SLOUGH FEG – The Animal Spirits

SLOUGH FEG - The Animal Spirits
  • 6.5/10
    SLOUGH FEG - The Animal Spirits - 6.5/10
6.5/10

Summary

Cruz Del Sur Music
Release date: October 22, 2010

Sending
User Review
0/10 (0 votes)

The San Francisco-based band, The Lord Weird Slough Feg (a.k.a. Slough Feg), whose name is derived from a character in Irish mythology, is celebrating their 20th anniversary in 2010. They have been described as performing “Folk Metal”, a very uncommon sub-genre. Their latest and eighth full-length album, The Animal Spirits, is a very eclectic offering, which holds true to their ideal of taking a stand against mainstream music trends.

The music on The Animal Spirits could be described as if Thin Lizzy and Twisted Sister somehow copulated and reproduced. The vocals of lead singer/ guitarist Michael Scalzi are very reminiscent of the great Dee Snider. They are gritty and rough and come across as if his balls are continuously being squeezed while singing. Although Scalzi doesn’t appear to have an incredibly broad range, his high-end screeches mix well with the heavy guitar riffs displayed on each track.

All the tracks are laden with extremely dense riffs, which give the album an almost 70’s Rock sound. The dual guitar team of Angelo Tringali and Scalzi do an excellent job of performing the simultaneous riffs and melodies, as well as breaking off into tandem solos. You are not going to hear anything fast or shredding from the team, just pure, simple hardened riffs that drive the songs.

Some of the highlights on this album include the opening track “Trick The Vicar”, which is a faster song that sets the tone for the album’s heavy rock theme. Another great song is “Lycanthropic Fantasies”, which is a slower, driving melody that really brings out the inner Dee Snider from Scalzi. Arguably the best song on The Animal Spirits is “Second Coming,” which begins with an acoustic, story-telling piece and then melds into a beautiful rolling melody featuring some of the smoothest guitar solos heard on the album.

From a production standpoint, the music has a somewhat “garageband” feel. The band does appear to be playing live for each track. It is not really produced with cutting-edge clear precision, but still mixed well enough to hear each instrument very clearly.

Overall, Slough Feg is a good, quick listen and a good party album. About half of the eleven tracks are three minutes or less, so you get the sense some are underdeveloped from a songwriting stand point. That being said, Slough Feg does already have a cult fan base established, and since they do not play a mainstream genre of Metal, new fans will be far and few between.

Author

  • Sean Meloy

    Sean Meloy was a reviewer, interviewer and DJ here at Metal Express Radio, based out of Iowa , USA. By day he is a straight laced, buttoned up, number crunching accountant; armed with his portable calculator. All other times he is a hard rocking Metal head! He spent many hours listening to records and 8-tracks with his father. Classic bands such as Deep Purple, Pink Floyd, Kansas, Led Zeppelin, and Eric Clapton just to name a few. His father bought him his first record, Kiss Alive II, at age 6. By the time he reached his teens he was discovering all the Classic Metal of the 1980’s; Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Twisted Sister, etc. He became a huge fan of the Thrash Metal of the time as well; Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Exodus, and Overkill. During the 1990’s he experimented with the Grunge and Hard Rock. However, by the time the millennium came he found himself going back to his roots and rebuilt the music collection he started in his teens.

    View all posts

Be the first to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.


*


This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

The reCAPTCHA verification period has expired. Please reload the page.