Line-up
Peter te Bos: vocals
John Cameron: guitar
Marcus Bruystens: bass
Marc Lamb: drums
Other musicians
Allard Jolles drums
Arno Kooy bass guitar
Bobbie Rossini bass guitar
Geert de Groot bass guitar
Lya Spykstra bass guitar
Marius Schrader drums
BIOGRAPHY
1983 - Punk rock group Suspenders splits up in 1981 and several members form rock group L'Attentat. In the spring of 1983 L'Attentat guitarist/singer Allard Jolles, forms a second band: Claw Boys Claw. Other members of the band are ex-Suspenders singer Bobbie Rossini on bass, and on guitar (Jolles plays the drums) John Cameron (ex-Odorex). Shortly afterwards singer/graphic designer Peter te Bos joins Claw Boys Claw. The band plays garage rock with influences of psychedelics, acid punk and rock 'n' roll.
1984 - Shocking Shades Of Claw Boys Claw is recorded and released on the band's own Hipcat label.
1985 - In May 1985 Jolles leaves Claw Boys Claw in favour of his other band L'Attentat. He is replaced by Pilots drummer Marius Schrader.
1986 - Claw Boys Claw signs to Polydor. The band makes its first appearance at the Pinkpop festival. During this show frontman Te Bos throws apples, oranges, beer cans, his shoes and his socks into the crowd. In June the album With Love From The Boys, produced by Vic Maille, comes out. The band plays at the Roskilde festival in Denmark.
1987 - Claw Boys Claw records the album Crack My Nut. Shocking Shades is re-released on Polydor. Additionally, the album Claw Boys Claw comes out, a compilation of the band's self-released material (the mini album Now!, the single So Mean and the 12" Indian Wallpaper). Also released is the Christmas single Blue Bells.
1988 - Claw Boys Claw performs at the New Music Seminar in New York where they meet John Cale who promises to produce the band's next album. They sign to Megadisc and release the new album Hitkillers, a collection of covers of Dutch rock classics.
1989 - Bobbie Rossini and Marius Schrader leave the band. Rumours about a new album (produced by John Cale) are again surfacing.
1990 - The album Angelbite comes out. It is not produced by John Cale, but by Steve Parker (engineer with The Fall and Dutch vocalist Mathilde Santing). The band goes on - another - successful tour.
1991 - Late June the band plays the Parkpop festival in The Hague. In the meantime, Kooy joins La La Heaven and Geert de Groot (ex-Fatal Flowers) takes over on bass.
1992 - Late 1992 the album Sugar, a highlight in the band's career so far, comes out. The change in musical direction, that was already apparent on Angelbite, has now become permanent: The garage punk style has had to make way for the more melodic and sultry swamp rock. This has much to do with the fact that the album is produced by Urban Dance Squad drummer Michel Schoots, alias Magic Stick. The subdued single Rosie is the band's first Top 40 hit.
1993 - For the second time Claw Boys Claw is on the bill of the Pinkpop festival. Former bass player Rossini turns up in girl group Chicas del Rock that releases the album Neverneverland.
1994 - The new album Nipple, produced by Luc Suèr, largely follows the line of Sugar, but is less successful.
1995 - Marc Lamb plays the drums on Get Well Soon the second album of Soft Parade.
1997 - Claw Boys Claw release the new album Will-O-The-Wisp. The band also tours the Netherlands (by boat) with Scram C Baby and other bands.
1999 - All band members occupy themselves with various other projects: Te Bos concentrates on his career as graphic designer. Together with Henk Hofstede from Nits he designs the Media Centre of the Dutch Rock & Pop Institute. Drummer Marc Lamb wins the X3M remix award for his work with dance project Patriot Hills. Bassist Geert de Groot plays with Solex.
2002 - Peter te Bos en John Cameron work on a new album.
2005 - Former Claw Boys Claw drummer Marius Schrader alias Mars Radar independently releases an electro/synth album under the Wat moniker.
2006 - Te Bos and Cameron have written about 60 songs. Together with drummer Marc Lamb they start working on the new material. Lya Spykstra (ex-Bitchcock) is the new bass player. With Lamb she's also part of the trio Tomix.
2007 - After an initial session in 2006 in February and March Claw Boys Claw start recording the new album at Amsterdam's Eiland Studio's.
