The Slow Death

Australian Death/Doom Metal band The Slow Death was formed in 2007 by members of Stone Wings, Murkrat and Corpsickle. This self-titled album is their debut release. The album only features five tracks, but in good doom metal tradition, these are shockingly long, making the album clock in at over one hour and 10 minutes.

I’m not a Death/Doom Metal expert, so I can’t really compare the music on display here to any of their genre mates. I can however give my humble opinion on the quality of the music, and I must say: this sounds pretty great.

The crushing and tremendously slow guitar riffs form the basis of The Slow Death’s music. There is also a big role for the keyboard, mainly used for creating the underlying atmosphere of the songs, although there are some passages where the keyboard takes the lead role. This, and the fact that the band incorporates some faster parts (not exceeding mid-tempo though), ensures the songs remain interesting, despite their long play time (the shortest song clocks in at nearly 12 minutes, while the album closer “Dark Days” is a whopping 18:30 long).

Great thing about The Slow Death is that they managed to write some excellent songs. The riffs are melodic and interesting and the keyboard melodies give the songs an epic feel.

The vocal duties are shared by the male Death growls of Gregg Williamson (who’s day job is singing in a Death/Grind and a Brutal Death band, giving you a rough impression of his vocal style) and the clean female vocals of Mandy Andresen. Everybody who has read some of my reviews knows I am a sucker for female vocals in metal, so no wonder I am most enthusiastic about Mandy’s contributions. She has a crystal clear operatic voice and really shines on this disc. Luckily though, I also really like the guttural vocals that play a big role on this release. The growls are very deep, making for an optimal contrast with the female vocals.

The production quality is top notch and the artwork and overall look of the release is the icing on the cake.

Recommended!