Exene Cervenka
| Exene Cervenka | |
|---|---|
Exene Cervenka at The Chestnut Cabaret in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 30th, 1986
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Christene Lee Cervenka |
| Also known as | Exene, Exene Cervenková |
| Born |
February 1, 1956 Chicago, Illinois, United States |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California |
| Genres |
Punk Folk Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter poet musician Visual artist Collage |
| Instruments | Vocals guitar |
| Years active | 1978–present |
| Labels |
Bloodshot Records Rhino Records Kill Rock Stars Nitro Records 2.13.61 Records Rykodisc Freeway Records |
| Associated acts |
X The Knitters John Doe Auntie Christ The Original Sinners |
| Website | exenecervenka |
Exene Cervenka (born Christene Lee Cervenka; February 1, 1956) is an American singer, artist, and poet, known for her work as a singer in the California punk rock band X.
Cervenka was born in Mokena, Illinois, in the Chicago area, and is of Czech and Irish ancestry. She moved to Tallahassee, Florida with her family, where she lived from age 13 to 20. Cervenka dropped out of high school. After her mother died, she raised her sisters. Cervenka moved to Santa Monica, California, in the summer of 1976.
Cervenka had an older sister, Mirielle, a jewelry designer who lived in New York City. During a 1980 visit to Los Angeles, while en route to the Whisky A Go-Go nightclub to see X, Mirielle was hit by a drunk driver who ran a red light, and was killed instantly.
The 21-year-old Cervenka met 23-year-old musician John Doe at a poetry workshop at the Beyond Baroque Foundation in Venice, California. Cervenka started working there.
Billy Zoom and John Doe founded X in 1977. Doe asked Cervenka to join soon after. They released their debut album, Los Angeles, in 1980 and, over the next six years, five more albums.
Dave Alvin taught Cervenka how to play the guitar.
In 1982, Cervenka published Adulterers Anonymous, her first in a series of four books in collaboration with artist Lydia Lunch. She and Lunch also released a spoken word album, Rude Hieroglyphics, in 1996 and toured in support of the project.
From 1996 to 1999, John Roecker and Cervenka co-owned Los Angeles store "You've Got Bad Taste." The store specialized in kitsch and various "off-color" novelties.
In 1999, as Exene Červenková, she appeared in the cult video Decoupage 2000: Return of the Goddess, along with guests Karen Black and the band L7. She gave a reading of her poem "They Must Be Angels," and appeared in an interview skit with Decoupage 2000 hostess Summer Caprice.
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