On their latest album, Megafaunal Genocide, Slab combine everything from metal to punk to hardcore with all kinds of extreme metal nastiness to create a phenomenal sound. Acoustic opener 'Vigil' is a daunting and hauntingly beautiful acoustic piece and no preparation for what is soon to be unleashed. 'Thylacine', an extreme metal masterpiece, quickly shifts the album into even darker territory. The album could end right there and I'd be happy. But no. 'Kevorkian' digs deeper and is pure dirt. Then comes 'Physeteric Faith Disaster', 'Pockets of Resistance', 'The Bite' (with a monster bass riff in the intro), and 'The Nihilist': an incessant torrent of gigantic blow after gigantic blow. And still the intensity continues. From 'Tetradon Zombie Voodoo Ritual' and 'Pigshifter' to 'Animal Faced God' and 'Human Rain', like razor wire drawn slowly through a clenched fist, the album is one intense track after another: excruciating bliss. The structures are of such complex brilliance: discordant, relentlessly dynamic, and always immeasurably heavy. Acoustic closer 'Connaisance' ends the album as it begins, bleakly melancholic, But here, the listener is dazed at what has just befallen, blissfully battered and bruised.
This three-piece has a sound whose sum is much more than its elements. Jim's bass and Jake's guitar work together in such a way that every hole is filled and the balance never falls one way or the other, both complementing each other flawlessly. Andy's drum work is astounding at every turn, refined and aggressive: a lethal combination. And vocally, Jake is the size of many big things. Big and scary and very angry things, that is. Together, Slab is solid concrete.
Track Listing:
- Vigil
- Thylacine
- Kevorkian
- Physeteric Faith Disaster
- Pockets of Resistance
- The Bite
- The Nihilist
- Tetradon Zombie Voodoo Ritual
- Pigshifter
- Animal Faced God
- Human Rain
- Connaisance
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