Lexicon Devil (EP)

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The Germs chronology
Lexicon Devil

EP by The Germs
Released	1978
Recorded	1978
Genre	Punk rock
Length	5:48
Label	Slash
Producer(s)	Geza X
Forming (single) (1977)	Lexicon Devil (1978)	(GI) (1979)

Lexicon Devil is a three-song, seven-inch EP by The Germs, released strictly through mail-order by Slash Records in 1978.

The Germs were already gaining notoriety ever since the release of their first single "Forming" and their early live performances. However, their increasing success was not without some roadblocks. They did not have a permanent drummer at the time, Donna Rhia having long left the band. X drummer D.J. Bonebrake filled in at a few gigs, but Weirdos drummer Nicky Beat ended up being the band's first semi-permanent drummer (The Weirdos were still a going concern at the time). Also, Pat Smear, while he owned a Rickenbacker electric guitar at the time, he did not own an amplifier.

The band's second single came about when Slash Magazine made an offer to the Germs to release a record on their newly-formed label. The group agreed.

Smear's non-ownership of an amplifier at the time actually led to the unique guitar sound of the album. Producer/engineer/musician Geza X was supposed to lend Smear an amp for the session, but had forgotten; instead Smear strung together some effect pedals and plugged directly into the studio's mixing board.

A few days before the session, drummer Don Bolles came down to Los Angeles from Phoenix, Arizona to auditon for the group. He got the job, but it was too late for him to learn the songs in time to go into the studio. Instead, Nicky Beat kept the drum seat warm for the session. Bolles still participated in the session, however, helping chant "Non dieu, non dieu, non dieu" and handclap along with the rest of the band on "No God".

The song "Circle One" is where Darby Crash's stage name had originated; originally, he had taken the stage name Bobby Pyn.

Nicky Beat told the authors of the Germs biography Lexicon Devil that he had stolen the opening drum beat on "Circle One" from the Allman Brothers song "In Memory of Elizabeth Reed".

The EP is long out of print in its original form, but later appeared as part of the posthumous 12" EP What We Do Is Secret and on the CD anthology (MIA): The Complete Discography.