Slam
“DRUMTRAX Vol. 1”
Soma
Active for more than three decades, Slam have done just about everything over the course of their storied career, but if their new DRUMTRAX series is any indication, the Scottish duo aren’t too interested in calmly riding off into the sunset. Promising “maximum impact” and “pure percussive power,” the DRUMTRAX records will apparently contain only a single track each, and they’ve started very strong with the relentless “DRUMTRAX Vol. 1.” Charging ahead with the pulsing intensity of an old Robert Hood record, the tune largely eschews melody, focusing instead on its burly drum attack, which is bolstered by a severely corroded synth and a deadpan vocal sample that ominously repeats the word “control” again and again. Jovial it is not, but Slam clearly understand that in the context of a sweaty dancefloor, a good battering can be a whole lot of fun.