Rare, because it’s not often you find a band with as long and successful a run as Slot. 21 years and still going strong. Earth, because you won’t find a more grounded band. Consistent quality without pretension - just solid dedicated musicianship. Metal, because that’s the greater part of their repertoire, although they step out of the frame at times, and when they do the result is always excellent.
Founded in 2002 by Igor Lobanov, Denis Khromykh and Sergey Bogolyubsky, Slot released their first album in 2003 with vocalist Teona Dolnikova. Dolnikova left the band in 2004 and was replaced by Uliana Elina until 2006, when she was replaced by Daria "Nuki” Stavrovich, Slot’s current female vocalist.
Current members:
Daria "Nuki" Stavrovich (vocals)
Igor "CASH" Lobanov (vocals)
Vasily "Ghost" Gorshkov (drums)
Sergei "ID" Bogolyubsky (guitar)
Nikita Muraviev (bass guitar)
Releases: 11 albums, 2 mini-albums, 2 DVDs, 20 singles and several soundtracks.
Slot has had several personnel changes over the years. For a full timeline and other details about the band: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slot_(band)
Official website: https://slot.ru
Aside from the music, one of the things I love about this band is their fashion sense. Slot is probably one of the most photographed bands in Russia, and one of the more unique in their stage presentation. I don’t want to clutter up this post with images, but if you go here you’ll find plenty of them. Definitely worth a peek.
This one looks like something the Residents would come up with.
I could write a lot more about this band, but I prefer to do short summaries rather than repeat what’s already been said in a dozen different places. Instead I’ll just include links to the most up to date information I can find on featured artists.
Audiophiles will notice some fairly bad clipping on some of the tracks. Sorry, but there was nothing I could do about it. Slot, like so many other bands, appear to be victims of the ‘Loudness War’ or what I call ‘Spinal Tap Syndrome.’
The weakest link in the audio chain should be the listener’s equipment, not the damn recording. I don’t know why bands don’t get this and insist on proper recording levels. Sure, it comes out quieter on end-guy’s stereo, but that’s where 11 comes in. You should never push it that far in the recording, especially a group like Slot, with their wide dynamic range and rich harmonics. /end rant.
Interesting at first. Not a bad sound if it were only done sporadically. It's catchy pop metal. But all the songs have the same formula. The basic limitation here is that the presentation is not only pop, it's nu-metal. Granted it's not gangsta crap. He's not trying to sound hard. He doesn't come off like a Pimp Daddy angry at life. "Ya know, pimpin ain't easy. " But his emotional expressiveness is limited by the predictable rap cadence.
Since he raps/yaps on every song, all the songs share the same limited melodic line. Fortunately the girls add passion and actual vocal chops while what sounds like uncredited keyboards decorate gothic touches around the edges. That's a most welcome bit of orchestration to the pop puree. That and the fashion sensibility kept my interest longer than the songwriting warranted. Since I don't understand Russian I may be selling his lyrics short. Perhaps he's saying something clever and worthwhile. Unfortunately I find the vocal style to be juvenile!