Lorna Doom (The Germs), RIP
Lorna Doom, bassist of punk legends The Germs, has sadly passed away. Pitchfork reports:
The cause of death is currently unknown, but her passing was confirmed by former Germs drummer Don Bolles in a Facebook post earlier today. “She left this mortal coil today around 1,” he wrote in a Facebook comment.
Born Teresa Ryan, Doom joined Germs in the mid-’70s. The lineup at the time included vocalist Jan Paul Beahm (Darby Crash), guitarist Georg Ruthenberg (Pat Smear), and Belinda Carlisle—who would later become the lead singer of the Go-Go’s—on drums. After a couple of personnel switch-ups, the band recruited drummer Don Bolles and released their lone full-length (GI) on Slash Records in 1979.
Rest in peace, Lorna Doom. You’ll be missed.
A few tributes have come in from fellow musicians, including Mike Watt (Minutemen, etc), Laura Jane Grace (Against Me!), and Katy Goodman (Vivian Girls, La Sera). See those tributes below, along with a classic live Germs video:
good people, I love LOVE germs bass lines… she was most kind w/me always… crimony, we lost sister lorna, crimony, a terrible blow… you can't imagine the impact germs had on minutemen… pic.twitter.com/n9xX2J5dN5
— mike watt (@wattfrompedro) January 17, 2019
I can still see the ‘Germs burn’ on my wrist from when I was 14 years old. Few bands had as big of an impact on me. Rest In Peace Lorna Doom. pic.twitter.com/stlK7nq08X
— Laura Jane Grace (@LauraJaneGrace) January 17, 2019
https://twitter.com/iamkatygoodman/status/1085724704982224897