Circle Jerks
Encyclopedia
The Circle Jerks are an American hardcore punk
band, formed in 1980 in Los Angeles, California
. It was formed by Black Flag
's original singer, Keith Morris
, and future Bad Religion
guitarist Greg Hetson
. They were among the preeminent hardcore punk
bands of the L.A. scene in the late 1970s.
The band broke up and reformed twice, sometimes with different bass
players and/or drum
mers. They disbanded for the first time after the release of their fifth album, 1987's VI
, as Hetson decided to continue touring and releasing a number of albums with Bad Religion. However, they reunited around 1994 and recorded a reunion album, Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities
, in the following year, then a tour followed. After that, the Circle Jerks once again parted ways as Hetson was still involved in Bad Religion, but reunited again around 2001. The band has continued touring ever since.
To date, the Circle Jerks have released six full-length studio albums, one compilation, live album and live DVD
. Their last studio release, Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities, came out in 1995 and is the only reunion album the band has released to date.
Many of today's punk
groups cite the Circle Jerks as an influence, including Anti-Flag
, Dropkick Murphys
, The Offspring
and Pennywise
.
was an original member of Black Flag, co-founding the band with Greg Ginn
and recording the Nervous Breakdown EP with them before suddenly departing the group in late 1979. Morris formed Circle Jerks along with guitarist Greg Hetson, bassist Roger Rogerson (a classically
trained guitarist), and drummer Lucky Lehrer
.
Their debut album, Group Sex
was released as a demo on cassette tapes in mid-late 1979 and then in Dec 1979 on the Frontier Records
label; its 14 songs totalled out at 21 minutes. It featured some songs that Morris had written while in Black Flag. That same year, the group was one of several California punk bands to be immortalized in the Penelope Spheeris
documentary The Decline of Western Civilization
; live versions of five songs from Group Sex appear on the movie's soundtrack.
In late 1980, the group signed with IRS Records subsidiary Faulty Products and recorded their second release, Wild in the Streets
, the title track of which is a cover version of a Garland Jeffreys
tune. Faulty Products ceased operations several months after the release of the album, forcing Circle Jerks to find their third record deal in as many years. While they regained the copyright to Wild In The Streets, the original stereo master tape was lost, forcing the band to do a remix from the multi-track tapes when they reissued the album, along with Group Sex, on CD in 1988. The original can be found on Posh Boy Records' compilation 'Posh Hits Vol. 1'.
producer/manager Jerry Goldstein
's Far Out Productions, and recorded their third album, Golden Shower of Hits
, in 1983, the album was released on Goldstein's LAX label. The title track is actually a medley of six cover version
s (of artists as diverse and unexpected as The Association
, The Carpenters
, and Tammy Wynette
) strung together to create a story line of two people who fall in love, have an unplanned pregnancy
, rush into marriage, and end up divorce
d. Another song from the album, "Coup d'État", was used in the soundtrack of Alex Cox
's early film Repo Man, and the band makes an appearance playing an acoustic/lounge version of "When The Shit Hits The Fan," featuring new members Chuck Biscuits
(formerly of Black Flag and D.O.A.) on drums and Earl Liberty (formerly of Saccharine Trust
on bass.
Biscuits & Liberty were eventually replaced by Zander Schloss
(who also appeared in Repo Man) and Keith Clark respectively.. The band also changed labels for the fourth time, signing a deal with Relativity Records' metal imprint Combat Records, which had started a punk sublabel, Combat Core. The newly revamped group recorded Wonderful
, and released it in 1985. Their newfound stability allowed the lineup to record a second album for Relativity, VI
, not long afterward. One track from VI, "Love Kills", had been commissioned by Cox for the soundtrack of the movie Sid and Nancy
, and can be heard early on in the feature.
Chris Poland played with them briefly after being fired from Megadeth. Zander Schloss had left the band.
During the hiatus, Hetson would continue playing in Bad Religion; Schloss played guitar and bass with various acts; Clark initially retired from music; Morris worked menial jobs, battled health problems, and kicked a longtime dependence on drugs and alcohol.
