Hermosa Beach, CA · hardcore-punk

Circle Jerks

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First-wave California hardcore played at absurd speed — Keith Morris's sneer is the whole genre in one voice, 'Group Sex' still a fourteen-minute masterclass.

Circle Jerks formed in 1979 in the South Bay area of Los Angeles, when singer Keith Morris left Black Flag and joined guitarist Greg Hetson, previously of Redd Kross. The pair first called the band the Bedwetters, rounding out the line-up with classically trained bassist Roger Rogerson and jazz-trained drummer Lucky Lehrer, before settling on the Circle Jerks name.

Their 1980 debut Group Sex compressed fourteen songs into roughly fifteen minutes and became one of the defining documents of Californian hardcore. Several of its songs had been written while Morris was still in Black Flag, and five live versions from the album appeared that same year in Penelope Spheeris's documentary The Decline of Western Civilization.

Their approach mixed extreme speed with sardonic humour and a knack for hooks, and Morris's clipped, sneering delivery is among the most recognisable voices of the era. Later records such as Wild in the Streets, whose title track covered a Garland Jeffreys song, and Golden Shower of Hits kept up the same combination of speed and wit across six studio albums in total.

The band has broken up and reformed several times, with Morris and Hetson at the centre throughout; a 2020 run of shows marked the fortieth anniversary of Group Sex. Bands including Red Hot Chili Peppers, Pearl Jam and the Offspring have named Circle Jerks as an influence.

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hardcore-punk