The Chin Chins Release Debut Album Hellcat And Launch Stray Cats Tour

The Chin Chins have released their debut album Hellcat, a bold and unapologetic record written entirely by frontwoman Sara Rose and built to be played loud on stage.

Deftly dancing between rockabilly, punk and beyond, Hellcat sits in a lane of its own. The band’s sound reflects the distinct musical backgrounds of its members: Sara Rose as the frontwoman of a punk band, Tre Cool as the drummer of Green Day, and Eddie Montoya and Buzz Campbell as longtime rockabilly performers, with Campbell having shared stages with acts including Stray Cats, Chuck Berry and Willie Nelson.

Sara shares: “Creating this album has allowed me to tap into an entirely new part of my artistry and I’ve learned so much about myself as a musician in the process. I feel so grateful to have found a group of incredibly talented musicians who share my passion for letting their inspiration run wild. The result is a dynamic body of work that I’m beyond proud of, and I can’t wait to perform it live.”

That mix of punk urgency and rockabilly flash gives Hellcat its spark. Rather than smoothing those traditions into a polite hybrid, the band lets them collide: sharp songwriting from Rose, swing and bite in the guitars, and a rhythm section that understands both the swagger of classic rockabilly and the shove of punk. It is debut-album energy with the muscle of players who have already lived several musical lives.

Hellcat arrives just as The Chin Chins step into a major live stretch. The band support the Stray Cats through November, then join The Interrupters for spring 2027 West Coast dates. Those runs follow Bottlerock appearances and headline shows across Southern California, underlining how quickly the project has moved from studio chemistry into rooms that demand presence.

The Stray Cats dates are a particularly sharp fit. With Campbell’s rockabilly pedigree and Rose’s punk-forward writing, The Chin Chins bring a contemporary edge to bills steeped in roots swagger.

The Interrupters run next spring extends that live story into a different corner of high-energy rock and ska-punk crowds, giving the new album a second wave of road testing after the November theatres.

Across eight tracks, Hellcat keeps the pace tight. From the title cut through Bye Bye Blues, Out Of Time, Dancing With The Dark, Crazy When She Drinks, Wheels, Guts & Grit and Snakebite, the record plays like a setlist already leaning forward. There is little fat and plenty of room for the band’s onstage personalities to take over once the songs leave the studio.

For Rose, the album is also a personal breakthrough: a chance to write without shrinking her instincts to fit a single scene. For Cool, Montoya and Campbell, it is a collaboration that treats rockabilly and punk as living languages rather than museum pieces. Together they have made a debut that feels ready for the road on day one.

Vinyl buyers get the full statement in physical form as the band take the songs straight into theatres with the Stray Cats. For a debut, that combination of release-day availability and immediate high-profile support dates is a strong signal of intent: Hellcat is not being soft-launched into silence, it is being thrown into rooms that already know how to move.

Hellcat is out now. Stream the album, grab the vinyl, and catch The Chin Chins with the Stray Cats this month before the Interrupters dates land in spring 2027.

The Chin Chins Hellcat tracklist:

1. Hellcat
2. Bye Bye Blues
3. Out Of Time
4. Dancing With The Dark
5. Crazy When She Drinks
6. Wheels
7. Guts & Grit
8. Snakebite

The Chin Chins live:

2026 (supporting Stray Cats)
9 Nov – Grand Prairie, TX – Texas Trust CU Theatre
10 Nov – San Antonio, TX – Majestic Theatre
12 Nov – Sugar Land, TX – Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
13 Nov – Biloxi, MS – Beau Rivage Resort & Casino
15 Nov – Memphis, TN – Orpheum Theatre
17 Nov – Louisville, KY – The Louisville Palace
18 Nov – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium
20 Nov – Charlotte, NC – Ovens Auditorium

2027 (supporting The Interrupters)
28 Apr – San Francisco, CA – The Regency Ballroom
30 Apr – Los Angeles, CA – Wiltern Theatre
1 May – San Diego, CA – SOMA
2 May – Anaheim, CA – House of Blues