, a move that had a few business complications: Hetson was still with Bad Religion, who had signed a long-term contract with Atlantic Records
, while Schloss had been part of a band contracted to Interscope
. After ironing out these difficulties, the band recorded Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities and released it in the summer of 1995. To date, it is the band's last studio album recorded by any line-up. One track on the album, a cover of The Soft Boys
' "I Wanna Destroy You", features backing vocals from pop singer/songwriter Deborah Gibson
, who had just wrapped up a solo album with the same producer the Circle Jerks were using. Gibson later made a surprise appearance at the Circle Jerks' performance at punk mecca CBGB
to perform "I Wanna Destroy You" with the band. Despite such media attention, the group suddenly imploded three weeks into a tour behind the album. The breakup would not be totally permanent, but Clark left music for good afterward.
The core of Morris, Hetson, and Schloss continues to tour to the present day, in between other commitments—Hetson is still a full-time member of Bad Religion, Schloss also plays bass for the reformed first-generation LA punk band The Weirdos
, and Morris was an A&R director for V2 Records
until the label was suddenly shuttered by its owners in 2007. Original bassist Roger Rogerson died in 1996 of a drug overdose
. Lucky Lehrer became a sunglasses seller and is still living in Southern California.
In 2004, The Circle Jerks shot a live concert DVD as part of Kung-Fu Records' live DVD series The Show Must Go Off!. The band plays many songs from all six of their studio albums, plus – in nods to Schloss' other current band and Morris' salad days, respectively – covers of The Weirdos' "Solitary Confinement" and Black Flag's "Nervous Breakdown".
For several years, there has been a rumored Circle Jerks album to feature new material, which had been said to be imminent; although no further formal announcement has been made. In late February 2007, the band released their first new song since 1995 on their Myspace page, titled "I'm Gonna Live", adding more anticipation to the possibility of a new album emerging. However, in an April 2008 interview, guitarist Hetson admitted that the Circle Jerks may never release any new studio material, saying that he does not know "what will happen in the future, but in the near future no Circle Jerks stuff will come out."
One of the reasons why the Circle Jerks have yet to release any albums since their last record in 1995 and reunion in 2001 is their various other activities, most obviously Hetson's. His band, Bad Religion, released a compilation in 1995, an album in 1996, a live album in 1997, an album in 1998, 2000 and 2002, another compilation in 2002, an album in 2004, a live DVD in 2006 and an album in 2007. Also in 2004, they released remastered issues of their albums between Suffer
and Generator
as well as their 1982 debut How Could Hell Be Any Worse?
, where Hetson contributed one track on that album prior to joining Bad Religion.
More recently, the Circle Jerks have been featured on a television commercial for XM Satellite Radio
. They are the first band played in the commercial and the song is "Operation" from the album Group Sex.
They have recently posted a cover of "The Slave" originally by The Germs on their myspace.
As of an unknown date, The Circle Jerks are on hiatus due to a dispute with Keith Morris and the rest of the band.
The conflict is over songs that were written by Keith Morris and Dimitri Coats
from Burning Brides
. Coats, who was supposed to produce a new Circle Jerks album decided that the songs Greg Hetson had written were not up to par with the Circle Jerks catalog. Morris agreed and both he and Coats wrote multiple songs intended for the new album. The other members of the Circle Jerks believed Coats to be "arrogant, overbearing, egotistical" and called for him to be fired from producing the new record. Morris disagreed and both he and Coats recruited Steven Shane McDonald
from Redd Kross
, and Mario Rubalcaba
from Rocket From The Crypt
/Hot Snakes
) to start a new band called OFF!
.
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
band, formed in 1980 in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. It was formed by Black Flag
Black Flag (band)
Black Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band...
's original singer, Keith Morris
Keith Morris
Keith Morris is an American singer and songwriter known for his role as frontman of the hardcore punk bands Black Flag, the Circle Jerks, and Off! Born and raised in Hermosa Beach, California, he formed Black Flag at the age of 21 with guitarist Greg Ginn and performed on the band's 1978 debut EP...
, and future Bad Religion
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is a punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles in 1979. Their current line-up consists of Greg Graffin , Brett Gurewitz , Jay Bentley , Greg Hetson , Brian Baker and Brooks Wackerman . Gurewitz is also the founder of the label Epitaph Records, which has released almost all of the...
guitarist Greg Hetson
Greg Hetson
Greg Hetson is an American guitarist. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and has lived in Los Angeles, California since he was 2 years old...
