Demented Are Go (DAG aka Demented Are Go!) are a Welsh psychobilly band that was formed around 1982 in

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. They were one of the earliest in the initial wave of bands to mix punk rock with

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western musical styles such as country with that of rhythm and blu ...

, and as a result, are considered to be highly influential to the psychobilly scene. The band often claims their name originated from the phrase " Demon teds are go!" as an adaptation of the phrase "Thunderbirds are go!" from the '' Thunderbirds'' TV series. Psychobilly is often associated with horror.

Career

Formation

Demented Are Go formed in Penarth, South Wales, near Cardiff. Initially, the band was disorganized, with Mark Phillips or "Sparky" playing drums, Ant Thomas singing, Richard Jones playing bass, and Steve Jordan, playing rhythm guitar with a gold-top Les Paul. The band's image was represented by Jones' red dyed hair and Jordan's leather trousers. Dick Thomas, a veteran musician of the punk-pub rock circuits, joined the band in early 1983 and proceeded to reshuffle the line-up (Thomas moved to drums and Phillips sang vocals), taught the bass player how to play his instrument, and, otherwise, consolidated the overall band.

Early recordings

After six weeks of rehearsals, the band's first gig was third on the bill to a line-up of

Crass Crass were an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977, who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a lifestylism, way of life, and a resistance movement. Crass popularised the anarcho-punk movement of the ...

-type anarchist bands at the Sea Lion in Penarth and was met with good reception. Several years of playing everything from

working men's club Working men's clubs are British private social clubs first created in the 19th century in industrial areas, particularly the North of England, Midlands, Scotland and South Wales Valleys, to provide recreation and education for working class ...

s in the

Rhondda Rhondda , or the Rhondda Valley ( cy, Cwm Rhondda ), is a former coal mining, coalmining area in South Wales, historically in the county of Glamorgan. It takes its name from the River Rhondda, and embraces two valleys – the larger Rhondda Fa ...

to the red-light district in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, turning up at the Klub Foot twenty minutes after they were due on stage. They recorded two songs for their first release on a 1984 compilation, ''Hell's Bent on Rockin from

Nervous Records Nervous Records is a UK rockabilly music independent record label. It was formed in 1979 by Roy Williams, a DJ on the UK rock'n'roll scene. Nervous Records is credited by many as the leading record label behind the emergence of the British neo ...

, a well-known

record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...

in the psychobilly scene. At this point Jones and Jordan Had been replaced by Gavin Evans on guitar and Ed Fleming on bass. These tracks were engineered and co-produced by Paul "Doc" Stewart at Village Way Recording. Evans and Fleming left in late 1984, the line-up then incorporated multi-instrumentalist Ray Thompson, who had been working with Dick on various side projects since 1983.

''In Sickness & In Health''

In 1986, they released their first album, '' In Sickness & In Health'', on ID Records, which was recorded in less than 24 hours with 90% first takes, with Ray Thompson on bass. The core members at this time remained Mark, Ant and Dick. The band moved to

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

in 1986 in an attempt to be closer to regular work. Ray's departure left a difficult hole to fill, which resulted in what became known as the "Month of a Thousand Bass Players", it was actually closer to a year, which involved getting ANYONE who knew how to play a Bass to fill the slot. Dick left in 1987, after continuing frustration with the direction which the band was taking. Undeterred, the then new double-bass player and songwriter, Graeme Grant, recruited Lex "Luther" (at Dick's last Klubfoot gig) to replace Dick, who incidentally coached Lex to bring him up to speed with the band's material. In 1988, this was followed with the second full-length album, ''Kicked Out of Hell'' that reached high positions in the "

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

" charts, in both the United Kingdom (UK) and abroad. The band began extensively touring

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

and gained both a psychobilly and punk rock following. At this point, the lead singer, Phillips, started frequently using

psychoactive drug A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, psychoactive agent or psychotropic drug is a chemical substance, that changes functions of the nervous system, and results in alterations in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition or behavior. ...

s, such as LSD (

lysergic acid diethylamide Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), also known colloquially as acid, is a potent psychedelic drug. Effects typically include intensified thoughts, emotions, and sensory perception. At sufficiently high dosages LSD manifests primarily mental, vi ...

