Slash (fanzine)
Encyclopedia
Slash was a punk rock
-related fanzine
published in the United States
from 1977 to 1980.
The magazine was a large-format tabloid focused on the Los Angeles
punk scene, though it did not restrict itself to local acts: its first cover featured Dave Vanian of The Damned. It regularly covered such L.A. bands as The Screamers
, The Skulls
, Nervous Gender
and X. With relatively wide distribution for a punk zine
, Slash helped bring the L.A. underground scene to the attention of the rest of the world. At the same time, in featuring articles and reviews on reggae, blues, and rockabilly, it introduced punk audiences to a wide range of then-unfamiliar musical genres. Writers Claude "Kickboy Face" Bessy
, Craig Lee, Richard Meltzer
, Jeffrey Lee Pierce
, Chris D.
and Pleasant Gehman
, and cartoonist Gary Panter
were among the major contributors. Photo contributors included David Arnoff, Susan Carson, Kerry Colonna, Ed Colver, Diane Gamboa
, Frank Gargani, Jenny Lens, Melanie Nissen, Donna Santisi, Ann Summa, Scott Lindgren, and coeditor Philomena Winstanley.
The fanzine also gave birth to Slash Records
, an important punk record label. Slash magazine folded in 1980, as many of the main principals involved were increasingly concentrating on other activities. Bob Biggs was more involved in running the label; many of the writers were concentrating on their own musical activities. In addition, there was a widespread perception that punk rock was dying, as movements such as post-punk
, hardcore
, and deathrock
were emerging while many of the original Los Angeles punk bands (such as The Germs
and The Weirdos
) were breaking up, and in such a changing environment Slash had essentially served its purpose.
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
-related fanzine
Fanzine
A fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
published in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
from 1977 to 1980.
The magazine was a large-format tabloid focused on the Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
punk scene, though it did not restrict itself to local acts: its first cover featured Dave Vanian of The Damned. It regularly covered such L.A. bands as The Screamers
The Screamers
The Screamers were a punk rock group active in the Los Angeles, California area in the late 1970s. The Screamers were pioneers of a genre now known as "synthpunk," and can also be classified as art punk....
, The Skulls
The Skulls (U.S. Band)
The Skulls were a Los Angeles punk band formed in 1977, and later reformed in 2000. Their final show was in Corona, California in March 2006. The Skulls had several line-ups with only one consistent member, vocalist Steven William "Billy Bones" Fortuna....
, Nervous Gender
Nervous Gender
Nervous Gender is a punk band founded in Los Angeles, California in 1978 by Gerardo Velazquez, Edward Stapleton, Phranc and Michael Ochoa.Their use of heavily distorted keyboards and synthesizers made them, along with The Screamers, one of the original innovators of what is today called...
and X. With relatively wide distribution for a punk zine
Punk zine
A punk zine is a zine devoted to punk culture, most often punk rock music, bands, or the DIY punk ethic. Punk zines are the most likely place to find punk literature....
, Slash helped bring the L.A. underground scene to the attention of the rest of the world. At the same time, in featuring articles and reviews on reggae, blues, and rockabilly, it introduced punk audiences to a wide range of then-unfamiliar musical genres. Writers Claude "Kickboy Face" Bessy
Claude Bessy
Claude Bessy , also known as "Kickboy Face," was an iconic founder of the Los Angeles punk scene in the late 1970s.-Biography:...
, Craig Lee, Richard Meltzer
Richard Meltzer
Richard Meltzer was one of the earliest rock music critics. His first book, The Aesthetics of Rock, evolved out of his undergraduate studies in philosophy at the State University of New York at Stony Brook and graduate studies at Yale University...
, Jeffrey Lee Pierce
Jeffrey Lee Pierce
Jeffrey Lee Pierce was an American singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was one of the founding members of the 1980s punk band The Gun Club...
, Chris D.
Chris D.
Chris D., real name Chris Desjardins, is a punk poet, rock critic, singer, writer, actor and filmmaker. Chris D. is best known as the lead singer and founder of the early Los Angeles punk/deathrock band The Flesh Eaters. Desjardins was a feature writer at Slash magazine in 1977, when he formed a...
and Pleasant Gehman
Pleasant Gehman
Pleasant Gehman is a magazine writer, poet, actor, dancer and musician from Los Angeles.In the 1980s, she was the singer for the punk rock band Screamin' Sirens, and later, The RIngling Sisters and Honk If Yer Horny. All three bands have released numerous titles on vinyl, as well as cd...
, and cartoonist Gary Panter
Gary Panter
Gary Panter is an illustrator, painter, designer and part-time musician. Panter's work is representative of the post-underground, new wave comics movement that began with the end of Arcade: The Comics Revue and the initiation of RAW, one of the second generation in American underground comix...
were among the major contributors. Photo contributors included David Arnoff, Susan Carson, Kerry Colonna, Ed Colver, Diane Gamboa
Diane Gamboa
Diane Gamboa has been producing, exhibiting and curating visual art in Southern California since the 1980s. She has also been involved art education, ranging from after-school programs to college and university teaching.-Biography:...