. They were among the preeminent hardcore punk
Hardcore punk
Hardcore punk is an underground music genre that originated in the late 1970s, following the mainstream success of punk rock. Hardcore is generally faster, thicker, and heavier than earlier punk rock. The origin of the term "hardcore punk" is uncertain. The Vancouver-based band D.O.A...
bands of the L.A. scene in the late 1970s.
The band broke up and reformed twice, sometimes with different bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
players and/or drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
mers. They disbanded for the first time after the release of their fifth album, 1987's VI
VI (album)
VI is the fifth album by the hardcore band Circle Jerks , which was released in 1987...
, as Hetson decided to continue touring and releasing a number of albums with Bad Religion. However, they reunited around 1994 and recorded a reunion album, Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities
Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities
Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities is the sixth studio album by the Circle Jerks, which was released in 1995.Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities was the band's only full-length studio recording since their 1989 disbandment and 1994 reformation, and also their only release on a major label...
, in the following year, then a tour followed. After that, the Circle Jerks once again parted ways as Hetson was still involved in Bad Religion, but reunited again around 2001. The band has continued touring ever since.
To date, the Circle Jerks have released six full-length studio albums, one compilation, live album and live DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
. Their last studio release, Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities, came out in 1995 and is the only reunion album the band has released to date.
Many of today's punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
groups cite the Circle Jerks as an influence, including Anti-Flag
Anti-Flag
Anti-Flag is a punk rock band from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in the United States, formed in 1988. The band is well known for its outspoken political views. Much of the band's lyrics have focused on fervent anti-war activism, criticism of United States foreign policy, corporatism, U.S. wealth...
, Dropkick Murphys
Dropkick Murphys
Dropkick Murphys are an Irish-American punk rock band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1996. The band was initially signed to independent punk record label Hellcat Records, releasing five albums for the label, and making a name for themselves locally through constant playing and yearly St....
, The Offspring
The Offspring
The Offspring is an American punk rock band from Huntington Beach, California, formed in 1984. Known as Manic Subsidal until 1986, the band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Dexter Holland, lead guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman, bassist Greg K. and drummer Pete Parada...
and Pennywise
Pennywise (band)
Pennywise is a Californian punk rock band from Hermosa Beach, California, formed in 1988. The name is derived from the monster, It, from the Stephen King novel of the same title....
.
Early days and increasing popularity (1979–1982)
Lead vocalist Keith MorrisKeith Morris
Keith Morris is an American singer and songwriter known for his role as frontman of the hardcore punk bands Black Flag, the Circle Jerks, and Off! Born and raised in Hermosa Beach, California, he formed Black Flag at the age of 21 with guitarist Greg Ginn and performed on the band's 1978 debut EP...
was an original member of Black Flag, co-founding the band with Greg Ginn
Greg Ginn
Gregory Regis Ginn is a guitarist, songwriter, and singer. He is best known for being the leader of and primary songwriter for the hardcore punk band Black Flag, which he founded and led from 1976 to 1986....
and recording the Nervous Breakdown EP with them before suddenly departing the group in late 1979. Morris formed Circle Jerks along with guitarist Greg Hetson, bassist Roger Rogerson (a classically
Classical guitar
The classical guitar is a 6-stringed plucked string instrument from the family of instruments called chordophones...
trained guitarist), and drummer Lucky Lehrer
Lucky Lehrer
Lucky Lehrer is a drummer from Los Angeles, California, voted the best punk drummer of all-time by fanzine, Flipside. He was originally trained in jazz but most famously played in LA punk rock bands, particularly the Circle Jerks, Redd Kross, Bad Religion, Darby Crash Band and LA's Wasted Youth,...
.
Their debut album, Group Sex
Group Sex
-Personnel:* Keith Morris - lead vocals* Greg Hetson - guitar* Roger Rogerson - bass* Lucky Lehrer - drumsProduction* Cary Markoff - producer* Cliff Zellman - engineer* Mackie Osborne - artwork* Diane Zincavage - cover design, cover art...
was released as a demo on cassette tapes in mid-late 1979 and then in Dec 1979 on the Frontier Records
Frontier Records
Frontier Records is an independent record label, started in 1980 in Los Angeles by Lisa Fancher, a former employee of Bomp! Records and writer of the liner notes for the first album by The Runaways....
label; its 14 songs totalled out at 21 minutes. It featured some songs that Morris had written while in Black Flag. That same year, the group was one of several California punk bands to be immortalized in the Penelope Spheeris
Penelope Spheeris
Penelope Spheeris is an American director, producer and screenwriter. She is best known as a documentary film director whose works include the trilogy titled The Decline of Western Civilization...
documentary The Decline of Western Civilization
The Decline of Western Civilization
The soundtrack was released in December 1980 by Slash Records on LP. In the late 1990s it was released on CD as well. It is currently out of print. Germs singer Darby Crash appears on the soundtrack album cover. He died shortly before the film was released, though the promotional images for the...
