Jul 10
8
Slapshock: The undisputed kings of rap metal
Slapshock was the leader of the emergent scene that benefited from the fickle taste of rock fans. The band is composed of five young men – Jamir Garcia on vocals, Lee Nadela on bass, Lean Ansing and Jerry Basco on guitars, and Chi Evora on drums. With the release of their groundbreaking album Fourth Degree Burn, Slapshock was able to provoke reactions from the rock scene. One side was wildly enthusiastic with the arrival of rock’s new heroes. The other side of the rock community was absolutely not going to have any of it. Slapshock’s style was reminiscent of what was becoming big in the international scene back then: rap-metal and rapcore (or even mallcore to some people) bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit were making hay with top-selling albums.
Slapshock hit the scene with the highly infectious “Agent Orange.” It was hardly poetry but it had a catchy tune. The chants of “Agent Orange, get up! Get up! Get up!” would definitely get the people in the mosh pit going. The band had a very tough image and in a time that the rock scene was slowly evolving to a different version of hard rock, such a departure from the status quo was a sexy alternative.
The band would become one of the most sought after live acts in the gig circuit. Slapshock was relentless in pushing their name and their albums and their label absolutely loved them for it. Aside from “Agent Orange,” the other cuts from the debut album also became radio and concert favorites. The gems from the first album included “Evil Clown” and “Sick Curtain.”
The lyrics didn’t really mean much, and for a lot of people, this was a major sticking point. While Jamir Garcia had a very strong and visceral growl, some of his shortcomings in the enunciation of certain sounds – most notably the soft th sound – made listening to his singing a lot less impressive and listenable.
