Biography
Formed in Sacramento, California by horror-movie enthusiasts, the pop-punk outfit Groovie Ghoulies began with singer and bassist Kepi, his wife Roach on guitar, and drummer Wendy. Their first release, the 1989 album Appetite for Adrenochrome, was followed by a period of low visibility throughout the early nineties, during which the band issued sporadic singles such as 1990’s “Lost Generation” and 1992’s “Christmas on Mars.” The trio returned with its second album, Born in the Basement, in 1994.
Having become a fixture on the local club scene, the Ghoulies secured a deal with Lookout Records and delivered World Contact Day in 1996; shortly afterward Wendy departed and was succeeded by Dan Panic, formerly of Screeching Weasel. Following 1997’s Re-Animation Festival, Panic also left, with Jaz Brown ultimately taking over on drums.
The group’s fifth long-player, Fun in the Dark, appeared in 1999, and Travels with My Amp surfaced the next year. After parting ways with Lookout, the band moved to Stardumb and issued the Freaks on Parade EP in 2002. With Scampi now handling drums, Go! Stories became the first full-length on the new label when it arrived that summer, after which the group embarked on a European tour. Late in 2003 the band released Monster Club, an album consisting largely of re-recorded versions of earlier singles and Lookout-era tracks.
Departing Stardumb, the Ghoulies established their own Green Door Records imprint and, in August 2005, put out Berry’d Alive, a high-energy EP of Chuck Berry covers. Their ninth album, 99 Lives, followed in 2007, yet the group disbanded only days before its release, attributing the decision to the end of Kepi and Roach’s marriage.
In the years after the split, Kepi maintained an intense schedule of recording and live performances. Whether delivering folk material, children’s songs, or new versions of older Ghoulies releases—such as the 2015 recreation of Fun in the Dark backed by Dutch punks the Accelerators—he has sustained the band’s playful and irreverent punk spirit.
Having become a fixture on the local club scene, the Ghoulies secured a deal with Lookout Records and delivered World Contact Day in 1996; shortly afterward Wendy departed and was succeeded by Dan Panic, formerly of Screeching Weasel. Following 1997’s Re-Animation Festival, Panic also left, with Jaz Brown ultimately taking over on drums.
The group’s fifth long-player, Fun in the Dark, appeared in 1999, and Travels with My Amp surfaced the next year. After parting ways with Lookout, the band moved to Stardumb and issued the Freaks on Parade EP in 2002. With Scampi now handling drums, Go! Stories became the first full-length on the new label when it arrived that summer, after which the group embarked on a European tour. Late in 2003 the band released Monster Club, an album consisting largely of re-recorded versions of earlier singles and Lookout-era tracks.
Departing Stardumb, the Ghoulies established their own Green Door Records imprint and, in August 2005, put out Berry’d Alive, a high-energy EP of Chuck Berry covers. Their ninth album, 99 Lives, followed in 2007, yet the group disbanded only days before its release, attributing the decision to the end of Kepi and Roach’s marriage.
In the years after the split, Kepi maintained an intense schedule of recording and live performances. Whether delivering folk material, children’s songs, or new versions of older Ghoulies releases—such as the 2015 recreation of Fun in the Dark backed by Dutch punks the Accelerators—he has sustained the band’s playful and irreverent punk spirit.
Albums
