STREAMING: Trap Them “Slumcult and Gather”

By: Chris D. Posted in: featured, gnarly one-offs, listen On: Monday, February 28th, 2011

Trap Them Bananas Bandanas

OK, Entombed’s Wolverine Blues hit store shelves and my gut on October 4, 1993. That’s like almost 18 years ago. To date, no single band has been able to capture the immediacy of rock ‘n’ roll and the grit of death metal quite like heyday–for certain individuals; not me, the Crawl EP is the pinnacle–Entombed. Not even Entombed have topped Entombed, and trust me they’ve tried desperately. Short of Nicke Andersson and Uffe Cederlund rejoining the Stockholm bruisers, Entombed post-DCLXVI: To Ride Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth ain’t really Entombed. Sacrilege, hyperbole, or just a moronic assessment of a band’s music after key members bolted? Maybe. That’s just me.

But I’ll argue Granite Staters–that’s a silly reference to folk hailing from New Hampshire–Trap Them may have finally closed the gaping hole Entombed created and unfortunately fell into after they ruled the death ‘n’ roll roost for two unbelievable albums. Yeah, Trap Them sport Starbucks barista hairdos, but their punk/hardcore ethos infuses a brutal sense of urgency into what could be but isn’t a snore-inducing barrage of buzzing guitars, throat-eviscerating vocals, and foot-shuffling, d-beated drums. Trap Them kind of rule. They’re not terribly dynamic, but when music for sheetrocking, traffic wrangling, or ass-kicking is required, well, there’s no better alternative. Sure, Sarah McLachlan is a close second, but her new album, Laws of Illusion, is a bit too pastoral.

Since I don’t feel the urge to sheetrock anything at the moment, but I do want to kick ass at wrangling traffic (daily commutes on Philadelphia’s Interstate 76 will do that to you.), I’m going to premiere–yes, with permission–Trap Them’s new tune “Slumcult and Gather”. What’s a slumcult? Dunno, but here’s the jam, motherfuckers.

“Slumcult and Gather”

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** Trap Them’s Darker Handcraft is out March 8, 2011 on vinyl and March 15, 2011 on CD/digital on Prosthetic Records. Order it here. If you dare.

  • Jessmode

    Come on man, Entombed’s ‘Uprising’ killed!

  • rowdy1

    Morning Star is my 3rd favorite Entombed album, after the 2 classics.

  • Revhorton

    holy crap… their new drummer really delivers. Great fit for the band.

    with how much Entombed gets talked about in conjunction with Trap Them you would think they share members or something. it’s just a similar guitar tone for gods sake.

    • Chris D.

      Guitar tone in metal is almost like everything. Almost. Now, if they had Sarah McLachlan singing for them, then, well, they’d still be compared to Entombed circa Wolverine Blues.

      • Revhorton

        I guess I am always looking at things from the drummer’s seat. I would never compare a band with copious amounts of blasting and a pace more akin to Converge to death ‘n’ roll. Maybe if we were invoking Left Hand Path… but Wolverine Blues?

        It’s like saying Slayer and Jimi Hendrix were similar because they both play Flying V’s and have Marshall amps.

        • Chris D.

          I hear Converge too, but the Entombed reference, to me, is more pronounced with the guitar tone, riffing style, etc. So the comparison is made. It’s not exact. Just like Entombed and Dismember aren’t exactly the same. I hear way more Wolverine Blues than Left Hand Path, pace notwithstanding.

          I think Slayer and Jimi Hendrix Flying V comparison doesn’t really work here. They’re from vastly different eras with vastly different mindsets, approaches and aesthetics. You could argue the same for Trap Them vs. Entombed as well, but there are more similarities than differences. Then again, it’s just my ear not yours.

    • andrew

      i agree, the only merit in the Entombed comparisons is the guitar tone.. this song is way too “-core” sounding for me to say that it could satiate the hunger left by a legendary album like Wolverine Blues.

  • Bryon

    Solid tune!!!! Great structure and shit!!!!!

  • Brainman

    However… Sarah McLachlan last album its pretty good… no irony here

    • Chris D.

      Brainmain… Agreed!

  • jaychappy

    Rad tune yo! Maybe not for a 4:20 blaze brah but any other time it effin’ rocks yo. boner brah!

    • jaychappy

      p.s
      hey nerds! don’t compare it to other shit. If ya dig it then cool. If ya don’t dig it then move on… fuckin’ nerds!

  • mick

    and yea, you’re an idiot Chris D!
    stop using influential groups as a reference to fucking upstart yanks claiming their stakes at the Extreme Metal elite. typical boring rock n’ roll journalism. you fools here at Decibel are no different from the magazines you loathe.

    • Albert

      Let’s try it another way then: Entombed haven’t released a good album in over a decade. Check out Trap Them.

    • Chris D.

      Mick. I am an idiot and a fool! Thanks for noticing. Also, I don’t loathe other magazines. Presumptuous, no? There are barely any magazines left! I well-wish the extreme metal magazines/’zines still in circulation the best. Enjoy Trap Them.