Slower emerged from the catacombs of the universal doom underground with a host of doom/sludge/stoner luminaries in, deep breath, Bob Balch from Fu Manchu, Laura Pleasants from Kylesa, Scott Reeder from Kyuss, Amy Barrysmith from Year Of The Cobra, Esben Willems from Monolord and Peder Bergstrand from Lowrider, joining together to pay tribute to the mighty Slayer in their own unique doomy style.
The results of this coming together were fantastic (Echoes and Dust review here), as the band laid waste to the thrash metal titans classic songs with the riffs raining blood down in supremely mogadon fashion, and tracks like ‘War Ensemble’, ‘The Antichrist’, ‘Dead Skin Mask’ and ‘South Of Heaven’ given a new life with heavy doom vibes throughout.
What began life as a Slayer worshipping doom supergroup though has now transformed into a fully fledged band of its own making and their latest release Rage And Ruin is a riff and groove heavy doom fest that is as mesmerisingly hazy as it is heavy.
Now slimmed down to the trio of Barrysmith, Balch and Willems, Slower prove on here that they are here to do things on their own terms and the tracks on Rage And Ruin prove that without a shadow of a doubt.
Album opener ‘Hellfire’ shows off the band’s groove laden but weighty and psychedelic doom to the fullest and from the on in, it’s a hell of a journey with the bands own other compositions, ‘Gates Of Hell’, ‘Sins Of The Dead’ and ‘Rage And Ruins’ title track proving that the band have struck gold with their own material.
Slower haven’t dropped the initial concept of covering Slayer though and while the band’s original idea of covering the entirety of the Haunting The Chapel EP in their own style, they have covered two of that seminal releases most beloved tracks. In Slowers hands, ‘Chemical Warfare’ is given an ethereal edge to proceedings and while the instantly recognisable riff is intact, the hazy nature of the rest of the song gives it its own inimitable power and ‘Haunting The Chapel’ itself is transformed into a sedately paced but still high energy groove.
That Slayer influence prevails on the original Slower material too it had to be said, a song like ‘Hellfire’ could easily have fitted in on the Seasons In The Abyss album for example with Barrysmith’s hypnotic vocals enthralling throughout.
With Rage And Ruin, Slower have staked their claim to be their own band and the results speak for themselves. Where they go from here will definitely be highly anticipated and on the strength of this record, the results will be just as impressive.
