Strappado

It's kind of ridiculous to look at this as a full-length, let alone the sole full-length release by Slaughter for over 30 years. Still, this short adventure into early death metal mixed with hardcore punk influence and blackened thrash that was arguably before its time, is worth it. This run of tracks prove that, especially as an 80s band, you don't need to be flashy or complex to get your point across, and that sometimes a short, pissed off burst of 1 or 2 simple riffs is enough to make a tune catchy and ridiculously heavy. Couple that with the HM-2 and right here he have an unsung classic, which most people probably discovered from Fenriz.

The way this is produced has aged well, with a bottom-heavy guitar tone that ironically sounds thin, but the bass pierces through the speakers and almost "bounce" alongside the drums, making the simplicity of the songs that much heavier. Another attractive aspect to Strappado is the insane speed, especially on the first half. The vocals can barely keep up with these 300BPM riffs, and this adds to the rawness and charm from a record this old. The title track, for example, is less than 90 seconds long, and there's still 3 verses, 3 choruses and a solo section. The rapidity of what's coming at you was especially unheard of for the time.

With this in mind, a lot of the stronger parts on the record are slower, more groovy sections that focus on atmosphere and eerie storytelling over some great song structures. Incinerator is probably the best track on here, with its crushing, 2 power chord riff played at a tempo just slow enough to carry the track like a tank rolling over a sea of corpses. This is also where contrast comes in on Strappado, as the intro to this song is Disintegrator, another comically fast track that serves as a transition into something slower, and heavier. It puts an emphasis on what works in the album, and it definitely makes the standout songs, stand out more.

Apart from this, you just can't fault the strong writing on the record. Parasites has a great chugging riff, although it does go on for a bit, even for its 2 minute runtime. The second half of Strappado is slightly weaker but stays catchy and the energy and hunger captured on here is audible in that none of the songs become stale. Also, for what's essentially a third rate thrash band in terms of popularity, the drummer is tight especially with something this extreme. Most of the rhythm sections straddles between a skank beat, and a similar beat but slower, and it adds to the pounding atmosphere.

Then we have Fuck of Death and Tales of The Macabre, the latter of which is probably the most famous Slaughter track because of its memorable drum intro and a unique way of storytelling in the lyrics, although it does sound pretty juvenile. This is ultimately my biggest complaint about the album: there are no signs of any maturity here, musically or lyrically, and while I don't expect progressive music under introspection or social commentary, it tends to feel a bit outdated, especially compared to its contemporaries of, say, Celtic Frost, who a few years earlier were adding to their dark, creepy dynamics with realistic, psychological themes such as the lyrics of Into The Crypts of Rays. Anyway, that's pretty much nitpicking. Strappado is definitely a classic and never stops being fun to go back to.