), and alcohol. Graeme and Luthor both left the band at the end of 1989, with the latter rejoining the band shortly after. Billy Favata replaced Graeme on double bass, but later moved to America while Graeme would eventually return to bass duties in 1992.

''The Day the Earth Spat Blood''

In 1989, the band was back in the studio with a new line-up. Joining Sparky and stalwart drummer Ant, were Mike Pannell on guitar, Billy Favata on double bass and Simon Cohen on fiddle. When the sound engineer asked, "Can I hear your first song?" he was greeted with the reply, "Ok. We're just going to write it." The result – written, recorded and mixed in three days – was the EP ''The Day the Earth Spat Blood'' (Link Records). The album has since become something of an underground classic with Cohen's cover artwork being used by footwear brand Dr. Martens to adorn a range of boots in 2016 – some twenty-seven years after the album was first released. The album was a departure from Demented's first two psychobilly albums and fused elements of rockabilly, hard rock, bluegrass and experimentation. Consequently, the group released the album under the title 'Demented Are Go presents – The Demon Teds.' The volatile line-up performed around Britain and played dates in Holland and Germany. Pannell left in 1990, going on to play with Something Shocking (Fury Records), Rose Tinted Spectacles, Soulteros and the Royal Scumbag Orchestra (Heroe de la Guitarra Records).

''Orgasmic Nightmare''

The group too then signed to psychobilly label Fury Records in 1991, writing and recording their next full-length album ''Orgasmic Nightmare'', which contained input from their former bassist. Demented would tour almost constantly for the next two years.

''Tangenital Madness on a Pleasant Side of Hell''

A second album for Fury Records, ''Tangenital Madness on a Pleasant Side of Hell'', was recorded in 1993, followed by two tours in Japan. The band was infamous for Sparky showing up to Japanese performances naked and doing strange things with a rubber fish. During a tour in Germany in spring 1995, the band broke up due to Sparky's deteriorating mental state.

Reformation – ''I Wanna See You Bleed!''

In 1996, Demented Are Go re-formed to release the EP ''I Wanna See You Bleed!'' for Hell Razor Records (this would be Graeme's last recording with the band). The band then toured the west coast of the United States, U.S. in 1997. They would again be known more for their wild stage show, which included on-stage sex with a vacuum cleaner. At the end of 1997, Graeme Grant left the band, due to other commitments, but before leaving, he recruited Stan Standen on guitar to replace Lex.

''Hellucifernation''

The band released the full-length album, '' Hellucifernation'', on Crazy Love Records in 1999. However, a European tour for the record's release was cancelled due to the re-emergence of Phillips' mental health issues. The band considered breaking up, but were offered a headline gig in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, United States (US), and decided to give Phillips a second try. Upon arrival in the US, Phillips first caused trouble at a hotel by cross-dressing and partaking in illicit drug use; he then set fire to a surrounding

woodland A woodland () is, in the broad sense, land covered with trees, or in a narrow sense, synonymous with wood (or in the U.S., the ''plurale tantum'' woods), a low-density forest forming open habitats with plenty of sunlight and limited shade (se ...

at the music venue. After the band's

soundcheck A sound check is the preparation that takes place before a concert, speech, or similar performance to adjust the sound on the venue's sound reinforcement or public address system. The performer and the audio engineers run through a small p ...

, the members visited a nearby

shopping mall A shopping mall (or simply mall) is a North American term for a large indoor shopping center, usually anchored by department stores. The term "mall" originally meant a pedestrian promenade with shops along it (that is, the term was used to refe ...

, where Phillips pinched a young girl's behind; as she was 16 years old, Phillips was consequently arrested, in a silver dress and purple boots, and charged with molesting a minor. Unable to pay the

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

$60,000 bail amount, the rest of the band returned to England, leaving Phillips in custody in the US.

