When you hear of a band hailing from the depths of Connemara you would be forgiven for thinking they play traditional Irish music. But in fact, Ten Ton Slug are a sludge metal band who have played on some of the biggest metal stages out there.

Definitions can vary, but sludge metal is a genre of heavy metal music with contrasting tempos and often shouting vocals. There are rich grooves, heaviness and aggressiveness which might lead you to think that the people who partake are like that too.

“We are happy people. It’s a great outlet for us,” says guitarist Seán Ó Súilleabháin.

“The music might be aggressive, but it doesn’t mean we are aggressive people. In the same way with certain sports, it’s just a release of energy. When you are passionate about something it all carries over but we are actually quite nice lads.”

Ten Ton Slug have had a number of members come and go since they first started gigging in 2014. It all started with brothers Seán and Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin from Loch Con Aortha in the Connemara Gaeltacht.

“Since Mícheál was 13 we were writing music together. We both moved to Galway city and we wanted to do proper gigs, so Rónán joined us and two other guys.

We opened the main stage at Metaldays in Slovenia and we played a song which we wrote in the shed in Connemara

“One left to go home and we swapped bassists at that point, but now our bassist is Pavol and everything is solid,” says Sean. “I had an acoustic guitar and I liked it but when I got the electric I said, ’This is exactly what I want’. My brother got the drums and we played together. We grew up with a lot of trad music and sean nós around. I appreciate it and it’s of cultural significance, but metal speaks to me more.”

The brothers practiced in their shed in Connemara and wrote some of their songs in the shed.

“We opened the main stage at Metaldays in Slovenia and we played a song which we wrote in the shed in Connemara. Afterwards, myself and Mícheál looked at each other and went, ‘That was weird. We just played that to a thousand people’.”

Farming connections

All the villages around Loch Con Aortha – where Seán and Mícheál are from – have nicknames for each other as Gaeilge. Their village’s nickname is “Na Seilide” which translates to the slugs or snails. The lads took a little inspiration from this.

“We wanted something that represented the music we play; that made you visualise something big and heavy, a Ten Ton Slug represented the monstrosity that is the music. The link with our village just gave a nice hint to where we are from.”

Our father has Connemara ponies and we grew up with potato and vegetable ridges

Almost all members have connections to farming in some shape or form. “Our father has Connemara ponies and we grew up with potato and vegetable ridges; feeding ponies and digging drains. Rónán’s family have a social farm in Cavan. We asked Pavol, who is from Slovakia, did he have any farming background and he replied that he had seen a tractor once,” Seán explains.

Mind yourself

The guttural vocal technique uses the diaphragm and air pressure to shape the vocals. This is an important technique to know because otherwise you can strain your voice, says Seán.

“My range is limited, I just do big long roars while Rónán has a wide vocal range. When I was a teenager playing football I would be shouting and roaring.

I noticed after the second gig that I had badly strained my voice because I used the wrong techniques

“I could roar particularly loud, deep and scary. It was a little bit of a novelty, then I started to develop it a bit from listening to other bands.

“Before Rónán joined, I did the vocals. I noticed after the second gig that I had badly strained my voice because I used the wrong techniques. After that, I became more careful with warming up and researching how to do it properly. Rónán has a real talent for it though.”

Full-time job

With the introduction of YouTube and Spotify it is much easier to get yourself out there in the public eye but difficult to get to the next step. In that respect, each of the band members have jobs outside of the band.

“Everything is in reach of the average punter, but by the same token it’s more difficult to take the step up to the next level. There’s more people clambering to get the same thing. I would love for it to be my full-time job. I’m an English teacher, Rónán works in the film and TV industry as an editor, Mícheál is a chef and Pavol is a sound engineer and teaches swimming.

Like with farming, you try to do everything you can and get the most out of what you have

“What we get from the band goes back into the band. Like with farming, you try to do everything you can and get the most out of what you have. That’s key to how we approach everything. We put in enough for a full-time job with music, writing and recording but we don’t see the financial return of a full-time job. We like doing it, we wouldn’t be doing it if we didn’t.”

Ten Ton Slug are currently working on their album, which they hope to release next year and are planning a European tour in the summer. Check them out on social media channels @tentonslug