ALBUM REVIEW: Glam not Slam – Engutturalment Cephaloslamectomy

Slam has the benefit of predominantly never really being taken seriously. With the sole intention to write the heaviest, silliest music imaginable, most slam relies on the same 4 descending chords and then enough messy drumming to fill in all the gaps. Where bands like DEVOUREMENT prove just how utterly punishing the genre can be, bands like CREPITATION show just how silly and tongue in cheek the whole scene can be in their endless pursuit of brainless fun. ENGUTTURALMENT CEPHALOSLAMECTOMY clear understand just how ridiculous all of this nonsense is, and pair that silliness with just enough concise and compressed slamming riffs to make their latest release a pretty enjoyable time. This is paint by numbers slam metal, but at least the band follow a formula that has always revealed some good music throughout Glam not Slam. And sometimes some well produced caveman slam is all you need to get you through the day. 

Being self aware is all well and good, but opening your album with a track called Worthless Intro You’ll Skip seems like a bit of wasted effort for a bad gag, but at least Knights of Slamming Service has enough bounce and a colossal breakdown at the end to keep you entertained. The production is tight and heavy, and the slap of the bass in the background is like the crack of a whip sometimes. The riffs are lead heavy and the snare sounds like a gunshot in a canyon. Every box is ticked, and the result is predictably enjoyable if not the same thing we have heard a hundred times over by now. 

Of course there is little deviation from the path, and for those not fully sold to the cult of the slam will likely tap out by the midway mark. But, for those that push on, tracks like Pour Some Pitriffs on Me will satisfy the itch nicely, and the final track features a tongue in cheek jab at the black metal purists before closing out with yet more caveman chugs and guttural vocals. 

It always seems strange for slam bands to write comedy, self aware songs given the fact most of the time bands share the same desolate atmospheres and guitar tones as well as the fact that lyrics are unintelligible. Despite this, ENGUTTURALMENT CEPHALOSLAMECTOMY put together some decent tracks here that hit all the notes a slam fan would want and never doing too much to break the mould. More effort went into making this record sound as good as it does than went into writing better tunes, but the album has enough weight and ridiculous heaviness to be at least a little bit of fun. 

Rating: 5/10

Glam not Slam is out now via Gore House Productions. 

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