CMW 2008: The Creepshow

Hometown: Toronto, Ontario
Official Website: www.thecreepshow.org
Members:
Sarah Sin (guitar/vocals)
Matt Pomade (drums)
The Reverend McGinty (keyboards/vocals)
Sickboy (double bass/vocals)

Not all great rock 'n' roll needs to be performed by complete greasebags. As Toronto psychobilly stalwarts The Creepshow prove, you can look great while rockin' a city to its foundations. Uniting rockabilly's shuffling blues grooves with the aggressiveness and sheer volume of three-chord punk rock, The Creepshow have been traipsing the world over the past couple of years in support of Sell Your Soul, their debut full-length album. This unyielding nomadic tendency has proven quite effective. They've won over the creepers-and-pompadour crowd thanks to a well of talent that's just as deep as drummer Matt Pomade's, well, pomade container. Double-bassist Sickboy puts The Creepshow spin on ChartAttack's traditional CMW questionnaire.

So, you're about to play the big industry event that is Canadian Music Week. What's the most shameless thing you've ever done to promote your band?
Sickboy: We had a day off on our U.K. tour and realized that our friends Alexisonfire were playing about an hour away from where we were. So we went and hung out and watched the show from side stage. Sarah put a Creepshow shirt on backwards and sat on the front of house speakers so that all 2,000 people at show would be staring at our logo.

What's the hardest part about being an up-and-coming band?
I'd say being away from family and friends for months at a time. Most of the other guys in the band are pretty new to touring and it took a while for them to get used to that.

How important is it for your band members to circulate and flirt with the audience before or after the show?
It is very important. I hate when bands spend all night in their band rooms and are only seen when they are on stage. We all really like to go watch the other bands from out front, like everyone else. It's also really important to hang out and talk to the kids after the show. It means a lot to them. They are the reason we get to go out and tour and have fun!

Have you ever stolen from someone else's rider? If so, who was it and what did you take?
Yes! We normally would never steal from another band's rider, but we were playing a big festival in Germany. There was a band playing that I won't mention that were treating all the other bands and the production and stage crew like shit. We played early in the night and had run out of beer — twice. I walked by their dressing room, noticed the coast was clear, and that they had wayyyyyy better beer than us so I grabbed the rest of it and we continued the party! This was the only time we would ever take anything from another band. They deserved it! (laughs)

Have you ever been graded before according to ChartAttack.com's Rock 'n' Roll Report Cards?
As far as I know we haven't.

Have you done anything new or interesting this week?
Yes, as a matter of fact. Since we're taking time off and writing a new album, a few of us have gotten jobs. I just started working at a tie-dye factory and I dyed 4,000 pairs of socks this week. Very interesting stuff! (laughs)

The Creepshow play the Horseshoe Tavern on Friday, March 8 at 1:10 a.m. as part of the annual Chart/Horseshoe/Canadian Music Week showcase.