The Thrash Metal Thread
Xentrix - "For Whose Advantage?" (1990)
I purchased a cassette copy of the sophomore album from these English thrash metallers around 1990/91 after quite enjoying the dubbed copy of their debut album "Shattered Existence" I'd received from an older school mate. Xentrix are often criticized for being Metallica clones but the reality is that it's really just the vocals that are responsible for that with the rest of the instrumentation sounding much more similar to Testament, only with a slightly more complex edge that reminds me of a band like Heathen. This is another decent thrash outing too. Perhaps not essential listening but certainly worth a few spins if you're into the bands I mentioned. The only weak point is the inclusion of a fairly flat speed metal number at the end of the tracklisting in "Running White Faced City Boy". There aren't any outright classics here either which prevents "For Whose Advantage?" from competing for my higher scores.
3.5/5
Sacred Reich - "The American Way" (1990)
My first experiences with Phoenix-based thrash metallers Sacred Reich came through late-night underground metal radio programs in the very late 1980's with both their 1987 debut album "Ignorance" & 1988 "Surf Nicaragua" E.P. offering me plenty of appeal & commanding further attention. The first Sacred Reich record I'd purchase though would be their 1990 sophomore album "The American Way". It'd come in the form of a cassette copy that Ben & I would give a good hard flogging over the next year or so. The highlight tracks had received plenty of radio play in the weeks leading up to the purchase so I was pretty pumped when we finally picked it up & in some ways this revisit has indicated that perhaps I let that excitement cloud my judgement a touch.
"The American Way" sees Sacred Reich slowing things down from the approach they took on their more frantic debut album, this time opting for more of a mid-paced, groove-oriented sound that still highlighted their politically & socially motivated themes very well. It's a heavily riff-based record that's built around a unified sound & tight performances. Listening back now, I'd have to suggest that the drum sound wasn't ideal but it's not a deal breaker by any means. Front man Phil Rind's vocals are strong & clear which helps him to get his powerful messages across very well & there are some absolutely belting riffs on offer here too.
The tracklisting kicks off with the true classic of the album in "Love... Hate" which was very much an anthem for my late teenage years. Every time Sacred Reich kick back into the main riff after the chorus is a masterstroke & sees me thrashing around like a madman. I have to admit that some of the other tracks that I loved so much as a kid have lost a bit of their gloss if I'm being honest though. "Crimes Against Humanity" & "State of Emergency" are certainly very strong inclusions but neither reached the classic status I thought they might whereas the title track now seems to fall well short of the pedestal I've always placed it on. The album fades significantly in the back end too with "Who's to Blame" being pretty flat & the pointless funk rock novelty track "31 Flavors" tainting what had the potential to be a really strong thrash record.
Look, there's still easily enough great material to warrant your attention here but I can't say that I consider "The American Way" to be essential thrash metal listening any longer. It's more the type of album where I'd pull out the best few tracks for a gym playlist as some of this stuff (like the chorus of "The Way It Is" for example) hasn't stood the test of time as well as I'd hoped, potentially due to the relative simplicity & reduction in aggression from previous efforts. Despite the obvious production issues Sacred Reich experienced with "Ignorance", I consider it to be a step up from this record. "Surf Nicaragua" too actually.
3.5/5
Sacrifice - "Soldiers of Misfortune" (1990)
My relationship with Canadian thrash metal outfit Sacrifice began in very strong fashion when I discovered their 1987 "Forward to Termination" back in the late 80's/early 90's & I quickly headed back to their 1986 debut album "Torment in Fire" which I also loved. Both possessed an excitingly raw & energetic brand of thrash that offered significant appeal for me when I was still very much in the middle of my thrash metal heyday. 1990's "Soldiers of Misfortune" third album wasn't quite as successful in its quest to embed itself into regular rotation on my early 90's playlist though for one reason or another. It's certainly a professionally produced & executed thrash record but it sounds a little less exciting than its predecessors, perhaps losing some of its steam in the quest for a more mature & refined sound. I still love the snarly vocals of front man Rob Urbinati but there a quite a few chuggy riffs that I consider to be a little bit flat & indicating that there may not have been enough time put into quality control with "Soldiers of Misfortune". The best tracks are when the band simply go for it like they do on the classic album highlight "A Storm In The Silence" but those moments are simply too scarce with the bulk of the record feeling decent & acceptable more than it does invigorating. The lengthy progressive metal piece that closes out the album "Truth (After the Rain)" is a prime example as there are plenty of ideas there but it doesn't a result in a truly compelling experience in my opinion. Don't get me wrong, I do quite like "Soldiers of Misfortune" with only the lacklustre heavy metal number "Existence Within Eternity" failing to hit a par score but I do find the album to be a little disappointing after receiving such joy from Sacrifice's first two efforts.
