The Slime – ‘Living on Borrowed Slime’ [EP] [Album Review]

Oozing straight out of Toronto’s seedy sewers comes Living on Borrowed Slime, the new EP by metal punks The Slime. With as much of their sound owing to Municipal Waste as it does to Dropdead, the TO quartet is as sloppy and messy as their genre (and name) would indicate. Hell, even the promo was a Rubik’s cube (I still don’t know if I have the right order of the tracks, and that’s after clearing it up with the label), but it’s all good because at the end of it is the music.

The Slime is very much in the vein of the above-mentioned bands, but with enough homage to be paid to acts like Comeback Kid and Cancer Bats to warrant those comparisons. But the group themselves are only interested in playing fast – like, very fast. And that breakneck pace doesn’t stop for anything, not samples nor noise interludes, nor any of the other stuff the kids are up to these days. Instead, it’s an amphetamine tempo with the nastiest riffs and snot-nosed vocals you can imagine. It’s a thrilling development by a band that has up to now been experimenting with sound, fine-tuning until it’s dialled all the way up to 11. And their version of 11 is a hell of a lot higher than most other acts these days.

With the frenetic pace of the band’s EP noted, it’s also its only drawback. The production gives it a veneer of same-y vibes off the hop, but repeated listens reveal the layered work under the hood. With this kind of energy bursting out of the pandemic, there will undoubtedly be droves of listeners looking forward to the next smear of sounds The Slime throws our way.

The Slime

Living on Borrowed Slime Track Listing:

1. Arms Race
2. Real Garbage
3. Forest Walker
4. Lead Channel
5. Instinct
6. Death Champs
7. Ripped From Your Mind
8. Locked In A Cage
9. Shore
10. We Shine
11. What I Owe

Run Time: 12:25
Release Date: May 27, 2022
Record Label: Cursed Blessings Records