The Selecter

The Selecter are one of those bands where, if you’re into ska at all, you kind of can’t avoid them. They came out of Coventry in 1979 and were right at the heart of the UK’s 2 Tone movement, alongside The Specials and Madness. That whole scene mixed Jamaican ska with punk energy and a very direct anti-racist, anti-fascist attitude, reacting to what was going on in Britain at the time. Even the band’s name nods to Jamaican sound system culture -a “selector” is the DJ who chooses the records. 

What really set The Selecter apart early on was their lineup and their sound. Pauline Black as the lead singer was a big deal: she became one of the first Black women to front a major British alternative band, and she brought real presence and authority to the music. The band’s songs were driven by Neol Davies’ sharp writing, tight rhythms, and punchy horns, and they leaned a little more toward traditional Jamaican ska than some of their 2 Tone peers, while still keeping that fast, edgy feel. 

Their debut album 'Too Much Pressure', released in 1980, is now seen as a 2 Tone classic. Songs like “On My Radio” (which became a UK Top 10 hit), “Three Minute Hero,” and the title track captured everyday frustrations, media obsession, and social pressure, all wrapped up in upbeat, danceable ska. It’s one of those records that sounds fun on the surface but has a lot to say underneath.

 
Like a lot of bands from that scene, The Selecter didn’t last long the first time around. They split in 1982 after internal tensions, but unlike many 2 Tone groups, they kept coming back. From the 1990s onward, the band reformed in various lineups, with Pauline Black eventually becoming the central figure and guardian of the name. What’s interesting is that they didn’t just turn into a nostalgia act -they kept making new music.

 
Their later albums show a band that’s aged but hasn’t gone quiet or soft. Records like 'Daylight' and 'Human Algebra' deal with racism, identity, politics, and getting older, all while staying rooted in ska and reggae. There’s also 'Trojan Songbook', where they pay tribute to classic Jamaican songs that influenced them in the first place. The social conscience that defined them in 1980 is still very much there decades later. 

These days, The Selecter’s legacy is tied closely to Pauline Black, who’s become a cultural figure in her own right -a writer, speaker, and activist as well as a singer. As a band, they’re remembered as key architects of British ska and 2 Tone, and as proof that music born from protest and street-level politics doesn’t have to stay frozen in time.

 

Bad Manners

Bad Manners, composed of vocalist Buster Bloodvessel (born Douglas Trendle), Louis Cook (guitar), David Farren (bass), Martin Stewart (keyboards), Brian Tuitt (drums), Gus Herman (trumpet), Chris Kane (saxophone), and Andrew Marson (saxophone), were one of the many bands to take their inspiration from The Specials and the ska revival movement in England in the late 1970s. They quickly became the novelty favorites of the fad through their frontman's silly on-stage antics, earning early exposure through 2-Tone Records package tours and an appearance in the live documentary "Dance Craze". In the early '80s, they managed several U.K. hits, including "Ne-Ne Na-Na Na-Na Nu-Nu," "Lip Up Fatty," "Special Brew," and "Can Can." By the mid-'80s, the ska craze was over, and the band retired temporarily after the release of 1985's 'Mental Notes', only to return in 1989 with 'Return of the Ugly' and remaining a live attraction despite a lack of concurrent hits. By the mid-'90s, a third wave ska revival renewed interest in the band. 'Eat the Beat' was released in 1996, with 'Uneasy Listening' following in 1997 in addition to several collections from the band's peak years. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]

 

Dub Syndicate

Dub Syndicate are basically the flagship dub group of Adrian Sherwood’s On-U Sound label, and one of the most important UK dub projects ever. They formed in London in 1982 as a studio-based collective rather than a fixed band, built around Sherwood’s production vision and his long-term partnership with Jamaican drummer Lincoln “Style” Scott of the Roots Radics. That Sherwood–Scott connection is key: it fused heavyweight Jamaican rhythm section sensibilities with the experimental, post-punk-inflected studio culture of early-’80s Britain. 

At the start, Dub Syndicate were rooted firmly in classic dub. Albums like 'The Pounding System (Ambience in Dub)' and 'One Way System' feel like deep extensions of Jamaican dub traditions, but with a slightly colder, spacier UK atmosphere. Even then, Sherwood was already pushing the studio hard -tape delays, echo trails, abrupt drop-outs- but always anchored by Scott’s rock-solid, hypnotic drumming. As the ’80s went on, especially by 'Tunes From the Missing Channel' in 1985, their sound became more futuristic and abstract, pulling in electronics, noise, and the influence of UK post-punk and industrial music without ever losing the dub backbone. 

