The Screamers
The Screamers were a group of musical performers that emerged in Los Angeles' first wave of
punk rock in the 1970s. The label "techno-punk" was applied to the band by the
Los Angeles Times in 1978, and they are widely cited as the pioneers of a genre now known as "
synthpunk." The Screamers were notable for their use of synthesizers in place of guitars, and for a highly developed theatrical presentation that centered around a manic lead vocalist,
Tomata du Plenty, whose stage persona one early commentator described as "a psychotic
Mickey Rooney." Though they developed a substantial following and generated considerable press coverage, the Screamers never released a record. Jello Biafra, leader of the
Dead Kennedys, once declared the Screamers to be "the best unrecorded band in the history of rock'n'roll."
Du Plenty (born David Xavier Harrigan in 1948, died 2000), a veteran of the theatrical drag troupe "
The Cockettes," first collaborated with the Screamers' principal songwriter
Tommy Gear (then using the name "Melba Toast") in Seattle in 1975, as "The Tupperwares." After legal threats from the "Tupperware" trademark owners, Gear and du Plenty changed their band's name to the Screamers and migrated to Los Angeles, where in early 1977 they added David Brown (who largely shaped their characteristic drums-synthesizer-electric piano sound) and drummer K.K. Barrett. Brown soon left to found the seminal punk label
Dangerhouse records; he was replaced by
Paul Roessler. Additional musicians, including violinists and a female vocalist, were occasionally incorporated into their performances.
The Screamers created a visual presence in the press before they ever played live. Studio photos of the bandâ€"their hair greased into spikes, Tomata's rubbery face contorted by turns into a demonic grin or a mask of anguishâ€"began to appear in magazines even before a full band had been assembled. Artist
Gary Panter's logo for the band, a stylized cartoon of a screaming head with spiked hair, became one of the most recognizable images to emerge from
Punk Rock.
From 1977 through 1979, the Screamers became a sensation in Los Angeles rock clubs, selling out multiple-night engagements at the
Whisky a Go Go. They were the first band without a recording contract ever permitted to headline the prestigious
Roxy on Sunset Boulevard. Their performances highlighted extreme psychological states, and their lyrics veered between jocular engagement with pop culture ("I'm Going Steady With Twiggy") and quasi-fascist commands to the citizens of the future ("Punish or Be Damned," "In a Better World, Everybody Must Be Made to Feel Important"). The music combined pop melodies, droning synthesizer, propulsive drumming, and vocals that were literally screamed.
Describing a July, 1979, performance, music critic
Robert Hilburn of the
Los Angeles Times focused on "Du Plenty's extraordinary power on stage." According to Hilburn, "Du Plenty's hair was greased to stand straight up, giving him the look of a man who had just stuck his finger into an electric socket. His performance reflected the nervous, relentless anxiety of someone whose troubles are even deeper... By the end of the 40-minute set, du Plenty has gone through the same disintegration of the human will that we associate with such books as
1984. Eventually, the tuxedo jacket, shirt and tie are ripped off, leaving him symbolically naked in his attempt to maintain some dignity and individuality. As if suddenly put in another man's body, he asks in horror: 'Who am I?'"
[Robert Hilburn, "The L.A. Rock Scene: A Dramatic Resurgence," 'Los Angeles Times,' July 24, 1979]Remarkably, the Screamers made no records. At one point, the group determined they would release their debut album only in video form (this was a very unusual appraoach at the time, before
MTV existed), and they devoted time and resources to constructing a small movie studio. Despite some fitful efforts in the early 80s, the band had effectively dissolved before their video plans were realized. Roessler joined L.A.'s other "
synthpunk" band,
Nervous Gender. The other band members pursued non-musical careers, though Barrett reunited with Roessler to perform several Screamers songs in 2000, in tribute to Tomata du Plenty, who had recently died in San Francisco.
In
2004,
Target Video released a
DVD of a Screamers concert from
1978, filmed at the
Mabuhay Gardens in San Francisco and appended several early Screamers music videos shot at the Target studio around the same time. Unauthorized live recordings and demo tapes of the Screamers circulate as bootlegs.
*
An extensive web site devoted to the Screamers*
An obituary for Tomata du Plenty by V.Vale of Research publications
