Just because it sounds cliché doesn’t make it any less true: If it weren’t for a pandemic, Wildcat Slim’s Smorgasbord might not be as tasty.
The Boston band’s new record, which dropped last Friday, October 14, spoons out heaping servings of heightened emotions, ranging from malaise-turned-shame to steely acceptance. The initial recipe called for the album to be recorded piecemeal in 2020, but when COVID-19 dissolved that schedule, Wildcat Slim were forced to back away from their banquet.
“All plans were thrown out the window and we were put into an indefinite holding pattern,” bassist Matt Bailin shares. Wildcat Slim let their budding Smorgasbord stew for another year, marinating in moods shaped by current events (or in some cases, a lack thereof). By the time the group safely reconvened in 2021 to record new material in Western Massachusetts, the emotional ingredients at their disposal were more nuanced and complex.
“Without the pandemic, this album would have been made and released some time ago, but it would have a totally different flavor and would be missing some key songs that were written during that time,” Bailin notes. “‘Toeing The Line’ was written at a time where I was home almost 24/7 for months on end feeling like my whole life is passing me by. ‘Coward’s Playbook’ was written in the wake of the capitol riot on January 6.”
It’s a lot to stomach, even looking back a full year later. But a spoonful of Smorgasbord helps listeners make sense of reality, one savory bite at a time.
Hear Wildcat Slim dish it all out below.