The Germs

Infobox musical artist
Name = The Germs


Img_capt = The Germs, left to right: Pat Smear, Lorna Doom, Darby Crash, Don Bolles (Photo: ©2008 Ronn Spencer)
Img_size = 250
Landscape = Yes
Background = group_or_band
Origin = Los Angeles, CA, USA
Genre = Punk rock, hardcore punk
Years_active = 1977—1980
2005—Present
Label = Slash Records
Associated_acts = Foo Fighters
Nirvana
Darby Crash Band
The Go-Go's
45 Grave
URL = [http://www.germsreturn.com www.germsreturn.com]
Current_members = Pat Smear
Lorna Doom
Shane West
Don Bolles
Past_members = Darby Crash
Michelle Baer
Dinky
Dottie Danger
Donna Rhia
Nickey "Beat" Alexander

The Germs is an influential punk rock band from Los Angeles formed in the late 1970s. Their 1977 single, "Forming/Sexboy (live)", is generally regarded as the first punk record from Los Angeles. Two members went on to join much more famous groups: guitarist Pat Smear joined Nirvana during the band's dramatic last months and has also been a member of the Foo Fighters, and drummer Belinda Carlisle is the lead singer for the Go-Go's (and a successful solo artist.)

History

The band began when Paul Beahm and Georg Ruthenberg decided they should start a band after being kicked out of University High for antisocial behaviour, allegedly for using 'mind control' on fellow students. The (initially hypothetical) band was named "Sophistifuck & The Revlon Spam Queens," with Beahm (then 'Bobby Pyn,' and later Darby Crash) on vocals, Ruthenberg (then and later called Pat Smear) on guitar, an early member named "Dinky"(Diana Grant) on bass, and Michelle Baer playing drums. (The name was changed to The Germs after they couldn't fit that many letters on a T-shirt.) This lineup never played in front of a live audience.

In April '77 the band added Lorna Doom on bass, with transitional member "Dottie Danger" on drums, later famous as Belinda Carlisle of The Go-Go's. Carlisle never actually played with the band, due to her being sidelined by a bout of mononucleosis for an extended period, and she was replaced by her friend Donna Rhia, real name: Becky Barton, who played three gigs and recorded their first single. Carlisle remained a friend and helper of the band throughout (she can be heard introducing the band on the "Live At The Whiskey" recording, as produced by Kim Fowley), only leaving because her new band, the Go-Go's was becoming popular, and, as she put it, "I was really disturbed by the heroin that was going on." [http://www.hootpage.com/hoot_germs-trib.html watt and mascis on germs tribute ] ] Nicky Beat, of various noteworthy LA bands, also sat in on drums for a time.

The band's first live performance was at the Orpheum Theater. Pat Smear recalled::"We made noise. Darby stuck the mic in a jar of peanut butter. It was a dare, we had no songs or anything! Lorna wore her pants inside out, and Darby covered himself in red licorice...we made noise for five minutes until they threw us off."

The Germs initially drew musical influences from the likes of Iggy Pop, Queen, Suzi Quatro, The Runaways, Kim Fowley and New York Dolls. Early on, Smear was the only musically experienced member — Doom survived early performances by sliding a finger up and down the fretboard of her bass while Rhia generally kept a minimal beat on the bass drum, periodically bashing a cymbal.

During 1978 and 1979, The Germs and other top rising L.A. punk bands became iconic magnets of a growing punk lifestyle. For example, the Germs colors were black and blue. The Mao Mao colors were black and red. X colors were black and white. How one dressed, along with several other symbolic acts of homage, defined many on the scene. Darby discovered Genet and Sartre's writings, along with Burroughs, Kowalski and Rimbaud. He valued Devotion along with the high art of self-destruction. He asked his fans to love him exclusively. He loved many other artists and made some of his loyalties well known, even when they fell outside the genre, such as Alice Cooper. By the end of 1979, Crash was using large quantities of PCP and becoming progressively consumed. The band, however much it was despised or viewed as something of a joke by a few on the scene, had by far the largest following of any L. A. punk band for most of the year of 1979. It was worshiped by most first generation Los Angeles punks. The intensity it embodied live fueled the growing phenomenon of the slam circle, known today as the mosh pit.

The Circle : A blue circle on a black background that has been known to symbolize everything from Darby's dilated blue eyes [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mydriasis] , to "circle one" (the germs contingent), to the eastern philosophy of cycles of death and life [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wheel_of_Life] . Darby was obsessed with circles; everything goes in circles. The circle was on armbands and burned into flesh with cigarettes, denoting alliance with the germs. The circle was also on the (GI) album cover.