3.5/5
Anthrax - "Attack of the Killer B's" (1991)
Despite the fact that my attention had well & truly been drawn more towards more extreme forms of metal by 1991, I still maintained my interest in the thrash metal that had played such a huge role in my musical development. For that reason, I was still picking up every Anthrax record immediately upon release with their “Attack of the Killer B’s” compilation being one of the last to receive that privilege. I recall quite enjoying my CD copy too, it has to be said. It’s been decades since we crossed paths though so I thought it’d be interesting to see if my feelings have changed over the years.
“Attack of the Killer B’s” is a compilation that draws together a collection of B-sides, cover versions & live recordings &, as I’ve recently discovered, with fairly mixed results too it has to be said. There’s no doubt that Anthrax were a class act at that point in their evolution but there are some misguided decisions on show here. The tracklisting kicks off in really strong style with cover version of S.O.D.’s crossover thrash classic “Milk (Ode To Billy)”, the rap metal collaboration with Public Enemy “Bring The Noise” & an acceptable live version of “Keep It In The Family” (one of the highlights from Anthrax’s last album “Persistence Of Time”) all being very strong inclusions. Things start to get noticeably hit & miss from that point on though & I find that the misses generally align with Anthrax’s notorious sense of humor which won't be a huge surprise for anyone that knows me as I’ve never been a fan of silly novelty tracks like “Startin’ Up A Posse”, “Pipeline” or “N.F.B. (Dallabnikufesin)”. These missteps are offset by some high-quality efforts like Discharge cover version “Protest & Survive” (my personal favourite), S.O.D. rehash “Chromatic Death” & a speed metal reenactment of Trust’s “Sects”. Even though both are excellent songs in their own right, the two live cuts are both a little disappointing as the production is simply inadequate.
I have to admit that I was expecting a little more from “Attack of the Killer B’s” as I remembered it being more consistently great than this. Still… there’s some good shit to be found here if you’re patient enough to sit through the filler. There’s also a lot more to this release than just Anthrax’s signature thrash metal sound too with crossover thrash, rap metal, heavy metal & comedy rock all playing important bit parts in the outcome so it may have some crossover potential for a wide range of fans. I doubt that it'll make too many best-of lists though.
3.5/5
Metallica - And Justice for All (1988)
Genres: Thrash, Tech Thrash
It's about time I reviewed this album. Metallica is my number one metal band, but it's been ages since I gave this whole album a spin. Part of it is that I prefer the more atmospheric production of Ride the Lightning and the catchiness of Master of Puppets. But I really do love a good prog album, and easily find myself making up proggy rhythms on a daily basis for fun. Honestly, I haven't been living up to my status as a Metallica fan, and I need to at least memorize a couple of the lesser-known songs from this album. So since I've been doing a lot this week, I'm taking a little relaxation today to just chill and re-evaluate this album, instead of going through some jazz to help with a couple lists I'm working on like usual.
This is basically Metallica's "hey, look what we can do" album. No joke. This whole album was about showing off. Don't believe me? Listen to "Blackened" and tell me its outlandish and outrageous behavior doesn't bring to mind Frank Zappa. We have pieces of 3 different songs taped together in a brutally bold and experimental thrasher that challenges any aspiring guitarist's mental capacity while remaining as catchy as it is intriguing. And that's within six minutes. The title track is different. it's slower and more melodic, going into groovy and even solemn solos like these nine-minutes are just another three. I had accused Master of Puppets of being bloated before, and still say that it feels as such when compared to the shorter Ride the Lightning, but this one song fixes that.
