David J was just coming in from a show at the Hard Rock in Mexico City, DJ’ing to thousands and looking amazingly well. I sat across the table from him, bricks crashing in the background as they remodel the Panikin in Encinitas. The soft-spoken David J started talking about his projects through the years, and it was at this point when I realized I was in the presence of greatness.

We as San Diegans are fortunate to have one of the most talented, well-rounded artists residing amongst us. David J. Haskins has over three decades of accomplishments, including co-founder and bassist for the Goth rock group Bauhaus from 1978 (on and mostly off) to the present. “Bauhaus helped make a generation of alienated kids become a part of something,” he stated with a slight grin on his face. I could tell he is very proud of the work he had done with this group, and with the self-released final album on March 4th, 2008 (should I add, all new songs) ‘Go Away White,’ it still captures the same great sounds that fans have grown to love about Bauhaus.

When Peter Murphy, frontman of Bauhaus, decided to try his hand at a solo career, the remaining three members of Bauhaus; David J, Daniel, and Kevin ventured out and started a new band called ‘Love and Rockets’ in 1985. “When trying something new, sometimes you play bad, and in the beginning, we played bad,” but they definitely worked out all the hiccups. The psychedelic punk-style music they created was a big hit, and they are still adored even today. “Bands tend to lose the spirit you had when you were in your 20s, but we still have it,” David states. “Every time we get together, it’s like we were never apart.” Love and Rockets will be performing on the last day of Coachella. Not only is the band back together, but after scouring the country, David J has managed to gather the entire crew including lighting, sound, roadies, everyone that was involved from the beginning, and gathering them on the main stage to recreate the performance that made them famous. You can catch this show on the last day of Coachella, just before the final performer Roger Waters, which is pretty impressive.

The talent of David J never ceases to end. David J wrote and directed the world premiere stage production of ‘Silver For Gold’ (The Odyssey Of Edie Sedgwick) at The Met Theatre in Hollywood, CA, beginning an exclusive two-week engagement on March 6, 2008. Based on the life of Edie Sedgwick – Andy Warhol’s brilliant muse – the stage production explores one of the most charismatic yet misunderstood figures in popular culture. David spent four years studying everything he could possibly find out about Edie, talking to those who knew her. He also came in contact with some of Andy Warhol’s audio tapes of conversations with Edie. David J spent numerous amounts of hours just listening to Edie. “Writing Silver For Gold, it felt as if I had entered into a subtle psychic relationship with this beautiful dead girl, and she was actively encouraging me to write,” says David J. “She became a bright light that glowed all the brighter whenever I started to create. It was as if she was feeding on the attention. This might sound highly fanciful, but that is how it felt. Edie was enduring in her ultimate role, that of the muse.” As he spoke about this experience, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and chills ran down my back. It felt like I was listening to Capote talk, the passion and the brilliance just irradiated from him. I had an “I’m not worthy” moment.

This isn’t by any means the end of David J’s projects. He is currently working on a single ‘The Bottle, The Book, or The Dollar Bill’ to be released in late March or early April. This will be completed with the all-girl punk trio, San Diego’s finest ‘The Glossiness’. This is a project to benefit Amber, the bass player of The Glossines, who was diagnosed with throat cancer recently, and they are raising money to help the family cover the costs of the operation.

Along with DJ K, they are creating an amazing limited edition 45 single, with only 1000 to be printed. The first 300 sold will receive a DVD documentary music video along with the single. David J and DJ K have worked on several projects together after meeting one night at the Casbah, on the Dandy Warhol’s Bus nine years ago, and have remained friends ever since, collaborating, creating, and remixing some of the greatest songs and sounds. “Have a great time while you’re here” is what a profound statement by David, who definitely follows his own advice.

We should all listen to these words.

For more information on their projects, keep in touch with their MySpace pages: www.myspace.com/davidjonline or www.myspace.com/djkshawni.