Slugdge is a British
extreme metal
Extreme metal is a loosely defined umbrella term for a number of related heavy metal music subgenres that have developed since the early 1980s. It has been defined as a "cluster of metal subgenres characterized by sonic, verbal, and visual tran ...
band, formed in
Lancashire
Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated ''Lancs'') is a ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Cumbria to the north, North Yorkshire and West Yorkshire to the east, Greater Manchester and Merseyside to the south, and the Irish Sea to ...
, England, in 2012. Originally a studio project headed by former
No Sin Evades His Gaze guitarist Kevin Pearson and vocalist Matthew Moss, in 2018 the group expanded into a full lineup with the addition of No Sin Evades His Gaze bassist Matthew Lowe, and
The Black Dahlia Murder drummer Alan Cassidy. The group has released four studio albums to date.
History
Slugdge was originally formed by friends Kevin Pearson and Matt Moss in 2012, as a response to the amount of
sludge metal
Sludge metal (also known as sludge doom or simply sludge) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that combines elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. The genre generally includes slow tempos, down-tuned guitars and nihilis ...
groups named after animals. Inspired by
Akercocke, the group themed their songs around a fictional cosmic slug deity called "Mollusca". They released their first three albums, ''Born of Slime'' (2013), ''Gastronomicon'' (2014) and ''Dim & Slimeridden Kingdoms'' (2015) independently through
Bandcamp
Bandcamp is an American online music distribution platform founded in 2008 by Oddpost co-founder Ethan Diamond and programmers Shawn Grunberger, Joe Holt and Neal Tucker, with an office and record store in Oakland, California. Acquired by Epic ...
(the latter two being featured by
Stereogum
''Stereogum'' is a daily Internet publication that focuses on music news, reviews, interviews, and commentary. The site was created in January 2002 by Scott Lapatine.
''Stereogum'' was one of the first MP3 blogs and has received several awar ...
's best of lists for their respective years), before signing to Willowtip Records in 2017.
The band released their fourth album, ''Esoteric Malacology'', on 2 March 2018 via Willowtip. The album was exclusively streamed via
MetalSucks.net in the days leading up to the release. Shortly after the album's release, which topped Bandcamp's metal chart, the pair unveiled Matthew Lowe as the group's full-time bassist. Then, on 9 April 2018, the full lineup was completed by the arrival of Alan Cassidy of
The Black Dahlia Murder on drums. At the end of the year, ''Esoteric Malacology'' was included by ''
Sputnikmusic
Sputnikmusic (abbreviated as Sputnik) is a music website that publishes music reviews and news entries. The site hosts both professional and amateur content, covering metal, punk, indie, rock, hip-hop, pop and other styles. Its reviews are us ...
'' in its list of "the top 50 albums of 2018".
Members
*Matthew Moss – vocals, guitars
(2012–present)
*Kevin Pearson – guitars
(2012–present), bass, programming
(2012–2018)
*Matthew Lowe – bass
(2018–present)
*Alan Cassidy – drums
(2018–present)
Discography
Studio albums
*''Born of Slime'' (2013, self-released)
*''Gastronomicon'' (2014, self-released)
*''Dim & Slimeridden Kingdoms'' (2015, self-released)
*''Esoteric Malacology'' (2018, Willowtip)
Extended Plays
*''Slug Life'' (2015, self-released)
Compilations
*''The Cosmic Cornucopia'' (2015, self-released)
References
{{Authority control
Musical groups established in 2012
British heavy metal musical groups
Extreme metal musical groups
British sludge metal musical groups
2012 establishments in England