"Eye of the Beholder" barely has any progressive behavior to it, largely encompassing the time change in the chorus. Otherwise, it's about as proggy as the least proggy songs on MoP. And up to that point, it's the shortest featured song (by ten seconds). It bears an almost groove metal sound. Ironically, its repetitive main melody combines perfectly with the more healthy melody of Hetfield's lyrics. It would stick out like a sore thumb if not for the usage of the same instruments, tones and emotions of the opener. it's a straightforward song that acts as a reminder that you're listening to Metallica, and not some heavier King Crimson knockoff. Good choice on their part, and a good justification for the simplicity in comparison. This decision brings to mind the lowering levels of heaviness in side A of Ride the Lightning, where For "Whom the Bell Tolls," track 3, was barely grasping the thrash tag for love of gothic poetry. So while this song is still a great one, it's probably the worst thus far, whereas the same can't be said for For Whom the Bell Tolls.
And now for "One," which is the big hit from AJFL. As is standard for Metallica albums at the time, this is the point where the ballad behavior comes in. And this one's serious about that singer-songwriter guitar style. The acoustic and electric effortlessly mold into a serene but chilling intro into a lyrical memory of war. This song is a heavy reminder that Metallica are just as lyrically relevant as they are technically. Of course, the band was never afraid of bringing the ballad into a heavier realm. We have breakdowns for the third act, and after what we just got, this turn of events brings our despair into anger and potential insanity. This slow and simple behavior expands into hyper-velocity hypnotism that takes us on a metronomic journey through an explosive battlefield via aural presence rather than lyrics. Eventually, it just jams and rocks it like a tux.
Disc 2 begins with "The Shortest Straw," which kicks off with tribal drumming and riffing with a slightly industrial approach in its composition. But afterwards, its song structure becomes more typical and even dives into the heavy jamming of speed metal bands like Venom and Exciter. You can sense some punkish energy coming from Hetfield in this one. Kicking off the second disc with a more blatant "speed / thrash hybrid sound as opposed to pure thrash was a good choice. After it seemed like all of Metallica's tricks had been used up on this song, you may have forgotten the speed metal they dabbled in since Kill 'Em All. This song is also the most melodic and riff-oriented song so far. There isn't any time for repetitive riffs after the short intro is done, until the third act. It's all about boasting that jamming you know rock and metal for. The third act goes back to the behavior of the intro with a guitar solo attached or about 30 seconds before the final verse. Honestly, for its more poppy and speedy sound, this feels like one of the most (but not THE most) creative songs on the album. It made me hyped for what was coming next.
"Harvester of Sorrow" is a favorite among Metallica fans, but up to this point, I'm ashamed to admit that I had no recollection of it until it came on. Lars was back to standard Metallica behavior as a gothic tone took the intro and slow and steady took the rhythm with haunting backing effects. There's a powerful evil edge in the slow pacing. Makes sense considering the lyrical content is about a man snapping and abusing his family. This is maybe the darkest song so far. If it were speedy, and had more background detail, it would likely lose its potency. The weird thing is that it's the shortest song so far, even though its potential could've been expanded on considering the overly experimental quality of the intro, so it's a bit of a shocker to me that this song didn't have an extra two minutes attached for some weirder directions. But, it still never lost its power. Lyrically, the subject matter reminds me of the first time I read about a father murdering his family, the father of young actor Judith Barsi.
Now at song seven, I had decided that since only two songs out of six fit the prog bill, I was hoping this next song would fix that and get back into the prog game. "The Frayed Ends of Sanity" begins with a metallic version of the guards' song in Wizard of Oz. Better than when Septicflesh wrote the song "Communion" and accidentally did a symphonic death metal variant of the Meow Mix theme song, right? This song goes back into the most standard behavior one expects from Metallic and sounds like something right from Master of Puppets. It has more melodic and rhythmic capacity (more notes) but despite its strong grip, it's not quite as dark as "Harvester of Sorrow." But since it sounds like a recreation of the previous album, I still give it points for unpredictability.
