Carlos Cadona

Carlos Cadona, better known by his stage name 6025, was the second guitarist—from July 1978[1] to March 1979—for the American hardcore punk band Dead Kennedys. Although 6025 is sometimes mentioned as a drummer, singer Jello Biafra has stated 6025 was recruited solely as a guitarist.[2] Initially the band was a quartet, consisting of Klaus Flouride, Jello Biafra, East Bay Ray, and Bruce Slesinger, who all had answered an ad placed by East Bay Ray,[3] but 6025 was added to the line-up before the first gig on July 19, 1978.[4] Due to his short tenure in the band and avoidance of the public eye since, very little is known about him, and he is most well known for the mysteries surrounding his departure from the band.

Contents

With Dead Kennedys

6025 joined the Dead Kennedys in July, 1978.[5] Singer Jello Biafra has stated "a week before our first gig we got a guitarist who called himself 6025 and he left about 6 months later".[2] Ultimately, 6025 parted with the band in March, 1979.[6]

6025's guitar playing with the band was very minimal and generally shadowed the bassline of Klaus Flouride, with lead guitarist East Bay Ray doing the majority of guitar work. 6025's writing style focused on chromatic, quirky time signature melodies and harmonies, creating polyrhythms against the other instruments. 6025's lyrics were notably different from the rest of the band's repertoire, focusing on strange, nonsensical imagery and a morbid, fatalistic tone as opposed to vocalist/songwriter Jello Biafra's political satire.

He wrote seven songs with the band - "Ill in the Head" and "Forward to Death", both of which appear on the band's debut album Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables; "Short Songs", "Gaslight", and "Straight A's", which appear on the live album Live at the Deaf Club; "Mutations of Today", which appears on The 1978 Demos; and "Religious Vomit", which appears on the EP In God We Trust, Inc..

He ultimately departed before the recording of any studio albums, but does guest as a second guitarist on the studio recording of "Ill in the Head". Following his departure, the Dead Kennedys auditioned numerous second guitarists and even—having been inspired by The Screamers -- considered replacing him with a keyboardist. Ultimately, the band decided to remain a four-piece.

It was heavily rumored that 6025 did not leave of his own accord, but was ousted due to musical differences. According to East Bay Ray, 6025 left the band because he wanted to play prog-rock, and felt the band's style was "too raunchy, too rock". In an interview, Klaus Fluoride confirmed that 6025 and Jello Biafra became heavily opposed to each other's song-writing ideas, and after an argument culminating in a near fist-fight, 6025 chose to depart.

6025's final live appearance with the Dead Kennedys was on March 3, 1979. The performance was taped and was officially released in 2004 as Live at the Deaf Club.

After Dead Kennedys

After leaving Dead Kennedys, 6025 is rumored to have briefly played with The Residents before being replaced by Philip "Snakefinger" Lithman. After this, 6025 disappeared completely from the public eye.

In a 2005 interview with Loud Fast Rules! magazine, a spin-off of the magazine AMP,[7] Klaus Flouride states that 6025 went on to become a born-again Christian.

6025 was eventually diagnosed with schizophrenia. The Dead Kennedys' website[8] simply states that 6025 has been suffering from a disability since the early 1980s. In a 2003 interview for Russian Darkside E-Zine,[9] East Bay Ray mentioned that 6025's mother acts as his legal trustee, and she presently receives all royalties on his behalf.

In Alternative Tentacles bio[10] for Dead Kennedys, former Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra states that 6025 hasn't dropped out of music altogether, but that he is still trying to be "the Captain Beefheart of gospel music." 6025 has been working on a Christian punk rock opera for years that, due to his mental state, he has decided he has now finished.

Discography

See also

References