DAISY BERKOWITZ R.I.P. -- FORMER MANSON DISCIPLE REMAINS STUCK ON EVIL



by Ernie Thomas


     An avowed pop culture junkie, Scott Mitchell Putesky’s got a passion for
collecting action figures; classic sci-fi and horror film posters, and other
quirky items pertaining to superheroes, television shows and movies. 

     This self-taught guitarist is also a habitual archivist, who maintains
volumes of scrapbooks chronicling his musical journeys, the latest of which
has just begun.
  
    Several older scrapbooks are strewn with photos, ticket stubs, backstage
passes and press clippings from his years of strutting the world’s biggest
stages as the make-up adorned -- Daisy Berkowitz -- a garish, cross-dressing
alter ego who tasted life at the top of the rock ‘n’ roll food chain.  

    As Berkowitz, the rather soft-spoken South Florida native became a pin-up
idol of rebellion for Gen-X kids.  He was, after all, the guitarist and
co-founder of Marilyn Manson, who seemingly overnight became one of the most
talked about and controversial musical acts of all time.

     Putesky was there when the band was still called Marilyn Manson & The
Spooky Kids, helping to pen the music and hone the outrageous stage show that
would eventually ignite intense First Amendment debates.  

    There is a sense of justice how after his abrupt dismissal from the band,
they fell from favor with many of those in the loyal legions who once packed
their shows.

      After parting ways with Manson, the guitarist retreated to his Fort
Lauderdale digs where he battled it out in court with his former songwriting
partner and band mate Brian (aka Marilyn) to get his just dues and emerging
victorious. 

    During that time, Putesky kept busy by producing tracks and playing some
guitar in a friend’s band called Jack Off Jill. He also holed up in the
studio working on a solo project called, Three Ton Gate. 

    “That’s still an ongoing thing for me,” said Putesky, speaking from a
crackling cell phone while bouncing down the interstate on what is his first
real tour since leaving Marilyn Manson in 1996.   “Three Ton Gate is a
collaborative project geared towards doing music for films.  In it, I work
with a bunch of different people.  I’m determined that soundtrack music will
become a big part of what I do musically.”

     Although this die-hard film fan, is very dedicated to eventually getting
Three Ton Gate’s music on a variety of soundtracks, at present he finds that
he has again been seduced by the decadent rock ‘n’ roll sound that first
helped to make him a star.

      What got Putesky on the phone with The Times and back on the bus again
is –– Stuck On Evil ––  a new combo that features former Basketcase singer
John Cain Riley, ex-Mindflower bassist Martin Davis and drummer Jim
“Smoothy” McDonald.  When put on the spot, Putesky  describes their music as
– “American gothic with a lot of different flavors.”

      Putesky, who wrote a majority of the music on Marilyn Manson’s three
breakthrough albums –– “Portrait Of An American Family,” "Smells Like
Children" and “AntiChrist Superstar” –– has created some heavy-hitting new
music strewn with Sabbath-style guitar bits and a whole lot of gloom and doom
overtones.   “It’s definitely not shiny happy people music,” he chides.

      Stuck On Evil has just wrapped up a 10-song CD – “Suntanic” – which
Putesky produced and are currently shopping for a home for it.  “We don’t
have a record label yet, but we’re not really worried about that,” he said.
“I think that will take care of itself once people start hearing what we’ve
got.”  And getting that music heard is what this showcase tour is all about.

     While Putesky states a powerful dislike of touring these days, his Stuck
On Evil entourage has officially hit the road to trek across America and
spread the "evilness" of his new band to the devoted following he still
commands.  When he comes to your town, don’t come expecting to hear Putesky
dusting off any of the songs he penned while with Marilyn Manson.  
 
     “This is a new band and a new time,” he says.  “We are focusing on what
we are doing and I think the music we are making is going to make an impact
with the fans.”

      Fans are still very much there for Putesky, even after five years out
of the limelight.   “I’m very happy with the way things have been going,” he
said of the the band’s first ever tour, which hit the road in mid-August of
2001.  “We’re playing really well.  The show is great, the turn out has been
great and the people are really getting into what we are doing.”

      While he describes a Stuck On Evil performance as a “high energy and
pretty bare-bones rock ‘n’ roll show,” the man who helped to plot the career
blueprint for what became the biggest theatrical act of the 1990s has not
forsaken the importance of “spectacle” when it comes to bringing the music
to the live concert stage.

     “We have a lot of rats with us in cages and that we have crawling around
on the stage. We don’t do the make up thing, but we wear masks some of the
time,” he said.  “We also have some S&M and B&D stuff that we do on stage
that gets some attention.   The visual show is great, but we use it to
enhance the music, not deter from it.   I think we have some very strong
stuff and we want the people to hear it.”