Cursed was a Canadian

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

band formed in 2001 and dissolved in 2008. It featured members from

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

, and

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

of various other Canadian DIY bands such as Haymaker, Left for Dead, The Swarm aka Knee Deep in the Dead, Acrid, Ruination, The Black Hand, Countdown to Oblivion, At the Mercy of Inspiration, Shallow North Dakota, Crux of Aux, Quest for Fire and

Burning Love "Burning Love" is a 1972 song by Elvis Presley, written by Dennis Linde, originally released by Arthur Alexander earlier in 1972. Presley found major success with the song, it becoming his final Top 10 hit in the American Hot 100 or pop charts, ...

Career

Cursed was formed in 2001, by Chris Colohan, Mike Maxymuik, and Christian McMaster, a year after the break-up of their previous band, The Swarm aka Knee Deep in the Dead. They were joined by bassist Radwan Ghazi Moumneh, formerly vocalist in the Quebec Arabian-influenced hardcore band Ire. The band quickly became known for its nihilistic and dystopian lyrical themes, stark classic horror imagery and loud, abrasive live shows. In 2003, they released their debut album on

Deathwish Inc. Deathwish Inc. is an American independent record label conceived by Jacob Bannon of Converge and Tre McCarthy in 2000. Their first release was '' Deeper the Wound'', a split album between Converge and Japanese band Hellchild on April 23, 2001. D ...

, which garnered wide cult support. Moumneh switched to second guitar, allowing bassist Tom Piraino to join the lineup; Piraino and McMaster had previously played in the band Funerary together. Cursed followed with 2005's ''II'', on Goodfellow Records. In 2007, they released the picture-disc EP ''Blackout At Sunrise'', and a 180gr vinyl gatefold reissue of 2003's ''I'' on the label Trash Art!. In 2008, they released their third LP, ''III: Architects of Troubled Sleep'', on Goodfellow Records in North America, Howling Bull in Japan and, in Europe, the Dutch label Reflections Records. ''III'' was produced at Toronto's Hallamusic studio, mixed by long-time friend and collaborator Donny Cooper, and mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music, with cover art by

Baroness Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knight ...

' John Dyer Baizley. The band had long been touring internationally but, for this album, it played six weekends of strictly

Southern Ontario Southern Ontario is a Region, primary region of the Canadian Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario. It is the most densely populated and southernmost region in Canada, with approximately 13.5 million people, approximately 36% o ...

DIY shows. The official release show was in Toronto, at a sold out

Lee's Palace Lee's Palace is a rock concert hall located on the south side of Bloor Street West east of Lippincott Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The two-floor facility in The Annex neighbourhood has a long history prior to being adapted in September 19 ...

, with 50Watthead, Career Suicide and Living Darkness. The band then went on a European tour and, on May 22, 2008, Chris Colohan announced from Germany that the band had been robbed of their passports, and all of their money and tour expenses. Colohan described the robbery as a "bullet in the head" for the band. A hectic final show at Bitterzoet in Amsterdam would be their last.

Post-breakup

Colohan released the band's final UK radio session (their last recording) as a 7-inch EP on High Anxiety. Deathwish Inc reissued the vinyl repress of ''Cursed I'', which quickly sold out. Mike Maxymuik subsequently joined the band Quest for Fire and was a touring drummer for

Pink Mountaintops Pink Mountaintops is a Canadian rock and roll band from Vancouver led by Stephen McBean. The band's first album, ''The Pink Mountaintops'', featured Amber Webber and Joshua Wells. The tracks varied from alt-country to indie rock. The band's re ...

. Dan Dunham continued to play in Crux of Aux, and in the bands Skull and Limitoids. Chris Colohan continued to tour and play with

and Mature Situations, and runs the vinyl-only High Anxiety label. In 2016, he formed the band

SECT A sect is a subgroup of a religion, religious, politics, political, or philosophy, philosophical belief system, typically emerging as an offshoot of a larger organization. Originally, the term referred specifically to religious groups that had s ...

, composed of

Andy Hurley Andrew John Hurley (born May 31, 1980) is an American musician who is the drummer for the rock band Fall Out Boy. Prior to Fall Out Boy, Hurley played in several hardcore punk bands. He joined Fall Out Boy as the full-time drummer in 2003 and ...

(

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...

, Vegan Reich,

Racetraitor Racetraitor is an American hardcore punk and metal band originally from Chicago, Illinois. The band attracted controversy in the late 1990s, before any releases, as a result of their radical take on racial politics, which focused on ideas like ...

) on drums, James Chang (Catharsis, Undying) and Scott Crouse (

Earth Crisis Earth Crisis is an American metallic hardcore band from Syracuse, New York, active from 1989 until 2001, reuniting in 2007. Since 1993, the band's longest-tenured members include vocalist Karl Buechner, lead guitarist Scott Crouse, bassist Ia ...

, Path of Resistance) on guitar, and Ian Edwards (

, Path of Resistance) on bass. Radwan Moumneh went on to open the

Hotel2Tango The Hotel2Tango (sometimes referred to as Thee Mighty Hotel2Tango and abbreviated H2T) is a 24-track Analog recording, analogue recording studio situated in the Mile End, Montreal, Mile End district of Montreal, Quebec. The current facility is th ...

recording studio in Montreal, with partners from Godspeed You Black Emperor and Constellation Records, and continues with his performance art project

Jerusalem in My Heart Jerusalem in My Heart (JIMH) is a live audio-visual performance project, with Montréal-based producer and musician Radwan Ghazi Moumneh (co-owner of The Hotel2Tango recording studio in Montreal) and Montréal-based filmmaker Erin Weisgerber. Jer ...

Members

Final lineup

* Chris Colohan – vocals (2001–2008) * Christian McMaster – guitar (2001–2008) * Dan Dunham – bass (2005–2008) * Mike "The Mauler" Maxymuik – drums (2001–2008)

Former members

* Radwan Ghazi Moumneh : bass (2001–2003), guitar (2003–2005) *Tom "Dot Com" Piraino: bass (2003–2005)

Discography

Albums

*'' I'' (2003,

) *'' II'' (2005, Goodfellow Records) *''III: Architects of Troubled Sleep'' (2008, Goodfellow Records)

EPs & Demos

*"Cursed Demo Recording" (2002, Self-Released) *''Hell Comes Home'' EP (2004, Hex Records) *''Blackout At Sunrise'' EP (2007, Goodfellow Records) *''The Last Session'' EP (2010, High Anxiety)

Music videos

* Fatalist (2006)

References

External links

Cursed @ London Underworld by Bartolomy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cursed Musical groups established in 2001 Musical groups disestablished in 2008 Canadian musical quartets Deathwish Inc. artists Canadian crust and d-beat groups Canadian sludge metal musical groups Howling Bull Entertainment artists