Recordings

The first single, "Forming", was recorded on a Sony 2-track in Pat's garage and arrived back from the pressing plant with the note, "Warning: This record causes ear cancer" printed on the sleeve by the plant staff, much to the band's displeasure. It featured a shambolic but serviceable performance on the A-side and a muddy live recording of "Sexboy" on the B side, recorded at the Roxy for the Cheech and Chong movie, "Up In Smoke". The song was not used in the movie, nor was the band, the only band not to receive a call-back to perform live for the film's "Battle of the Bands" sequence, perhaps due to the fact that the Germs' chaotic Roxy performance had featured an unscripted, full-on food fight.

The Germs, despite most expectations, developed a sound that was extremely aggressive, hyper-competent, and highly influential -- although throughout their career, they would have a reputation as a chaotic live band. Singer Darby Crash often arrived onstage nearly incoherent from drugs, singing everywhere but into the microphone and taunting the audience between songs, yet nevertheless, delivering intense theatrical and increasingly musical performances. The other band members prided themselves on similar problems, with many contemporary reviews citing collapses, incoherence, and drunken vomiting onstage. Fans saw this as part of the show, and indeed, the band presented it as such, even when breaking bottles and rolling in the glass, with the music coming and going.

Smear was revealed as a remarkably talented and fluid player; much later, after Darby's death, critics finally acknowledged Crash's lyrics as art and poetry. Crash's vocals had begun to mold themselves around the style of The Screamers' vocalist Tomata DuPlenty (The Screamers, a huge LA live attraction at the time, never released a record, but covered the Germs song, 'Sex Boy,' at live shows, recordings of which are now widely available on bootleg.) Another strong influence on the band's final sound was Zolar X, a theatrical glitter rock band popular in the Los Angeles area circa 1972-1980. Crash and Smear were enthusiastic fans of the band from the pre-Germs days, and the fast tempos and raw guitar tone of (the historically pre-punk) Zolar X [http://www.alternativetentacles.com/octopodes/865/d0yYcqDhYGaeCkkj4EV/Zolar_X-Jet_Star_19.mp3|recordings] are very similar to the sound achieved on later Germs recordings.

The Germs recorded two singles (with alternate tracks), an album-length demo session, and one full-length LP, "(GI)", each more focused and powerful than the last. Crash was, despite his erratic behavior, generally regarded as a brilliant lyricist (a contemporary critic described him as "ransacking the dictionary"), and the final lineup of Smear, Doom, and Bolles had become a world-class rock ensemble by the recording of "(GI)", turning in a performance that spurred an "LA Weekly" reviewer to write, "This album leaves exit wounds." It is considered one of the first hardcore punk records, and has a near-mythic status among punk rock fans. The album was produced by Joan Jett of The Runaways. Some European copies of the album also credit Donny Rose on keyboards (the song, "Shut Down," was recorded live in the studio, and features a melodic, two-fisted piano).

The Germs are featured in Penelope Spheeris's documentary film "The Decline of Western Civilization" along with X, Black Flag, Fear, Circle Jerks, Alice Bag Band, and Catholic Discipline.

Following the release of their only studio album, "(GI)", The Germs recorded six original songs with legendary producer Jack Nitzsche for the soundtrack to the film, "Cruising", starring Al Pacino. Lorna wrote one of the songs. Only the song, "Lion's Share," ended up on the Columbia soundtrack LP -- it was featured for about a minute in the movie, during a video-booth murder scene in an S&M club. Other songs from this session did not appear until the 1988 bootleg "Lion's Share", along with four tracks from their infamous last show at the Starwood. The "Cruising" sessions were finally released officially on the CD "(MIA): The Complete Recordings."

The End and Suicide

The end of the band came when Darby replaced Don Bolles with his friend Rob Henley on drums. Crash became increasingly impatient with Don Bolles' antics and fired him.

Shortly after the Germs split, Darby and Pat went on to form the short-lived Darby Crash Band. Circle Jerks drummer Lucky Lehrer joined the band on the eve of their first (sold-out) live performance, when during soundcheck, Darby kicked out the drummer they'd rehearsed with. The band, described by Smear as "like the Germs, but with worse players", played only a few gigs to lukewarm reaction before splitting up.

Shortly after that, Crash contacted Smear about a Germs "reunion" show, claiming it was necessary to "put punk into perspective" for the punks on the scene. However, Smear has said Crash told him privately he wanted to earn money for heroin with which to commit suicide. Since Darby had described this scenario many times in the past, Pat did not take him seriously.

On December 3, 1980, an over-sold Starwood hosted a final live show of the reunited band, including drummer Don Bolles. In spite of Crash's favorite LA band X not showing up for their opening gig, the Germs played what was, by all accounts, one of their best shows ever. Fact|date=January 2008 At one point, Darby told the amazed kids in the audience, "We did this show so you new people could see what it was like when we were around. You're not going to see it again".

