Today in peculiar bands, meet GayC/DC, a gay AC/DC tribute band from Los Angeles, CA.
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The band’s singer Chris Freeman and drummer Brian Welch recently sat down for a chat with Classic Rock Magazine, you can check out a part of the conversation below.
Gay culture has been embraced in pop music in a way it often hasn’t in rock circles. Why do you think this is?
Chris Freedman: “I’d say it started with rock and punk circles, before pop. David Bowie went for androgyny, Lou Reed and Mick Jagger flirted with bisexuality, Alice Cooper wore women’s clothing, then New York Dolls, dovetailing into punk. There were many gay people drawn to punk because they felt accepted, they could be themselves without worrying about getting beaten up. But perhaps we can thank disco for taking gay into the mainstream. Yuck.”
Brian Welch: “There were always clues, but nothing was overt. You just couldn’t say it out loud. Elton and Freddie Mercury pushed the limits of acceptability, but we were the ones that were in the closet, listening to Priest, Zeppelin, Sabbath, Van Halen and Accept.
“Some of these bands even skirted around the gay thing by wearing leather clothing and some of those song titles were rather titillating. I didn’t know at the time that a woman was writing the lyrics for Accept. London Leatherboys meant something entirely different to me than it did to my straight best friend, both of us being huge Accept fans.
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“I think the hard rock crowd, especially the males, wanted to make sure their ‘boys only’ club was so hetero, they didn’t see the irony in the make up, the women’s clothes, and teased hair. They thought they were girl magnets. But when you can’t tell Britny Fox from Vixen, your hetero look needs a makeover. And don’t be a homophobe if you’re dressed like that. Plus, we could help you pick out better outfits.”