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.
Georg Albert Ruthenberg, or better known by his stage name Pat Smear, is an American musician. He is best known for being the lead guitarist and co-founder of Los Angeles-based punk band The Germs and for being a rhythm guitarist for the rock bands Nirvana, where he played live band appearances, and Foo Fighters, with whom he has recorded six studio albums. After Nirvana disbanded following the suicide of its frontman Kurt Cobain, drummer Dave Grohl went on to become the frontman of rock band Foo Fighters, with Pat soon joining on guitar. He left Foo Fighters in 1997, before rejoining as a touring guitarist in 2005, and has been a full-time member since 2010.
45 Grave are an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California formed in 1979. The original group broke up in 1985, but vocalist Dinah Cancer subsequently revived the band.
Jan Paul Beahm was an American punk rock vocalist who, along with longtime friend Pat Smear, co-founded the punk rock band the Germs. He died by suicide by overdosing on heroin.
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.
Shannon Bruce Snaith, better known as Shane West, is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He is known for his portrayal of Eli Sammler in the ABC family drama Once and Again, Landon Carter in A Walk to Remember, Dr. Ray Barnett in the NBC medical drama ER, Michael Bishop in The CW spy drama Nikita and in the WGN fantasy adventure historical drama Salem as John Alden. West received critical acclaim for his performance portraying Darby Crash in the biopic What We Do Is Secret.
Bags were an American punk rock band formed in 1977, one of the first generation of punk rock bands to emerge from Los Angeles, California.
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 killed himself.
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.
What We Do Is Secret is a novel by Thorn Kief Hillsbery, published by Villard in 2005.
Chris D. is a punk poet, rock critic, singer, writer, actor and filmmaker. He is best known as the lead singer and founder of the early Los Angeles punk/deathrock band the Flesh Eaters.
Paul Roessler is an American musician and record producer. Roessler was a prominent member of the L.A. punk scene during the late 1970s and 1980s. He played keyboards in bands such as The Screamers, Twisted Roots, 45 Grave, Nervous Gender, SAUPG, Geza X and the Mommymen, Mike Watt and the Secondmen, Nina Hagen and The Deadbeats. Roessler has also released solo recordings such as "Abominable," "Curator," "The Arc," "6/12" and a rock opera entitled "Burnt Church" with Jeff Parker. He currently works as a record producer at Kitten Robot Studios in Los Angeles, California. He is the older brother of Kira Roessler, formerly of Black Flag, and the son of underwater photographer Carl Roessler.
Lorna Doom was an American musician best known as the bass guitarist for the punk rock band the Germs from 1976 to 1980, and again after they got back together from 2005 to 2009.
A Small Circle of Friends is a Germs tribute album, released in 1996.
The Darby Crash Band was a music project started by Darby Crash and Pat Smear, founding members of Los Angeles punk rock band the Germs, formed after the Germs split in 1980. They recruited bassist David "Bosco" Danford and Circle Jerks drummer Lucky Lehrer and began playing shows in Los Angeles. The group's setlists would include a number of well-known songs from the Germs' archives, as well as newly written material. The band never recorded and played only a small number of shows before Crash's death on December 7, 1980.
Germicide, also known as Germicide: Live at the Whisky, 1977, is a live album by the punk rock band the Germs. Performing live at the Whisky a Go Go in 1977, Darby Crash and the Germs were at the beginning of their career. At this time, Crash performed using the name Bobby Pyn. Darby and the audience feud constantly throughout the show. Disc jockey Rodney Bingenheimer appears at the beginning as master of ceremonies, and "Belinda" briefly takes the mic to introduce the band, who she describes as "sluts".
Celebrity Skin were a post-punk, glam influenced, hard rock band from Los Angeles, California. They were active from the mid-1980s till the early 1990s.
"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.
Jimmy Michael Giorsetti, also known by the moniker Don Bolles, is an American drummer who was involved in the 1970s and 1980s punk scene in Los Angeles, California, performing with Germs, Nervous Gender, 45 Grave and Celebrity Skin. Prior to relocating to LA in February 1978, Bolles had played in several Phoenix punk bands, including Heavy Metal Frogs, Krazy Homicide, Liars and the Exterminators.
"Circle One / Shutdown" is a split single by the American alternative rock band Hole and the supergroup The Monkeywrench, released in November 1994 on the independent label Gasatanka Records. Both tracks are cover versions of songs by the Los Angeles punk group the Germs. On the single, Hole is credited as "The Holez," a nominal homage to "The Germs."
