Slick and the Silver Riders is the solo project of Alex Slack. Born out of the pandemic and a renewed creative vision, the project follows “Slick,” a drifting cowboy who keeps getting into trouble. That might make you think of a more Western/country sound, but Slack’s project is more in line with The Violet Burning and other indie rock/shoegaze bands. With two albums already under his gun belt, Slick and the Silver Riders is back for the next adventure, Silverliner. Over the course of eight tracks, the story seems to follow Slick as he struggles with chasing “silver and gold” (the title track, “Night Rider”) and coming around to a better way (“Lily Liver,” “Kentucky Haze”). The “Western” setting mixed with a shoegaze style makes for a unique listen and gives the album some charm. Slack also does a good job of moving the story along bit by bit with each track. What really holds this album back, however, is the mix for the vocals. Slack’s delivery is wispy and layered over by hazy effects. The result is the vocals often get buried beneath everything else happening sonically on the track. One might be able to pick out the words with the lyrics handy while listening, but even then, there were times where this reviewer missed words or phrases because they were blending too much with the instrumentation. If the mix is tweaked, this album becomes much stronger. The musicianship is well-done, the lyrics tell a story, but the story gets a little lost in the mix. If the vocals aren’t a problem for you and you just want the “vibes,” then joining Slick and the Silver Riders for a jaunt on Silverliner might be a pleasant listening experience.
Rising Sun (4:17)
Silverliner (3:24)
Night Rider (4:49)
Lily Liver (5:07)
A Western Dance (3:11)
Melt (4:25)
Let’s Ride (2:59)
Kentucky Haze (6:00)
– Review date: 5/8/26, written by John Underdown of Jesusfreakhideout.com
Record Label: None
Album length: 8 tracks: 34 minutes, 12 seconds
Street Date: May 5, 2026
Buy It: Amazon Music (MP3)