Now we get to some real craziness: "To Live Is to Die." This is normally the part where Metallica whips up a nine-minute instrumental epic. As an acoustic solo is overtaken by a simple metronome of deep and heavy drumming and sluggish riffing which Melvins would be proud of, one immediately comprehends that the black distortion of "Blackened" may return. Its jam factor largely follows suite for a few minutes allowing the song to slightly mutate overtime in its own repetition. Eventually, it caves into the somber side of the word, "epic," but never breaks tradition or goes into Hans Zimmer territory. Halfway through, our metal does become quite and give us a slight bit of violin, following the metronomic pattern of some pieces of this song. And we end with the song getting more quiet and melodic overtime, representing a full mutation. So we have a perfect balance of simplicity and complexity here, as this song shows the band is proud of the changes they put it through for nearly ten minutes.
The final song is the fastest, nastiest and the shortest of them all: "Dyers Eve." It bears the temple of "Fight Fire with Fire," starkly contrasting with the previous song's ending and bearing connection to the first half of "To Live Is to Die" via genre. It's a beautiful clash of styles that even further justifies the album's creativity over more than an hour. This straightforward thrash song recalls the desperate attempt at heaviness that most early thrash bands were trying to achieve, being known for breaking the sound barrier of metal rather than being known as great songwriters. And this album recalls Metallica's success at combining both approaches to metal.
I'm actually very happy about this decision I'm about to make: And Justice for All is more suitable of a metal album for me than Master of Puppets. See, Master of Puppet's relationship to Ride the Lightning makes the album feel a bit bloated with its extra ten minutes, raising RtL's 45 to 55. But And Justice for All is constantly changing the game and manages to overcome this behavior while adding ten again. It's 65 minutes of variety. The band never changes their instruments or expectations, but becomes a more technical and progressive band at the same time. And Justice for All shows Metallica not only having further mastered their signature sound, but going into stronger variety. Unfortunately, all of this was still beaten by the fresher RtL. But this album has its own edge that has earned its place among the "Best Metallica Album" debate which RtL currently seems to be winning. Many would debate RtL verses MoP and laugh at those justifying The Black Album. But in recent times, AJfL has been resurging in popularity, and it perfectly deserves it. No longer may those who grew up with conventional songwriting knock this album off for being too weird. So I'm lowering my rating and position for Master of Puppet swhile raising both for this one.
100
Devastation - "Idolatry" (1991)
I first wrapped my ears around Texas-based thrash metal outfit Devastation when I experienced some of the material from their 1989 sophomore album "Signs of Life" back in the very early 1990's & I quite liked what I heard too just quietly. The band seemed to offer a fair bit of potential so I found myself checking out the full-length album shortly afterwards, a record that I liked enough to see me heading back to their very ordinary 1987 debut album "Violent Termination". The debut did very little for me unfortunately but when 1991's "Idolatry" third full-length was released it wasted no time in repaying me for my initial faith & is easily Devastation's finest work. It's the record that I reach for whenever I think of this band & is pretty much the only one you NEED to own as a respectable thrash metal fan.
"Idolatry" is often referred to as being a death/thrash hybrid but that's not an accurate depiction of what you can expect because there's really very little in the way of death metal to be found across the eight tracks included. Instead, you'll find a very pure thrash metal sound that's heavily influenced by bands like Slayer, Dark Angel, Exodus & Kreator but simply "feels" more brutal than most other thrash releases primarily because of the savage production, the powerful, driving double kick drum work & the aggressive vocals of front man Rodney Dunsmore which are probably the weak point for the band if there is one as they could certainly have been a little more accomplished. Thankfully though, the same cannot be said for the instrumentation which is absolutely devastating (see what I did there?). Guitarists Dave Burk & Henry Elizondo totally slay with their solos generally placed over the most intense parts of the songs & being made very much from the Kerry King & Jeff Hannemann mold. Drummer David Lozano is the hero here though & proves himself to be an elite exponent of his craft. He doesn't try too many extravagant rolls & fills but what he does contribute is exciting & super-precise which gives Devastation an exceptionally solid basis to work over.
The album kicks off brilliantly with opener "Deliver the Suffering" being one of the highlights of the 44 minute run time. There aren't any weak tracks included. In fact, there's nothing short of being a very solid example of the classic thrash metal model with "Forsaken Hatred" (my personal favourite), "Subconscious" & super-shredding closer "Never Believe" being the other major highlights. Devastation are definitely at their best when they're really going for it at the higher tempos but the slower, chunkier material is also very entertaining as the band seem to have mastered the art of the riff with "Idolatry" providing somewhat of a smorgasbord of delights for underground thrash fans. There's a noticeable class about everything they do with note selection & riff complexity being placed upon a pedestal & Lozano providing the perfect support for each section.