''Hellbilly Storm''

After serving a month in prison and payment of a US$100 fine, Phillips returned to England. Lex Luther re-joined the band, along with drummer Criss Damage and Paul "Choppy" Lambourne on double bass. The band played two US tours, recorded a live album (with Kelvin Klump replacing Lambourne on double bass), ''...Live at the Galaxy'', on Crazy Love Records, and appeared at numerous European festivals. In May 2002, Demented Are Go! performed at the first Wreckers Ball festival in Southern California. Following the festival, Demented Are Go! performed on a 2-week tour booked by So Cal psychobilly label HairBall8 Records to promote the Kicked Outta Purgatory compilation. During the summer of 2003, Phillips was arrested numerous times on tour, resulting in further line-up changes. The band continued touring, including a successful Japanese tour and another tour of the US; the US tour was led by Phillips, and included psychobilly scene stalwarts, Tony "Strangy" Gilmore (double bass) and Philip "Doyley" Doyle (guitar), until September 2005. Following the US tour, the band members separated again. During a month-long break, a new album, '' Hellbilly Storm'', was released on German label, People Like You Records. The line-up on this recording was Phillips, Strangy, Doyley, Criss Damage, Stan, Lex Luther, and special guests, Charlie Harper and Country Woman. At the beginning of a 2006 US tour, Phillips was detained by US immigration authorities due to his criminal history; he was subsequently sent back to England. Following the cancellation of the US tour, Demented Are Go played shows in Europe. In 2012 the album ''Welcome back to Insanity Hall'' was released, featuring the line-up of Phillips (vocals), Criss Damage (drums) with newcomers Holger Grothe Dag (guitar) and Grischa Dördelmann (double bass). In 2013, Criss Damage would be replaced on drums by Gaybeul Gualdi.

Discography

Studio albums

*'' In Sickness & In Health'' (ID Records – NOSE 9) – 1986 *''Kicked Out of Hell'' (ID Records – NOSE 21) – 1988 *''The Day the Earth Spat Blood'' (Link Records – LINK MLP 084) – 1989 *'' Orgasmic Nightmare'' (Fury Records – F3016) – 1991 *'' Tangenital Madness on a Pleasant Side of Hell'' (Fury Records – DAGLP1) – 1993 *''Hellucifernation'' (Crazy Love Records) – 1999 *''Hellbilly Storm'' (People Like You Records) – 2005 *''Welcome back to Insanity Hall'' (People Like You Records) – 2012

Singles

* "Holy Hack Jack" (12" single) (ID Records – EYE T8) – 1986 * "Marijuana" (7" single) (Fury Records) – 1993 * "German Tour Single" (Limited edition 7" of 1000 copies) (Pin Up Records – Pin Up 95032) – 1995 * "I Wanna See You Bleed!!" (10" single) – Scandal Records 1996 * "Demons of the Swamp" (Limited edition 7" of 1000 copies) (Krueger Records – BZH666) – 1997 * "Daddy's Making Monsters" (7" single) (Crazy Love Records) – 1999 * "Hotrod Vampires" / "Out of Control" (7" single) (People Like U Records) – 2005 * "Lucky Charm" / "Another thing coming" (7" single) (People Like U Records) – 2012

Compilations

*''The Best of Demented Are Go'' (Dojo Records) – 1993 *''Satan's Rejects 1: The Very Best of Demented Are Go'' (Anagram Records) – 1997 *''Satan's Rejects 2: The Very Best of Demented Are Go'' (Harry May Records) – 1999 *''I Wanna See You Bleed!!'' (Remastered with live and demo tracks) (Hell Razer Records) – 2000

Live albums

*''Sick Sick Sick'' (ID Records – NOSE 15) 1987 *''Live and Rockin'' (Link Records – LINL LP 116) – 1990 *''Go Go Demented'' (Link Records – LRMO 5) – 1990 *''Live in Japan'' (Tombstone Records – TOMB-DISK 705/2) – 1993 *''Who Put Grandma Under the Stairs'' (Receiver Records) – 1996 *''Stomping at the Klubfoot'' (Mayo Records) – 2002 *''Live at the Galaxy'' (Crazy Love Records) – 2003

Band members

Current members

*Mark "Sparky" Phillips (vocals 1982–present) *Holger Dag (guitar 2012–present) *Grischa (double bass 2006–present) *Gaybeul Gualdi (drums 2013–present)