, Frank Gargani, Jenny Lens, Melanie Nissen, Donna Santisi, Ann Summa, Scott Lindgren, and coeditor Philomena Winstanley.
The fanzine also gave birth to Slash Records
Slash Records
Slash Records is a record label in Los Angeles, originally specializing in local and punk rock bands.The label was formed in 1978 by Bob Biggs as an outgrowth of the Los Angeles-based fanzine, Slash. Biggs, a painter, initiated the label with a seven-inch single from The Germs in 1978. A full album...
, an important punk record label. Slash magazine folded in 1980, as many of the main principals involved were increasingly concentrating on other activities. Bob Biggs was more involved in running the label; many of the writers were concentrating on their own musical activities. In addition, there was a widespread perception that punk rock was dying, as movements such as post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
, hardcore
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
, and deathrock
Deathrock
Deathrock is a term used to identify a sub-genre of punk rock incorporating horror elements and spooky atmospherics, that emerged on the West Coast of the United States in 1979.-Characteristics:...
were emerging while many of the original Los Angeles punk bands (such as The Germs
The Germs
The Germs are an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1977 to 1980. The band's early lineup consisted of singer Darby Crash, guitarist Pat Smear, bassist Lorna Doom, and their most consistent drummer Don Bolles. Germs have since reformed in 2005 with Shane...
and The Weirdos
The Weirdos
The Weirdos were an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California. They formed in 1976 and broke up in 1981, were occasionally active in the 1980s, and recorded new material in the 1990s...
) were breaking up, and in such a changing environment Slash had essentially served its purpose.
Complete List of Issues
- Vol. 1 #1 May 1977. Cover: Dave Vanian (The Damned) photo by Melanie Nissen
- Vol. 1 #2 June 1977. Cover: John Denney (The WeirdosThe WeirdosThe Weirdos were an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California. They formed in 1976 and broke up in 1981, were occasionally active in the 1980s, and recorded new material in the 1990s...
) photo by Melanie Nissen - Vol. 1 #3 Aug. 1977. Cover: Johnny Rotten (Sex PistolsSex PistolsThe Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...
) - Vol. 1 #4 Sept. 1977. Cover: Kerry Colonna (live collage) photo by Philomena Winstanley
- Vol. 1 #5 Oct. 1977. Cover: Debbie HarryDebbie HarryDeborah Ann "Debbie" Harry is an American singer-songwriter and actress, best known for being the lead singer of the punk rock and new wave band Blondie. She has also had success as a solo artist, and in the mid-1990s she performed and recorded as part of The Jazz Passengers...
(BlondieBlondie (band)Blondie is an American rock band, founded by singer Deborah Harry and guitarist Chris Stein. The band was a pioneer in the early American New Wave and punk scenes of the mid-1970s...
) - Vol. 1 #6 Dec. 1977. Cover: Exene CervenkaExene CervenkaExene Cervenka is an American writer, musician and artist, most famous as the co-lead vocalist of the Los Angeles punk rock band X.-Career:...
(X) - Vol. 1 #7 Jan 1978. Cover: Local Scene Makers
- Vol. 1 #8 Feb. 1978. Cover: Poly StyrenePoly StyrenePoly Styrene was the stage name of Marianne Joan Elliott-Said , a British musician, songwriter and singer, most notably in the pioneering punk rock band X-Ray Spex.-Early life:...
(X-Ray SpexX-Ray SpexX-Ray Spex were an English punk band from London that formed in 1976.During their first incarnation , X-Ray Spex were “deliberate underachievers” and only managed to release five singles and one album...
) photo by Virginia Turbett - Vol. 1 #9 April 1978. Cover: Bobby Pyn/Darby CrashDarby CrashDarby Crash was an American punk musician who, along with long time friend Pat Smear , co-founded The Germs...
- Vol. 1 #10 May 1978. Cover: Alice BagAlice BagAlice Bag is a punk rock singer. She is famous for being a member of The Bags, one of the first and most popular bands on the L.A. punk scene. She is also a member of Stay at Home Bomb and teaches at inner city schools. She was also in the band Castration Squad with Phranc.-External links:*...
(The BagsThe BagsThe Bags were an American rock band formed in 1977. They were one of the first generation of punk rock bands to emerge out of Los Angeles, California.-Career:...
) - Unnumbered One Year Anniversary Issue. Free, No date or volume number. Cover: Collage of prior issue covers.
