Welcome to The Chop Tops Bands in Town page,
the Revved-Up Rockabilly trio from Santa Cruz, CA
— idling at the crossroads of Rockabilly, Surf, Psychobilly, & Punk!

The Chop Tops are pleased to announce a select handful of reunion shows only in 2025 celebrating the release of…
FABRIKATE — The Revved-Up Rockabilly trio’s new release!
Sometimes They Come Back, and this time it’s with a red-hot reunion album! This final 7th addition to The Chop Tops discography covers a lot of musical ground in the genre-blurring style they’re known for. Featuring tracks ranging from; Spaghetti Westerns, Surf instrumentals…Bluegrass tales of the devil and greed, topped off with its Haunting Hot Rod title track! This final 12-song reunion album cruises to all the right stops along the way!

In 1995, Sinner formed The Chop Tops as a way to share his love of rockabilly music – but he also enjoyed other musical styles (like surf, punk, and psychobilly) and didn’t want to stop playing them completely. So the band blended all of their favorite music genres to create their own wild sound. The Chop Tops even coined the phrase “Revved-Up Rockabilly” to describe their unique combination of these styles. The original line-up was four members: Sinner – rhythm guitar piano & lead vocals, Flyin’ Brian – lead guitar, Ray Gun – Bass, Rockin’ Drew – Drums. Slide guitarist Rich Hensolt and saxophonist Mike Belardes played regularly with the band from ’97 through ’99. Dylan “The Man” Cavaliere took over as bassist in ’98. The group became a 5-piece when Shelby joined in ’99. In 2000 and 2001 Drew and then Brian retired and the band slimed down to a trio. Rather than bringing in another percussionist, Drew suggested that Sinner revisit singing lead vocals while playing stand-up drums, a style he had developed in his previous band Sinner & The V8’s. From 2000, until their retirement in 2015, The Chop Tops had various upright bassists with Hot Rod and Brett Black touring the majority of those years. In 2014, Josh became the Revved-Up Rockabilly trio’s final upright bassist. The band took their breed of rockabilly music across the U.S. and AU to perform more than 200 shows each year throughout their second decade of touring. They kept this demanding schedule with support from their amazing sponsors: Murray’s Pomade, Lucky 13 Clothing, T.U.K. Footwear, Craviotto Drums, Gretsch Guitars, Gallien-Krueger Bass Amplifiers, and Jim Dunlop.

Thanks to their music’s unique style, blurring the lines between genres, they’ve shared the stage with the likes of Adolescents, Agent Orange, Alvis Wayne, Angry Samoans, Big Sandy, Black Flag, The Blasters, Brian Setzer, BR549, Chuck Berry, Crazy Cavan & The Rhythm Rockers, Danny B. Harvey, Dead Kennedys, Deke Dickerson, Demented Are Go, Dick Dale, D.O.A., Dr. Know, Dwight Yoakam Band, Fishbone, Guana Batz, Gene Vincent’s Original Blue Caps, Glen Glenn, Hank Williams III, John Lee Hooker, Lee Rocker, Levi Dexter, Link Wray, Lloyd Price, Los Lobos, Los Straitjackets, Nekromantix, Mad Sin, The Paladins, Paul Burlison (The Rock and Roll Trio), The Planet Rockers, Marky Ramone, Ray Campi, Ray Condo, The Reverend Horton Heat, Rip Masters, Robert Gordon, Roddy Radiation and the Skabilly Rebels (The Specials), Royal Crown Revue, Rusty York, Suicidal Tendencies, The Trashmen, The Vandals, Tim Polecat, Wanda Jackson, and many more legendary greats! So get in your ride, step on the gas, and blast some Chop Tops on your radio…you’ll be glad you did! Find more of the group’s highlights and history here: The Chop Tops Wikipedia page.