Barry Johnson (born on November 3, 1953), known professionally as Helios Creed, is an American guitarist, singer and bandleader. He first came to prominence in the mid-1970s with the San Francisco band Chrome, who were considered an early influence on

industrial rock Industrial rock is a fusion genre that fuses industrial music and rock music. It initially originated in the 1970s, and drew influence from early experimental and industrial acts such as Cromagnon, Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten a ...

. Chrome broke up in the mid-1980s when founding member

Damon Edge Thomas Wisse (November 12, 1949 – August 11, 1995), known professionally as Damon Edge, was an American musician. He was a founding member of the post-punk band Chrome and also recorded as a solo artist. Biography Damon Edge was born in Lo ...

moved to Paris. Helios then recruited some local hard rock musicians and launched a solo career.

Early life

Creed was born Barry Johnson in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, and moved to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

when he was six. His brother, two years older, introduced him to psychedelic music. When he was 12, his parents bought him his first guitar, and he became a serious student of the instrument immediately. Creed has said that he invented his trademark sound while trying to replicate the sound he heard in his head while "listening to

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

on LSD on headphones when I was a teenager". He moved to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

in the mid-1970s, where he joined Chrome.

History

Other members of Creed's band have included Bill Roth, Paul Della Pelle, and

Rey Washam Rey Washam (born Reynolds Washam, March 14, 1961, in Austin, Texas) is a Grammy nominated drummer who has been performing for more than 35 years. He has collaborated with many bands, the most notable of which include: Scratch Acid, Rapeman, ...

on drums, Paul "Bean" Kirk and Mark Duran on bass, and a mysterious woman named "Z" on keyboards. The music is usually mid-tempo to slow-tempo

space rock Space rock is a music genre characterized by loose and lengthy song structures centered on instrumental textures that typically produce a hypnotic, otherworldly sound. It may feature distorted and reverberation-laden guitars, minimal drummin ...

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

acid rock Acid rock is a loosely defined type of rock music that evolved out of the mid-1960s garage punk movement and helped launch the psychedelic subculture. Named after lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), the style is generally defined by heavy, di ...

. The band

Butthole Surfers Butthole Surfers are an American rock band formed in San Antonio, Texas, by singer Gibby Haynes and guitarist Paul Leary in 1981. The band has had numerous personnel changes, but its core lineup of Haynes, Leary, and drummer King Coffey has been ...

, among many others, have cited Helios Creed as a major influence. Creed also worked with the band, contributing guitar to their album ''

Independent Worm Saloon ''Independent Worm Saloon'' is the sixth album by alternative rock band Butthole Surfers, released in 1993 on Capitol Records. The band chose to follow a heavier orientation for most of the record, following the hiring of producer John Paul Jones ...

'', and the Surfers'

Gibby Haynes Gibson Jerome Haynes (born September 30, 1957) is an American musician, radio personality, painter, author and the lead singer of the band Butthole Surfers. Early life and career Born and raised in Dallas, Texas, Gibby Haynes is the son of actor ...

and

Jeff Pinkus Jeff 'J.D.' Pinkus is an American bassist best known for his work with American punk band Butthole Surfers from 1985 to 1994 and the 2009 reunion. In 1990, he and Butthole Surfers' lead vocalist Gibby Haynes released ''Digital Dump'', the only ...

collaborated on several of Creed's albums. Weird-pop sensations

MGMT MGMT () is an American indie rock band formed in 2002 in Middletown, Connecticut. It was founded by multi-instrumentalists Andrew VanWyngarden and Ben Goldwasser. Alongside VanWyngarden and Goldwasser, MGMT's live lineup currently consists of ...

have cited Helios and Chrome as influences. MGMT has had Helios open for them on tour. Helios has released records on

Sub Pop Sub Pop is a record label founded in 1986 by Bruce Pavitt and Jonathan Poneman. Sub Pop achieved fame in the early 1990s for signing Seattle bands such as Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Mudhoney, central players in the grunge movement. They are often ...

Amphetamine Reptile Amphetamine Reptile Records (or AmRep Industries) is a record label founded in 1986 by Tom Hazelmyer in Washington state. The label specializes in noise rock and also released '' Strap It On'', the debut album by alternative metal band Helmet w ...

