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Bob Hocko is probably best-known as the lead singer of <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a>, the Pittsburgh-area band that recorded some ferocious garage rock on small labels in 1966 and 1967. While these were all cover versions, the group did put a particularly manic and idiosyncratic spin on some of them, especially the hardest and fuzziest ones, like "Hey Joe," "Louie Louie," and "Psycho." Hocko actually didn't sing on the first <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">Swamp Rats</a> single ("Louie Louie"/"Hey Joe"), but he was in the lineup for everything else they recorded, usually taking lead vocals. In keeping with the tenor of most of the group's material, his scream-singing was usually pretty unhinged, though to good effect, particularly on "Psycho," which is actually a worthy revisiting of the already-crazed <a href="spotify:artist:2g3PKH7Z1Ofn5oGR6oDjLy">Sonics</a> classic. He also wrote some original material for the band, like "Hey Freak" and the moody folk-rocker "I'm Going Home," though the group didn't release those songs at the time. They can be heard, however, on <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a> CD compilation Disco Still Sucks! (billed to Bob Hocko & the Swamp Rats), which combines material from their rare singles with several outtakes.
Prior to his stint in <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a>, Hocko had been in the Fantastic Deejays, a worthy though far more British Invasion pop-inclined Pittsburgh-area band that did some regional singles of their own in the mid-'60s. Though Hocko had been a drummer/singer in the Fantastic Deejays, with <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a> he would only sing on stage, although he did some drumming on their studio recordings. After <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a> disbanded in 1967, Hocko was part of the hard rock band Galactus, which put out an album in 1976. He died of lung cancer on October 16, 2003. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi
Prior to his stint in <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a>, Hocko had been in the Fantastic Deejays, a worthy though far more British Invasion pop-inclined Pittsburgh-area band that did some regional singles of their own in the mid-'60s. Though Hocko had been a drummer/singer in the Fantastic Deejays, with <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a> he would only sing on stage, although he did some drumming on their studio recordings. After <a href="spotify:artist:0JIuktuRTWx3F2OooZLbyJ">the Swamp Rats</a> disbanded in 1967, Hocko was part of the hard rock band Galactus, which put out an album in 1976. He died of lung cancer on October 16, 2003. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi
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