2008 - January 30th the release of Pajama Day is celebrated with a showcase at the DeSmet studios in Amsterdam, in presence of members of Johan, Moke and Hallo Venray.
Sound Of The Psycho
Claw Boys Claw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Joey took a lot, now his head has blown him all the way home
It was on TV, boy did I like yesterday news
It was not as fun, it was the sound of the psycho
He would never be seen sleeping on the magazine
But now at least he is free like the sound of the psycho, like the sound of the psycho
It's a real love killer and it's a real love killer
It's the sound of the psycho, it's the sound of the psycho, it's the sound of the psycho
He was not that brave, like the sound of the psycho
Yeah, love night it came, he came along in my dreams and he told me all
All about his fall, like the sound of the psycho
Like the sound of the psycho, like the sound of the psycho, like the sound of the psycho
It's a real love killer, it's a real love killer
Joey took, he took a shot cause he didn't like to run
Joey took a lot, like the sound of the psycho
It's a real love killer, like the sound of the psycho
It's a real love killer, like the sound of the psycho
It's a real love killer, it's a real love killer, yeah
The lyrics to Claw Boys Claw's song Sound of the Psycho are quite enigmatic and open to interpretation. The song appears to be about a man named Joey who takes drugs or alcohol, but ends up losing control and possibly overdosing ("Joey took a lot, now his head has blown him all the way home"). The mention of Joey not wanting to run and the line "Bringing in the strong, Joey never goes there alone" suggests that he may have been involved in drug dealing or gang activity.
The title of the song itself, "Sound of the Psycho," hints at a sense of danger and instability. The lines "He would never be seen sleeping on the magazine / But now at least he is free like the sound of the psycho" could be interpreted in a few ways -- perhaps Joey used to be a model citizen, but now that he's free from the constraints of society, he's turned to substance abuse and recklessness. Alternatively, "sleeping on the magazine" could refer to someone who is homeless or has fallen on hard times, and the "sound of the psycho" symbolizes the harsh realities of life on the streets. Overall, the lyrics seem to paint a picture of someone who is trying to escape their problems through drugs and alcohol, but ultimately finds themselves trapped and unable to escape the consequences.
Line by Line Meaning
Joey took a shot cause he didn't like to run
Joey avoided exerting effort by taking addictive substances instead
Joey took a lot, now his head has blown him all the way home
Joey indulged excessively in drugs and became disoriented and unable to function, thus being forced to go home
It was on TV, boy did I like yesterday news
Someone enjoyed watching news of Joey's downfall on TV
It was not as fun, it was the sound of the psycho
Although it was initially enjoyable to see Joey's reckless behaviour, it later showed the dangerous 'sound of the psycho' that addiction can create
He would never be seen sleeping on the magazine
Joey was not the type to rely on superficial things like magazines for comfort or satisfaction
But now at least he is free like the sound of the psycho, like the sound of the psycho
Joey, through addiction, has found a sense of liberation or escape from reality but it is still the dangerous sound of addiction
It's a real love killer and it's a real love killer
Addiction is a powerful force that destroys relationships
Bringing in the strong, Joey never goes there alone
Joey always surrounded himself with others who were also addicted or used drugs, never facing it alone
He was not that brave, like the sound of the psycho
Joey was unable to confront the reality of his addiction or overcome it, showing the danger of addiction
Yeah, love night it came, he came along in my dreams and he told me all
Addiction is all-consuming, even infiltrating other aspects of life like dreams
All about his fall, like the sound of the psycho
Joey's addiction eventually led to his downfall, and it was the destructive 'sound of the psycho' that led him there
It's a real love killer, it's a real love killer
Addiction destroys relationships and love
Joey took, he took a shot cause he didn't like to run
Joey's addiction was used to avoid responsibility and avoid exerting effort
Joey took a lot, like the sound of the psycho
Joey indulged in addictive substances to excess, continuing the dangerous cycle of addiction
It's a real love killer, like the sound of the psycho
The destructive nature of addiction destroys love and relationships, reflected in the dangerous 'sound of the psycho'
It's a real love killer, like the sound of the psycho
The destructive nature of addiction destroys love and relationships, reflected in the dangerous 'sound of the psycho'
It's a real love killer, it's a real love killer, yeah
Addiction continues to be a destructive force that kills love and relationships
Contributed by Ella H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.