Kids always get asked what they want to be when they grow up. That question can inspire all kinds of unrealistic fantasies, Diva Dompeâs vision was clear. âI would always put down ârock star,ââ she says, speaking over Skype from her home in Los Angeles. âGrowing up, it seemed like a super normal job that you could have.â
The rock star career path seemed commonplace simply because sheâs been surrounded by rock stars her entire life. Dompe is the daughter of Kevin Haskins, the original drummer for glam goth icons Bauhaus and founding member of the more pop-oriented Love and Rockets, the trio that scored a Top 10 hit in the US with the infectious 1989 single âSo Alive.â Growing up in LA in the years after that big hit while her fatherâs band fell under the guidance of uber-producer Rick Rubin, she grew up accustomed to seeing the rock lifestyle play out before her.
While sheâs been in bands throughout her lifeâincluding Blackblack, a gently psychedelic trio with her sister Lola and Phantom Planet frontman Alex GreenwaldâDompe has directed most of her energy toward the healing arts and reiki. She also leads guided meditations for clients and records them, with her original ambient music, for a monthly show for the streaming radio station Dublab. But these days, sheâs getting a full taste of that rock star dream, joining her father and his longtime collaborator Daniel Ash in the group Poptone.
Itâs an unashamedly nostalgic trip for Haskins and Ash, to bask in the legacy of the work theyâve done together in Love and Rockets and their experimental pop trio Tones on Tail, best known for the â80s dance club mainstay âGo!â The small complication with their plan was that those groups had different bass players: Haskinsâ brother David J and Glenn Campling, respectively. Rather than forcing one of those men to play music they had no part in creating and keeping the hype of a big reunion tour to a minimum, they brought in a neutral party to fill the role.
In some ways, itâs the ideal gig for Dompe. Poptoneâs tour schedule is a considerate one, with the live dates broken up into long weekends so she can be home as much as possible to care for her young daughter. And she doesnât have to worry about crafting new material or making the bass lines her own.
âIâve been trying to keep it pretty simple and straightforward,â Dompe says.
And how does it feel to be stepping into her uncleâs shoes for at least part of each evening?
âHe gave me his blessing,â she says. âI got a lot of his DNA after all. Really, I think it gives it a nice continuity, Iâve grown up with the songs and they all feel really close to home. Itâs nice for me to be in that place.â