The Quintessential Catholic School Boy

Because today is the Feast Day of Mary, Queen of Angels, Immaculate Heart (in the Roman Catholic calendar), I salute my old friend, Stiv Bators, the self-proclaimed Evil Boy who like so many bad boy punk rockers (and regular ole rockers) was a product of Catholic School.

I have always said that Catholicism is a fancy Gothic Death Cult... it does have the decorative suggestion that it is... and lent itself so easily to Santeria and other spin-off beliefs that find a foundation in the magical mystical presentation of the Catholic Church.


Nicholas Ray aka Nick Diablo of Viva L'American Death Ray Music

Nick Diablo's sexy vampyre jewelry above hearkens back to the Anne Rice books, and conjures up New Orleans for me... and the strange movie Angel Heart where Robert De Niro portrays a guy called Louis Cyphre.

New Orleans renaissance man (from his One Man Band to the Persuaders, Royal Pendletons and his work with the Exploding Hearts, Loose Diamonds, Black Rose Band...) King Louie is someone who although I am not sure if he attended Catholic School, certainly had the influence of the Holy See in his life... for starters, there's his New Orleans upbringing. And his folks are nice church going Catholics, and Louie does indeed believe in the word of God and the Bible, though you might be hard-pressed to see it in the kind of crazy chaotic punk rock behaviour he has been known to display.... but I always see a kindler, gentler side of this guy.



Speaker of the kindler, gentler side of punk rock dudes with a reputation for being bad boys... it turns back to Stiv...


Stiv and his praying hands

As I was telling Louie himself a week ago, Stiv was one of the kindest people I have ever known. Gifted with a unique sense of sui-generis as well as a sense of extreme showmanship, it was indeed all show. You learn that from the pomp and circumstance of all things Vatican and Stiv was no different. His dad told me long ago that everything Stiv did was because of a "good Catholic education." From the horse's mouth!