The Black Dahlia Murder Drummer Alan Cassidy Joins Slugdge

Boy, this latest Slugdge album sure is fantastic! I’ve seen a whole lot of praise tossed its way, but I’m unsure if the metal writer Twitter echo chamber in which I operate is representative of the metal world at large. Are people into this album as much as we are? You all should be! I just learned that Esoteric Malacology topped Bandcamp’s metal charts and sold out of its first pressing, so that’s definitely encouraging.

Further proof that Slugdge are doing something amazing: The Black Dahlia Murder’s Alan Cassidy has joined the band’s ranks on drums! Cassidy is actively contributing to the writing process for the band’s next record — already underway just two months after the release of Esoteric Malacology — and will not be leaving his post with TBDM. Joining the band’s founders and guitarists Matt Moss and Kev Pearson will also be bassist Moat Lowe of Novena.

Moss offered the following on Cassidy joining the band:

“We learned that Alan was a fan when he included Gastronomicon in his 2014 best albums list. He suggested joining then, but despite the fact that we’re massive fans of TBDM, I didn’t want to convolute our writing process. Eventually it felt right; we’ve always wanted real drums. Obviously he’s an exceptional drummer, so we’re looking forward to letting him do his thing!”

He elaborated:

“They’ll bring exactly what we feel we’ve been lacking, a proper drummer and bassist who understand what they need to do to enhance the music. Me and Kev are guitarists first and foremost; we’ve never really done either of those things justice. They’re both already sending us ideas, but we’ll still be writing in the same way we always have – in our front room, with the dog at the side looking bored.”

Whether this means Slugdge will finally play live remains to be seen, but it certainly seems possible. Let’s hope!

[Louder Sound via The PRP]