In 1989, American punk rock fans would get their first taste of the musical prowess of Kepi Ghoulie when Groovie Ghoulies released their debut album Appetite for Adremochrome. On this album, a long tradition of great pop-punk and horror/sci-fi themes would begin to take root. It may also be, one of the most solid debuts to rise out of the California pop-punk scene in the 1980s.

While this album is first and foremost, a punk album the pop sensibilities of the band are phenomenal. Looking back a quarter century later, with the knowledge of Kepi Ghoulie’s solo career during that time, it’s obvious they weren’t just putting their own spin on The Ramones but rather bringing together the influences of garage rock and 1950s girl groups in much the same way The Ramones did. One needs look no further than the five covers on this album for evidence of this, as they cover The Rolling Stones, The Monkees, Herman’s Hermits, KISS and a novelty song called “King Kong Stomp.”

The covers, while not the driving force behind the album, fit in perfectly with the bands own material. One of these, “Do the Bat”, is reminiscent of many early bubble gum rock songs that popularized a dance that helped propel the song into the Top 40. Of course the guitar muscle has been increased exponentially beyond anything you’d find on early rock albums, the same hooks that made it popular are still there.

This album is a lot of fun lyrically as previously mentioned the predominant theme on this album, as with all Groovie Ghoulies albums, there are horror and sci-fi themes in droves. They do this with the same sense they write music, by falling back on what they grew up with. This is the musical equivalent of the Twilight Zone, midnight horror movies, and 1970’s science fiction. It’s smart without taking itself too seriously, and you can enjoy the songs by themselves or read into the underlying social themes.

The album was recently remastered and re-released by Eccentric Pop Records with new cover art by the awesomely talented Tom Neeley, who you may remember for a comic called Henry and Glenn Forever, and includes three bonus tracks. Even without all of that, this is one of the best pop-punk albums ever released and something worth taking the time to check out.