Cutthroats 9

After Unsane broke up in 2000, former frontman Chris Spencer wasted little title forming the Cutthroats 9 -- a ferocious and blistering noise rock/alternative metal outfit that is named after a very violent spaghetti Western movie of 1972. Unsane was, from 1989-2000, New York's premiere noise rock band; the threesome enjoyed a fiercely loyal cult following in North America as well as Europe. But after 11 merciless years, Unsane finally decided to call it quits. In early 2000, singer/guitarist Spencer left New York, made a cross-country move to San Francisco and formed the Cutthroats 9 with bassist Dave Curran, drummer Will Carroll, and guitarist Mark Laramie (who switched to bass in 2001). Spencer and Curran were hardly strangers -- Curran joined Unsane in 1994 (replacing its original bassist Pete Shore) and stayed until the end. Much to the delight of Unsane's fans, the Cutthroats 9 are not a radical departure from Spencer's former band. The Cutthroats 9 also fall into the noise rock/alternative metal category, and they are every bit as harsh, abrasive, confrontational, and brutally unforgiving as Unsane. In fact, it makes perfect sense that Spencer named the Cutthroats 9 after a very violent and bloody film; the trio has a very violent sound. The Cutthroats 9's first release came out in 2000 when the Baltimore-based Reptilian label released their debut single, "You Should Be Dead"/"Can't Do a Thing." It was also in 2000 that Man's Ruin, a small indie out of San Francisco, released their self-titled debut album. After that release, Curran left the band -- and the Cutthroats 9 became a power trio (which is the same format that Unsane embraced for 11 years). With Spencer on lead vocals and guitar, Carroll on drums, and Laramie on bass instead of guitar, the Cutthroats 9 recorded the six-track EP Anger Management for Reptilian in 2001.
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