The Big Heat

Repent, all you wimpy Michael Bolton fans! Kneel down at the powerfully righteous altar of the Reverend Horton Heat. His nonstop psychobilly-blues revival show is like seeing Jerry Lee Lewis, Tom Waits, and Jimmy Swaggart all rolled up into a Texas tornado. Watch the Reverend's three-man combo toss their guitars to the high heavens while Heat gets out front and preaches up a storm. He's tried to heal Madonna, Michael Jackson (and Bubbles, his chimp confidant), as well as the occasional sorority girl. Mostly, though, he's known for belting out rowdy tongue-in-cheek gospel songs such as "Wiggle Stick" and "The Devil's Chasing Me." "The Devil is afraid of me," says Heat. "The Devil looks a little bit like Gary Coleman—it's kinda too bad he looks like that."

Heat was living the monastic guitar-god life in Dallas until he was "ordained" by a local club owner. Since then his band has played with everyone from the Cramps to the pulchritudinous Dolly Parton. He has just put out his second album, The Full Custom Sounds of the Reverend Horton Heat (Sub Pop), and is now prepared to be "huge." (God willing.) But "if my career takes a nosedive, I'm going to start Reverend Horton Heating and Appliance, and I'm going to sell air-conditioning even though I know it's politically incorrect." Here's a prayer for more converts to the Church of Heat. Amen!

ELISSA SCHAPPELL