; live versions of five songs from Group Sex appear on the movie's soundtrack.
In late 1980, the group signed with IRS Records subsidiary Faulty Products and recorded their second release, Wild in the Streets
Wild in the Streets (Circle Jerks album)
Wild in the Streets is the second album by the hardcore band Circle Jerks. The title track is a cover song of the Garland Jeffreys song of the same name...
, the title track of which is a cover version of a Garland Jeffreys
Garland Jeffreys
Garland Jeffreys is a part African-American, and Puerto Rican American, singer and songwriter, transversing the musical genres of rock and roll, reggae, blues and soul.-Career:...
tune. Faulty Products ceased operations several months after the release of the album, forcing Circle Jerks to find their third record deal in as many years. While they regained the copyright to Wild In The Streets, the original stereo master tape was lost, forcing the band to do a remix from the multi-track tapes when they reissued the album, along with Group Sex, on CD in 1988. The original can be found on Posh Boy Records' compilation 'Posh Hits Vol. 1'.
The final years (1983–1988)
They signed a management deal with WarWar (band)
War is an American funk band from California, known for the hit songs "Low Rider", "Spill the Wine", "The Cisco Kid" and "Why Can't We Be Friends?". Formed in 1969, War was a musical crossover band which fused elements of rock, funk, jazz, Latin, rhythm and blues, and reggae...
producer/manager Jerry Goldstein
Jerry Goldstein (record producer, musician)
Jerry Goldstein is an American producer, singer songwriter and musician. He was one of the members of The Strangeloves, the co-writer of "My Boyfriend's Back" , the producer and dubiously credited songwriter of War, and the former manager of Sly and the Family Stone...
's Far Out Productions, and recorded their third album, Golden Shower of Hits
Golden Shower of Hits
Golden Shower of Hits is the third studio album by the American hardcore punk band the Circle Jerks. It was released in 1983 through Allegiance Records and was the band's last album to feature Roger Rogerson on bass and Lucky Lehrer on drums...
, in 1983, the album was released on Goldstein's LAX label. The title track is actually a medley of six cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s (of artists as diverse and unexpected as The Association
The Association
The Association is a pop music band from California in the folk rock or soft rock genre. During the 1960s, they had numerous hits at or near the top of the Billboard charts and were the lead-off band at 1967's Monterey Pop Festival...
, The Carpenters
The Carpenters
Carpenters were an American vocal and instrumental duo, consisting of sister Karen and brother Richard Carpenter. The Carpenters were the #1 selling American music act of the 1970s. Though often referred to by the public as "The Carpenters", the duo's official name on authorized recordings and...
, and Tammy Wynette
Tammy Wynette
Virginia Wynette Pugh, known professionally as Tammy Wynette , was an American country music singer-songwriter and one of the genre's best-known artists and biggest-selling female vocalists....
) strung together to create a story line of two people who fall in love, have an unplanned pregnancy
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
, rush into marriage, and end up divorce
Divorce
Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...
d. Another song from the album, "Coup d'État", was used in the soundtrack of Alex Cox
Alex Cox
Alexander Cox is a British film director, screenwriter, nonfiction author and sometime actor, notable for his idiosyncratic style and approach to scripts...
's early film Repo Man, and the band makes an appearance playing an acoustic/lounge version of "When The Shit Hits The Fan," featuring new members Chuck Biscuits
Chuck Biscuits
Chuck Biscuits is a Canadian-born drummer, now a U.S. citizen, who is best known as an original member of the heavy metal/hard rock band Danzig. Most recently, he was a member of the punk rock band Social Distortion in the late 1990s...