"Idolatry" really does sound like it was tailor made for someone with my particular background & taste profile as it combines so many of the things I look for in my metal. It's such a shame that it'd represent Devastation's final hurrah as the band seemed to have so much still in the tank. Perhaps it's best to leave the scene on such a high though as it certainly helps in maintaining the aura around the band for all eternity. Fans of the more brutal end of thrash metal (think Demolition Hammer, Dark Angel & Morbid Saint) should regard "Idolatry" as the very epitome of the hidden gem & one of the best thrash releases of the 1990's. It's a genuine thrash classic in my opinion.
4.5/5
Exodus - "Force of Habit" (1992)
By 1992 I'd already been an Exodus fan for a good few years & had enjoyed everything they'd done to the time (with the exception of their primitive 1982 demo tape). Their 1985 debut album "Bonded By Blood" is unquestionably one of the greatest examples of the thrash metal sound & is still an all-timer for me while the two records that followed it ("Pleasures of the Flesh" & "Fabulous Disaster") were both very solid releases indeed. 1990's "Impact is Imminent" had seen many fans jumping off the train but I honestly think it's been harshly treated over the years as it wasn't too bad in my opinion. I mean, it was certainly a step down from the first three records but I still got a fair bit of enjoyment out of it, even if it may not be a release that I regard as essential when exploring the Exodus' back-catalogue. 1992 would see things getting a lot worse for Exodus though with the their fifth album "Force of Habit" bombing in a major way & triggering claims of selling out to the new Pantera groove metal sound. Ben & I picked the album up upon release (on cassette from memory) & I recall us both being pretty disappointed with it. I couldn't exactly recall why when I attempted to draw upon those brain cells recently so I thought I'd give it another chance with a fresh & open mind.
Let me be clear about one thing straight up, "Force of Habit" is a hugely self-indulgent record. It's run time has been stretched out to a ridiculous 68 minutes with a few of the thirteen songs exceeding the duration they should naturally expire at by a considerable margin. We'd started to see Exodus making longer songs for a couple of albums now & it was something that I thought I'd keep an eye on as it didn't always sit comfortably with me but here it can be a little grating. The other major change of note is the stylistic variety on offer with Exodus now including a good half a record (well... a whole record for most bands) of material that wasn't strictly thrash metal. While I do think the calls to tag "Force of Habit" as a groove metal record are extreme given that the few tracks that take that direction don't amount to even 20% of the album, there can be no doubt that their experiments with the newly popular genre were a creative failure as songs like the title track & "Climb Before the Fall" are nothing short of awful. They're actually not all that bad from a purely instrumental point of view but Steve Souza's vocals performances sound completely at sea over the top of this material. He's absolutely phoned in some of these efforts in & I wouldn't be surprised if his poor contribution here had played a role in Exodus going into a twelve-year hiatus following this record because he really is that bad at times & that's coming from someone that's generally a big fan of him too. Another interesting talking point is the inclusion of a few tracks that reside more in the heavy metal camp than they do a thrash or groove metal one & the results aren't too bad actually with some of the better tracks on the album falling into this space.
Unfortunately, the tracklisting is massively inconsistent with none of the thirteen songs achieving classic status. Down-tempo heavy metal chugger "One Foot In The Grave", thrashtastic closer "Feeding Time At The Zoo" & the eleven-minute US power metal epic "Architect of Pain" (my personal favourite) are all classy efforts that are worthy of inclusion on any of the Souza-fronted albums while "Me, Myself & I", "Fuel For The Fire", "When It Rains It Pours" & "Good Day To Die" all offer enough to keep me interested. In fact, there's enough quality material included here to have made for a solid four-star, forty-minute record that would have surpassed some of Exodus' also-ran releases like "Impact Is Imminent" & "Tempo of the Damned" for overall consistency. Why must Exodus insist on including sub-par cover versions on their albums though with The Rolling Stones' "Bitch" or Elvis Costello's "Pump It Up" having nothing of interest to say? It's frustrating to say the least & I can't imagine how Gary Holt must have felt when listening to the final result because there are some ripping guitar solos on this record but they're partially nullified by poor creative decisions & below-par song-writing. It's no wonder I put "Force of Habit" aside & didn't return to it until now. Thankfully "Architect of Pain" takes up a fair chunk of the run time which sees my rating staying closer to a respectible mark than is probably warranted but a three-star rating is still well below expectations for one of the biggest names in thrash metal.
