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Anger Rising

	Album Name	Anger Rising
	Artist	Doug's Music Shack
	Release Date	Monday, January 20th, 2025 • in 2 months 5 days
	Genre	Post-grunge, industrial rock
	Tracks	10
I have this album flagged as having been made with generative tools. You can read more about this in a blog post of mine.

Anger Rising
Crushed Under the Cross

"Crushed Under the Cross" is the second track on the 2025 album Anger Rising by Doug's Music Shack. It is in the ??? genre with a runtime of unlisted. If you want more information on the album, the about "Anger Rising" page can be found here. This will include links to where you can listen to the album - free, paid, and streaming options are available.

About Crushed Under the Cross

I wanted to channel the frustration and anguish felt by those who are oppressed under the guise of religion. This song is a critique of how religious institutions can manipulate faith to control and marginalize others, rather than promote the love and compassion they preach.

In the first verse, the "neon crosses" symbolize religious symbols that are highly visible but distract from true moral judgment. The brightness blinds people, making it hard to discern right from wrong. "Sacred words twist into chains" reflects how religious teachings can be distorted to restrict freedom, turning messages of hope into tools of oppression.

With the pre-chorus, I'm highlighting the hypocrisy of those who advocate love yet act with hatred. The marginalized are abandoned, forced to navigate a world that doesn't accept them. Living "in the shadows" signifies existing on the fringes of society, where survival is a constant struggle.

The chorus speaks to the weight of oppression ("Crushed under the cross") inflicted by those misusing religious authority. Cries for help are dismissed as part of a divine plan ("holy dreaming"). The term "Christo-fascist cell" combines religious and authoritarian imagery to depict a suffocating environment imposed by extremist ideologies. The line "We're dying for their sins" flips the traditional notion of sacrifice - that the oppressed suffer consequences for the oppressors' actions.

In the second verse, I address the emptiness of "thoughts and prayers" offered without meaningful action, comparing them to "bullets" that cause harm. The "hymns" and proclaimed "love" become instruments of pain rather than comfort. The "truth" they impose creates a hostile reality for those who don't conform.

The outro reinforces the central themes of hypocrisy and suffering. The repeated lines serve as a final indictment of those who hide behind religious facades while causing real harm.

I tried to mold this song as a raw expression of anger and a call for awareness about the misuse of religion to justify oppression. It's meant to challenge listeners to reflect on the disparity between proclaimed beliefs and actual practices.

Crushed Under the Cross Lyrics

[Verse 1]
Neon crosses burn so bright
Blinding us to wrong and right
Sacred words twist into chains
As freedom bleeds and hope wanes

[Pre-Chorus]
They preach love but practice hate
Marginalized left to our fate
In the shadows we survive
Fighting just to stay alive

[Chorus]
Crushed under the cross, we're screaming
But they call it holy dreaming
Their paradise is our hell
In this Christo-fascist cell
We're dying for their sins
While they smile and say "Amen"

[Verse 2]
Your thoughts and prayers are bullets
Your hymns are our death knell
Your "love" is suffocating
Your "truth" a living hell

[Guitar Solo]

[Chorus]
Crushed under the cross, we're screaming
But they call it holy dreaming
Their paradise is our hell
In this Christo-fascist cell
We're dying for their sins
While they smile and say "Amen"

[Outro]
They preach love but practice hate
Their paradise is our hell
We're dying for their sins
While they smile and say "Amen"!!!

Listen Now

Anger Rising - Track List