The newest release from this excellent NYC duo does not waste any time making it clear that they came to level the place: the opening track (“Brooklyn”) is a sloppy, full-on garage rock rave-up with raucous, stomping drums and an endearingly regressive and exuberant blues rock riff. Aside from the warped, howling, and Sonic Youth-damaged guitars and wordless vocals that periodically burst into the mix, there is absolutely no indication at all that Sara Cavic and Andy Borsz might be serious improvisers (which they are).

That messy, alcohol-fueled salvo is definitely not one of the duo’s best or most representative moments, but it is a very effective statement of intent. Slasher Risk is a refreshingly gutsy and unpredictable band in an often sterile and overly intellectual field. Of course, none of that would matter if they weren’t also extremely good at what they do. The rest of the album, however, is unwaveringly excellent and covers quite a bit of stylistic ground. “Eight Belles” is a meditative, but subtly dissonant, foray into droning guitar ambiance, while the two tracks that follow plunge into sheer white noise electronic chaos (“Pall Mall”) and bludgeoning, Swans-esque rock (the live “Kyoto”) with skill and visceral abandon. Andy and Sara create one hell of an impressive cacophony with their small arsenal of guitars, electronics, and a drum kit and must be absolutely face-melting live. This is inspired stuff. 8/10 -- Anthony D'Amico (17 September, 2009)