The story of death rock/goth-punk band Christian Death is complicated, convoluted and tragic. Christian Death is still a going concern, but there are no original members in the current lineup. Valor Kand became a member in 1982 when CD and his then-band Pompeii 99 effectively merged, and he leads the band to this day. Founding member Razz Williams left CD in '85, and tragically took his own life in '98 at the age of 34.
In the middle of all that, countless people have joined and then left Christian Death. It became a bit of a merry-go-round of dark and gnarly rockers, and even hardcore fans could be forgiven for getting a little confused. To be fair, Kand's Christian Death has released some excellent music over the years-- most of it is worth checking out and really marinading in.
That said, the band has never bettered their seminal debut album, Only Theatre of Pain. The guitarist on that album was Rikk Agnew, who had previously played with the Adolescents on the classic Blue Album. Before that, he played bass with a fledgeling Social Distortion. Agnew joined Christian Death in '81, after seeing them play in Pomona and asking them if they needed another guitarist. The rest is history, and his influence can be heard all over the debut album.
So here we are in 2024. Kand's CD still tours, and Agnew has a band that has taken the name from that debut album, Only Theatre of Pain, with the sole intention (it would seem) of performing the record. Notably, he's joined by Gitane DeMone, who joined Christian Death for the second album Catastrophe Ballet (with Kand), but didn't perform on the debut. Demone and Agnew are real life beaus now, and they are the core of this OTOP band. A gentleman called Steve Skeletal, who has a look that tips a hat to Williams, is the frontman.
So that's the Only Theatre of Pain band, which has been around in some form for about 10 years, and the reasons for its existence. They performed at the Whisky A Go Go on a Saturday in October, and the band did a stellar job of reanimating the excellence of the album after which they are named.
Agnew (or "Rikk Fuckin' Agnew," as one member of the crowd enthusiastically yelled out) has had some health issues and he takes a seat for some of the set, but it sure didn't affect his playing. The man gets tones out of his guitar rarely heard, cementing the oft-heard claims that he's one of punk and goth's all time greatest six-stringers.
All of the OTOP tunes from the opening "Cavity -- First Communion" through classics "Spiritual Cramp" and "Romeo's Distress" and performed beautifully. Skeletal does a great job from the front belting them out, hitting the right tones and proving the ideal frontman. DeMone, meanwhile, is mesmerizing.
Those arriving a bit early will have been treated to the magnificent CrowJane, formerly of Egrets on Ergot and not fronting an exceptional solo band. The obvious references are Siouxsie and Nina Hagen, but it's not as simple as that.
"I can’t do anything that’s easy to categorize,” she told this writer in 2020. “But it is experimental. It does have avant-garde qualities, and it’s experimental in the sense that a lot of the rhythms and percussion tracks that I did were with homemade objects. Me banging on bed railings or tin cans, or these jugs with cat litter in. The door to the vocal booth — the swish sound when it opens and closes. We also used some real drums too. And we also used some electronic tracks and stuff. So that gives it an experimental element.”
The band is tremendous, including a phenomenal bassist, unconventional guitarist, and a couple of awesome backing singers. But CrowJane's presence is undeniable, and quite hypnotic.
A couple of weeks ago, Gitane DeMone performed a set at the Redwood Bar in Downtown L.A., alongside former Screamers man Paul Roessler. The duo have recorded together, and their music is gloriously avant-garde, mildly uncomfortable and absolutely beautiful.
This Fall has been little spookier than usual already.
