Sounds of the Underground: Cross-campus 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.
The 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, Chicana(o)/Latina(o) Studies 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.
“There’s a long, cultivated network of people that were involved in shaping the scene in LA,” Terrones said. “Broadly, there’s just so many famous musicians and important music movements that have happened in LA; from jazz to punk and underground rave scenes. It’s a historic location for people to independently organize around music.”
The idea for the archive emerged from a shared passion for music and a recognition of the need to preserve the stories and artifacts 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 1980s and 90s, and how it had impacted their lives. Brown attended indie rock and punk shows in Orange County and Los Angeles as a teen growing up in the Inland Empire, going on to book noontime shows at Cal State Fullerton as an undergrad. Terrones would borrow her brothers’ punk rock cassettes while walking to school in East LA and listened to disco music with her sister, a member of a local party crew, in the 1980s. Camacho recalled going to a weekly dance club called “A Clockwork Orange” that featured 1980s throwback DJ sets while attending Cal Poly Pomona.
“At these events, there’d always be a photographer taking photos of people, then they’d post these images on Facebook or their websites,” Camacho recalled. “My brother, who is five years older than me and took me to these clubs, would journal about the shows and artists we’d see.” Camacho wondered if others did the same, and if so, if these tangible artifacts had a place to live.
“Always wearing my librarian hat, I thought – we should do something!” Terrones recalled. “We’re the center of research on the campus, where the community engages intellectually. These memories and mementos of music scenes in LA were – and continue to be – so important to us. We wanted to do something to preserve and celebrate the past, present, and future of it.”
The three reached out to José Anguiano, a professor at Cal State LA with 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 – and all the different clubs or spots that highlighted these scenes.” Anguiano grew up as a part of his school bands, and listening to any and all types of music, attending shows and events frequently.
“As a lot of us got older, a lot of these spaces closed. My friends and I would reminisce about these spaces and times.”
"Sounds of the Underground" spans through decades of LA's music history, capturing the evolution of various genres, from the counterculture movements of the 1960s to the eclectic scenes of the 2000s and beyond. The archive includes an array of materials such as concert flyers, photographs, textiles, rare footage of live performances, and more. These artifacts highlight not just the music, but also the cultural and social contexts in which these scenes flourished.
“East LA and the area around Cal State LA has a rich history of rock and roll bands in the 60s and 70s,” Anguiano commented. “They’re all so connected to the idea of the ‘Eastside Sound’, and we all decided this is really something that should be remembered and archived. I think we’re in a critical moment to make sure we try to archive a lot of that history.”
The group kicked off planning in the summer of 2023 for a fall 2023 archive launch, in time for Chicanx Latinx 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.
“I loved getting together and planning out these events and this archive with my colleagues who appreciated music scenes so much, and understood its impact,” Brown said. “It was exciting to work with people who wanted to preserve these memories and these scenes.”
A talk and Q&A by author Dr. 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.
“This history of music in LA is important to the culture of our city, and something we don’t want to forget,” Camacho said. “People may look back and think something isn’t substantial in their own history or understand the impact it made. But all histories are vital and important.”
By documenting the multifaceted music scenes of Los Angeles, the archive not only preserves important cultural artifacts but also highlights the city's role as a hub of musical innovation and diversity.
“When I think about southern California, there’s a certain openness to music,” Anguiano said. “When you grow up here, maybe you do hip-hop as your main music, but then you listen to ska records or cumbia or surf rock. It feels like the scenes are always constantly overlapping or fusing with each other, and that creates unique songs or artists that come from here.”
Terrones, Camacho, Anguiano, and Brown decided to make the event an annual one, with the focus on different genres shifting every year. “There have been so many different music scenes throughout the years to ebb and flow in LA,” Brown commented. “You never know what is going to be popular, or nostalgic for someone, or what is going to make an impact.”
The 2024 event series concluded in mid-October, with a keynote discussion by Dr. Jorge Leal, a professor from UC Riverside, photographer and filmmaker Piero F. Giunti, and singer/songwriter and musician Mark Guerrero. The trio curated “A Great Day in East LA,” a multi-faceted exhibit that explores the dynamic musical influences of East LA that will be on display next year at La Plaza de Cultura y Artes. A research symposium highlighted topics from Cal State LA students, faculty, and alumni, as well as community members. Discussed were the relationship between promoters and local metal bands, xxxxxxxxx. Finally, the week was capped off by a collecting day hosted by Special Collections and Archives, where community members donated and digitized their memorabilia, and listened to a live performance by local metal band Mortalis.
In the years to come, the archive is expected to grow, incorporating new materials and stories as they emerge. The creators expect the event to grow, too – and they 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.”