Tips From A Deathrock Lifer: Scarlet's Remains' Tony HavocWe asked Scarlet’s Remains drummer Tony Havoc to share advice for fellow musicians from his extensive experience as a member of multiple beloved LA deathrock acts. Havoc has been a fixture on the global deathrock scene for decades. Renowned for his powerful “tribal” drumming and striking, ghoulish image, he has also played for Voodoo Church, The Dirty Horror, and Fear Cult, among many others. 

But Scarlet’s Remains is Havoc’s proudest achievement, having released two genre-classic albums in the 2000s, toured Europe, and recently reformed with a vibrant new lineup. With Havoc not only drumming but also being principal songwriter and de facto bandleader, the female-fronted quartet has been performing on the West Coast and in Mexico since earlier this year and is currently recording a new full-length.

Practice & Pump

Havoc originally aspired to be a guitarist, until his dad suggested, “Everybody plays guitar – why don’t you get into the drums?” He fell in love with drumming and would frequently skip school to practice in the family home by day. He cites diverse influences including Stephen Perkins of Jane’s Addiction, Wullie Buchan of The Exploited (especially on the Horror Epics album), and even Motley Crue’s Tommy Lee. 

“I like [Lee’s] showmanship. I don’t do any of that, but I appreciate it,” Havoc explains. “I like being in the back and sitting behind cymbals – I’m not an upfront, limelight type.” 

These days, Havoc is restricted to keeping his chops up on a practice pad at home and the one night a week that Scarlet’s Remains have at a Downtown LA practice space shared with multiple other bands. So, he takes another approach to maintaining his strength and stamina for the band’s frenetic live shows.

“It’s very good for a drummer to lift weights,” he offers. “You don’t need to be buffed and huge, but just to keep up the strength, because you don’t get to play your instrument every day the way a guitarist or bassist can.”

Do It Yourself Deathrock

“There’s a Minor Threat song that says ‘Make do with what you have / Take what you can get,’ and that really stuck with me,” Havoc recalls. “Because you can do it yourself. You don’t need anybody else. If you’ve got someone with money backing you, it’s a lot easier, but it can be done.”

True to this ethos, Havoc has learned to approach venues and promoters with a “package” of three or four bands already lined up, a particular night of the week in mind, and with an idea of the likely draw and the cover charge required for everyone to walk away happy. Upon first moving to L.A., he strolled into the famed Troubadour and did exactly that.

“When you approach a venue with a pre-made lineup, they don’t have to do anything except open their doors,” Havoc explains. “I think they appreciate that.”

Adapt & Survive

Like most semi-pro drummers, Havoc seldom gets to use his own kit on stage. Typically, he’s making do with a backlined kit provided by the venue, promoter, or one of the other bands on the bill. It’s a reality that Havoc is amazingly sanguine about, once again leaning into his “make do with what you have” punk ethic.

“I’ve played with cracked cymbals and cracked heads – I’ve kind of just gotten used to whatever’s thrown my way,” he says. “It takes about three songs to get used to a ‘foreign’ kit, but everyone’s warming up the first three songs, anyway.”

Typically, Havoc will bring his own kick pedal, cymbals (which venues often don’t supply), and an extra rack tom. “I’m a kind of ‘80s style drummer; I like two high toms,” he explains. “And the kits today usually just have one.”

When Havoc does get to play his own kit, it’s a Spaun set-up comprising a 22-inch kick, 12- and 13-inch rack toms, and a 16-inch floor tom (“I spend a lot of time on toms”). After years of choosing Zildjian cymbals, he now prefers Sabians simply for their sound. (Spaun Drums is a small Colorado-based company that manufactures all its products in the U.S.)

Dark Genre Realities

Havoc’s gateway to deathrock was the punk rock he first encountered as a teen, which has shaped his entire worldview and lifestyle ever since.

“I was raised by punk rock,” he mulls. “All my ideals, all my thoughts, my emotions – everything was learned through punk.” But there came a time when Havoc started encountering increasing racism, sexism, and homophobia in a punk scene that had been infiltrated by skinheads. Once he picked up a Christian Death record, he was sold on deathrock – an amalgam of punk, goth, and glam influences – as an adjacent alternative.

“In the deathrock scene, everybody was welcome. And I really, really like the idea behind that,” Havoc recalls. “Deathrock just seemed very wide open and there was so much you could do with it. Punk rock started to seem a little in a box.”

But, like any niche genre, deathrock is much more about passion than profit, and Havoc advises fellow subgenre musicians to be realistic about commercial aspirations. “If you’re going to do pop music, I mean you’re doing that strictly for the money. I get it,” he says. “But when you do a genre like deathrock, you’re doing it because it’s the music that comes out of your soul and it’s what you love to do.”

Havoc describes L.A.’s deathrock scene as much smaller than it was during Scarlet’s Remains’ original 2000s run, meaning sparse local crowds and scant revenue. (By contrast, the band experienced sold-out pandemonium at a recent show in Mexico City). But although he’s the band’s sole original member and wrote the bulk of its existing material, he splits everything equally with his bandmates, who also contribute funds evenly when required.

“What I get out of it is just for my soul, my brain, and my heart. That’s payment enough,” Havoc concludes. “Being in a room with three other people, when the music’s tight and everybody’s on and it’s connecting, that’s a really magical feeling that you just can’t get anywhere else.”

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The post Tips From A Deathrock Lifer: Scarlet's Remains' Tony Havoc first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.