SUFFOCATIONSuffocation is not a slam death metal band. Let us just get that out of the way first. However, they were a major influence on the formation of the subgenre. Slam death metal bands took some of the breakdown-laden ridiculously heavy sound that was Suffocation's bread and butter and took it to the extreme. They simplified things a bit and focused on the breakdown. Suffocation was vitally important in the formation of slam death and that is why they are listed in this post.
INTERNAL BLEEDINGInternal Bleeding is often cited as the first real slam death metal band. My first album by this band was this compilation pulling together most of the band's demos that I received in a Century Media grab bag. My first impression was not terribly positive, but I did grow to really enjoy it. This is still one of the first CDs I grab when I want to listen to some slam. The rawness and energy of it grabs your attention.
SANATORIUMAnother album that I received in a lot of CDs, this one a lot of death metal CDs off of ebay. Sanatorium was the first band I listened to with the kind of frog-like gurgling vocals that have become a staple of the genre. This, in addition to the violent lyrics and deep throbbing slams, caught my attention from the beginning. It was kind of a joke album that I would put on to blow the minds of passengers in my car, I just grew to love it.
DYING FETUSDying Fetus is a group that I loved from the first time that I heard them. I realize that my first album from the group, their 2007 release, is not one of their strongest upon looking into their back catalog, but it definitely grabbed my attention. It was extremely powerful and chaotic, but with a political side to the lyrics. Dying Fetus catches a lot of crap for the singer's admitted love for rap music, but the band continues to put out good music.
ATROCIOUS ABNORMALITYAtrocious Abnormality is the first band that I successfully added to the Encyclopedia Metallum database. They exist on the border between slam death and brutal death metal with some surprisingly technical riffs in places. I also picked up their album after I submitted them to the database and was very impressed from the first time I heard them.
After those five bands, I started paying attention to Sgt. D's posts on slam on Metal Inquisition which lead me to finding more and more slam death.
Granted, I've never been a huge fan of slam. Nor do I claim any particular expertise on the sub-genre. When asked to describe it, though, I tend to say something like "It's a Suffocation breakdown played for an entire album." So they seem like a clear gateway from traditional and/or brutal death metal into slam.
ReplyDeleteI'll admit though, while I know this isn't meant to be a top 5 list or anything, I was still slightly surprised that Devourment was absent here.
Devourment is not present due to the fact that I got into them when I had gotten into slam entirely. These are the bands that helped me get into it.
ReplyDeleteAhh, I see. After I re-read the intro to the post I figured it was probably something along those lines.
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