Dean Hsieh (born April 10, 1973) is an American musician and comic book creator who is currently writing and drawing Devil's Wake through Zuda, DC Comic's web comic imprint.
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Hsieh began his career in comics when he was only sixteen and still in High School. After writing a negative letter to Rock 'N' Roll Comics, he was hired by the fledgling company Revolutionary Comics to "produce comics and stories that reflected the hard edge of rock 'n' roll."[1] He wrote and drew several stories featuring bands such Guns 'N' Roses, Motley Crue, Metallica, Rolling Stones, and AC/DC.
While in college, he met fellow aspiring comic artist Will Allison and struck a friendship based on their mutual love of manga and anime. Hsieh began working on a new comic, Athena, which was originally featured in Antarctic Press's short-lived anthology series Absolute Zero. Hsieh and Allison decided to start their own independent comic company, A.M.Works, in order to publish their creator-owned series Athena and Pervert Club. Hsieh's Athena, described as "full of intriguing situations and neat near-future science fiction,"[2] ran for fourteen issues and was collected into two graphic novels
Antarctic Press released his next comic Westside which was a three-issue full-color mini-series. A special edition of the first issue comes with a CD soundtrack.
In December 2008, Hsieh's entry Devil's Wake (originally titled Aeon of the Dead)[3] won the monthly online contest sponsored by Zuda Comics.[4] The full-color comic is written and digitally painted by Hsieh and is currently running on Zuda's website.[5]
Hsieh began playing guitar in the early nineties, and his band Teen Titans played "fast paced, nerd-core that looked up to the likes of the Pixies, Wire, and Huggy Bear."[6] They released two 7" singles and were heavily involved in the local fanzine Peek-A-Boo, which later became Peek-A-Boo Records.
His next garage rock band, The 1-4-5s, released a debut single on Peek-a-Boo Records and was then signed to Estrus Records. Their first full-length, Rock Invasion, was released on Estrus.[7] They released numerous 7" singles and toured the West Coast. The band also found some success in Japan where they toured and played with fellow Japanese garage rockers The 5.6.7.8s and Supersnazz. The band broke up shortly after releasing the 10" Rock 'N Roll Spook Party on Estrus.
After the 1-4-5s broke up, Hsieh formed a new garage rock band, The Wontons. They played for several years and toured America and Japan. The Wontons released several 7" singles under different record labels and contributed to numerous compilations.[6] Their only full-length album, Hex Appeal, was released by Bloody Banner Records.[8]
In December 1999, Hsieh became a part of Golden Millennium, a glam-rock supergroup featuring fellow Austin musicians from Spoon, The Kiss Offs, and Silver Scooter.[6] He also played in the short-lived electro-punk band The Weirding.[9]
In 2005, Hsieh worked as part of the animation department A Scanner Darkly.