- Vol. 1 #11 July 1978. Cover: Spazz Attack
- Vol. 1 #12 Aug. 1978. Cover: The ScreamersThe ScreamersThe Screamers were a punk rock group active in the Los Angeles, California area in the late 1970s. The Screamers were pioneers of a genre now known as "synthpunk," and can also be classified as art punk....
photo by Melanie Nissen - Vol. 2 #1 Sept. 1978. Cover: Pete Tosh
- Vol. 2 #2 Nov. 1978. Cover: Siouxsie & the BansheesSiouxsie & the BansheesSiouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin. Initially associated with the English punk rock scene, the band rapidly evolved to create "a form of post-punk discord full of daring rhythmic and sonic experimentation"...
photo by Stevenson - Vol. 2 #3 Jan. 1979. Cover: Drawing by John Van HamersveldJohn Van HamersveldJohn Van Hamersveld is an American graphic artist and illustrator who designed record jackets for pop and psychedelic bands, since the 1960s...
- Vol. 2 #4 March 1979. Cover: The CrampsThe CrampsThe Cramps were an American rock band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009. The band split after the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
photo by Melanie Nissen - Vol. 2 #5 May 1979. Cover: Rasta illustration by Rick Monzon
- Vol. 2 #6 June 1979. Cover: Alleycats photo by Melanie Nissen
- Vol. 2 #7 Aug. 1979. Cover: Drawing of "Jimbo" by Gary PanterGary PanterGary Panter is an illustrator, painter, designer and part-time musician. Panter's work is representative of the post-underground, new wave comics movement that began with the end of Arcade: The Comics Revue and the initiation of RAW, one of the second generation in American underground comix...
- Vol. 2 #8 Sept. 1979. Cover: David ThomasDavid Thomas (musician)David Lynn Thomas is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.He was one of the founding members of the short-lived protopunkers Rocket From The Tombs , where he went by the name of Crocus Behemoth, and of punk group Pere Ubu . He has also released several solo albums...
(Pere UbuPere UbuPere Ubu is an experimental rock music group from Cleveland, Ohio.Père Ubu may also refer to:* Ubu, the enigmatic central figure of a series of French plays by Alfred Jarry, including Ubu Roi, and subsequent plays Ubu Cocu and Ubu Enchaîné...
) photo by Melanie Nissen - Vol. 2 #9 Oct. 1979. Cover: Su Tissue (Suburban LawnsSuburban LawnsThe brainchild of CalArts students William "Vex Billingsgate" Ranson and Sue "Su Tissue" McLane, Suburban Lawns formed in Long Beach, California in 1978 out of the ashes of previous incarnations Art Attack and The Fabulons, recruiting Huntington Beach natives Richard "Frankie Ennui" Whitney and...
) illustration by Mark VallenMark VallenMark Vallen is an American activist with Chicano and other issues, curator, figurative realist painter, and blogger, who runs the Art for a Change web site; he founded The Black Moon web site for Japanese culture.-Life and work:... - Vol. 2 #10 Nov. 1979. Cover: David ByrneDavid ByrneDavid Byrne may refer to:*David Byrne , musician and former Talking Heads frontman**David Byrne , his eponymous album*David Byrne , Irish footballer*David Byrne , English footballer...
(Talking HeadsTalking HeadsTalking Heads were an American New Wave and avant-garde band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991. The band comprised David Byrne, Chris Frantz, Tina Weymouth and Jerry Harrison...
) photo by Kerry Colonna - Vol. 2 #11 Dec. 1979. Cover: James ChanceJames ChanceJames Chance, also known as James White , is an American saxophonist, songwriter and singer....
illustration by Mike Fink - Vol. 3 #1 Jan/Feb. 1980. Cover: Lee VingLee VingLee Ving Lee Ving Lee Ving (born Lee James Capellaro; April 10, 1946 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is an American musician, most famous for his role as lead singer and rhythm guitarist for Los Angeles-based punk rock band Fear, and actor. In the late 1960s Ving joined Sweet Stavin Chain Blues Band...
(FearFear (band)Fear is an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1977. The band is credited for helping to shape the sound and style of American hardcore punk, the group started out as part of the early California punk rock scene, and gained national prominence after an infamous 1981...
) - Vol. 3 #2 Mar. 1980. Cover: Winston Rodney (Burning SpearBurning SpearWinston Rodney, OD , also known as Burning Spear, is a Jamaican roots reggae singer and musician. Burning Spear is known for his Rastafari movement messages.-History:...
) photo by Scott Lindgren - Vol. 3 #2 April. 1980. Cover: Malcolm McLarenMalcolm McLarenMalcolm Robert Andrew McLaren was an English performer, impresario, self-publicist and manager of the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls...
and Johnny Rotten illustration by Bob Biggs - Vol. 3 #3 May 1980. Cover: Johanna WentJohanna WentJohanna Went is an American performance artist who primarily works in the Los Angeles area.She started her career in the late 1970s as musician in the punk scene. Music is still an important element of her shows. She has often worked with musician Mark Wheaton, whose fast, rhythmic music beats...
- Vol. 3 #5 (Final Issue) Summer 1980. Cover: Hardcore punk illustration by Mark VallenMark VallenMark Vallen is an American activist with Chicano and other issues, curator, figurative realist painter, and blogger, who runs the Art for a Change web site; he founded The Black Moon web site for Japanese culture.-Life and work:...