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Capitalist Casualties Vocalist Shawn Elliot Has Died

"We're devastated at the loss of our brother: one of the kindest and funniest people we will ever know, a gentle soul."

Capitalist Casualties Vocalist Shawn Elliot Has Died

Shawn Elliott, vocalist for Californian hardcore/powerviolence veterans Capitalist Casualties, passed away on Wednesday. Hardcore label Six Weeks Records posted the following on their Facebook:

We received permission from Shawn's wife to let everyone know that Shawn from Capitalist Casualties died yesterday morning. We're devastated at the loss of our brother: one of the kindest and funniest people we will ever know, a gentle soul. We know his friends and fans around the globe share this deep sadness with us, and we will keep his legacy alive always. Play your favorite Capitalist Casualties records today in his honor.

Capitalist Casualties was one of Southern California's original powerviolence groups. Powerviolence, essentially a combination of hyper speed hardcore and grindcore. Its nascent form was pioneered in the late 1980s by Californian band Infest. The microgenre solidified into its most commonly recognised form in the early 1990s, and is defined by bands like Man Is the Bastard, Crossed Out, Neanderthal, No Comment and, of course, Capitalist Casualties. Much of the scene centred around the 921 Gilman Street venue and a label called Slap-A-Ham Records. Do some Googling if you're not familiar, you might be into it.

Here's Shawn singing with Capitalist Casualties in 1987:

And here he is singing for them in 2011:

Although there seems to be a derth of decent video footage, 

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