3/5
Kreator - "Renewal" (1992)
Much like Exodus' notorious "Force of Habit" album that I reviewed last week, Teutonic thrash metal heavyweights Kreator's sixth album "Renewal" is widely regarded as the releases that signaled the end of the band's classic period. It saw Kreator going for a fresh new sound & taking creative risks but the public seemed to shun any notion of their German heroes morphing into anything other than the band they grew up with & "Renewal" bombed pretty hard. I was just sixteen years old at the time though & lived in Sydney, Australia where I was somewhat sheltered from the wider global reception. I'd been a HUGE Kreator fan for a good three years by that stage & "Renewal" would be the second of their albums that I'd pickup at the time of release. I went into it with extremely high expectations but, although there's no doubt that "Renewal" was different to what I expected, I was open to following the band down whatever musical rabbit-hole they'd take me on. I don't recall the album being as divisive amongst the local metal community I was a part of at the time either, potentially because we were younger & less inclined to want our metal pigeon-holed into specific genres. It's been a few years since I've heard "Renewal" now so I thought I'd find out if my feelings of nostalgia were still strong enough to see the album holding up in 2024.
"Renewal" sees Kreator taking several bold moves away from the vicious thrash metal attack of the past. For starters, we see them utilizing down-tuning for the first time which was always gonna give them a different feel. The riffs are much simpler too with a stronger focus being placed on building a cold atmosphere than ripping the listeners face off. There's certainly an industrial component to a couple of the tracks but it's not as significant as some critics will have you believe. The elements of groove metal are more noticeable though as we find many of the riffs veering away from thrash altogether & taking a chunkier & more rhythmic approach. Front man Mille Petrozza's vocal delivery is very serious as he barks & spits out social commentary in a fashion that deviates from his traditional raspy tone. I'm not sure I like it as much but it does feel like he's finally grown up a little bit which is possibly something that can be said of the band as a whole as everything sounds more measured & controlled. Possibly the only element that suffers noticeably from the new approach is the guitar solos which are as theoretically incorrect as ever but sound much more incompetent in their newly exposed surroundings.
"Renewal" certainly isn't as immediate as past Kreator albums & takes a few listens to really dig its talons in. It's a darker record than we've seen from Kreator in the past with several parts even feeling doomy. There are no weak songs included in the consistent tracklisting & I ironically find the most popular number "Renewal" to be the least effective piece these days, even though (& perhaps even because) it was the very first song my old death metal band Neuropath covered back in 1993. There aren't many genuine highlight tracks though either & I feel that this fact has been instrumental in the general feeling that "Renewal" is a creative failure which is a very harsh viewpoint in my opinion. The wonderfully doomy "Karmic Wheel" is by far my favourite piece of the nine on offer & has always been an anthem for my early 90's youth.
Look, "Renewal" no doubt presents a very different Kreator to the one we'd known & loved up until that point but it was never intended to be "Coma of Souls Part II" & this is obvious in its title which should have provided a hint as to Kreator's intent. There are still plenty of thrashtastic moments for those that require them but there's also a greater focus on song-writing & a stronger social message than the past which is simply the result of the band maturing & striving for relevance in a changing musical environment. I liken "Renewal" to Sepultura's "Chaos AD" album in many ways & wouldn't be at all surprised if it had been an influence as you'll find many of the same adjustments have been made, although the Brazilian's 1993 fifth album would be infinitely more popular for one reason or another. Regardless of that, I think people are missing out on a really strong Kreator record here, mainly due to the universal impatience that sees a large portion of the listening public only giving a record a listen or two before forming their opinions on it. For me personally though, I'd take "Renewal" over a few of Kreator's more widely celebrated releases like the "Out of the Dark... Into the Light" E.P., their debut album "Endless Pain" & even their highly acclaimed third album "Terrible Certainty" these days.
