Sounds of the Underground: Cross-departmental Collaboration Brings the History of LA’s Diverse Music Scene to University Archives
You’ve heard of the Beach Boys, the Doors, Guns n’ Roses, Dr. Dre, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Tupac Shakur. You’ve probably heard of Bad Religion, Jurassic 5, Ozomatli, and Haim. Cutting across a wide array of genres, all these artists have one thing in common: they formed in Los Angeles.
But the list of musicians from LA you haven’t heard of is much, much longer. The independent music scene in LA has been around since the city’s inception, hopeful artists from around the country and around the world flocking here for a chance to hit their big break.
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Cal State LA University Library has launched a comprehensive archive titled "Sounds of the Underground: Music Scenes in LA from the 1960s-2000s" to shed light on the rich and diverse musical heritage of Los Angeles. Spearheaded by Ethnic Studies Librarian Lettycia Terrones, Head of Special Collections Azalea Camacho, Professor José Anguiano, and Communications Specialist Kelsey Brown, this project aims to document and celebrate the vibrant and lesser-known music scenes that have thrived in LA over the decades.
The idea for the archive emerged from a shared passion for music and a recognition of the need to preserve the stories and sounds of LA's underground music scenes. Camacho, Terrones, and Brown often discussed their pasts with LA music scenes, all growing up in the area in the 1990s. Camacho recalled going to a weekly dance club called “A Clockwork Orange” that featured 1980s throwback DJ sets while growing up, while Brown attended indie rock and punk shows in Hollywood and Orange County as a teen in the Inland Empire. Terrones xxxxxxxxx.
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The three reached out to José Anguiano, a professor at Cal State LA with deep knowledge of music history in Los Angeles and cultural studies, with a primary focus on listeners and audiences of popular music and sound cultures of Southern California. “I remember in the 90s, the different music scenes all having a home in LA – rebel, rockabilly, pop, et cetera – all the different clubs or spots that highlighted this music. As a lot of us got older, a lot of these spaces closed, and my friends and I would reminisce about these spaces.”
The group kicked off planning in the summer of 2023 for a fall 2023 archive launch, in time for Hispanic Heritage Month that takes place annually from mid-September to mid-October. With help of the University Library, the College of Ethnic Studies, the Cal State LA Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, and the Chicana(o)/Latina(o) Studies Department, the group planned three days of events to celebrate the LA music scenes of the past that have helped shaped our community.
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A talk and Q&A in the Cal State LA theatre by author Ricky Rodriguez kicked off the event series, where he discussed his book "A Kiss Across the Ocean." Rodriguez's work explores the transatlantic connections between punk scenes in the US and the UK, offering valuable insights into the global dimensions of underground music cultures. Day two featured a student and faculty symposium, providing a platform for researchers to present their research on LA's music scenes. Topics covered were varied, from the history of party crews in the 1990s to the statistical analysis of songs played and callers into LA disc jockey Art Laboe’s famous radio show based solely on song dedications.
The final day was a performance by two local DJs, Alex Transistor and Argot, alongside a collecting day, where the group invited community members to contribute their own memorabilia and stories. Scanners and cameras were set up by Special Collections and Archives to digitally preserve items that patrons wanted to donate.
In the years to come, the archive is expected to grow, incorporating new materials and stories as they emerge. The creators are committed to ensuring that this living archive remains a dynamic and evolving resource, reflecting the ever-changing nature of music and culture in Los Angeles.
“Bringing awareness to these types of local archives helps students realize the rich history that not just LA but Cal State LA and the surrounding area had on the music scenes of the past,” Camacho commented. “It connects our community together.”