Review: The Lord Weird Slough Feg ‘Traveller Supplement 1: The Ephemeral Glades’ EP
The Lord Weird Slough Feg, also known as simply Slough Feg, presents a sequel to their 2003 masterpiece Traveller with Traveller Supplement 1: The Ephemeral Glades. Released as a twenty-three-minute EP, it plays like a facsimile or an extension of the original story.
Formed in Pennsylvania in 1990 and now based in the San Francisco Bay Area, they were named after a character from the Celtic-inspired comic Sláine. The band draws heavily from traditional classic heavy metal influences like Riot, Manilla Road, Omen, Brocas Helm, and Cirith Ungol and their music blends classic metal with Celtic folk elements and lyrical themes of fantasy and mythology.
Traveller from 2003 is the perfect record – based on a role-playing game, with a catchy thematic of a dark space world full of mutants, villains, and an anti-hero, the record shows Slough Feg at its peak in inspiration and instrumentation. It features the band’s best lineup to date: Mike Scalzi (vocals, guitars), John Cobbett (guitars), Adrian Maestas (bass), and Greg Haa (drums). Traveller, in a word, is their consolidation as they reached their peak as a cult band, and all these characteristics made Traveller a beloved record by the band and their fans.
Now in 2025, Traveller Supplement 1: The Ephemeral Glades was born where the main story was left, made in the same studio where Traveller was recorded, with the original producer and engineer, Justin Weis that also maintains the form and sound of the 2003 release.
A long and complex start leads into the opening track, Knife World, with lyrics that tell the story of Mithril and a cosmic crusade. The Black Circle, an instrumental with a doom atmosphere, it is the perfect intro for Mission On Mithril, a song that reminds me more of the New Organon album from 2019 than Traveller, but it fits perfectly here. The band’s new incarnation sounds at the same level as they was in 2003, the guitar solos are very well crafted and polished.
It’s the psychology of exile, rebellion, and purpose, told in just over twenty minutes of pure narrative driven metal..
On The Ephemeral Glades, Slough Feg resonates with more presence, and I can feel the same in Magnetic Fluctuations, both tracks are my highlights as the changes and complexity make a difference. Ice Shelf Stomp and Vargr Reprise, are the continuation of the original Traveller while at the same time, are part of a kind of an open ending.
Supplement 1 is more than a sequel, it’s a mirror. Where the original journey was wide, this one is deep. It’s the psychology of exile, rebellion, and purpose, told in just over twenty minutes of pure narrative driven metal. Slough Feg have managed to overcome lineup changes and still maintain their signature sound from the ’90s to today, and that’s what keeps me listening and following all their adventures and fantasies.
The band leaves you wanting more, and since there’s no choice, we just have to wait for the next part or extension of their story… although with The Lord Weird Slough Feg, you never know.
Label: Cruz Del Sur Music
Band Links: Official | Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Renzo