Crash committed suicide 7 December, 1980, at age 22. Unreported at the time, Crash had overdosed on heroin in a suicide pact with close friend Casey Cola, who ended up surviving. She insists that he did not intend for her to live, nor did he change his mind at the last minute and intend for himself to live. As he lay dying, he attempted to write "Here lies Darby Crash" on the wall, but did not finish. Outside the world of Germs' fans, news of Darby's death was largely overshadowed by the murder of John Lennon the next day. A local news station mistakenly reported that Darby had died from playing a game of chicken with sleeping pills; he took too many sleeping pills.

After the End

After the Germs ended Don Bolles played with several other seminal L.A. bands, including Steaming Coils, Celebrity Skin, Nervous Gender and 45 Grave.

In 1993, Slash Records released "", with liner notes by Pleasant Gehman.

Pat Smear went on to play with Nirvana in their last year and, after the death of Kurt Cobain, with the Foo Fighters.

In 1996 a tribute album titled "A Small Circle of Friends" appeared that featured tracks by Mike Watt, Free Kitten, The Melvins, Meat Puppets, that dog., L7, The Posies, NOFX, Flea, Gumball, and others along with a version of "Circle One" performed by Pat Smear with Hole under the name, "The Holez".

A remastered CD of the Darby Crash Band playing live at The Starwood, 1980, is due for release sometime in 2008; the setlist features many well-known Germs songs, as well as newly written material by Darby and Pat.

The Germs film and reformation

A movie about The Germs, "What We Do Is Secret" was in production for several years, and premiered June 23, 2007 at the Los Angeles Film Festival. [http://filmguide.lafilmfest.com/tixSYS/2007/filmguide/eventnote.php?notepg=1&EventNumber=5036&] The film's theatrical release is August 8th, 2008. The film stars Shane West in the role of Darby Crash. On MySpace Shane West has his display name as "Shane Wreck", a possible play on Darby Crash.

Smear, Doom, and Bolles reactivated the Germs with West taking over the vocal spot. They played on the 2006 Vans Warped Tour and toured club shows in the US later that summer, and again in 2007. They will once again play on the 2008 edition of the tour, August 14-16, on the Vans Old School Stage. Some prominent members of the punk rock community such as Fat Mike and Jello Biafra have been critical of the band's decision to replace Darby Crash with an actor.

Bolles' arrest

After a long, troubled history of drug addiction and run-ins with the law, Don Bolles, the Germs' drummer, was arrested April 4th, 2007, for possession of GHB, when an 8 oz. bottle of peppermint "Dr. Bronner's Magical Soap" in his possession tested positive for the banned chemical. Both the internet community and the manufacturer came to his aid for a brief time before distancing themselves from Bolles.It should be noted that the bottle did not contain any GHB, and that the test they used is known to be grossly inaccurate when used on certain substances such as soap. [ [http://www.punknews.org/article/23282 Punknews.org | Don Bolles freed after police discover soap contained in soap ] ] [ [http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/northcounty/20070418-9999-1mi18soap.html SignOnSanDiego.com > News > North County - Punk rocker's soap didn't have GHB, tests show ] ] .

Members

Current lineup

* Shane West – vocals (2005-present)
* Pat Smear – guitar (1977-1980, 2005-present)
* Lorna Doom – bass (1977-1980, 2005-present)
* Don Bolles – drums (1978-1980, 2005-present)

Discography

* "Live At The Whisky, First Show Ever" LP, 1977, Produced By: Kim Fowley Mohawk/Bomp Records
* "Forming/Sexboy (live)" 7", 1977, What? Records
* "Lexicon Devil" 7" EP, 1978, Slash Records
* "(GI)" LP, 1979, Slash Records
* "The Decline of Western Civilization Soundtrack (live tracks)" LP, 1980, Slash Records
* "What We Do Is Secret" EP, 1981, Slash Records
* "Germicide" cassette, 1981, ROIR
* "Germs (MIA) - The Complete Anthology" CD, 1993, Slash/Rhino Records
* "Germs Rock 'N' Rule--Recorded Live At The Masque Christmas Party--Whisky A-Go-Go, December 1979, Hollywood (1986 Xes Records)

References

External links

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* [http://www.shanatinglipton.com/punk1.html Rekindling the Punk Flame, article]
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* [http://swindlemagazine.com/issue13/the-germs/ Interview with the Germs] at Swindle Magazine
* [http://www.altfg.com/blog/film-reviews/what-we-do-is-secret-grossman-shane-west/ Review of "What We Do Is Secret"] at [http://www.altfg.com/blog/ Alternative Film Guide]
* [http://www.altfg.com/blog/directors/rodger-grossman-interview-what-we-do-is-secret/ Interview with Rodger Grossman Director of "What We Do Is Secret"] at [http://www.altfg.com/blog/ Alternative Film Guide]