The music scene of the 1970s is synonymous with sex, drugs, rock and roll, and, maybe above all, reckless abandon. But behind that glittering, glam exterior, there’s an air of something taboo and ethereal, perhaps even supernatural. Letting the music overtake you can, for some, be a religious experience, akin to religious awakening.
But that ecstasy can potentially be a double-edged sword, one sharpened with danger, death, and deviltry, something the cast of comic creator superstars Helen Mullane and Tula Lotay’s Groupies might learn all too well. In the Comixology Originals series, a group of music enthusiasts follow a band expecting unadulterated partying find a darkness underneath the surface of that excess—one that could bring the forever festivities to an abrupt halt.
I spoke with Helen Mullane recently about the idea behind Groupies, the blending of different groupie eras of rock music, striking the right tone of glam and grubbiness, and balancing accuracy versus forming the right narrative vibe for the book.
I discuss a deluge of comics on this site and I enjoy them all; I don’t talk about books that I didn’t connect with in some way. But, lord, Groupies is different. Groupies pulled me in with both the grit and the grime, the rock and raucous, vivaciousness and the vibe. This is book that crawls in your brain and your heart, makes you feel the heaviness in the air and the pull to and unease of the unknown of an untested party. If you want to feel uncomfortable atmosphere and wild abandon, join the mystical merrymaking of Groupies.
GROUPIES #2 cover
FreakSugar: For folks considering checking out the comic, what is the conceit of Groupies?
Helen Mullane: Groupies follows the adventures of a gang of groupies as they are taken on tour with a band – the ultimate score in their world. But gradually things start to turn sour as the girls begin to notice dark happenings behind the scenes. It’s a very dreamlike book, we try to take you right into the thick of this trippy, drugged out world.
FS: The first issue is gorgeously written and illustrated, but often left me unnerved but still hooked. What were conversations like about the tone you wanted to set with the comic?
HM: Thank you! That’s exactly what we were going for, and it all hinges on Lisa’s incredible art.
As we fleshed out the book, Tula Lotay and I talked a lot about this trippy aesthetic and about the extremely subjective viewpoints as each character is kinda living in their own world. We knew we wanted to keep everything loose, caring about verisimilitude more than we care about cold, hard facts.
In terms of the aesthetic, Lisa and I share a shorthand because of our mutual love of movies – horror and otherwise! We both adore Argento, Fulci, De Palma, so it’s very easy to discuss visual references.
FS: The cast already feels very fleshed out and developed from the get-go. Did any of the characters appear to you fully realized? What was the process like creating them?
HM: That’s great to hear. The first character that came to me was Vera Vicious, this tough and shameless girl who’s really out for what she can get. She was directly inspired by an interview I read from a magazine called Star that was published on the Sunset Strip in 1971. I remember reading it and being blown away by her attitude. From there, I started reading more and more about groupies in the 60s, 70s and 80s, stories of complex women, highs and lows, romance and heart-break, and the rest of the crew started to take shape.
FS: In many ways, the story feels set out of time, from the sex and drugs and rock and roll components to the supernatural elements. Am I reading that correctly?
HM: Yes absolutely. We’re taking elements from all of the key groupie eras. A bit from the sixties, from the Hollywood scene of the seventies and then there’s a smattering of the eighties in there as well, but we’re more interested in the vibe and the underlying truth of our story than slavish accuracy. Although I will say that for any budding rock historians reading the book there are some fun easter eggs, in terms of references to specific real tours and venues.
One thing I’m very interested is in how things stay the same. Women in the music industry (and in many places) remain as disposable now as they ever were. There are still powerful forces that exploit our greed and desire. These are timeless themes.
FS: Regardless of whether we lived in that culture or not, I think we sometimes have an archetypal notion of the partying aesthetic and rock and roll lifestyle. Was there any sort of research process you did when preparing for the book?
HM: I did so much research! I read biographies and autobiographies, I watched documentaries (I can recommend Groupies from 1970, Festival Express and Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon) and I read a lot of contemporaneous magazine and newspaper articles. In the midst of all this, I was really struck by how differently the world talked about groupies, how the bands that supposedly loved them talked about them, and the girls’ own self-perception. It really got me thinking about how two opposing things can be true at the same time.
FS: Following up on that, so much of the time, there seems to be this juxtaposition of an idealized version of what we’re seeing and a grubbiness to it (which is amped by the supernatural aspects). Was that intentional?
HM: Sure! This world is grubby. It’s exploitative and cruel. But it’s also glamorous and fun and seductive. While the supernatural aspect is of course made up, I’d definitely argue that it’s representing some real forces at work in the world of the rich and powerful, in and out of music.
FS: Tula’s art is beautiful and captivating. What has your collaboration process been like on the comic?
HM: It’s just been a dream. When you’re working with a talent like Tula Lotay you really just have to let her do her thing. After our initial chats about what we’re trying to do with the book, our process is just that I deliver a script which is relatively loose, and then Lisa goes off and does her thing. She likes to throw herself into a bit of a vortex when she’s working on a book, so when she emerges, it’s with these incredible pages. Sometimes sequences are dwelled on more or less than I expected, and it’s really interesting seeing the issues evolve and working with that to make the best issue possible.
What’s really interesting too is seeing how the issues develop with everybody’s input. Lisa works with Dee Duncliff on colours, and that’s a fascinating process. Dee does flats and then Lisa goes away and makes these incredible layers of almost impressionist colour. A lot of the incredible dark vibe of the book comes out of that process. Tyler from Comiccraft has also done an incredible job developing the lettering. We use a bunch of different fonts and try to be very expressive through the lettering, particularly with regards to the music and he’s done such an interesting job.
GROUPIES promo image
FS: What are you reading right now?
HM: There’s so many good comics out at the moment! I’m really enjoying Spectregraph, Summer Shadows, Crave by Maria Llovet… ooh and Feral is brilliant from the team who made Stray Dogs which I also absolutely loved. I recently read The Sickness which I highly recommend, it’s fantastic, and Jenna Cha’s art is insane.
FS: If you had a final pitch for Groupies, what would it be?
HM: If you like your comics hot, trippy and dark then come on tour with the groupies! We can’t promise that it’s all gunna turn out alright, but it’s going to be one hell of a ride!
Groupies #2 goes on sale Tuesday, November 12, 2024, from Comixology Originals.
From the official issue description:
The groupies are living the rock and roll dream, on tour with The Moon Show. But it’s not all wine, roses and L.S.D. The girls must negotiate their own jealousy and the satanic games the band sometimes like to play, all while protecting their place as the girls of the moment.