Unknown Hinson is accustomed to the stares, screams and laughs.

“I’m used to the shock and awe of an audience,” the self-proclaimed king of western troubadours says.

That’s probably because he looks like a hillbilly vampire (with pointy teeth, widow’s peak and cowboy garb), sings objectionable lyrics and plays a mean “gitar.”

“I don’t take myself serious,” says Hinson, who’s named after his father (listed as “unknown” on his birth certificate). “I’m a ‘gitar’ player and a singer. I write my songs and try to say something in every song. If people think it’s funny, well that’s great. If they think it’s serious, hell that’s good too. As long as they appreciate it in some fashion.”

Hinson’s freak foray began when he ran away from home at age 10, stumbled across a second-rate carnival and became part of the traveling show.

“Feller that owned the carnival immediately seen that I had some rare physical attributes,” Hinson says, including the ability to lift weights with his tongue.

Before his mother abandoned him, she taught Hinson a guitar chord.

“She said, ‘If you want to do this, you’ll figure it out,’” Hinson says. The rest is hellbound rockabilly history.

More recently, Hinson has enamored himself with the 18- to 34-year-old demographic as the voice of Early Cuyler on the Adult Swim cartoon Squidbillies. Goth rock fans are attracted to his macabre image, too.

Folks like Billy Bob Thornton and Simpsons creator Matt Groening have heard his stuff, and they sing his praises. Even luminaries like Tom Petty and the Rolling Stones have asked Hinson about his craft. While he’s grateful for the attention, his only goals are to entertain people and have fun doing it.

“Every time I get up I either try to write a chart-topper, chase a pretty woman, or put down a half-gallon of party liquor,” Hinson says. “Sometimes I do all three in one day.”