Imagine Pantera’s growling vocals blended with Hoobastank’s melodious rock. Layer under that a foundation of epic heavy metal that makes your whole car quake if you play it loud enough. This is what you get when you’re blasting some Slapshock, a top rap-metal band of the Philippines. With some rather socio-politically themed music videos and a very dark, goth-horror-like album art, this group aims to impact in every outlet they have.
I haven’t yet fully explored all of their albums, but their two most recent ones, Novena (2004) and Silence (2006) are regulars at the top of my playlist, which is mostly populated with music from Asia that you can’t buy on iTunes in the U.S. Some of my favorite songs are on Novena, namely “We are One,” “Return of the Samurai” and “Miles Away.” I’ve got my fingers crossed desperately for an L.A. concert, dreaming of seeing this amazing group pound out their rock on a U.S. stage.
Most of their songs are in English, but my all-time favorite Slapshock song has got to be “Misterio,” which is in Tagalog. If you’re looking to give this band a listen, this would be the song to check out (yes, it’s on YouTube), and let me tell ya, Tagalog never sounded so damn cool as it does when Slapshock rocks it out.