This release is probably going to
confuse quite a few people when they realise that the person behind Slimivich
is none other than Slim Jenkins from Christchurch metal outfit Tainted, here
back with his first new music in some time. But this isn’t metal, it is rap/hip-hop
being taken in a new direction. This is not a style of music I often listen to,
as for the most part I just don’t understand it (even I don’t like everything,
and I have very broad tastes indeed), but there is something about this song
which is strangely compelling. Most of that is down to the musical soundscapes
he pits his vocals against, as this is Krautrock combined with industrial
elements, and his lyrics are delivered in a somewhat slower style than many
rappers and this combination creates something different, almost unsettling, which
grabs the listener.
Those expecting something similar to his previous band will be in for a surprise, as although it would be a brave man to open for 8 Foot Sativa or Blindspott with this as he has with Tainted in the past, I can certainly see him fitting in well with the likes of Written By Wolves as in some ways he is just taking their dance music stylings further in the same direction (with far less guitar). There is a darkness behind this, which is more obvious in the intro and outro, when he is not vocalising, and while never metallic there is no doubt that he has taken some of his more extreme influences into this which has assisted in creating something which is combining different genres in an unusual manner. It will be interesting to see what he does with an album, but for now we will need to stay satisfied with a single which is intriguing.
Slimivich is the new sonic expression of barely suppressed rage from seasoned Otautahi metal front man 'Slim' Jenkins of Tainted infamy.
An entirely new direction for this veteran of the New Zealand heavy music scene, Slimivich doesn’t explode like previous metal releases, instead it radiates and crackles with all the danger and allure of overloaded high voltage circuits, glowing and arcing in the dark. From the chilling omen of haunting whispers , to the grueling punishment of unrelenting bass and synth, right up to the searing inferno of eruptive crescendo, Slimivich seeks to explore the depth and breadth of what could be considered “heavy” music.
Vocally this self driven project stems from a life long love of politically charged Rap and Hardcore Punk, simply punctuating it with flashes of more familiar heavy metal violence. All this vocal energy is dissolved into dark and shimmering self produced soundscapes that owe more to industrial, downbeat electronic, post-metal and shoe-gaze genres than the past hard hitting releases fans are accustomed to.