Crucifix

Crucifix was an American hardcore punk band from Berkeley, California, active from 1980 to 1984. They were among the most popular acts of the San Francisco hardcore scene of the early 1980s[citation needed]. They were unusual among American punk bands for their strong D-beat and anarcho-punk characteristics, and their 1983 LP Dehumanization is considered a classic of the hardcore subgenre.

Crucifix was preceded by the short-lived band Subsidize Mess, featuring Sothira on bass, Matt Borusso on guitar, and Christopher Douglas on vocals.

Crucifix was founded in 1980 and fronted by Cambodian-born singer Sothira Pheng, whose family had fled the country when the brutal Khmer Rouge seized power. The band's self-titled EP debuted on Universal Records of Berkeley in '81 and was followed by the "1984" single distributed on Freak Records in '82. The band's debut full-length "Dehumanization" on Southern Records (an offshoot of Crass Records) which showcased their extremely fast and overdriven sound, reminiscent of early Discharge, is widely considered to be their definitive work and a cornerstone of political punk. Jake Smith played guitar on this ep. Later Drew Bernstein (founder of Lip Service Clothing) formerly of America's Hardcore replaced Smith on guitar. The band split up after a lengthy tour of US/Canada/Europe on July 13 1984. A posthumous compilation album of singles and live tracks entitled "Exhibit A" was released on Kustomized Records in 1997.

Matt Borruso and Christopher Douglas later reemerged in Loudspeaker, a New York-based noise rock group. The band included guitarist Kurt Wolf (of Pussy Galore) and bassist Jens Jürgensen (of Boss Hog). They released several recordings between 1990 and 1996.

Sothira Pheng (bass and vocals) and Jimmy Crucifix (guitar) now play with Proudflesh, a San Francisco-based "Hard Punk Rock 'n' Roll" band with drummer Erik Lannon (Mordred/The Bay City Rollers). Proudflesh released their first album in March 2006 on Wired Gnome Records.

Samples from the opening track of Dehumanization, "Annihilation" was used by Orbital on the song "Choice" and was recorded in 2004 by A Perfect Circle for the Emotive album. Sepultura covered it as well as a bonus track on the album Nation (2001).


MEMBERS:
* Sothira Pheng (Vocals)
* Jimmy Crucifix (Guitar)
* Bryce Kanights (Bass on Self-titled EP)
* Matt Borruso (Bass)
* Christopher Douglas (Drums)
* Drew Bernstein (Guitar)
* Jake Smith (Guitar)

DISCOGRAPHY:
* 1981: Crucifix (EP, Universal)
* 1982: Nineteen Eighty-Four (single, Freak)
* 1983: Dehumanization (album, Corpus Christi)
o CD released in 1995 by Southern Lord
* 1992: Split with Patareni (Psycho Mania Records)
* 1997: Exhibit A (compilation, Kustomized Records)

COMPILATIONS:
Rat Music for Rat People, Vol. 2 (CD Presents, 1984)


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