4/5
Exhorder - "The Law" (1992)
I've always had a real soft spot for the more brutal end of thrash metal. That's really where my extreme metal roots lie & it's a sound that appears to have discovered a bit of a revival in recent years. One of the earlier exponents of the sound was New Orleans' Exhorder whose 1990 debut album "Slaughter in the Vatican" made some pretty big waves in this early 90's teenager's Walkman at the time. The band's 1992 sophomore record "The Law" has often been overlooked though, perhaps struggling a little to overcome the links to Pantera & the groove metal genre. I was very quick to pick up on "The Law" & have always thought of it as another excellent Exhorder thrash record with its brutal production job giving it something of a differentiator from the crowd. It certainly didn't see Exhorder following the trend for thrashers to move into a grungier & more commercial sound at the time either. I've been looking forward to revisiting "The Law" for quite some time now & have blasted the shit out of my ear drums on the way to work this week. The album has lost none of its zest so let's take a look at it in a little more detail.
"The Law" is a record that simply sounds like no other. In fact, it's instantly identifiable from its ball-tearing guitar tone alone with the searing metallic high-end threatening to sheer your eye drums in two & leave you with ringing ears for a week (like I have right now actually). When these guys hit on a huge thrash, groove or sludge metal riff it's accentuated ten-fold by the extreme amount of metal that's been genetically infused into that guitar tone & I for one applaud them for it. It may pound the listener into submission at times but it also gives me a visceral, primal reaction that sees me returning to it time & time again. If I had to guess I'd suggest that Exhorder were aiming to get close to Exodus' ultra-crunchy tone from records like 1989's "Fabulous Disaster" or 1990's "Impact is Imminent" but things got a little out of hand & they just decided to run with it. Thank goodness they did because it's resulted in one of the most metal records you'll find.
"The Law" does sound a little different to "Slaughter in the Vatican" from a stylistic point of view too though. It's less of a balls-to-the-wall thrasher with more variety in the tempo department. When these boys thrash out they do it with a hell-for-leather reckless abandon that few can keep up with but when they slow things down they can manage to muster some of the most immense riffs from the bowels of Hell. Just look at the outro of opening track "Soul Search Me" for example! How can that riff be beaten?? Answer: It simply can't & it's these moments when the influence on Pantera's sound can be seen as plain as day. Vocalist Kyle Thomas sounds exactly like Phil Anselmo for the most part with his vicious delivery being the perfect foil for the aggressive instrumentation around him. Despite the uniqueness of the guitar tone, you can easily see the parallels with Dimebag Darrell's as they both accentuate the power of the riff in a magical way. And those devastating groove riffs often see the two bands running alongside each other in parallel too. Exhorder are far more consistently fast & thrashy though & aren't tarnished by the same yobbo-isms that Pantera's less sophisticated work has been.
The tracklisting kicks off in splendid fashion & never lets up for the entire 39-minute duration in a super-consistent display of savage metal worship. The incredible "Unforgiven" & the blistering title track were genuine classics in my teenage years but the other seven songs are nothing to scoff at either. Even the sludgier rendition of Black Sabbath's "Into The Void" is a welcome addition in that it not only suits Exhorder's ability to maximize the impact of a big groovy riff but it also takes the original to a slightly darker & more imposing place. Almost every track contains stellar riffs that'll see you struggling to sit still while Thomas grabs the back of your head & progressively smashes your face into the table or seat in front of you. Boy, these guys must have been something to behold in a live environment & I once again find myself reaching for Exodus as a point of comparison. On the negative side, I have no doubt that the iconic guitar tone would tend to make things sound a little samey if you're not committed to the cause. Thankfully, I'm totally onboard with what Exhorder are dishing out though so I've never felt that "The Law" suffered from that affliction.
