Chris D. | |
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Born | Chris Desjardins January 15, 1953 Riverside, California, U.S. |
Education | Master's degree in film [1] |
Alma mater | Loyola Marymount University [1] |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, producer, writer, director, film programmer, history professor |
Years active | 1977–present |
Known for |
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Notable work | I Pass for Human (writer and director) [2] |
Spouse | Julie Christensen (Divorced) [1] [3] |
Musical career | |
Origin | Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Genres | Punk rock, death rock |
Instrument | Singing |
Labels | Slash, [3] Ruby, Enigma, New Rose, Upsetter, Invasion/Bomp, Zippo/Demon, Expanded, Dog Meat, Sympathy for the Record Industry, Atavistic, SST, [3] Shakeytown Music/BMI [4] |
Writing career | |
Period | 2005–2009 |
Genre | Poetry, fiction, non-fiction |
Subject | Japanese film history |
Chris D. (born Chris Desjardins; January 15, 1953) is an American punk poet, singer, writer, rock critic, producer, and filmmaker. He is best known as the lead singer and founder of the early and long-running Los Angeles punk/death rock band the Flesh Eaters. [3]
Desjardins was a feature writer at Slash magazine in 1977, when he formed the Flesh Eaters with several friends from the Los Angeles punk scene, including Tito Larriva. Their second album, A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die , recorded and released in 1981, featured John Doe and DJ Bonebrake from X, as well as Dave Alvin, Bill Bateman, and Steve Berlin from The Blasters. [5] The band recorded two further albums; Forever Came Today (1982) and A Hard Road to Follow (1983) with Don Kirk on guitar, Robyn Jameson on bass and Chris Wahl on drums, Chris D. on vocals and occasionally Jill Jordan on backing vocals. [6]
The Flesh Eaters were a staple of the L.A. punk scene in the 1980s. [7] The band played alongside seminal bands like The Misfits and The Meat Puppets. [3] A number of original Flesh Eaters releases, like River of Fever, were recorded through Shakeytown Music/BMI. [4] Others were produced by Upsetter, Invasion/Bomp, Zippo/Demon or SST.
From 1989 to 1993 and from 1997 to 2000, Desjardins performed live with varying line-ups of The Flesh Eaters. During the first of these periods, three more albums came out on SST Records: Dragstrip Riot (1991), Sex Diary of Mr. Vampire (1992), and Crucified Lovers in Woman Hell (EP - 1993).Two additional albums, Ashes of Time (1999) and Miss Muerte (2004), were released.
In early 2006, to mark the 25th anniversary of A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die, Desjardins performed three shows in California and one in London, with Doe, Bonebrake, Alvin, Bateman, and Berlin. This Flesh Eaters lineup had not performed together since 1981.They reunited briefly in 2015 for a five-show tour and again for an eight-show run in 2018. They issued a new album, I Used to Be Pretty , in 2019. [8]
Desjardins was the co-leader, with then-spouse Julie Christensen, of the Divine Horsemen between 1984 and 1988. [1] [3] [9] More than three decades later, Divine Horsemen reformed. A new album called Hot Rise of an Ice Cream Phoenix was released in 2021.
Desjardins issued a solo semi-acoustic LP on America's Enigma Records and the French New Rose label, titled Time Stands Still by Chris D./Divine Horseman in 1984. The album was later released in Australia by Dog Meat Records of Melbourne. It features guest musicians John Doe, Jeffrey Lee Pierce, Linda "Texacala" Jones, and Dave Alvin.
Desjardins issued a second solo album titled I Pass for Human as "Stone By Stone" following the end of his marriage to Julie Christensen. [9]
He released a further solo album Love Cannot Die through the Sympathy for the Record Industry label in 1995.
