Scum apparently isn’t the typical black ‘n’ roll band. Each member in this project is a leader, which makes everything much more powerful. You have the eccentric punk rocker Casey Chaos (Amen), Samoth and Faust (Emperor) appearing together on an album for the first time in over 10 years, denim stud-rocker Happy Tom (Turbonegro) and the fresh blood of Cosmocrator (Windir) with the intention to create black metal-influenced punk rock... or as they see it, "black metal with a real punk rock attitude." Featuring guests such as Nocturno Culto (The Perfect Mistake), Mortiis (Backstabbers Go To Heaven), and Knut Schreider (Throw Up On You), heavy metal fun is the only mentality that comes to mind.
For those of you expecting something like newer Satyricon or Darkthrone’s “Motorhead” obsession, you’re only partially in the right. Scum definitely has a punk attitude, but more in the vein of The Sex Pistols meets mid-career Slayer. Deathpunkscum*** and the title track are great examples of this with their raw vocal delivery and varied speeds of thrashy punk riffs with fast black n roll style drum work. The metal influence is greatly due to Samoth’s randomized solos and black metal chord progressions that come through sporadically. Then again, Backstabbers Go To Heaven opens with a very classic punk drum fill turning into a consistent-tempo repetition of a couple driving riffs and anthemized choruses. The multiple influences spread out through the record help the toleration of what’s a rather long album for this style, especially Nocturno Culto’s filthy growls on The Perfect Mistake, a track easily more enjoyable than anything Darkthrone has been doing recently.
Oddly enough, yet not so surprising, the pros are the cons. The vocal delivery rarely diverges from Casey’s coarse yell, the punk riffs become samey, and the overall feel of the album loses its excitement over time, making this a record you can only pop in every once in a while in order to fully enjoy it. This doesn’t mean this isn’t worth a listen as over half of these tracks are excellent examples of blackened punk (see Gospels For The Sick and The Perfect Mistake for best headbanging results). Other than that, don’t take this completely seriously, this record is pure fun and anger, just put it on and smash some holes in the wall (your parents will pay for it), and let the punk inside you protest life. Chainsaw Sex!!
“It's just another way to die, it’s just another easy suicide, you're just another whore in paradise, we're on the road to suffrage tonight!”