Dub Syndicate never really had a fixed lineup beyond Sherwood and Scott. Instead, they worked with a rotating cast of musicians from both Jamaica and the UK, often drawing from the wider On-U Sound family. Members of Tackhead appeared frequently, as did reggae and dub figures like Dr. Pablo, Bim Sherman, Big Youth, Junior Reid, and even Lee “Scratch” Perry. That openness gave Dub Syndicate a very fluid identity -sometimes deeply rootsy, sometimes abrasive and experimental, sometimes almost ambient- depending on who was involved and what Sherwood wanted to explore in the studio. 

By the late ’80s and early ’90s, Dub Syndicate hit a creative peak. Albums like 'Time Boom X De Devil Dead' (with Lee Perry), 'Strike the Balance', and especially 'Stoned Immaculate' are often seen as definitive statements of the On-U Sound aesthetic. These records balance heavy bass and drums with layers of weird textures, political atmosphere, and space-age mixing, showing how dub could evolve without becoming polite or background music. Around this time, Dub Syndicate also developed into a powerful live band, proving that their dense studio constructions could translate into intense, physical performances.

 
Their later work in the ’90s, including albums like 'Echomania' and 'Ital Breakfast', continued to stretch dub into new territory, absorbing influences from electronic music while staying rooted in reggae rhythms. Lincoln “Style” Scott’s death in 2014 marked the end of an era, but Dub Syndicate’s legacy was already firmly established. Today they’re seen as a crucial bridge between Jamaican dub traditions and UK experimental music, and as the purest expression of what On-U Sound stood for: bass, innovation, resistance, and total freedom in the studio. 

Last Of The Teenage Idols

Last Of The Teenage Idols were a London-based band active in the late 1980s, sitting right at the crossroads of glam rock flash and punk attitude. They came out of the UK underground scene at a time when big hair, sneering vocals, and street-level energy were making a comeback after the first wave of punk had settled. The band never broke into the mainstream, but they’ve stuck around as a cult name for people digging into forgotten glam-punk corners of the era. 

 
They’re best known for their album 'Satellite Head Gone Soft', released around 1988 or 1989. It’s their main recorded legacy and the reason collectors still talk about them today. The record mixes sleazy glam riffs, shout-along choruses, and a scrappy, DIY feel that fits perfectly with late-80s London club culture. Copies of the LP are pretty scarce now, which only adds to its reputation among fans of obscure UK rock.
 

The lineup featured Buttz on vocals, Taz on guitar, Shuff on bass, and Hovis Presley handling keyboards, with everyone pitching in on backing vocals. The names alone tell you a lot about the band’s sense of humor and attitude. They leaned into glam theatrics without losing that rough, confrontational edge that came from punk. 

 
Last Of The Teenage Idols were part of the same scene that included bands like The Dogs D’Amour, Quireboys, and Soho Roses, sharing stages in sweaty London venues and sometimes supporting bigger UK rock acts such as Little Angels. They played plenty of shows, built a solid live reputation, and then faded out before getting wider recognition. 

 

Rochee & The Sarnos

Rochee & The Sarnos is a British band that sits somewhere between rock ’n’ roll, psychobilly, and general musical weirdness. They’re mostly known for having a very goofy, off-the-wall style, with silly lyrics and a sound that doesn’t take itself seriously at all. They’ve got a bit of a cult following, especially among people into psychobilly and underground rock scenes. 

 
The band popped up in the early 1980s in the UK. Musically, they mix old-school rockabilly with psychobilly, skiffle vibes, and classic rock ’n’ roll, but everything is filtered through a very playful, almost cartoonish sense of humor. Their songs often talk about absurd stuff -Sarnos (which are kind of their own strange characters), croissants, space themes, random monsters- nothing is meant to be deep or serious, and that’s kind of the point.

 
One of their most well-known releases is the album 'Understanding Sarno', which came out in the mid-80s and later got reissued. That album includes some of their most famous tracks and really captures their chaotic, fun energy. They also put out early vinyl singles like 'Have You Got… Sarno Fever?' and 'Rumble in the Jungle', which helped cement their reputation in the psychobilly underground. Much later, in 2008, they released 'The Golden Dawn', which mixed newer material with the same classic Sarnos-style madness.

 

Fractured

Fractured were a British neo-rockabilly band that popped up during the mid-1980s, right in the middle of the UK rockabilly and psychobilly revival. They weren’t a mainstream name, but they were very much part of that underground scene where punk energy collided with old-school rock ’n’ roll. Their sound leaned hard on fast tempos, gritty attitude, and that classic slap-bass drive that defined neo-rockabilly at the time.

 
The band are mainly known for their 1987 release 'No Peace For The Wicked', an eight-track mini-album that ended up being their main recorded legacy. It captured exactly what they were about: raw, high-energy rockabilly with a rough edge. Tracks like “Chauffeur Driven Limousine,” “Gamblin’ Man,” and “Sold My Secret” stood out and helped them gain recognition among fans of the scene, even if they never broke into the wider music press. 