Chris D. worked as an A&R and in-house producer for Slash [3] and Ruby Records from 1980 until early 1984. He produced all the Flesh Eaters' albums and co-produced The Gun Club's debut album, Fire of Love , with Tito Larriva in 1982. Desjardins produced the debut albums of The Dream Syndicate ( The Days of Wine and Roses ), Green On Red ( Gravity Talks ) and The Lazy Cowgirls. [3] He remixed The Misfits' LP Walk Among Us with Glenn Danzig and the Germs' What We Do Is Secret (EP) with Pat Smear. [6]
Upsetter Records | |
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Founded | 1978 |
Founder |
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Genre | |
Country of origin | United States |
Location | Los Angeles, California |
Upsetter Records was a Los Angeles, California-based record label founded in 1978 by Chris D. and his then-girlfriend, the animation and graphic artist Judith Bell. [10] [11] [12]
Named in tribute to Lee "Scratch" Perry and the dub reggae, popular with the early punks, [11] [13] Upsetter was specifically created to release the early discography of the Flesh Eaters, [14] The only exception in the label's catalog is the seminal Tooth and Nail compilation released in 1979, an album full of outstanding early Californian punk rock from the Controllers, Middle Class, the Germs, U.X.A., Negative Trend, and the Flesh Eaters themselves. [10] [13]
In parallel with their record label, Desjardins and Bell, in collaboration with Exene Cervenka, published the short-lived punk zine The Upsetter. [15] [16]
Desjardins wrote for Slash , Forced Exposure , Asian Trash Cinema and Cult Movies.
He also wrote liner notes and audio commentary tracks for DVDs of a variety of classic Japanese genre films, Italian cult and arthouse films.
In 2005, Desjardins' tribute to fringe directors of Japanese cult, action and exploitation cinema of the period 1950 to 1980, was published by I.B. Tauris, entitled Outlaw Masters of Japanese Film. [17]
Desjardins spent almost 20 years researching and compiling an encyclopedia of Japanese yakuza films. Titled Gun and Sword: An Encyclopedia of Japanese Gangster Films 1955-1980, research for the book was partly funded by the Japan Foundation Artist Fellowship. This work was published by Poison Fang Press in April 2013. [18]
Illiterati Press published Double Snake Bourbon, a 139-page collection of Desjardins' poetry, lyrics, and prose. [1] [23]
A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die, a 500-page anthology of Chris D.'s written work, was published at the end of 2009. [24]
Writing for Slash: 1977-1981 - The Know-It-All Years, a collection of reviews, was issued in 2022.
Desjardins has acted in a number of films, both independent and big budget. In 1987, he had a small role in the Orion film No Way Out alongside Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman as an assassin. [1] [3] The same year, Desjardins played a role in Border Radio , [1] [3] an independent film that was later released as part of the Criterion Collection. In Border Radio, Desjardins plays a musician who struggles with the consequences of a robbery. [3]
In 2002, Desjardins wrote and directed his first feature film, I Pass For Human , which was produced and edited by Lynne Margulies. It was released in theaters in March 2004 and on DVD in October 2006. [2] Desjardins had been attempting to produce the film since the 1980s under the original title "Hell's Belle". [3]
He worked in the programming department of the American Cinematheque in Los Angeles from 1999, and was a programmer there from January 2006 until August 1, 2009.
He teaches film studies in California and also provided DVD commentary for several films. [25]
Desjardins was married to Julie Christensen. The pair divorced in 1988. Following the divorce, Desjardins sought help for drug and alcohol problems in a 12-step program. [1] [9]
The Germs were an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California, originally active from 1976 to 1980. The band's "classic" lineup consisted of singer Darby Crash, guitarist Pat Smear, bassist Lorna Doom and drummer Don Bolles. They released only one album, 1979's (GI), produced by Joan Jett, and were featured in Penelope Spheeris' seminal documentary film The Decline of Western Civilization, which chronicled the Los Angeles punk movement. The Germs disbanded following Crash's suicide in 1980. Their music was influential to many later rock acts, and Smear went on to achieve greater fame performing with Nirvana and Foo Fighters.
X is an American punk rock band formed in Los Angeles. The original members are vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist-bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer D. J. Bonebrake. The band released seven studio albums from 1980 to 1993. After a period of inactivity during the mid-to-late 1990s, X reunited in the early 2000s and continued to tour. In June 2024, X announced a final album and farewell tour.
