super comfortable). Alternatively, if you identify as the more masculine type, your job is easy - jeans, steel-toed boots, a white t-shirt, and a leather jacket. Fucking classic and super hot.

"Kiss Kiss Kill Kill" Video