One of the original acts on the Los Angeles punk scene in the late '80s, the Germs formed in 1977 with a lineup that eventually settled on Smear, Doom, Bolles and lead singer Darby Crash (Jan Paul Beahm). After recording one of the earliest LA punk LPs, along with several influential singles and EPs, the group disbanded following Crash's suicide in 1980 at the age of 22.
The remaining members went on to other projects, with Smear joining Nirvana in the months before the death of Kurt Cobain, and later appearing as a member of Foo Fighters. Bolles played with several other LA bands, including Nervous Gender and 45 Grave.
In 2007, a film about Crash and the Germs, "What We Do Is Secret," was released after several years in production, starring West in the lead role. The three surviving Germs reactivated the band with West in the lead-singer slot, first performing at the 2006 Vans Warped Tour, and later launching a full club tour in 2007.