Slash was a punk rock-related fanzine published by Steve Samiof and Melanie Nissen in the United States from 1977 to 1980. The magazine was a large-format tabloid focused on the Los Angeles punk scene, though it did not restrict itself to local acts: its first cover featured Dave Vanian of The Damned. It regularly covered such L.A. bands as The Screamers, The Skulls, Nervous Gender and X. With relatively wide distribution for a punk zine, Slash helped bring the L.A. underground scene to the attention of the rest of the world. At the same time, in featuring articles and reviews on reggae, blues, and rockabilly, it introduced punk audiences to a wide range of then-unfamiliar musical genres. Writers Claude "Kickboy Face" Bessy, Craig Lee, Richard Meltzer, Jeffrey Lee Pierce, Chris D. and Plea