Cryptic Slaughter

Cryptic Slaughter was a Santa Monica, California-based crossover thrash band.

Biography

Cryptic Slaughter was formed in 1984 by Les Evans (age 17), Scott Peterson (age 14) and Adam Scott (age 15), who met through their mutual participation in the American Youth Soccer League (AYSO). Soon they were joined by Bill Crooks (age 15), a friend of Adam Scott and a fellow soccer player. Adam Scott was let go a few months later due to conflicts regarding his parents and school.

Their first demo, Life in Grave, was produced in 1985 and became well circulated in the burgeoning tape-trader underground. Their first full length LP, Convicted, was released in 1986 on Death/Metal Blade records, whose artist roster also boasted D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, Dr. Know, The Mentors, and Beyond Possession. Within its first year of release, Convicted sold over 25,000 copies and earned Cryptic the reputation as being one of the fastest bands in hardcore. Next came Money Talks in 1987, which is still considered by many to be the band's best effort. Mixing crushing grooves with lightning speed, Money Talks surpassed Convicted's success by selling 35,000 in its first year and by earning Cryptic Slaughter a fanatical following around the world. Their progressive and politically conscious lyrics rival those of Dead Kennedies and others and gained them many fans. They took on the right-wing theocracy directly, with songs like "Freedom of Expression" that skewered the censorial nature of the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC), founded by Al Gore's wife Tipper. Their "America Heroes" directly confronted the mass media heroic mythology of the astronauts who died in the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger, when millions toil to survive daily in a world of injustice. Along with DRI they were at the forefront of a musical genre known as much for its relentless energy as its radical anti-authoritarian politics, even if all the listeners did not pay attention.

The original line-up recorded their final studio album, Stream of Consciousness, in 1988. Unhappy with the recording process and the album's production, the band's internal problems were magnified by life on the road. They broke up in the summer on tour before Stream was released later that fall. They played their last show in Detroit on July 14, 1988.

Shortly after returning home, however, guitarist Les Evans and bassist Rob Nicholson recruited new member Eli Nelson and continued on in a new direction. This new incarnation was short-lived, however, and Evans moved to Portland in May 1989 to reform the band with an entirely new line-up, which included Brian Lehfeldt of Wehrmacht fame. The final Cryptic Slaughter album, Speak Your Peace, was a definite departure from the previous material, heavily influenced by a changing music scene.

Cryptic Slaughter are often credited as one of the progenitors of crossover, the thrash metal and hardcore crossover genre, along with such seminal acts as D.R.I. and Corrosion of Conformity.

In 2003, Relapse Records reissued Convicted and Money Talks with added bonus tracks from Cryptic Slaughter's demo and live recordings.

Members

Bill Crooks - vocals, 1984?1988
Dave Hollingsworth - vocals, 1989?1990
Les Evans - guitar, 1984?1990
Rob Nicholson - bass, 1984?1988
Bret Davis - bass, 1989?1990
Scott Peterson - drums, 1984?1988
Brian Lehfeldt - drums, 1989?1990
Adam Scott - 1984?1985

Discography

Demos
"Life in Grave" (1985)

EPs
"Banned in S.M." (2003) Relapse Records

Studio Albums
Convicted (1986) Metal Blade Records
Money Talks (1987) Metal Blade Records
Stream of Consciousness (1988) Metal Blade Records
Speak Your Peace (1990) Metal Blade Records

Trivia

Napalm Death covers "Lowlife" on their 2004 album, Leaders Not Followers: Part 2.
Napalm Death covers "M.A.D." in their album, "Scum".
Bass-player Rob Nicholson used to play with Rob Zombie as Mr.Blasko and now plays bass for Ozzy Osbourne.
Powerviolence band Spazz covers "M.A.D" on their 1997 album "La Revancha"
"Lowlife" is featured in the video game Tony Hawk's Project 8.
A Convicted album is seen being handled by Johnny Depp in the 21 Jump Street pilot.
Cryptic Slaughter is featured in the book Sound of the Beast, the Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal.
Swedish orchestral dark ambient artist In Slaughter Natives wrote a song called "Cryptic Slaughter" on his 1988 eponymous debut.
Grindcore band Catheter covers "Lowlife" in their split with Birdflesh.