THE CONTROLLERS (PUNK77)

The Controllers were the house band at the Masque in Hollywood 1977, where they would whip an audience into a frenzy. Dripping with sweat, they were the first and last band to play the Masque. The creation of guitarists Johnny Stingray and Kid Spike, The Controllers entertained large crowds; establishing the Masque as an alternative to the Whiskey's lack of enthusiasm for Punk that season.

The Controllers were known for their sexy girl drummer Charlie Trash (Charliena Davis), who brought both color and photographers to shows that could be fierce. DOA Dan Davis played bass. The band was inspired by 60's garage bands, The Stooges, The Ramones and The Damned, but did not imitate an English sound. The Controllers played and practiced at the Masque with The Berlin Brats, The Skulls, The Go-Go's and the female Bags in a somewhat communal atmosephere. "They didn't like the music they were getting, so they made their own."

Like the The Germs, The Controllers emerged from Santa Monica in the Summer of 1977 as a beginner band playing a minimalist sound. Yet The Controllers 16 recorded songs were more sardonic and testosterone induced. Lean and mean like Steve McQueen, The Controllers played at a superfast Ramones beat, the tempo most effective in Hollywood Punk77.

Industry proffesionals refered to The Controllers as "the real punk". Yet detractors lamented that the band was a precursor to the dreaded Orange County Punk, despite the presence of black drummer Karla Duplantier in 78. Moreover, The Controllers were out of towners, and did not attend the proper Los Angeles private academies.

The Controllers were managed by the fluxus artist Al Hansen, known as the paratrooper who pushed a piano out a fifth story window in wartime France.