Cruevo were one of Oakland's heaviest bands in the early 2000s. With epic songs delving into riffs and changes that derived influences from stylistic variants of crust, doom metal, southern sludge and progressive rock, Cruevo managed to bludgeon audiences at venues where the band's sheer volume and chaotic performances went down. Infamous for happenings like vocalist Chad's arrest at the well known punk venue 924 Gilman St., Cruevo were a constant at Oakland's crusty house parties and were also regulars in similar environments in Long Beach, CA. The band were critically acclaimed internationally for their part on the 2001 Unknown Controller split with Brainoil, getting praise and support from mainstream mags like Transworld Snowboarding, Terrorizer, Kerrang! as well as myriad underground 'zines.
Cruevo's members are currently working on new projects, with drummer Scott and guitar player Paul working on a new, heavy crust project called Scum Angel with Matt Pike of High On Fire and Sleep on vocals, bass player Brad and ex-Econochrist and Eldopa musical veteran Andy on guitar. Paul and his brother Drew (who co-wrote the material on Cruevo's split with Brainoil) cranked out 2 EPs under the moniker High Tone Son of a Bitch, more information about that band and their phenominal output is available on Unknown Controller's label website or here on Myspace. Guitarist Pamela studied music in L.A. and has joined the AC/DC cover band AC/DShe in the Angus role. An unreleased song, Black maria, appeared on a Shifty Records complilation, "Crushers Killers Destroyers 2" in 2004. After a 3 year hiatus, rumors of an eventual Cruevo reunion proved to be true, as Cruevo played a reunited, triumphant show in late January of 2005.
Cruevo tragically never recorded what amounted to a 40-plus minute barrage of material in the studio. The only recordings of rudimetary forms of these songs are live bootlegs and a radio broadcast on University of California at Berkeley's KALX Live program. Luckily, these songs are to be finally given their proper due, and brand new material is also in the works.