(formerly of Black Flag and D.O.A.) on drums and Earl Liberty (formerly of Saccharine Trust
Saccharine Trust
Saccharine Trust is a post-hardcore band from California that was started in 1980 by singer Jack Brewer and guitarist Joe Baiza.The band would frequently perform with SST labelmates Minutemen and Black Flag. Drummer Rob Holzman appeared on their 1981 debut Paganicons but left the band to play in...
on bass.
Biscuits & Liberty were eventually replaced by Zander Schloss
Zander Schloss
Zander Schloss is a Los Angeles, California based musician, actor and composer. He is perhaps best known as bass player for The Circle Jerks and The Weirdos and for his contributions to a number of independent feature films. His first screen appearance was as "Kevin the Nerd" in Repo Man...
(who also appeared in Repo Man) and Keith Clark respectively.. The band also changed labels for the fourth time, signing a deal with Relativity Records' metal imprint Combat Records, which had started a punk sublabel, Combat Core. The newly revamped group recorded Wonderful
Wonderful (Circle Jerks album)
Wonderful is the fourth studio album by the Circle Jerks, released in 1985.-Track listing:# "Wonderful"# "Firebaugh"# "Making the Bombs"# "Mrs...
, and released it in 1985. Their newfound stability allowed the lineup to record a second album for Relativity, VI
VI (album)
VI is the fifth album by the hardcore band Circle Jerks , which was released in 1987...
, not long afterward. One track from VI, "Love Kills", had been commissioned by Cox for the soundtrack of the movie Sid and Nancy
Sid and Nancy
Sid and Nancy is a 1986 British biopic directed by Alex Cox. The film portrays the life of Sid Vicious , bassist of the seminal punk rock band the Sex Pistols, and his relationship with girlfriend Nancy Spungen .-Plot:The film opens with several police officers dragging Sid Vicious out of the Hotel...
, and can be heard early on in the feature.
Chris Poland played with them briefly after being fired from Megadeth. Zander Schloss had left the band.
Hiatus (1989–1993)
The Circle Jerks dissolved around 1989 as Hetson left the band to continue playing guitar and release a number of albums with Bad Religion. Live recordings made during what would be their final tour at the time were immortalized in the live album Gig in 1992, their third and last release for Relativity.During the hiatus, Hetson would continue playing in Bad Religion; Schloss played guitar and bass with various acts; Clark initially retired from music; Morris worked menial jobs, battled health problems, and kicked a longtime dependence on drugs and alcohol.
Reunion (1994–1996)
A long period of inactivity ended in 1994, when the Circle Jerks – along with the Wonderful-era lineup – reunited and signed a major label deal with Mercury RecordsMercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
, a move that had a few business complications: Hetson was still with Bad Religion, who had signed a long-term contract with Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
, while Schloss had been part of a band contracted to Interscope
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
. After ironing out these difficulties, the band recorded Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities and released it in the summer of 1995. To date, it is the band's last studio album recorded by any line-up. One track on the album, a cover of The Soft Boys
The Soft Boys
The Soft Boys were a pop band during the punk era led by Robyn Hitchcock, whose initially old fashioned music style of psychedelic/folk-rock became part of the neo-psychedelia scene with the release of Underwater Moonlight...
' "I Wanna Destroy You", features backing vocals from pop singer/songwriter Deborah Gibson
Deborah Gibson
Deborah Ann "Debbie" Gibson is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. In 1987 she was pronounced the youngest artist to write, produce, and perform a No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot 100, with her song "Foolish Beat" and she remains the youngest female to write, record, and...
, who had just wrapped up a solo album with the same producer the Circle Jerks were using. Gibson later made a surprise appearance at the Circle Jerks' performance at punk mecca CBGB
CBGB
CBGB was a music club at 315 Bowery at Bleecker Street in the borough of Manhattan in New York City.Founded by Hilly Kristal in 1973, it was originally intended to feature its namesake musical styles, but became a forum for American punk and New Wave bands like Ramones, Misfits, Television, the...
to perform "I Wanna Destroy You" with the band. Despite such media attention, the group suddenly imploded three weeks into a tour behind the album. The breakup would not be totally permanent, but Clark left music for good afterward.
Second hiatus, Morris recovers, recent activities, break up (1997–present)
Further Circle Jerks activity was suddenly held up when Morris announced that he had been diagnosed with diabetes in 2000. A multitude of punk bands held benefits on his behalf.The core of Morris, Hetson, and Schloss continues to tour to the present day, in between other commitments—Hetson is still a full-time member of Bad Religion, Schloss also plays bass for the reformed first-generation LA punk band The Weirdos
The Weirdos
The Weirdos were an American punk rock band from Los Angeles, California. They formed in 1976 and broke up in 1981, were occasionally active in the 1980s, and recorded new material in the 1990s...