Fractured were also a live band first and foremost. They played regularly on the UK circuit and appeared at places like London’s Klub Foot, which was one of the most important venues for psychobilly and alternative rockabilly in the 1980s. Playing there put them alongside a lot of other cult bands from the era and helped cement their reputation with dedicated fans rather than casual listeners. 

Musically, they sat somewhere between straight neo-rockabilly and psychobilly. You could hear strong 1950s rockabilly influences in the guitar and bass, but everything was pushed faster and harder, with a punk-ish edge that matched the attitude of the mid-80s scene. That mix made them fit perfectly into the revival movement without sounding like a pure retro act.

 
Today, Fractured are mostly remembered by collectors and longtime fans of British rockabilly. They’re one of those bands that didn’t last long or release much music, but still get name-checked when people dig deep into the UK neo-rockabilly and psychobilly underground of the 1980s.

 

Long Tall Texans

Long Tall Texans are a long-running psychobilly/rockabilly band from Brighton, UK, and they’ve been part of the scene since the mid-1980s. They came out of the same South Coast underground that helped shape British psychobilly, mixing rockabilly roots with punk energy, ska rhythms, and a sense of humour that never took itself too seriously. Brighton was a key hotspot for the genre at the time, and the band quickly became associated with the city’s wild live circuit. 

 
Long Tall Texans are best known for their upbeat, energetic sound built around slap double bass, driving drums, and twangy guitar. While they’re usually labelled psychobilly, they’ve never stuck rigidly to one style. Across their albums you’ll hear straight rockabilly, punk, ska, blues, and even hints of pop and country. That flexibility is part of why they’ve lasted so long -they always sounded like themselves rather than trying to follow trends in the scene. 

 
The band has gone through various lineup changes over the years, but vocalist and double-bass player Mark Carew has always been the core of Long Tall Texans. Early members included guitarist Mark “Boggles” Denman and drummer Theo (Anthony Theodotou), with later lineups adding different guitarists and even saxophone at times, which helped push their sound in new directions. No matter the lineup, their live shows have always been loud, fun, and crowd-friendly rather than dark or aggressive. 

 
They released their first recordings in the late 1980s, with albums like 'Sodbusters', 'Los Me Boleros', and 'Saturnalia!' helping establish them in the UK and European psychobilly scenes. Around the turn of the 1990s, records such as 'Five Beans in the Wheel' and 'Singing to the Moon' showed them branching out stylistically, adding more melody and genre crossover. After a quieter period, they returned with later releases like 'The Adventures of the Long Tall Texans' in 2005 and 'The Devil Made Us Do It' in 2014, proving they hadn’t lost their spark. 

 
Long Tall Texans were regulars at legendary venues like the Klub Foot in Hammersmith and became a familiar name on the European festival circuit, where they built a loyal following. Even as psychobilly faded from the mainstream, the band kept going, touring, recording, and popping up on festival bills decades after they first formed. 

 
Today, they’re remembered as one of the most approachable and enduring bands to come out of the UK psychobilly scene -not the darkest or fastest, but one of the most fun. Their legacy is tied to great live shows, catchy songs, and a refusal to take the genre too seriously, which is exactly why people are still listening to them after more than 40 years. 

 

Torment

Torment were a UK psychobilly band who came out of Bristol in late 1985 and were active through the end of the decade, winding down around 1990 or shortly after. The band was formed by singer and guitarist Simon Brand after he left Frenzy, teaming up with drummer Kevin Haynes and double bassist Sean Holder. Like a lot of bands in the scene at the time, they quickly became part of the tight-knit UK psychobilly circuit and were regulars at London’s Klub Foot, which was basically the heart of the scene in the 1980s. 

Line-ups shifted a bit over the years, especially on double bass. Sean Holder didn’t stay long, and Simon Crowfoot took over bass duties for most of the band’s classic period, later followed by Vince Mildren. Despite the changes, Simon Brand was always the core of the band and the main creative force, giving Torment a pretty consistent identity throughout their run. 

Their debut album, 'Psyclops Carnival', came out in 1986 on Nervous Records and immediately set them apart. While they were clearly psychobilly, Torment didn’t lean heavily into the usual horror-movie clichés or cartoonish shock themes. Instead, their songs were often more personal, darker, and sometimes introspective, which made them stand out in a genre that was often loud, fast, and deliberately over the top. Musically, they mixed classic psychobilly with touches of rockabilly, swing, and even hints of punk and neorockabilly. 

They followed up quickly with 'Three’s a Crowd' in 1987, then 'Round the World' in 1989, and finally 'Hypnosis' in 1990. Across those albums you can hear the band experimenting more, stretching the genre a bit without completely leaving it behind. They also released EPs like 'Mystery Men' and appeared on key compilations such as the "Stomping at the Klub Foot" series, which helped cement their reputation, especially across Europe. 

