Peter Ivers' New Wave Theatre was one of those little cable shows, except this one
showcased all sorts of Los Angeles area bands. Ivers was most famous for contributing
the soundtrack to David Lynch's "Eraserhead", including the wonderful song "In Heaven
(Everything Is Fine)". He was a very good harmonica player, but was brutally murdered
in his downtown Los Angeles loft in 1983. The crime was never solved.
There are two compilations of his New Wave Theatre program which have been released on
video. The bands ranged from arty new wave to cowpunk, really a cross section of
whatever was going on in LA at the time. Ivers comes across as a rather limp MC, but
some of the performances are really fun to see (check out the Alvin brothers with
hair!). If you have the tapes, look for a band called Heroic Struggles on volume 1 -
I'm the lap steel player (with hair!). I remember recording in Leon Russell's studio
in the Valley. He came in at the beginning of the process and sat in the corner with
his wife, not speaking to anyone but Peter Ivers. Strangely enough, he left when my
band started playing.
Check out http://www.homeroom1.com/eyezee.html for the history of some alternative Los
Angeles bands of the early 80s.
I wish I could find my scrapbook...
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Brad's Page of Steel:
http://www.well.com/user/wellvis/steel.html
A gog among med, but really just a lap steel guitar geek
