Last year, I had the good fortune to be invited to a showcase
concert for Slipdisc Records in Chicago. As I was walking in,
someone at the label was there throwing copies of
Slip This On And Rock Hard, a compilation album of acts on
the label, into the hands of concert attendees. (They were also
handing out – I swear, I’m not making this up – condoms that had
the same packaging as the cover image. When asked if I wanted a
few, I said, “I’m married. What would I need these for?”)
Only recently did I re-discover this disc in the hallowed halls
of the Pierce Memorial Archives, and decided to do as the title
suggested. If you’re interested in finding out what the
industrial/alternative scene is like these days, this disc would be
a great place to start.
The seven bands featured on this disc cannot easily be shoved
into one particular category. The Clay People are just as much hard
rock as they are industrial; the same could be said for Rorschach
Test (who happened to be the band that impressed me the most at the
show that night), who check in on this album with “Satan” (a great
cut off their
Unclean disc) and a remix of “Sex” (originally done by
Berlin). As for The Clay People, the live rendition of “Car Bomb”
is killer; this was another performance that stood out in my mind
that evening.
But industrial music is more than just heavy electronics and
screaming; many of the other bands featured on
Slip This On And Rock Hard demonstrate this. 13 Mg.
impresses with “Way Down”, and even though a 12-minute “beat mix”
of “Sinister” might scare some people off, the time passes rather
quickly. (That being said, I think it still could have been lopped
down a couple of minutes.)
Other bands waiting to make their acquaintances with you on this
disc are N17 (“Version 1.2,” “Kontrol”), Nihil (“Nowhere To Hide,”
“Under Me”), Mary’s Window (“Penny Red,” “Strychnine”) and Final
Cut (“It Comes Too,” “Shake”).
But as good as these performances are, I’d be hard-pressed to
say that any of them would have inspired me to go out and purchase
their corresponding albums. Sure, I loved the two Rorschach Test
cuts and Final Cut impresses with “Shake” – but for me, this
sampler is just enough to satisfy my tastes. If you’re big into the
alternative or industrial world, then this disc might just make you
want to pick up the full albums. (Then again, chances are you would
already have them.)
Slip This On And Rock Hard is just enough industrial to keep
any listener going for a while – and somehow, I don’t think that
was the intention of the record company.