Former members

*Gavin Evans (guitar 1984) *Dick Thomas (guitar 1982–1986) *"Lex" Luthor Taylor (guitar 1985–89, 1990–97, 1999–2005) *Mike Pannell (guitar 1989–90) *Stan Standen (guitar 1997–2000, 2002–2010) *Philip Doyle (guitar, 2003–05) : *Tony Biggs (double bass 1985–86) *Ray Thompson (bass 1986) *Graeme Grant (double bass 1988,1993) *Billy Favata (double bass 1989–91) *Paul "Choppy" Lambourne (double bass) *Kelvin Klump (double bass, 2003) *Tony "Strangy" Gilmore (double bass, 2003–05) *Rockin' Rick Tanner (double bass 2006) : *Ant Thomas (drums 1982–1999) *Criss Damage (drums 2001–04, 2010–13)

Timeline

ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea = left:100 bottom:90 top:0 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/2022 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Colors = id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:guitar value:green legend:Guitar id:bass value:blue legend:Double_Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:violin value:pink legend:Violin id:studio value:black legend:Studio_album id:live value:gray(0.7) legend:Live_album id:bars value:gray(0.95) BackgroundColors = bars:bars Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = increment:4 start:1982 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1982 LineData = layer:back color:studio at:01/01/1986 at:01/01/1988 at:01/01/1989 at:01/01/1990 at:01/01/1993 at:01/01/1996 at:01/01/1999 at:01/01/2005 at:01/01/2012 color:live at:01/03/1990 at:01/03/1993 at:01/01/2003 BarData = bar:Sparky text:"Mark Phillips" bar:Ed text:"Ed Flemming" bar:Tony text:"Tony Biggs" bar:Ray text:"Ray Thompson" bar:Graeme text:"Graeme Grant" bar:Billy text:"Billy Favata" bar:Choppy text:"Paul Lambourne" bar:Eddie text:"Darren Edwards" bar:Kelvin text:"Kelvin Klump" bar:Strangy text:"Tony Gilmore" bar:Rick text:"Rick Tanner" bar:Grischa text:"Grischa Dördelmann" bar:Ant text:"Ant Thomas" bar:Criss text:"Criss Damage" bar:Gaybeul text:"Gaybeul Gualdi" bar:Dick text:"Dick Thomas" bar:Gavin text:"Gavin Evans" bar:Lex text:"Luther Taylor" bar:Mike text:"Mike Pannell" bar:Stan text:"Stan STanden" bar:Doyley text:"Philip Doyle bar:Holger text:"Holger Dag" bar:Simon text:"Simon Cohen" PlotData= width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Sparky from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/2022 color:vocals bar:Ed from:01/01/1984 till:01/01/1985 color:bass bar:Tony from:01/01/1985 till:01/01/1986 color:bass bar:Ray from:01/01/1986 till:01/01/1988 color:bass bar:Graeme from:01/01/1988 till:01/01/1989 color:bass bar:Graeme from:01/01/1993 till:01/01/1997 color:bass bar:Billy from:01/01/1989 till:01/01/1992 color:bass bar:Choppy from:01/01/1997 till:01/01/1998 color:bass bar:Eddie from:01/01/1999 till:01/01/2000 color:bass bar:Kelvin from:01/01/2003 till:01/01/2004 color:bass bar:Strangy from:01/01/2004 till:01/01/2005 color:bass bar:Rick from:01/01/2006 till:01/01/2007 color:bass bar:Grischa from:01/01/2012 till:01/01/2022 color:bass bar:Ant from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/2000 color:drums bar:Criss from:01/01/2003 till:01/01/2013 color:drums bar:Gaybeul from:01/01/2013 till:01/01/2022 color:drums bar:Dick from:01/01/1982 till:01/01/1987 color:guitar bar:Gavin from:01/01/1984 till:01/01/1985 color:guitar bar:Lex from:01/01/1987 till:01/01/1989 color:guitar bar:Lex from:01/01/1990 till:01/01/1997 color:guitar bar:Mike from:01/01/1989 till:01/01/1990 color:guitar bar:Stan from:01/01/1997 till:01/01/2000 color:guitar bar:Doyley from:01/01/2005 till:01/01/2006 color:guitar bar:Holger from:01/01/2012 till:01/01/2022 color:guitar bar:Simon from:01/01/1986 till:01/01/1992 color:violin

References

External links

Demented Are Go Label – People Like You Records
{{Authority control British psychobilly musical groups Welsh rock music groups Musical groups established in 1982 Welsh punk rock groups 1982 establishments in Wales