Grab your patch jacket, chug a beer, and get ready to mosh, because Municipal Waste, thrash metal’s speediest band, are back with a brand new album – Slime and Punishment. It has been five long years since Municipal Waste’s last full length album, The Fatal Feast, and fans have been eagerly awaiting the sixth instalment from the Virginian thrash quintet. We here at Moshville Times have been lucky enough to get a sneak preview of Slime and Punishment, you can take our word for it: the wait has been worth it.
Municipal Waste have once again brought their old school thrash metal style to the table, a sound which is something of a rarity in the modern metal scene, with he band focusing on offering an intense, fast, and heavy experience. This trimming of the fat where Waste throw away any frills or indulgences, focusing entirely on providing an immediate burst of pure metal, is something fans can expect to be carried on throughout Slime and Punishment. The album continues the immediacy for which Waste have become known, with no track exceeding three minutes, and any concept of intros or outros, both on the album and within each individual song, being entirely disregarded. This means that you are thrown into a whirlpool of thrash metal without so much as a warning, with Waste clearly having no interest in whether you are ready for their unique brand of metal or not, and instead simply thrusting it upon you.
Though certain characteristics have been carried over from previous recordings, it is important to note that these are moreso traits of the band, and not negatives towards Slime and Punishment itself. Municipal Waste’s sixth full-length album actually comes across as far more ferocious and intense than previous releases, making Fatal Feast sound like a lullaby by comparison! The opening track, “Breathe Grease”, explodes into being as soon as you even think about pushing the play button, expertly demonstrating exactly how the rest of the album will follow, and acts as an example to the barbarity waiting to be heard.
Tracks such as “Parole Violators” and “Excessive Celebration” follow in its footsteps, erupting in to a high-intensity free-for-all as soon as they begin, with vocalist Tony Forensa’s harsh, shouted lyrics incomprehensible due to the sheer speed of the song. However, standing at only forty nine seconds long, “Enjoy the Night” truly steals the show in of savagery on Slime and Punishment. Packed full of shouted group vocals and percussion so fast it’s a wonder that drummer Dave Witte didn’t spontaneously combust, “Enjoy the Night” is over almost before it begins, and embodies exactly what Municipal Waste stand for.
Though Waste are clearly keen on playing at the fastest speed possible whilst also having their music sound incredibly hard, there are a few shining moments within Slime and Punishment where the group slow their pace to bring some truly, crushingly heavy riffs. The hilariously titled “Shrednecks” acts as a typical example of the band’s furious speed until about halfway through when the track slows down, trudging along at a marching pace, with new guitarist Nick Poulus able to prove his worth alongside original member Ryan Waste. The track becomes an instrumental with a bone-shatteringly heavy guitar riff taking centre stage, while a high-pitched guitar squeals in the background before it all fades in to nothing. Similarly, “Death Proof” begins at a fairly moderate pace, something which allows bassist Land Phil to take centre stage and show off his crunchy bass riffs, taking the forefront in between the distortion-tinged guitars.
Carrying on their legacy of fast and furious thrash metal, Municipal Waste have risen from their half-decade long hiatus alive and kicking. Slime and Punishment is an example of what thrash has the potential to be – an intense burst of hard and heavy tracks which play at ludicrous speeds and are, at their core, thoroughly enjoyable and good fun. So grab some friends, grab some beers, turn up the volume. Municipal Waste are back.
Slime and Punishment is out June 23rd and is available to pre-order here.
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