The Brains

Canadian psychobilly outfit the Brains fuse rockabilly and early rock foundations with hard rock and goth textures, pairing them with macabre lyrics drawn from vintage horror films and H.P. Lovecraft’s stories. Their performances race along at blistering speeds, upright bass and buzzing guitars pushed forward in the mix, revealing a clear punk edge and mordant wit on the 2007 release Hell n' Back. The band’s sound turned heavier and more forceful on 2010’s Zombie Nation, while 2020’s Satana Tarantula added greater refinement and accuracy to their playing.

Formed in Montreal in 2001 and unrelated to the Atlanta new wave group sharing their name, the Brains made their live debut on Halloween. The founding members were vocalist-guitarist Rene De La Muerte (also known as Rene Garcia), bassist Johnny Montreal, and drummer Frank O'Brains (also known as François Demers). They built a following on the Canadian club scene through sets featuring eerie costumes, heavy makeup, and glow-in-the-dark contact lenses, later adopting a simpler stage appearance after the lenses caused Rene vision problems. Their first recorded appearance came on the 2003 psychobilly compilation Zombie Night in Canada with the song “It’s Over.”

The group issued their debut album, No Brain, No Pain, in 2005 via the German label Crazy Love Records. Hell n' Back followed in 2007, showcasing a more cohesive and assured unit. After the self-titled LP arrived in 2009 on Stomp Records, Zombie Nation emerged in 2010 with a harder, rock-driven approach. Johnny Montreal had departed by then, replaced on bass by Colin the Dead (also known as Colin Irvine). That same year Pat Kadaver joined on drums, shifting Frank O'Brains to second guitar.

Frank’s guitar stint proved brief, leaving the Brains as the trio of Rene, Colin, and Pat for 2011’s Drunk Not Dead. The Monster Within appeared in 2013, followed by the 2014 four-song EP The Cover Up, which reinterpreted material originally by the Cure, Billy Idol, Depeche Mode, and Soft Cell. Out in the Dark arrived in 2015, introducing drummer Philippe “The Beast” Pinard amid an expanding tour schedule that carried the band across Europe, the United Kingdom, Russia, and North America. Satana Tarantula, their first Cleopatra Records release, surfaced in 2020 and featured guest contributions from Patricia Day of HorrorPops and Danny B. Harvey of the Swing Cats.