Bi-cultural metalheads are soaking up the tears in their embroidered Brujería t-shirts this morning as they wake up to news of the untimely passing last night of the iconic band's co-vocalist, Ciriaco "Pinche Peach" Quezada, from heart failure.
L.A.'s Brujería, which counts Dead Kennedys' singer Jello Biafra as a founding member, rose to achieve legendary status in the early 1990s for the political and crusty, double-pedaled anthems heard on their sludgy first album, "Matando Güeros."
That debut album, which depicts a close-up of a burned, severed, and disfigured head on the cover and translates roughly to Killing Blondes/ the Lightskinned, resides in many people's lists of the top 50 most controversial titles and art in the international metal genre.
"Pinche Peach de Brujería falleció anoche por graves complicaciones cardíacas," wrote the the band's founder, Brujo, in a post about Pinche Peach's passing on the band's Instagram account this morning. "La banda y yo te extrañaremos muchísimo. ¡Te amamos y nos encantó trabajar contigo! ¡¡Nunca serás olvidado!! Era mi mejor amigo, mi hermano, mi compañero de banda, y mi primo."
[Pinche Peach de Brujería passed away last night due to serious heart complications. The band and I will miss you dearly. We loved you and loved working with you! You will never be forgotten!! You were my best friend, my brother, my band mate, and my cousin."]
Quezada joined Brujería in 1992 after Biafra left the band. Quezada was credited for being "the star" of many of their music videos, from their early hits like "La Migra (Cruza La Frontera II)," released 14 years ago, to "El Patrón Del Reventón." He was the only member of the band that didn't wear a mask on his face.
Brujería's fearless lyrics address injustices faced by undocumented immigrants in Los Angeles. They've created provocative songs about killing coyotes (human smugglers) and beheading political leaders such as Pete Wilson (referred to as "Pito Wilson" in one of their hits.
Their stage presence is always rife with satanic imagery and props like decapitated heads and the deadly Aztec weapon, the macuahuitl, and the band proudly calls themselves anti-Catholic revolutionaries. They frequently play sold-out shows to thousands of fans in Mexico and also sell out smaller punk venues in Los Angeles.
Brujería has been scheduled to play at Alex's Bar in Long Beach on August 29th. No word yet on whether losing a band member and friend will change that.
Quezada, whose intense and diabolic energy as a frontman will be missed, was 58 at the time of his death.