, and Morris was an A&R director for V2 Records
V2 Records
V2 Records is a record label that is owned by Universal Music Group as of October 2007. The label was founded in 1996 by Richard Branson, five years after he sold Virgin Records to EMI....
until the label was suddenly shuttered by its owners in 2007. Original bassist Roger Rogerson died in 1996 of a drug overdose
Drug overdose
The term drug overdose describes the ingestion or application of a drug or other substance in quantities greater than are recommended or generally practiced...
. Lucky Lehrer became a sunglasses seller and is still living in Southern California.
In 2004, The Circle Jerks shot a live concert DVD as part of Kung-Fu Records' live DVD series The Show Must Go Off!. The band plays many songs from all six of their studio albums, plus – in nods to Schloss' other current band and Morris' salad days, respectively – covers of The Weirdos' "Solitary Confinement" and Black Flag's "Nervous Breakdown".
For several years, there has been a rumored Circle Jerks album to feature new material, which had been said to be imminent; although no further formal announcement has been made. In late February 2007, the band released their first new song since 1995 on their Myspace page, titled "I'm Gonna Live", adding more anticipation to the possibility of a new album emerging. However, in an April 2008 interview, guitarist Hetson admitted that the Circle Jerks may never release any new studio material, saying that he does not know "what will happen in the future, but in the near future no Circle Jerks stuff will come out."
One of the reasons why the Circle Jerks have yet to release any albums since their last record in 1995 and reunion in 2001 is their various other activities, most obviously Hetson's. His band, Bad Religion, released a compilation in 1995, an album in 1996, a live album in 1997, an album in 1998, 2000 and 2002, another compilation in 2002, an album in 2004, a live DVD in 2006 and an album in 2007. Also in 2004, they released remastered issues of their albums between Suffer
Suffer (album)
Suffer is the third album by American punk rock band Bad Religion, released on the Californian independent record label Epitaph Records on September 8, 1988. It was the first album that was both released and distributed by the label...
and Generator
Generator (Bad Religion album)
In October 2011, the album was ranked number three on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1992.-Track listing:#"Generator" - 3:21#"Too Much to Ask" - 2:45#"No Direction" - 3:14#"Tomorrow" - 1:56...
as well as their 1982 debut How Could Hell Be Any Worse?
How Could Hell Be Any Worse?
How Could Hell Be Any Worse? is the first full-length album released by influential punk band Bad Religion, which was released on June 1, 1981. Released months after the release of their self-titled EP, it was financed by a $1,000 loan by guitarist Brett Gurewitz's father. Its success surprised the...
, where Hetson contributed one track on that album prior to joining Bad Religion.
More recently, the Circle Jerks have been featured on a television commercial for XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...
. They are the first band played in the commercial and the song is "Operation" from the album Group Sex.
They have recently posted a cover of "The Slave" originally by The Germs on their myspace.
As of an unknown date, The Circle Jerks are on hiatus due to a dispute with Keith Morris and the rest of the band.
The conflict is over songs that were written by Keith Morris and Dimitri Coats
Dimitri Coats
Dimitri Coats is an American musician, songwriter, producer, and actor.-Music career:Dimitri Coats is best known as the frontman for the hard rock band Burning Brides and as the guitarist in the hardcore punk band Off!...
from Burning Brides
Burning Brides
Burning Brides is an American hard rock band. They are partially known for their live performances, such as in 2000 playing selected dates as the opening band for The White Stripes...
. Coats, who was supposed to produce a new Circle Jerks album decided that the songs Greg Hetson had written were not up to par with the Circle Jerks catalog. Morris agreed and both he and Coats wrote multiple songs intended for the new album. The other members of the Circle Jerks believed Coats to be "arrogant, overbearing, egotistical" and called for him to be fired from producing the new record. Morris disagreed and both he and Coats recruited Steven Shane McDonald
Steven Shane McDonald
Steven Shane McDonald is the bass player in the Los Angeles alternative rock/power pop band Redd Kross. He is also a member of the hardcore punk band OFF!, which formed in late 2009. Other projects included The SMG and Green and Yellow TV - both were Los Angeles-based groups from the 2000s...
from Redd Kross
Redd Kross
Redd Kross, a rock band from Hawthorne, California had their roots in 1978 in a band called The Tourists begun by Jeff and Steve McDonald while the brothers were still in middle school...
