The original speedcore merchants, Cryptic Slaughter dealt a West Coast hand into the late-‘80s crossover movement, a movement that saw the normally warring armies of punk rock and thrash metal finally come together into a unified front bent on exposing social injustice and political hypocrisy. Powered by a previously unimagined sense of informed aggression, Cryptic Slaughter's uncompromising political stance and lightning-fast tempos ultimately proved too harsh for mainstream tastes, but their status as underground legends remains unquestioned.
Vocalist/bassist Bill Crooks, ...