Checked in with Backslider quite early on, but to tell you the truth it was only with the London leg of their UK tour and the ‘Motherfucker’ LP that I really started paying attention. ‘Psychic Rot’ sees them take the bones of what they were working with there, set them aflame and snort the ground-up ashes to usher forth a malevolent mix of grind, sludge, power violence and weirdo electronics. While on paper that might make Gasp, Column Of Heaven and Unyielding Love spring to mind Backslider are in fact doing their own merry thing, and the sanest comparison I can come up with seems to be Bloodlet having a go at some Despise You songs. While that mightn’t make too much sense the results are a real blast if you’re looking for something that’s as much a head-scratcher as a head-smasher.
