An Interview with Mikey Bean of ‘Phantoms: The Rise of Deathrock from the LA Punk Scene’
Direct from the archives, this article was originally published by Lethal Amounts Magazine on 16 February 2020 and is republished here with consent by the author featuring additional content.
Mikey Bean curated a deep dive into the deathrock scene emerging in Los Angeles with his book Phantoms: The Rise of Deathrock from the LA Punk Scene published by Lulu in November 2019. He captures the story of the deathrock scene through an exhaustive oral history with the people who were there along with photos and flyers from the past. Music fans (“throckers” as Don Bolles revealed in the book’s foreword) now have a definitive compendium about the birth of the sound and the scene we have come to know as deathrock. But, according to Mikey Bean, this book only began to tell that story. We spoke with the creator of Phantoms to get a closer look at the process of creating this impressive tome and the accompanying book launch party celebrating Phantoms at Lethal Amounts.
“With LA deathrock it was a combination of a combined punk mentality married with decaying Hollywood glamour from thrift stores and old movie sets, Hollywood horror icons, but also elements of California surf...and drugs.”
Where were you during the time period detailed in this book? What is your connection to the alternative scene(s) of that era?
I live in the UK and grew up in Southampton but was only in my early teens when the scene was happening in LA. I had some awareness of UK punk but as my musical knowledge progressed over time, so did my awareness of, and interest in, other scenes. I was a goth in the mid 80s and then late 80s I was introduced to the Hell Comes to Your House (1981) compilation LP and began learning even more about the LA scene.
Describe the process of putting this book together, from inception to completion.
I've always enjoyed reading music biographies and wanted to read one on this scene, but there seemed to be nothing substantial available. This was in the Myspace days and I was able to chat to some of the original scenesters, suggesting that one of them take up the task. Paul Roessler (Screamers, 45 Grave, etc) asked why I didn't do it myself, which I hadn't considered as I wasn't actually there myself, but his response was "...so?" I had a rough idea of what the chapters would be and began contacting more people. When they saw that I was prepared to fly to LA, that it was a genuine project and that I was genuinely interested, more people came forward, some putting me in contact with others. Interviewing was the easy part! The key being a good listener and having a good memory for connecting dots. Transcribing the interviews took the most time. The book took on a life of its own as I learnt more about the scene. One comment or memory could totally throw a section I had already worked on and occasionally I had to move whole chunks from one chapter to another if I felt it made more sense there.
How did individuals like Darby Crash (Germs) and Rozz Williams (Christian Death) come to have such a central figure in the deathrock scene, regardless of how their music would be categorized?
Although both Darby and Rozz were essentially just a part of their scenes, something about both of them made them just that little bit more special, becoming more central figures. I don't know whether it was charisma and personality or their talent in writing, which they both were exceptional at. Interestingly, Rozz was a huge Darby fan and the book covers a side of that backstory...
You credit yourself as “Editor” instead of “Author” for Phantoms. What distinction do you see between these titles and how do you see the roles differently as it pertains to this book?
I felt that, because I was doing an oral history, it wasn't me who was actually writing the book, I was editing and compiling pieces of interviews that I had done. The interviewees were telling their stories through me. Interestingly, when I applied for international copyright they actually suggested I change the category from author to compiler, too.
As you gathered material for this book, how did you draw a boundary line to maintain your focus on the subject matter? At over 600 pages and over ten years of research and interviewing for Phantoms, you’ve surely accrued a large amount of data and stories.
Really and truly Phantoms just touches the tip of the iceberg and I could fill another 600 pages on tangential artists. Like you say, I had to draw a line on what was essential and what was less so for this book. There is some great lost music out there that should be documented but when do you say “enough”? I reached a stage where I felt happy with the content and anything else was just bonus material, plus I'd been promising the finished product for a couple of years and really needed closure.
What surprised you during the interview process for Phantoms? Who shared stories during your interviews that shocked you or were unexpected?
I think that what surprised me most was just how intertwined and incestuous the scene was, which actually makes sense when you consider how localized everything was. The kids were just all having fun and interconnecting with each other.
Many aspects of the interviews in the book refer to how interconnected the scene was. Albeit in a dark way, how did the presence of substances impact the scene?
When you have creative people interacting, relationships form on all sorts of levels: basic friendships, romance, carnal, and substances. All of them a learning curve for the individuals involved and all of them proffering a range of results; music and art being the positives. Of course there will always be a lot destruction and imploding.
There is so much debate about the term “goth” and its appropriateness to describe a genre of music. What’s your take on this term and how it relates to what we refer to as “deathrock”?
