Slam

I'm looking forward to a concert next week here in Ottawa. I've been listening to the bands that are coming and thinking a lot about what makes metal heavy.

On May 6, 2026, Necroticgorebeast is headlining a show at the Dominion Tavern. They're a slam band from Québec.

I'd say slam is death metal with a big emphasis on groove. It's got a lot of "chugging," which is what I've heard the kids call super distorted, super low, syncopated, palm-muted riffs. Vocals are like your typical death growl but with an extra oomph so it sounds like pigs at a slaughterhouse. Lyrics are optional. Also, a lot of the imagery that inspires the genre is downright disgusting.

Follow the gnome's advice: "Never look up the meaning of Necroticgorebeast's songs."

If the combination of brutal, groovy, and disgusting sounds goofy, that's because it is. And that's the point. Slam leans into its own absurdity. It's supposed to be silly. It's like death metal trascending its transgressiveness to become a parody of itself. As Damonteal Harris of Peelingflesh said, "Slam is the inside joke of death metal. If you don't get it, you don't get it."

But how much slam can you take until the joke starts getting old? Until the punchline loses its punch? How long until it gets... boring?

That's what I want to find out next Wednesday. I think it's going to be fun for a little bit, then a little too rich for my taste after that. But maybe I'm wrong. We'll see.