Cryptic Slaughter
 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (November 2019) |
Cryptic Slaughter | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Lowlife (2018–2021) |
| Origin | Santa Monica, California, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1984–1988, 1989–1990, 2002–2003, 2021–present |
| Labels | Metal Blade, Relapse |
| Members | Les Evans Scott Peterson Brad Mowen Matt Olivo Menno Verbaten |
| Past members | Bill Crooks Bret Davis Dave Hollingsworth Brian Lehfeldt Rob Nicholson |
Cryptic Slaughter is an American crossover thrash band based in Santa Monica, California, and originally formed in 1984.
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,[1] 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 Slaughter the reputation as being one of the fastest bands in hardcore. Next came Money Talks in 1987,[1] which is still considered by many[who?] 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. 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 "American 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 not all the listeners paid attention.
The original line-up recorded their final studio album, Stream of Consciousness, in 1988.[1] 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.[1] 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. The final Cryptic Slaughter album, Speak Your Peace (1990),[1] was a definite departure from the previous material, heavily influenced by a changing music scene.
Cryptic Slaughter is 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., Corrosion of Conformity and Suicidal Tendencies.
In 2003, Relapse Records reissued Convicted and Money Talks with added bonus tracks from Cryptic Slaughter's demo and live recordings.
In 2018, for legal reasons, the band changed its name to Lowlife and continued to tour, until October 2021, when Lowlife reverted its name back to Cryptic Slaughter. They were planning on releasing their first studio album in more than three decades in 2022,[2] though there have been no updates on it since then.
Members
Current members
- Les Evans – guitar (1984–1990, 2002–2003, 2021–present), bass (1988–1999, 2002–2003)
- Scott Peterson – drums (1984–1988, 2021–present)
- Brad Mowen – vocals (2021–present)
- Dave Webb – guitar (2022-present)
- Menno Verbaten – bass (2021–present)
Former members
- Dave Hollingsworth – vocals (1989–1990)
- Adam Scott – guitar (1984–1985)
- Bill Crooks – vocals (1984–1988)
- Rob Nicholson – bass (1984–1988)
- Bret Davis – bass (1989–1990)
- Brian Lehfeldt – drums (1989–1990, 2002–2003)
- Chris Merrow – vocals (2002–2003)
- Matt Olivo – guitars (2021)
Timeline <timeline> ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20 PlotArea = left:120 bottom:80 top:5 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1984 till:05/17/2025 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = increment:4 start:1986 ScaleMinor = increment:1 start:1987
Colors =
id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:guitar value:green legend:Guitars id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:lines value:black legend:Studio_album id:bars value:gray(0.95)
BackgroundColors = bars:bars
LineData =
color:black layer:back at:01/01/1986 at:01/01/1987 at:01/01/1988 at:01/01/1990
BarData =
bar:Crooks text:Bill Crooks bar:Hollingsworth text:Dave Hollingsworth bar:Merrow text:Chris Merrow bar:Mowen text:Brad Mowen bar:Evans text:Les Evans bar:Scott text:Adam Scott bar:Olivo text:Matt Olivo bar:Nicholson text:Rob Nicholson bar:Davis text:Bret Davis bar:Verbaten text:Menno Verbaten bar:Peterson text:Scott Peterson bar:Lehfeldt text:Chris Lehfeldt
PlotData=
width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(11,-4) bar:Crooks from:start till:01/01/1989 color:Vocals bar:Hollingsworth from:01/01/1989 till:01/01/1991 color:Vocals bar:Merrow from:01/01/2002 till:01/01/2003 color:Vocals bar:Evans from:start till:01/01/1991 color:Guitar bar:Evans from:01/01/2002 till:01/01/2003 color:Guitar bar:Evans from:01/01/2021 till:end color:Guitar bar:Evans from:01/01/2002 till:01/01/2003 color:Bass width:3 bar:Scott from:01/01/1984 till:01/01/1985 color:Guitar bar:Mowen from:01/01/2021 till:end color:Vocals bar:Olivo from:01/01/2021 till:end color:Guitar bar:Nicholson from:start till:01/01/1989 color:Bass bar:Davis from:01/01/1989 till:01/01/1991 color:Bass bar:Verbaten from:01/01/2021 till:end color:Bass bar:Peterson from:start till:01/01/1989 color:Drums bar:Lehfeldt from:01/01/1989 till:01/01/1991 color:Drums bar:Lehfeldt from:01/01/2002 till:01/01/2003 color:Drums bar:Peterson from:01/01/2021 till:end color:Drums
</timeline>
Discography
Studio albums
- Convicted (1986)
- Money Talks (1987)
- Stream of Consciousness (1988)
- Speak Your Peace (1990)
EPs
- Band in S.M. (2003)
Demos
- Life in Grave (1985)
References
- ^ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Colin Larkin, ed. (1995). The Guinness Who's Who of Heavy Metal (Second ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 90. ISBN 0-85112-656-1.
- ^ "Cryptic Slaughter - Reunited, To Release First Album In Over 30 Years". Metal Storm. October 20, 2021. Retrieved October 20, 2021.
External links
- Short description with empty Wikidata description
- Articles needing additional references from November 2019
- All articles needing additional references
- Articles with specifically marked weasel-worded phrases from November 2019
- Musical groups established in 1984
- Musical groups disestablished in 1990
- Musical groups from Los Angeles
- Thrash metal musical groups from California
- Crossover thrash groups
- Musical quartets from California
- Relapse Records artists