😈 FROM THE INFECTIOUS UNEASE RADIO ARCHIVES
DEVILISH PRESLEY
JACQUI VIXEN & JOHNNY NAVARRO
ORIGINAL INTERVIEW — 9 MAY 2004 • RESTORED, RESEARCHED & REPUBLISHED 2026
Interview by Gordon Lawrence Taylor — Infectious Unease Radio
Devilish Presley — London, England
Jacqui Vixen — 🇦🇺 Australia / London, England
Johnny Navarro — London, England
November Tenth Records
ARCHIVE NOTE — 2026
This interview was originally conducted on 9 May 2004 for Infectious Unease Radio and appeared on one of my old websites. Twenty-two years later I have gone back into the archive to restore it.
There is one important rule governing this republication: Jacqui Vixen and Johnny Navarro’s original answers have been left intact. Their words, humour, spelling, attitude and language belong to 2004 and should remain there. I have reworded only my original questions so they read more naturally today, while retaining what I originally asked.
This is therefore not a rewritten Devilish Presley interview. It is the original interview brought back into circulation, surrounded by new historical research showing what happened to the band afterwards, what became of Jacqui and Johnny’s creative partnership, the releases that followed, and the remarkable length of Devilish Presley’s connection with Infectious Unease Radio.
THE NIGHT DISGRACELAND TOOK OVER THE ROAD
I first came across Devilish Presley while reading about them in Meltdown Magazine. Something immediately caught my attention. I found an advertisement for one of their gigs, became increasingly curious and contacted the band.
A few weeks later I had a copy of Disgraceland in my hands.
And there is one particular night I have never forgotten.
That night I had just repossessed a Porsche 911 on a private job from some schmuck who had borrowed money from the wrong people — the kind who did not offer hardship arrangements in writing, but another form of hardship altogether, and one that was considerably less pleasant.
I was dressed for the job and for the road — leather jacket, boots, heavy stainless-steel skull rings on my fingers, my hair dyed black and slicked back, my eyes like steel and a look that said: don’t fuck with me.
It was well after midnight.
Cigarette smoke drifted through the Porsche, my foot was heavy on the accelerator, and the 911 was eating up the road as I headed back towards Melbourne.
I slipped Disgraceland into the CD player and turned it up.
Then “Saturday Night Satellite” came on.
Something about that track hit me immediately.
When it finished, I played it again.
I dragged hard on the cigarette, smoke curling through the car as the road disappeared beneath the headlights. The lyrics were resonating with me — the darkness, the isolation, the speed, that strange sense of freedom you can only find when you are alone on the road long after midnight.
I turned it up louder.
Then louder again.
And I sang along at the top of my voice.
The Porsche kept cutting through the Australian night, the engine underneath me and Devilish Presley hammering through the speakers. Empty road stretched ahead beyond the headlights. My fingers tapped against the steering wheel, my foot remained heavy on the accelerator, and Disgraceland became the soundtrack to that hellbound run back to Melbourne.
By the second listen the words were already becoming familiar.
Somewhere during that drive I remember thinking how absolutely incredible it would be to see Devilish Presley perform live.
There was only one substantial problem.
Devilish Presley were in England.
I was in Australia.
Yet there was an Australian connection buried right inside the band.
Jacqui Vixen was born in Hay, Australia, in 1977, moved to Melbourne, grew up there and attended university before relocating to London in 1996. That history came directly from Jacqui herself when I interviewed her.
Twenty-two years later, while putting this interview back together in 2026, I found myself sitting with Rust Garden playing through my headphones.
The years had passed.
The band had ended.
But that power had not.
DEVILISH PRESLEY — WHERE THE STORY STOOD IN MAY 2004
Devilish Presley had formed in London in 2002 around Jacqui Vixen and Johnny Navarro. My original page listed Jacqui on bass and vocals and Johnny on guitar and vocals. In typical Johnny fashion, Jacqui’s age was given seriously while Johnny’s was listed as “4th Century AD.”
At the time of the interview the original page documented:
Rust Garden
Disgraceland
“Black Leather Jesus” / “Levi’s Dog”
“She’s Not America” / “Memento Mori”
Pandemonium EP
The original release information was associated with their own November Tenth Records.
And then came the interview.
