Slower – Slower

by Mark 'Yeti' Richard · Published August 16, 2024 · Updated September 3, 2024

Slower is a side project put together by Bob Balch from Fu Manchu, redoing five classic Slayer songs. The caveat is that these tracks are performed and recorded in a very slow and doomy manner. Bob plays guitar on all the songs and recruited a good cast of musicians to collaborate these songs with. Esben Willems from Monolord plays drums on all the songs, Peder Bergstrand from Lowrider plays bass on all but one song, and Amy Barrysmith from Year Of The Cobra sings on all but one songs. The other two guest musicians are Scott Reeder from Kyuss on bass and Laura Pleasants from Kylesa on vocals, both performing on“South Of Heaven.” The other four Slayer songs covered are “War Ensemble”, “The Antichrist”, “Blood Red”, and “Dead Skin Mask.”

Being a lifelong and die hard Slayer fan, I was very intrigued about the concept of this project when I first about it. I had no idea what to expect or what I was in for. The record has five of the mentioned Slayer songs done in a very original and unique, and I should say sludgy format. Slower was released on January 26th, 2024 and is nearly forty minutes long.

The first track I heard was “War Ensemble.” It’s the first one on the record and I was pretty blown away, to be honest. The sound is so heavy and devastating! They did a fantastic job recreating this song into a doom metal classic. The familiar riffs sludge along with total conviction. Barrysmith has a wonderful voice and vocal melodies. Her singing to the lyrics work beautifully. I love Peder’s rolling bass lines to the heavy bombardment of Bob and Esben’s riffs and pounding. Balch lays some vicious leads on this one too. The song clocks in at ten and a half minutes long and is longest of the bunch. The next song “The Antichrist” is an old school Slayer classic from their Show No Mercy record. Slower delivers another colossal version on this one. They have a very unique take on all of these songs and I applaud their creativity with the way everything is constructed. “Blood Red” is next and is equally brutal. The down tuning dirge of these songs are ridiculous, in a good way. It’s interesting that they chose three songs from Seasons In The Abyss but no complaints here. “Dead Skin Mask” sounds like the closest to the original only because of the tempo. Slower manages to still incorporate their unique style, especially really slowing down the chorus. When the tuned down riff of “South Of Heaven” starts , it’s game over! Lay waste to the foundation, the buildings are crumbling down. Another unique take on this classic Slayer song. Pleasants does the vocals on this one with Reeder on the bass. She sounds remarkably similar to Barrysmith. I appreciate that the band went to different creative heights to delve into these songs. I like how they ended “South Of Heaven” with the familiar drums to the start of “Raining Blood.” A nice little touch to finish this off.