BY DATHAN KAZSUK
Sean Yseult, the bassist whose thunderous rhythms anchored White Zombie’s meteoric rise in the 1990s, remains an enduring icon of alternative metal and underground culture.
As one of the few prominent female musicians in a male-dominated music scene, Yseult shattered stereotypes with her formidable talent and distinctive style. Her presence was more than just musical; it was a visual and cultural statement that expanded the boundaries of creativity within heavy metal music.
Born Shauna Reynolds on June 6, 1966 in Camel, California and raised in Winston-Salem, where she attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, Yseult moved to New York City in the mid-1980s.
There, she co-founded White Zombie alongside Robert Cummings, aka Rob Zombie, forging a partnership that would define the band’s gritty, industrial sound and gothic aesthetic.
Yseult’s bass lines combined groove and aggression in a way that set White Zombie apart. Beyond her musical contributions, Yseult’s impact extended into visual arts and fashion, influencing a generation of fans and artists with her bold stage presence and striking visual choices.
Today, you’ll find her living in New Orleans and working on Yseult Designs, which will feature her unique creative style in specialty wallpaper, fabrics, scarves and pillows.
Below are excerpts from a recent interview I conducted with Yseult.
You spent time here in Raleigh while growing up, correct?
I was only about two or three when we moved there. Our first home was in a little log cabin in the woods, up Philcrest Road … eventually, my parents found a home in Five Points. The houses were all beautiful old brick buildings with huge trees and perfect lawns. We quickly became the weirdos with Dad’s beat-up, rusted VW Bug out front on display and grass that had never been trimmed.
When you moved to New York, did you know graphic design would be what you wanted to do?
I loved design. I loved playing with fonts, and I really loved photography. I did well at Parsons [School of Design], especially under the tutelage of Henry Wolf. (Henry Wolf was an influential graphic designer who taught at Parsons.)
You met Rob Zombie there. Was he the one who got you into music and playing the bass?
This might sound ridiculous, but I was performing improv on piano with old bluesmen in underground nightclubs by age eight. Starting at six, I was taking two to three [piano] classes a week.
Many years later, after I met Rob at Parsons, we decided to start a band. Rob did not play any instruments. I might not have played the bass before, but I played violin at age 12 in a Raleigh youth orchestra. A bass is much easier; all the notes are marked for you!
I know you don’t want to talk much about White Zombie, but it was roughly 11 years of your life. What life lessons did you learn from being in the band?
It was really an amazing adventure. One thing you will learn is that the show must go on! I had to finish a tour with White Zombie and the Ramones on a twisted leg—I fell through a hole in the side stage, snapping my knee sideways. This was half an hour before showtime. I played that night, and I had to continue every night with a leg brace for a month in horrible pain, but you know what? The show must go on!
You played in several bands after Zombie. Do you have a favorite, and did you continue with your graphic design during this time?
I enjoyed my time with the gals in Famous Monsters and Rock City Morgue. I think I stopped touring and playing around 2006 and created my first design line. I have to focus on one creative effort at a time.
You had a short stint playing with The Cramps. Did you enjoy performing with Poison Ivy and Lux Interior?
They were and still are my favorite band. One of my dad’s hippie students gave me a big bag of cool punk band cassettes. The Cramps were in there, and I was fascinated. Then I headed to New York to Parsons, and I saw The Cramps play at CBGB my first night! Total inspiration.
Let’s talk now about your silks, pillows and wallpaper. When did you start doing this? Tell me some of the places your designs have been sold.
I took a long hiatus from all of that, and now I am right back into it, on my way to the High Style Dallas market, with a whole new line of psychedelic velvet pillows, silk scarves, duvets, wallpapers and fabrics.
I started filling up tablets of paper with designs when I was in New York due to Hurricane Katrina, and my mom had suddenly died. I did it as a child, filling up books with psychedelic patterns and then filling them in with crazy colors. I guess it was something [I did] to comfort myself. My father had already passed away, so at that point, it was just very difficult for a while. I reverted to good times and drawing. This was around 2008, maybe earlier. I had a rep and was getting into places like Barneys [New York], Bergdorf Goodman, Liberty London and Saks Fifth Avenue.
If I go to your website and like your work, tell me how I can buy it.
I will have my website able to sell items soon. For now, if someone wants something, write me at .
