Nekromantix rank among the more unrestrained acts within the psychobilly scene, fusing punk rock drive with rockabilly swing under a horror-infused banner. The Danish-American outfit, anchored by founder, frontman, and only permanent member Kim Nekroman, built a fervent European audience during the 1990s through their monster-centric stage spectacles before exporting their distinctive approach to the United States in the following decade. Following their 1989 debut Hellbound, the group achieved recognition on both sides of the Atlantic with such ominous offerings as Return of the Loving Dead (2002), What Happens in Hell, Stays in Hell! (2011), and Symphony of Wolf Tones & Ghost Notes (2016).
Kim Nekroman abandoned an eight-year stint operating submarines in the Royal Danish Navy to establish Nekromantix in 1989, soon recruiting Peter Sandorff on guitar and vocals alongside drummer Kristian Sandorff. The trio quickly attracted an ardent following after just two live appearances, first across Denmark and then in Germany at their inaugural festival engagement in Hamburg, which secured a recording contract for Hellbound. Characterized at the time as a sound where “Elvis meets the Wolfman,” the band logged extensive European dates in 1991 and issued their second album, the enduring Curse of the Coffin, that same year. The Brought Back to Life EP surfaced in 1994, followed two years later by Demons Are a Girl’s Best Friend; a subsequent Japanese tour preceded the 2000 live document issued by Kick Music.
The band aligned with Hellcat Records, an Epitaph vanity imprint, for Return of the Loving Dead, their American introduction. They remained on the roster for 2004’s Dead Girls Don’t Cry, an album that arrived after Nekroman relocated from Copenhagen to Los Angeles while the Sandorff brothers remained in Denmark. Brought Back to Life Again appeared the next year as a reissue of the long-unavailable 1994 recording. Personnel shifts continued, and by 2005 Nekroman’s signature coffin-shaped bass and vocals were supported by guitarist Trouble Tony and drummer Wasted James. For the April 2007 release Life Is a Grave & I Dig It!, guitarist Tröy Deströy and drummer Andy DeMize (Andrew Martinez) had taken those roles. Deströy departed soon afterward to launch a solo career and was succeeded by Pete Belair of the Australian band Firebird.
DeMize died in a car crash on January 11, 2009, prompting the band to enlist Lux as its first female member on drums. The 2011 album What Happens in Hell, Stays in Hell!, the group’s eighth studio effort, marked the recording debuts of both Lux and guitarist Franc, who had replaced Belair in 2007. Lux exited in 2014 and was succeeded by Adam Guerrero, previously of Rezurex, whose first appearance came on Symphony of Wolf Tones & Ghost Notes in 2016. In 2019 Nekromantix issued the concert film and live album 3 Decades of Darkle, captured at the Observatory Theater in Santa Ana, California.