Live, Torment were well respected and toured widely, particularly in continental Europe, where psychobilly had a huge and very loyal following. By the early 1990s, though, things slowed down. Simon Brand eventually moved abroad, and after his death in the mid-1990s, any real possibility of a full revival ended.

 
Even though they weren’t around for that long, Torment left a solid mark on the genre. They’re remembered as a band that proved psychobilly didn’t have to be all gimmicks and horror imagery, and that you could still be part of the scene while writing more thoughtful, emotionally heavy songs. 

The Radiacs

The Radiacs were a psychobilly/rockabilly band from Sheffield, UK, who came together in the mid-to-late 1980s, around 1986. Sheffield wasn’t exactly known as a rockabilly hotspot at the time, which made the band stand out even more in the UK underground scene. The original lineup featured Dale Williams on vocals, Billy Oxley on guitar, Paul Oxley on slap bass, and Shaun Williams on drums. 

 
Before settling on the name The Radiacs, the band briefly went by The Epileptic Hillbillys, but dropped it early on due to obvious controversy. The name “Radiacs” itself was very Sheffield-specific, taken from a radiac steel-cutting machine used in the city’s steel industry -one that Dale Williams actually worked with. That industrial background fit nicely with their gritty, no-nonsense sound.

 
Musically, The Radiacs blended classic rockabilly with punk aggression and psychobilly energy. They became known for fast tempos, driving upright bass, raw guitar tones, and lively stage shows. During the late ’80s and early ’90s they were often described as Sheffield’s only true psychobilly band, regularly sharing stages with bigger names on the UK and European psychobilly circuit. 

 
Their debut album, 'Hellraiser', was released in 1989 on Link Records and quickly became their best-known release. It captured their raw early sound and helped establish them within the scene. This was followed by 'Live & Rockin’' in 1990, which showed just how energetic they were on stage, especially at hometown shows. In 1993 they released their second studio album, 'Going Strong', on Tombstone Records, which featured a slightly tighter and more polished sound. 

 
Around this period there were some lineup changes, most notably on bass, but the band continued touring across the UK and Europe, building a solid reputation, particularly in Germany and France where psychobilly had a strong following. By the mid-1990s, around 1994 or 1995, The Radiacs quietly called it a day without any big breakup drama, and the members moved on to other projects. 

 
Interest in the band never completely faded, though, and in the late 2000s they reunited for new recordings and occasional performances. This led to 'The Return of the Radiacs', released around 2010–2011 on Raucous Records, which included new tracks along with material that long-time fans were happy to hear again. 

 
Today, The Radiacs are remembered as a solid and authentic part of the original UK psychobilly wave — not a flashy band, but one with strong songs, real scene credibility, and a loyal cult following among fans of old-school psychobilly and rockabilly punk crossover.

 

Skitzo

Skitzo were a British psychobilly band from London, active mainly during the mid to late 1980s, and they’re remembered as one of the rawer, more punk-leaning bands in the UK psychobilly scene. They shouldn’t be confused with other bands called Skitzo from different countries or genres -this Skitzo were firmly rooted in the underground psychobilly movement that grew out of punk and rockabilly in Britain. 

 

The band formed in early 1985 and originally went by the name The Electros. The core members included vocalist Phil Connor and drummer Rod Connor, later joined by Tony Bronham on bass and Anthony McVey on guitar. After some early gigs and a lineup change -Rod was replaced by drummer Steve Tomlinson following an accident- the band changed their name to Skitzo and began to gain attention on the London psychobilly circuit. 

Musically, Skitzo stood out because they leaned harder into punk aggression than many of their peers. While they still used classic psychobilly ingredients like upright bass and rockabilly rhythms, their sound was rougher, faster, and less cartoonish, with shouted vocals and a gritty garage-punk feel. This made them especially popular with fans who preferred the tougher, less polished side of psychobilly.

 
Their debut album, 'Skitzo Mania', was released in 1987 on Nervous Records and quickly became a cult favorite. The record captured their wild energy and included both original songs and twisted covers. A year later, they released 'Terminal Damage', which pushed their sound even further into punk territory with heavier guitars and a more aggressive overall feel. Around this time, they were also known for intense live shows, including appearances at legendary venues like the Klub Foot. 

By around 1990, Skitzo broke up, largely because Phil Connor developed vocal problems after years of extreme screaming. The band briefly reunited in the mid-1990s and released more material, including the album 'Vertigo' in 1997 and the single 'The Glove', before splitting up again. While they never became mainstream, their recordings continued to circulate through reissues and live albums, keeping their name alive in the scene. 

Today, Skitzo are remembered as a no-frills, hard-hitting psychobilly band with a strong punk attitude. They’re often mentioned alongside other classic UK psychobilly acts of the era, and 'Skitzo Mania' in particular is still considered an essential record for anyone digging into the darker, louder side of psychobilly.