Crustacean

Formed in Holland during 1989, Crustacean followed an atypical trajectory by progressing from death metal into thrash. The band began under the misleading name Crystal Lake. After five years marked by several demos and repeated lineup shifts, the rechristened outfit embraced its authentic identity as a traditional thrash act modeled on Slayer, a group for which some members had earlier launched a tribute project that supplemented their income. In this configuration—vocalist/bassist Tom Paulusse, guitarists Ferry Damen and Miche Meeuwissen, and drummer Joris van Iersel—the ensemble tracked its first EP, Headcleaner, in 1995 before issuing further neo-thrash recordings across the subsequent decade, among them the 1998 full-length Burden of Our Suffering, the 2000 EP Satanized, and the 2003 album Insaniac.