Mic Check: Chino Moreno

On Crosses

Chino Moreno.
By CAT JONES

Unlike his past projects, Chino Moreno’s Crosses (stylized as †††) is more rooted in electronica and New Wave than anything that might be described as “rock ’n’ roll”—a potentially rough pill to swallow for fans of his main band, art-metal mainstays Deftones. Regardless, without much marketing or hype, the group’s two introductory EPs gained enough momentum for the band to put out a self-titled full-length of dark pop last fall, uniting Deftones die-hards and goths alike.

WW

spoke to Moreno about the project’s occult imagery.
 

"I've been fascinated with religion ever since I was a kid, going to church with my grandma and being scared because, well, church is scary. There is a lot of imagery within religion that is dark. So I've always been fascinated with that. Anything that's uncertain is always fascinating. A lot of people follow religions because they are unsure about things and they want to figure it out. I can only speak for myself, but I've been fascinated by this stuff for years and years. If you look back at old Zeppelin stuff and Jimmy Page or Aleister Crowley, musicians have been fascinated with this stuff for years. I certainly don't follow any sort of religious sect but I'm definitely fascinated with it. And that goes down to the certain little things where, if you believe in any one side of a story, then it's always fun to hear the other side.” 

SEE IT: Crosses play Hawthorne Theatre, 1507 SE Cesar Chavez Blvd., with JMSN, on Tuesday, April 1. 9 pm. $18 advance, $20 day of show. All ages.

WWeek 2015

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