THE NIGHT CREEPER.
Every so often Uncle T gets the urge to switch gears and share something way beyond the boundaries of the Land of TNUC. As much as we love to delve into familiar content around here (Beer Wolf, long butts, pizza), we won’t allow these beloved topics to back us into a corner.
Enter a gang of creeps from the U.K. by the name of Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats, a group who’s been on our radar since their breakthrough debut record Blood Lust arrived in 2012. Their music is a strange brew of 60’s psychedelia, biker fuzz and pop music, all mixed together and delivered inside a horror movie. The band uses mostly vintage amps with not a care in the world for anything polished or hi-def. The key ingredients to Uncle Acid’s well-balanced diet are riffs, guitar solos and blood. If you’re new to the group, imagine for a moment if John Lennon was booted from The Beatles and at the same time Black Sabbath abandoned Tony Iommi at a truck stop. What happens next? The two of them start a biker gang and convince a bunch of people to follow them to the countryside to sing songs about death and rituals. Now your body is ready.
For starters, here’s ‘I’ll Cut You Down’ from 2012’s Blood Lust.
Most importantly, Uncle Acid is an album band. Their eerie pop songs can stand alone if if need be but they really shine when played cohesively. These records are constructed for the listener to sit down and get lost inside. The more you listen, the more little things start popping out and piecing together. Your mind then starts to wander and it’s during this time that you begin to sink into the little world of Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats.
The band also deliberately keeps a low profile to allow the music to speak for itself. Uncle A himself once described his feelings about this in an interview: “I was terrified of Ozzy Osbourne growing up, which was before the whole ‘The Osbournes’ thing. I just thought ‘this guys a fucking lunatic, he must live in a castle somewhere’ and you build up this image of people. I think it’s great that there’s some mystique about it. Those images that you think up make the music even better.”
If you’re a regular around here, you know TNUC supports this type of thinking. It’s a damn rare thing these days with people demanding to know everything and bands bombarding their fans with useless information like what they had for breakfast. What happened to the mystique? After all, isn’t that supposed to be part of the fun?
Uncle Acid’s follow-up sophomore record, Mind Control, arrived in 2013. This time around the deadbeats’ channeled Charlie Manson, Jim Jones and other cult types to create a more psychedelic and conceptual offering than the band’s debut. It was a strong album and well thought out, but to me couldn’t match the ferociousness of Blood Lust. Now, in 2015, the band is about to release their 3rd full length effort The Night Creeper on September 4th (this Friday).
Easily the most twisted tale in their discography, The Night Creeper is a concept record that follows a slasher Italian Giallo story. The band returns with that warm, analog production but this record in particular has an extra-thick layer of grime attached to it which remarkably adds to the murderous storytelling going on. Uncle A himself exhibits a Night Creeper persona not only in the lyrics but using a distorted vocal style which creeps and slithers through each track like a witch. Sleazy scenes unfold but in the most soothing manner, one that balances darkness and light really effectively. My current highlights from the album are ‘Downtown’, ‘Pusher Man’, ‘Murder Nights’ and ‘Slow Death’, all infectious songs that get under your skin in the best way possible.
Listening to this album lays a certain vibe in the room that feels almost similar to watching a movie like 1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Not in the sense of the story, but rather that aura of seediness, setting an atmosphere which feels like it’s been soaking in the air of a slaughterhouse for years. If there was ever a record to capture that ‘grainy’ quality of old, classic horror films – this is the one.
The Night Creeper should really appeal to horror soundtrack lovers, regardless if you only listen to electronic or synthesizer based horror scores. Uncle Acid makes us well aware that clashing guitars and eerie vocals are just as effective, if not more so, due to the sheer volume and intensity. These songs will seep so far into your senses that by the end of the album you’ll be praying for someone to turn The Night Creeper into an actual motion picture.
Do yourself a favor and wait until evening hours. Then raid grandpa’s liquor cabinet, get a campfire going and turn this one up as loud as possible from start to finish.
Watch the new video for ‘Melody Lane’.
LP/CD Pre-orders:
Rise Above Records
iTunes
Amazon US
Amazon UK
…and catch Uncle Acid on ‘THE NIGHT CREEPER TOUR’ this Fall with special guests! Tour dates at AcidCoven.com
uncletnuc.com 
actually it is their fourth album. vol. 1 was released in 2010. it is very rare but you can find it on youtube. if you love blood lust you will love vol. 1. i discovered uncle acid on my space in 2012. been following them ever since.
Right scardog, technically it’s their 4th I just always consider Blood Lust their debut. I love Vol 1 though!