music
February 4, 2026
‘One moment it was a little blip. The next, our friends are dying’: the gay porn soundtrack composers lost to the Aids crisis
Gay porn in the 80s was home to beautifully moody synth music that is only now getting rediscovered – tragically too late for many of its creators
TL;DR
- Dark Entries, a record label, is reissuing electronic music originally created for gay pornographic films.
- The music dates from the 1970s and 1980s and features artists like James Allan Taylor and Brandy Dalton.
- Many of these artists died from AIDS-related illnesses, and their music was largely forgotten or unreleased.
- The label aims to preserve and celebrate this underground gay music scene, which was often erased or lost.
- Proceeds from some releases are donated to AIDS charities.
- James Allan Taylor's partner, Michael Ely, is involved in the reissue of his music, remembering Taylor as a talented musician and his soulmate.
- Taylor's work was created for films by Surge Studios, run by Al Parker and Steve Scott, who also died from AIDS.
- Some earlier soundtracks for these films were created by illegally sampling and manipulating music from artists like Brian Eno and The Human League.
- Brandy Dalton, another featured artist, was part of the experimental gay music scene in LA and died from an AIDS-related illness.
- The reissues are significant for honoring the legacy of these artists and their contributions to music and queer culture.
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