Photographer Melanie Nissen, famous for shooting with legendary punk rock fanzine Slash from 1977-1980, just announced the arrival of her first official collection of work titled HARD + FAST. HARD + FAST by Melanie Nissen is a hardbound art book published by Blank Industries due out February 1, 2022. The new collection features rare and recently discovered works from bands like The Go-Go’s, X, Germs, The Cramps, The Screamers, Avengers, and many more luminaries who came from and passed through L.A.’s burgeoning punk rock scene during the period Nissen worked for Slash.

Nissen comments on HARD + FAST, “I can see that these are also documentary pictures because they include elements of Los Angeles that have disappeared. The Tropicana Motel, bars, and cocktail lounges, newsstands, nightclubs, the street life on Hollywood Boulevard, boutiques run by and for punks, burger stands, phone booths – these things are gone today, and they represent an aspect of L.A. history that shouldn’t be forgotten. The entire city had the familiarity of a neighborhood then, and that’s no longer the case.  L.A. is my home, though, and I’ll always remain loyal to it; I wouldn’t want to live anywhere else.” 

There were quite a few photographers on L.A.’s early punk scene, but Melanie Nissen’s pictures have always stood apart. Immersed in the burgeoning scene herself, Nissen was friends with most of the people she photographed. This created a unique trust and comfort for her subjects to act naturally, injecting a biting sense of humor and extravagant body language into her photographs. Alongside Nissen’s work, there are elements of formal portraiture evocative of work by Richard Avedon. Like Avedon, Nissen sometimes prints her portraits framed with rough outlines of thick black ink that give them an unconventional edge. In its early years, the L.A. punk scene was egalitarian, and the mix of people in Nissen’s pictures is astonishing. Senior citizens, people of every race, children, swells in fancy clothes, people in rags – everyone was welcome. “The early years were special,” Nissen reflects. “There was a real sense of camaraderie and everyone was generous with their work.”

When Nissen left Slash in 1980, she embarked on a career in the record industry, working as a photographer and graphic designer for the four major labels – Warner Brothers, Atlantic, Virgin, and A&M – for more than two decades. Preordering and more information about Melanie Nissen’s HARD + FAST can be found in the links below.

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Feature Image By: Melanie Nissen – Jane Wiedlin & Belinda Carlisle – Go-Go’s