Belting out lyrics like these, the So-Cal band known as Corporate Avenger often find themselves surrounded in controversy. But don't write these rockers off as a pre-processed, typical, angry, "fight the power" rock group- they definitely stand behind what they believe in, and are quickly gaining a large following of fans with the same kind of want for truth and freedom.
Corporate Avenger was first thought up in January of 1995 by Brad X and Spike, brothers, who were at that time, in the band known as Humble Gods. The Humble Gods were a punk band out of Southern California, with Brad doing vocals and Spike on bass guitar. They thought up Corporate Avenger first as a "superhero" type character who " would reinstate the memory of the true history of the Americas to the forefront of national awareness to the masses" and "would be the anti-hero to corporate America in the world bank, illusion of ownership, fear-based monetary system we currently operate under," according to the brothers. After the break-up of the Humble Gods, Brad X would go on to become one of the founding members of the group Kottonmouth Kings under the name Daddy X. Spike went on to begin work on creating the group Corporate Avenger, and would go under the name of the Corporate Avenger.
Even though their message has been done before, Corporate Avenger have a lot more to say than just, "fuck the system." With songs such as "Fault the Police (I Don't)", they try and convey the message that the police aren't the ones to blame for their corruption, but it's the people who run them that are at fault. Other songs such as "Taxes Are Stealing" (which has become one of the band's many slogans) voice their opinions on the government taxing us for anything and everything. They admit that we can't completely get rid of taxing, but they provide different ways of how the government should be spending our money. The song "Christians Murdered Indians" is sure to cause trouble, but if you listen closely it is also a song of truth, as they tell the real stories behind the slaughter of Native American people by Christians immigrants, and in the song "The Bible is Bullshit" they explain how they stole and outlawed many of the Native Americans' ways.
Songs such as the above mentioned "Bible is Bullshit", "Enemy of the Gospel", "Jesus Christ Homosexual", and "Drug Dealing God" have stirred up controversy for the group, which they expected from the beginning. Soon it was getting out of hand, however, as they were receiving more and more angry letters and even numerous death-threats from various people. Even with the death-threats and nasty hate mail, Corporate Avenger has managed to release a lot of music for their fans. The first thing that they released was the Taxes Are Stealing EP in the year 1999. Later in 2000, they released The New Testament, which was sort of a remixed version of Taxes Are Stealing with new songs. They toured relentlessly with the Kottonmouth Kings, and headed back to the studio to begin work on their first full-length album Freedom Is A State Of Mind. This album was released in July of 2001, and again featured remixes of older songs along with new songs. It also showcased a semi-new sound for Corporate Avenger; it was something along the lines of electronic/metal/rap/punk/industrial, and was released nation-wide.
Corporate Avenger is a band that many people find to be quite mysterious. Not a lot is known about who they are. Spike, aka the Corporate Avenger, is one-half of the vocalists in the group and is the brother of KMK front man Daddy X. He paints his face in white with a black cross to symbolize the suffering that his ancestors had received at the hands of Christianity. Adawee, aka the Wind, is the other half of the onslaught known as Corporate Avenger. He is a Cherokee Indian who paints his face as well. He says he paints his face to remind him of his ancestors who would paint their face when they went to war, and says that they are also fighting a war; a war of ideas. In July of 2002, their third member, the Taxman, left the group to work on a solo album. Although he didn't ever provide vocals on any album, the Taxman's presence was always felt on stage, be it with Corporate Avenger or the Kottonmouth Kings. Running around with a megaphone, he would scream out various sayings during their performances. He was also known for his crazy stage antics, often times jumping off of 15-foot high speaker stacks. Corporate Avenger has also had other members- Pakelika, the 6' 8'' half-man, half-machine "visual assassin" of the Kottonmouth Kings, joins the Avenger on stage holding signs and performing his wild dances. DJ Hall of Records provides many of the scratches and sounds on Corporate's songs. The ATF, who can be seen in the background on the Taxes are Stealing EP and in the video for the KMK song "Peace Not Greed", play instruments on songs and will be playing instruments on Corporate Avenger's next album and tour.
The future is looking bright for Corporate Avenger. They have definitely made an impact on the world of music with their unique sound and their outspoken-ness. Their message is one of truth, freedom, learning your history, self-empowerment, and figuring out for yourself, right from wrong. They are here to help us understand who we are and where we came from so we can better the lives of ourselves and the ones around us. Corporate Avenger are surely a force to be reckoned with, and along with other Suburban Noize groups, their voice will be heard, and they won't quit until they're sure we've all listened.