The Decline of Western Civilization is a 1981 American documentary filmed through 1979 and 1980. The movie is about the Los Angeles punk rock scene and was directed by Penelope Spheeris. In 1981, the LAPD Chief of Police Daryl Gates wrote a letter demanding the film not be shown again in the city.
Slash Records was an American record label originally specializing in local punk rock bands, active from 1978 to 2000. It was notable as one of the first and most successful independent record labels in alternative music, before its eventual acquisition by Warner Music Group.
Ruby Records is an American record label, founded predominantly as a rock music label subsidiary of Slash Records. The original version of the label released seven albums in 1981 and 1982.
The Plugz were a Latino punk band from Los Angeles that formed in 1977 and disbanded in 1984. They and The Zeros were among the first Latino punk bands, although several garage rock bands, such as Thee Midniters and Question Mark & the Mysterians, predated them. The Plugz melded the spirit of punk and Latino music.
The Flesh Eaters are an American punk rock band, formed in Los Angeles, California, United States, in 1977. They are the most prominent of the bands which have showcased the compositions and singing of their founder, punk poet Chris Desjardins, best known as Chris D. While Desjardins is the group's only continual member, the Flesh Eaters' lineup has drawn from some of the most famous bands of the L.A. punk scene, such as the Plugz, X, the Blasters, and Los Lobos.
The Divine Horsemen are an American punk/roots band founded in 1983 by Chris D. (Desjardins), formerly of L.A. punk rock band the Flesh Eaters. The band developed a distinctive alt country- type sound. They took their name from a voodoo term; a worshiper who is possessed by loa during a ceremony is said to be being ridden by "the divine horsemen". The term was also used as a song title by the Flesh Eaters
GI, stylized as (GI), is the only studio album by American punk rock band the Germs. Often considered the first full-length hardcore punk album, it was released in the United States in October 1979 on Slash Records with catalog number SR 103. The album was later released in Italy in 1982 by Expanded Music with the catalog EX 11. The album's title is an acronym for "Germs Incognito", an alternate name the band used to obtain bookings when their early reputation kept them out of Los Angeles-area clubs. After (GI)'s release, the band would only undertake one more recording session, for the soundtrack album to Al Pacino's 1980 film Cruising. On December 7, 1980, a year after the release of (GI), vocalist Darby Crash died by suicide.
Lexicon Devil is a three-song EP and the second release by American punk rock band the Germs. It was also the debut output of Slash Records, and of Geza X both as a producer and as a recording engineer. The record was named after its leadoff song.
Donald J. Bonebrake is an American musician who first emerged as the drummer of the punk rock band the Eyes. He is best known as an original member of and drummer for punk band X, of which he is still an active member.
Fire of Love is the debut album of the American rock band the Gun Club, released in 1981 on Ruby Records.
Julie Christensen is an American singer and songwriter. Noted for its versatility, Christensen's music has been praised by critics. As a solo artist, Christensen has released nine albums as of 2023.
"Forming" is the debut single by American punk rock band the Germs. Released on What?, an independent start-up label, in July 1977, it is regarded as the first true Los Angeles punk record.
A Minute to Pray, a Second to Die is the second album from American punk rock band the Flesh Eaters. Released in 1981, it is perhaps their most acclaimed work. The band's roster on this album comprises Dave Alvin (guitar), John Doe (bass), Chris D., Steve Berlin, D. J. Bonebrake and Bill Bateman (drums).
No Questions Asked is the first studio album by Los Angeles punk rock band the Flesh Eaters, released in 1980 on Upsetter Records.
Tooth and Nail is a seminal compilation album featuring six early Californian punk rock bands: the Controllers, the Flesh Eaters, U.X.A., Negative Trend, Middle Class, and the Germs.
Flesh Eaters, also known as Disintegration Nation after the title of its opening track, is the four-song debut EP by American rock band the Flesh Eaters.
Bill Bateman is an American drummer best known for his long service in the Blasters. He has also played for the Flesh Eaters, the Red Devils, and the Cramps.
Dragstrip Riot is an album by the American band the Flesh Eaters, released in 1991. It was their first studio album since 1983's A Hard Road to Follow. They supported the album with a North American tour.