The Sleazoids: The Cult Of The Sleazoids
LP | CD | DL
Out 29th February 2024
Scuzz-trash garage rock trio The Sleazoids return with their new stripped-down proto-punk album.
Will it be death from above or death by stereo? That’s just what Sheffield trio The Sleazoids ask on VHS Death, the opening song of their new album. It’s a question that sees them situate their blend of trash garage neatly between the two bands. Stripped down and grating the senses, full of attack and drive, gouging and gyrating in equal measure. They power through the album’s twelve tracks, at times spitting slogans of desperation (Roadkill), and recruitment (Cult Of Oid), while at others casting an eye over the underbelly of the city (Soho Sleaze).
As they do it they bring a great blend of proto-punk Stooges-style attack, that fuzz through the floor sound that cranks and drives most of the songs. When they lift the pedal from the metal, they showcase a sultrier style, one that chimes out over a hypnotic slow garage-blues soaked in reverb, such as on Raw Bones, sounding like Nancy Sinatra trapped in a dustbowl dive bar as the sun goes down.
With titles such as Otto’s Shrunken Head, She Witch, and Return Of The Tiki Man, it’s clear that the trio from the Steel City have their eyes set further afield, much like one of their main influences, The Cramps, did; shades of tiki-voodoo influence coming through, albeit directly to the lyrics or via classic New Yor Tiki bars (in the case of Otto’s Shrunken Head). They marry that sound and style with the more ramped-up Medway garage via ’77 punk of songs like Soho Sleaze, the album never sitting for too long in one groove.
Primitive, proto, and primed for action, the new album by The Sleazoids sees them further cement the ideas from their debut. There’s no pretence, just pure love of trash-garage.
The Sleazoids are on Facebook and Bandcamp.
The Cult Of The Sleazoids is available now on Spinout Nuggets.
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Words by Nathan Whittle. Find his Louder Than War archive here.
Nathan also presents From The Garage on Louder Than War Radio every Tuesday at 8pm. Tune in for an hour of fuzz-crunching garage rock ‘n’ roll and catch up on all shows on the From The Garage Mixcloud playlist.
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