Cramps Frontman Lux Interior Dead at 62

The Daily Swarm reports that Lux Interior, frontman of The Cramps (the godfathers of what is now lovingly referred to as psychobilly), has passed away from a pre-existing heart condition at the age of 52. The website cites an official release from Girlie Action, a media representative company who does not list The Cramps as a client on their website. To make matters more suspect the site contains lists of both active and inactive clients. No other reputable source is reporting the story and it currently reeks of hoax, but that could be wishful thinking. See, I never got to see The Cramps.

While trying to confirm the accuracy of the report I have watched as the Wikipedia page on Interior goes from listing him as alive to listing his death, then back to listing him as alive again. If the news becomes officially official, and by that I mean is picked up by some periodical other than a glorified music blog (currently the only other sources carrying the story), then this will be another sad day in the punk community. We’ve had far too many these past few years. Joe Strummer, the important members of The Ramones, Frank Navetta, Hilly Kristal and Ron Asheton of the Stooges; punk has taken some hard hits so far this century.

As I write, Billboard Magazine has just picked up the story, and says the news was confirmed through the band’s publicist. Perhaps it is true after all.

The Cramps sprung up out of the early punk scene surrounding CBGB’s in The Bowery District of NYC, but Interior, born Erick Lee Purkhiser, was originally from here in Ohio, up the highway in Stow, just outside of Cleveland. He was a horror buff and one of the original people to mix horror with punk, inspiring later acts like The Misfits and Rob Zombie, among others.

Shirts, posters and stickers of The Cramps have long snuck their way into films, when the camera inevitably pans through the bratty, younger brother’s room. Their music will continue to serve as the soundtrack for many future Halloween parties, and Lux, you will be missed.

– Luke Toney