THE ORIGINAL INTERVIEW — 9 MAY 2004
GORDON LAWRENCE TAYLOR:
Jacqui and Johnny, could you begin by telling me about your respective backgrounds, when music first entered your lives, how the two of you met, and how Devilish Presley eventually came together?
Jacqui Vixen:
I was born in Australia in 1977 in a small town called Hay. I moved to Melbourne where I grew up and later attended University. I took up the piano
aged 6 but moved to flute, on which I trained classically. I gave music up in a futile attempt to reach the Australian Olympic show jumping team, but I had to retire due to serious injury. I moved to London in 1996 and I met Johnny in 2000 when I joined his band Theda on keyboards. We got on so well and both wanted to Rock n roll so we went off and formed Devilish Presley in 2002.
Johnny Navarro:
I was born in the Victorian era. I worked as a mudlark on the shores of Thames where I was discovered by Jacqui being held as a slave in a dodgy synth band. We both sold our souls to Robert Johnson and formed DP.
GORDON LAWRENCE TAYLOR:
Before Devilish Presley, which bands had each of you been involved with, and what styles of music were you playing?
Jacqui Vixen: I was in Golgotha (not the famous U.S band) with my then boyfriend. We split up due to “differences”. He wanted to empty my bank account and I objected. We were goth rock.
Johnny Navarro: I was in goth rockers Touch Of Evil in the ‘80’s and we released 2 singles The best of which was a 12” single “Blue Blue Gods” which is now as rare as hens teeth. I was then in Theda who influenced many bands but made no money.
GORDON LAWRENCE TAYLOR:
What instruments, amplification and effects were you using to create the Devilish Presley sound at this stage?
Jacqui Vixen: A Marennello bass, it’s Italian and I need them to sponsor me!!
A Laney 150 watt amp and cabinet and that’s all. I use a dirty sound ?
Johnny Navarro: A Dusenburg Starplayer. It’s German and based on the guitar played by Eddie Cochran in the film “The Girl Can’t Help It” who happens to be a distant relative of mine, for real! I also use a Black Epiphone Les Paul copy ‘cos I need sponsorship by Gibson!! I can’t afford an original. I use a Marshall 100 watt combo which I put through a cabinet now we are playing bigger venues. I have a zoom fx pedal but I only use the tremelo effect now, the rest is just amp and guitar. Oh and my magical pouting panache of course.
GORDON LAWRENCE TAYLOR:
I was particularly struck by Disgraceland. The lyrics seemed to tell stories, create characters and capture particular places, emotions and moments, while the music remained incredibly powerful. What inspired the album, and what creative process did you follow when developing its lyrics and music?
Jacqui Vixen: Thanks for the kind comments Gordon. Well we ALWAYS write the lyrics first and they are all based on stuff that resonates with us. We have to do it that way because we put so much energy into our live performance that we have to “mean it man”. The first album “Rust Garden” was very much a blueprint for the Devilish Presley format. We write simple but catchy songs about London and the weird and scary people we meet here. “Disgraceland” is London re-imagined in our fevered minds. A huge old sprawling place that has a modern American layer over centuries of spooky weird shit. Hence all the Americana references. Johnny’s family were all Teddy Boys in the ‘50s and he has loads of old rare rock n Roll records. It’s in his blood literally being a distant relative of Eddie Cochran.
Johnny Navarro:
We usually start with a title. Like the next album will be called “Memphisto” and from that one word the entire album, all the titles lyrics and artwork ideas are coming together. We did the same thing with “Disgraceland” which could be seen as political and about the U.K with songs like “She’s Not America” It helped having Terry Chimes ex-Clash drummer as a consultant producer ‘cos they were THE band from London apart from Marc Bolan of course! On another level that track might be about an ex-partner.
GORDON LAWRENCE TAYLOR:
How had audiences, reviewers, radio and the underground press responded to Disgraceland?
Jacqui Vixen: Brilliant. We have had some great reviews and we must mention Uncle Nemesis on www.starvox.com who has reviewed us live as well and really encouraged us. We got a fantastic review in the U.K magazine Meltdown and we have been encouraged by fanzines, webzines and stations all over the world including the wonderful Infectious Unease ?
Johnny Navarro:
We are selling the CD steadily at gigs and via Resurrection Records in Camden. We now have distribution in Europe via Strobelight but we are still looking for distribution in Australia.
