There can be no argument made that refutes the weirdness of slam. It's inherently strange, and far too over-the-top for your average metalhead to comprehend. Hell, sometimes this shit is too weird for even the most hardened and desensitized among us. It's strange to think that at one time I believed that things couldn't get more extreme, both visually and lyrically, than Cannibal Corpse's Tomb Of The Mutilated. Man, how wrong I was! I would love to see the look on the face of 1992 me if shown the cover of, say, any Avulsed album.
Anyway, in addition to all the horror, gore, and tropes and cliches, things can also get downright silly in slam. This leads us into the topic of this week's installment of Dank Slams, where we take a look at the most preposterous, ludicrous, and asinine of slam. From banjos and mermaids, to cats and bagels, we've got silly covered!
NO ONE GETS OUT ALIVE – SEVERE COLD (2016)
It's silly, strange and incredibly interesting all at the same time. What is it? Well, It's slam with banjos! What's even more strange, is the fact the band calls Germany home. With song titles such as "Hick Stomp" and "Left In The Backwoods" you'd swear these guys were straight outta the hills of Kentucky! I suppose the Germans have creepy, bearded, toothless Lederhosen-wearing rednecks that call the Bavarian Alps home. I'm sure of it.
UROBILINEMIA – WRIGGLING CHRYSALIS OF METAPHYSICAL GRUDGE (2016)
This Japanese experimental slam/brutal death metal band is the musical equivalent to the Bioshock video game franchise – well, at least in this here featured track, as the vocal delivery could easily be mistaken as a Big Daddy bellowing from somewhere deep within the recesses of Rapture/Mariana Trench. It's actually quite fitting, working incredibly well within the context of the composition. Aside from this track, the band are diverse in their sound, and come off as quite accomplished musicians. Some of the solos contained on this thing rival the best shredders in power metal.
MANCUBUS – YOU ARE NO LONGER A CAT, YOU ARE A BAGEL (2015)
Some of the best slams I've heard in the last half dozen years or so comes by way of the Ukraine's Mancubus. Wtf is a Mancubus, you ask? Well, the name is derived from a type of monster introduced in the Doom video game franchise, which is indeed fitting to the sound of this one-man band. This one isn't so much musically strange, as the slams are definitely on point. Mancubus are clearly champions of visual and lyrical silliness, as this song, entitled "Big Bulldozer", demonstrates… this is absolutely crushing.
