Slaughter-Strappado

Metal Mind
1986/2008



Every mention of this band over the last 17 years has to include "no, not the hair metal band of slight early1990's fame". Instead these guys were from Canada and played a rather early style of death metal that was influenced by the likes of Venom and Celtic Frost. Unlike other early death bands like Death and Possessed, Slaughter (at least at this point) were as much about heaviness as they were about speed. Strappado has some thick, killer riffs that grind forward and it's easy to see why this band had a bit of a cult following. With all the bands trying to blaze forward, Slaughter stood out a little because their direction was far more creating a pounding sound that you would not just hear but feel in your bones. The vocals are even less of a typical thrash style, but actually there is a slight hardcore influence as well rather than the standard growling of most early death metal singers. A few songs sound a little bit alike yet that's not all that important compared to the relatively fierce sound they churned with ease on this underground classic. This re-issue also includes an entire live show that sounds like the band is playing to maybe a dozen people in a basement somewhere on a Tuesday night. The quality of the live recording is extremely raw even by 80's standards yet their style and agrressiveness shine past their primitive sound and off the cuff banter with the crowd. It may not have seemed like an essential release in 1986 amidst all of the typical thrash of the times, but Strappado holds up well and there's no doubt it was influential on death metal bands over the next half decade or so.