Review by UnhinderedbyTalent for Slugdge - Esoteric Malacology (2018)

Reading some reviews of Esoteric Malacology online there is a focus on how annoyed some reviewers are around Slugdge’s use of well-known metal track/album/band names in their own song titles. I find this a very bizarre stance to take for an album that is a solid slab of progressive death metal, with more than enough quality on show in terms of musicianship and songwriting. Although not my usual brand of death metal by any means I feel Slugdge’s bad press in such reviews is far from needed.

The internet had me believe that Slugdge were a blackened death/sludge metal band, so I went into this release with completely the wrong expectations. Clearly having taken a change in direction on this their fourth album, Esoteric Malacology is a swarming yet never overwhelming slice of progressive death metal that loses no momentum in terms of power and consistency over the near hour long run time. The riffs are potent and biting and the lead/melodic guitar work does not rely on chiming or endless looping and blooping to get the message across to the listener. As a result, I can appreciate the structures of the tracks whilst still being entertained by the actual content.

With perhaps the clean vocals being the only real obstacle for me here, Slugdge have turned into a neat find with this record, especially given what I found was some distance away from what I expected. It plays as a grounded, progressive death metal record; one that casts off the notion that such albums need to be lofty or overindulgent in their content. Less frantic than The Black Dahlia Murder and a lot less boring than Gojira, this Lancashire four-piece are an exciting prospect and are certainly worth looking at (beyond petty quibbles over fucking song titles people).