Biography
One listen to the combustible rockabilly sound delivered by the Twistin Tarantulas makes clear why their leader, vocalist, and upright bassist “Pistol” Pete Midtgard once called ’50s rockabilly “... the original punk rock.” An unusually forceful upright bassist and magnetic frontman, Midtgard first sensed that rockabilly was his calling while playing bass in an Ohio group. After relocating to upstate New York he fronted the Frantic Flattops, yet a return to Detroit in the fall of 1993 placed him in the area locals fondly referred to as “Ghetto Heights.” There he assembled the Twistin Tarantulas as a casual Sunday-night venture whose early Detroit appearances quickly established the group as a high-energy, perspiration-soaked, and fiercely rocking live act. Drawing from punk and from his hero Lemmy of Motörhead, Midtgard steered the band away from standard rockabilly-revival mannerisms and nostalgic trappings, instead channeling punk’s disregard for restraint. On any given night the set might include Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades,” while other evenings featured a taut medley of Bauhaus’ “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” and the Misfits’ “Halloween.” Midtgard remained the sole unchanging member as guitarists and drummers rotated through the lineup over the years. Steady local gigs and sporadic national and international tours occupied the band until they entered the studio to issue Attack of the Twistin Tarantulas in 1997 and Welcome to Our Underworld two years later. In 2002 Midtgard and the group resumed recording, only to encounter successive setbacks: the death of Midtgard’s father, continued personnel flux, and a diagnosis of bladder cancer for the frontman himself. Refusing to postpone any performances despite his condition and declining offers of financial assistance, Midtgard nevertheless saw local allies the Starlight Drifters and the Brothers Groove stage a benefit they titled Bladderfest at his suggestion; the concert took place in December 2002. With the addition of drummer Gary “Machine Gun” Meadors and guitarist Marc “Stretch” Nischan, the refreshed lineup completed the third album, El Destroyo, which appeared in 2003.
Singles