This is actually discussed in the book. The term deathrock has a history with the likes of Screamin' Jay Hawkins and 60s "death" songs (“Tell Laura I Love Her,” “Terry,” “Leader of the Pack,” etc) The label changed over time to post-punk, gloom, deathrock, gothic, goth, all just a slight variation on the previous. However, I think "deathrock" relates to the LA scene specifically, goth was more British initially.
You’ve taken a close look at a specific scene in a limited time period. Do you believe music and cultural scenes are cyclical in nature, appearing once every generation and building upon the previous or something else?
I think every scene is influenced by another, but just like UK punk differing from NYC punk differing from California punk, key circumstances send it in a direction that only those circumstances could create. With LA deathrock it was a combination of a combined punk mentality married with decaying Hollywood glamour from thrift stores and old movie sets, Hollywood horror icons, but also elements of California surf...and drugs. British music actually played a big part too: PiL, Siouxsie, Joy Division, Bauhaus…
What are your top ten essential tracks that represent the musical scene depicted in Phantoms?
I'd probably say that whole albums are more essential listening; partly because there are too many great tracks and partly because none of the bands should be defined by one particular song.
Essential albums would be:
Various – Hell Comes To Your House Volume 1 (1981)
Nervous Gender – Music From Hell (1982)
Christian Death – both Only Theatre Of Pain (1982) Catastrophe Ballet (1984) Ashes (1985)
Super Heroines – Cry For Help (1982)
Kommunity FK – The Vision And The Voice (recorded 1981, released 1983)
Red Wedding – 1981-1985
Fade To Black – Corridors Of Gender (1984)
UXA – Illusions Of Grandeur (1980)
Sleepless – Thurst EP (1985) see also Die Schlaflosen on YouTube
Consumers – All My Friends Are Dead (1977)
Then to hear what many of them are doing now:
Gitane DeMone Quartet – both Past The Sun (2017) and Substrata Strip (2018)
The Crystelles – Attach And Detach (2009)
Eva O MDX1 – Mental Mayhem (2014) and The Rise Of Eva O (2018)
45 Grave – Pick Your Poison (2012)
Penis Flytrap – both Tales Of Terror (1998) and Dismemberment (2002)
Elvorian & The Veins – Elvorian & The Veins (2017)
The Elegant Rabies – The Elegant Rabies (2018)
Frankenstein – An Ugly Display Of Self Preservation (2003) and Random Cuts (2017)
Who do you hope will read this book and how do you think publications like this impact the scene? How are you a contributor to the deathrock scene via this book?
Just as myself not being able to find the book to read and having learned so much new information and music in the process, I think that the likes of myself are the target audience; people with little or basic knowledge of certain bands included, but with a healthy interest in learning more. I’m honoured to have been able to relay these people's memories. The two biggest compliments I've had are, firstly from Don Bolles in his Foreword saying that he learned so much from Phantoms and he was there! Plus messages from people who have bought it saying that they keep having to stop reading so they can listen to new things on YouTube, etc that are referred to in the chapters. If I'm expanding someone's knowledge and broadening their horizons then my work is done!
Can you share one juicy story that DIDN’T make it to print in the book?
Ha, no! The secret of a good interviewer is knowing what is on and off the record.
Tell us about the book launch party at Lethal Amounts in Los Angeles. What does this event mean to you and for the legacy of Phantoms?
The launch has been a long time coming and signifies for me the final sense of achievement after 12 years work. There's a signing with Q&A at Lethal Amounts from 7pm to 10pm on Saturday 22nd February, then its next door to the Monty for a night of nostalgic fun. Lots of old friends getting together for the first time in years, music and performances from artists who haven't shared the stage in just as long. Old and new music, basically just a big celebration party, with hopefully a few impromptu surprises along the way! I can't wait. The book is self published, available internationally from Lulu website. I would love it to be picked up by a publishing company who have worldwide distribution so that it's more readily available in book and music stores.
What’s next for you?
My next project is another book that I wanted to find but couldn't. A more photographic history of the prints and designs of Sue Clowes, most famous for her collections worn by Boy George and Culture Club, Bananarama, SPK and Jonny Slut from Specimen, who actually worked for her. Provisionally titled Budgies, Tramps and Thieves but I'm not sure I'll get away with that, so it'll probably be called Out of the Frying Pan.
Mikey Bean circa 1985.
Images courtesy of Mikey Bean.
Mikey Bean is on Twitter and Facebook. You can join the private Facebook group to learn more about this book and the LA deathrock scene.
