Municipal Waste – Slime and Punishment

It’s been a lengthy wait since the last Municipal Waste record, due to seemingly everyone in the band getting involved in some other projects (Cannabis Corpse, Iron Reagan, BAT), but fortunately, the modern crossover gods are back with “Slime and Punishment”, their 6^th full-length. Reverting to the brevity of their older albums, this record runs a mere 29 minutes, and delivers 14 punishing tracks of excellently played, memorable crossover thrash.

The big difference between this record and the previous ones is the addition of second guitarist Nick Poulos. Unsurprisingly, however, there isn’t too much of an impact on the music itself. Municipal Waste’s style of thrash lends itself to chunky rhythm guitars, with few opportunities for having a second shredder to make a difference. There are a couple of pleasant surprises in the form of quick harmonized leads, but they often last just a few seconds before the band reverts to their typical sound. The bass also does seem slightly further into the forefront than it used to be, with a couple of key spotlights later on the record.

Aside from this, “Slime and Punishment” is exactly what you’d expect from Municipal Waste at this point. Each of these songs is short and to the point, and features the stellar riffs of Ryan Waste underneath Tony Foresta’s incessant yelling. Lyrics are pushed out almost non-stop, with the gang-vocal choruses being the only easy parts to discern. But it is these choruses that make so many of these tracks memorable. Sing along anthems like “Breathe Grease”, “Poison The Preacher”, “Slime and Punishment” and “Think Fast” are all highlighted by the fact that they were clearly made to be played live. 

There isn’t anything to fault “Slime and Punishment” for. It doesn’t necessarily have the absolute best tracks that Municipal Waste has ever written, but it is one of their most consistent releases. The only “crossover-mandatory comedy moment” is on “Parole Violators”, but even that doesn’t really distract from the song too much, as it is fairly brief. No time is wasted with slow moments or pointless interludes, as Municipal Waste really goes for it at all times on this album. The band really does everything right here, and that makes “Slime and Punishment” one of Municipal Waste’s best records.

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Highlights

"Breathe Grease"

"Poison The Preacher"

"Slime and Punishment"

"Think Fast"

Final Rating

4.4/5 or 88%. 

Written by Scott