, and Mario Rubalcaba
Mario Rubalcaba
Mario Rubalcaba is an American drummer from San Diego, notable as a member of numerous rock bands including Thingy, Rocket from the Crypt, Hot Snakes, Earthless, the Sultans, and Off! He has also played on albums by The Black Heart Procession and Pinback and was formerly a professional...
from Rocket From The Crypt
Rocket from the Crypt
Rocket from the Crypt was an American rock band led by John Reis, formed in 1989 in San Diego, California and disbanded in 2005.The band gained critical praise and the attention of major record labels after the release of their 1992 album Circa: Now!, leading to a recording contract with Interscope...
/Hot Snakes
Hot Snakes
Hot Snakes were an American post-hardcore band led by Rick Froberg and John Reis, formed in 1999 in San Diego, California and disbanded in 2005. Reis and Froberg had previously performed together in Pitchfork and Drive Like Jehu, after which Reis had found international success with Rocket from the...
) to start a new band called OFF!
OFF! (band)
-History:Off! was formed in Los Angeles, California in late 2009 by Circle Jerks/Black Flag singer Keith Morris, Burning Brides frontman Dimitri Coats, Redd Kross bassist Steven Shane McDonald, and Rocket From The Crypt/Hot Snakes drummer Mario Rubalcaba. The idea to form the band came after Coats...
.
Band members
- Keith MorrisKeith MorrisKeith Morris is an American singer and songwriter known for his role as frontman of the hardcore punk bands Black Flag, the Circle Jerks, and Off! Born and raised in Hermosa Beach, California, he formed Black Flag at the age of 21 with guitarist Greg Ginn and performed on the band's 1978 debut EP...
– lead vocals (1979–2010) - Greg HetsonGreg HetsonGreg Hetson is an American guitarist. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and has lived in Los Angeles, California since he was 2 years old...
– guitar (1979–2010) - Zander SchlossZander SchlossZander Schloss is a Los Angeles, California based musician, actor and composer. He is perhaps best known as bass player for The Circle Jerks and The Weirdos and for his contributions to a number of independent feature films. His first screen appearance was as "Kevin the Nerd" in Repo Man...
– bass (1984–2010) - Kevin Fitzgerald – drums, percussion (2001–2010)
Discography
- For a more comprehensive list, see Circle Jerks discographyCircle Jerks discographyThis is a comprehensive discography of the Circle Jerks, a California-based punk rock band. As of 2009, the band has released six studio albums, one live album, one compilation and one video album.-Biography:...
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- 1980: Group SexGroup Sex-Personnel:* Keith Morris - lead vocals* Greg Hetson - guitar* Roger Rogerson - bass* Lucky Lehrer - drumsProduction* Cary Markoff - producer* Cliff Zellman - engineer* Mackie Osborne - artwork* Diane Zincavage - cover design, cover art...
- 1982: Wild in the StreetsWild in the Streets (Circle Jerks album)Wild in the Streets is the second album by the hardcore band Circle Jerks. The title track is a cover song of the Garland Jeffreys song of the same name...
- 1983: Golden Shower of HitsGolden Shower of HitsGolden Shower of Hits is the third studio album by the American hardcore punk band the Circle Jerks. It was released in 1983 through Allegiance Records and was the band's last album to feature Roger Rogerson on bass and Lucky Lehrer on drums...
- 1985: WonderfulWonderful (Circle Jerks album)Wonderful is the fourth studio album by the Circle Jerks, released in 1985.-Track listing:# "Wonderful"# "Firebaugh"# "Making the Bombs"# "Mrs...
- 1987: VIVI (album)VI is the fifth album by the hardcore band Circle Jerks , which was released in 1987...
- 1995: Oddities, Abnormalities and CuriositiesOddities, Abnormalities and CuriositiesOddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities is the sixth studio album by the Circle Jerks, which was released in 1995.Oddities, Abnormalities and Curiosities was the band's only full-length studio recording since their 1989 disbandment and 1994 reformation, and also their only release on a major label...