Slugathor from Finland was formed in 1999. They are considered among the newer Old School Death Metal bands. The band has released 3 full length albums and numerous EPs. Circle of Death is their second album released in 2006. The band consists of members from much older Finnish bands like Excrement and Apoplexy.
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| The album cover too screams Early Nineties |
Unlike many Death Metal bands, Slugathor don't play a morbid, atmospheric style of Death Metal, but rather chunky, heavy and groovy style, similar to Bolt Thrower and Jungle Rot. Despite being released in 2006, Circle Of Death sounds like an album from 1992 or 1993. Like any band that plays mid-paced Death Metal, the riffs are the highlight of Slugathor's music. Infectious grooves combined with like heaviness and war-like atmosphere compel you to headbang along with the music. Bolt Thrower is an obvious influence on Slugathor, as the guitar sound and chunkiness can be mistaken for that of Bolt Thrower. The drumming is standard Death Metal. The drums provide sufficient groove and engage in blast-beats during fast section. The bass drum is loud - much louder than the snare - and that makes for a heavier sound when they play along with the riffs, and makes the groove much more evident. The bass guitar is loud enough to be audible, but doesn't play anything different from the main guitar riffs, so it doesn't stand out, and its only job is to add to the heavy sound.
Vocals are mostly indecipherable low-pitched growls, but the vocalist does throw in some variety with occasional high-pitched screams. In short, the vocals perfectly suit the music, without leaving a chance to sound redundant and repetitive. To keep the listener's interest up, Slugathor throw in some time signature and structural changes in their songs. They are very very minor, and far from sounding like technical wankery, but are noticeable. The only problem being that it sometimes causes songs to sound rather disjoint.
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