, Cleopatra and other indie labels. He plays extra guitar on the song "Gentle Collapse" on the ''

Fist Sized Chunks ''Fist Sized Chunks'' is the third studio album by the grunge band Skin Yard. It was released in 1990 on Cruz Records. Track listing # "Slow Runner" # "Go to Sleep" # "No Control" # "Through Nothing" # "Hungry and Hanging" # "Ritual Room" # "Ove ...

'' album by

Skin Yard Skin Yard was an American grunge band from Seattle, Washington, who were active from 1985 to 1992. The group never gained a mainstream audience, but were an influence on several of their grunge contemporaries, including Soundgarden, Screaming ...

. Helios also played on the albums ''Prophets Of Time'' and ''Sphynx'' by

Nik Turner Nicholas Robert Turner (26 August 1940 – 10 November 2022) was an English musician, best known as a member of space rock pioneers Hawkwind. Turner played saxophone and flute, as well as being a vocalist and composer. While with Hawkwind, T ...

Hawkwind Hawkwind are an English rock band known as one of the earliest space rock groups. Since their formation in November 1969, Hawkwind have gone through many incarnations and have incorporated many different styles into their music, including hard ...

. Turner played saxophone on Helios' album ''

Busting Through the Van Allan Belt ''Busting Through the Van Allan Belt'' is the seventh album by Helios Creed, released on April 15, 1994, through Cleopatra Records. Track listing Personnel ;Musicians *Helios Creed – vocals, guitar, sampler, percussion, production ...

''. Creed uses a large number of effects on his voice and his guitar, including echoes, phase shifters, flangers, guitar synthesizers, fuzz, and octave dividers. Creed has lived in Hawaii, San Francisco, and Kansas; he currently lives in California. He still tours occasionally. His latest album, 2011's ''

Galactic Octopi Galactic is an American jam band from New Orleans, Louisiana. Origins and background Formed in 1994 as an octet (under the name Galactic Prophylactic) and including singer Chris Lane and guitarist Rob Gowen, the group was soon pared down to a ...

'', was produced by Michael Sheppard of the Transparency record label. Creed is an avid model-railroad enthusiast. He is the father of two sons and a daughter. Creed is 6'4" tall.

Discography

*'' X-Rated Fairy Tales'' (1985) *''

Superior Catholic Finger ''Superior Catholic Finger'' is the second studio album by Helios Creed. It was released in 1989 on Subterranean Records. Track listing Personnel ;Musicians *John Carlan – synthesizer *Helios Creed – vocals, guitar, sampl ...

'' (1989) *'' The Last Laugh'' (1989) *'' Boxing the Clown'' (1990) *'' Lactating Purple'' (1991) *'' Kiss to the Brain'' (1992) *'' Your Choice Live Series'' (1993) *''

Planet X Following the discovery of the planet Neptune in 1846, there was considerable speculation that another planet might exist beyond its orbit. The search began in the mid-19th century and continued at the start of the 20th with Percival Lowell's ...

'' (1994) *''

'' (1994) *'' Cosmic Assault'' (1995) *'' "NUGG" The Transport'' (1996) *'' Activated Condition'' (1998) *'' Chromagnum Man'' (1998) *''Colors of Light'' (1999) *'' On Tour 1999'' (2001) *'' Spider Prophecy'' (2002) *'' On the Dark Side of the Sun'' (2003) *'' Inferior Plastic Finger'' (2004) *'' Deep Blue Love Vacuum'' (2006) *'' Not Without Sorcery'' (2008) *''

'' (2011)

Side projects

Creed released two albums under the name Dark Matter. The Dark Matter albums are more electronic and ambient (space music) than his guitar solo work, and performed by old musician acquaintances of his Hilary (bass) and John Stench (drums). *''Seeing Strange Lights'' (1996) *''Dark Matter Vol. 2'' (1998)

References

External links

Official MySpace page

Helios Creed Tribute Site

Helios Creed – X Rated Fairy Tales

Helios Creed Bandcamp page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Creed, Helios Living people American male singers Amphetamine Reptile Records artists Songwriters from California 1953 births Glitterhouse Records artists American male songwriters