Now for the elephant in the room i.e. the whole groove metal thing. Look... there's no doubt that "The Law" is a true showcase of where the rumours that their mates Pantera ripped off their sound come from. It's fucking obvious to be honest but that doesn't make "The Law" a groove metal release overall in my opinion. It's far too fast, thrashy & aggressive for that with the groove metal riffs being greatly outnumbered by the thrash ones. In fact, there's only really the one song that should qualify as groove metal in my opinion in the rock solid & more rhythmically structured closer "(Cadence) Of The Dirge". The rest of the original pieces are thrashtastically energetic extreme metal numbers that have been custom made for casual mosh pit murder & I for one can't get enough of them.
Perhaps "The Law" isn't Exhorder's best record but it's a damn fine one nonetheless & I wish more metalheads would give it the credit it deserves rather than simply overlooking it because it sounds a little different to the debut album they've placed on such a lofty pedestal. For those that are uninitiated, if the idea of taking classic Pantera & combining it with Steve Souza-fronted Exodus & then feeding it Demolition Hammer level amounts of testosterone sounds appealing then you know what you need to do & quickly too.
4/5
Solstice - "Solstice" (1992)
My initial exposure to Miami-based death/thrash outfit Solstice came through the tape trading scene of the early-to-mid 1990’s when I picked up a copy of their 1992 self-titled debut album from one of my trade contacts. From what I was hearing from the metal grapevine Solstice sounded like they’d be right up my alley & that certainly proved to be the case with the album becoming a mainstay on my Walkman over the next year or so. In fact, I’ve found myself returning to “Solstice” several times over the many years since as it’s become a proven performer when I feel like expending large amounts of energy in a short time period by thrashing my body around my loungeroom or car. For that reason, I’ve been very much looking forward to finally taking a detailed look at the album with the intent of awarding it a well-informed Metal Academy rating & review.
There’s no doubt at all that “Solstice” is the type of metal record that takes no prisoners & has no fucks whatsoever to give about it either. It’s full of energy & is violently aggressive in the way it approaches its task. The production job feels a little closer to a death metal one than your average thrash record while the use of blast-beats from drummer Alex Marquez (Brutality/Cephalic Carnage/Demolition Hammer/Hellwitch/Malevolent Creation/Resurrection) also draw the record towards that space along with the vicious vocals of guitarist Rob Barrett (Cannibal Corpse/Hateplow/Malevolent Creation) which sit somewhere between Death’s Chuck Schuldiner & Pantera’s Phil Anselmo. Despite the clear hints at death metal though, the majority of the instrumentation simply feels more closely aligned with thrash to me so I tend so think of “Solstice” as more of a brutal thrash record than I do a death/thrash one, particularly given that Barrett’s vocals possess a bit of an angry hardcore edge to them that does tend to lack a little in the sophistication department at times.
The tracklisting is very solid with only the silly decision to include a novelty crossover thrash track (i.e. “S.M.D.” aka “Suck My Dick”) tainting an otherwise extremely consistent record. With that said though, I can’t say that there are any genuine classics on offer with Solstice earning their stripes through their overall sound at the expense of any particularly memorable song-writing. They opt to give the listener a royal battering but you’ll rarely find yourself humming along to their riffs afterwards which is the difference between a record like “Solstice” & the heavy-weights of the brutal thrash game like “Epidemic of Violence” or “Idolatry”. Still… there’s something to be said for a bit of “good, friendly violent fun” & Solstice certainly deliver that in spades. It’s hard to deny the pedigree of a band like this one too with guitarist Dennis Munoz (Demolition Hammer) & bassist Mark van Erp (Monstrosity/Cynic/Malevolent Creation) having already spent some time with some household names of the extreme metal scene. Hell, we even get to enjoy the legendary James Murphy contributing guest guitar solos on a few of the tracks which brings some much needed additional melody to the table.
If brutal thrash is your bag then I’ll be surprised if you’re not already acquainted with this record but, if not, then try to picture a combination of the relentless thrash metal assault of Demolition Hammer & Exhorder & the thrashy death metal of early Malevolent Creation. Perhaps, “Solstice” won’t go on to become the classic release it had the potential to on paper but it’s a damn fine record nonetheless.
4/5
Sodom - "Tapping The Vein" (1992)
German thrash metal heavy-weights Sodom & I have enjoyed a generally fruitful relationship since I first discovered them through the "Ausgebombt" video clip shortly after the release of their 1989 "Agent Orange" album. Sodom’s early work was a bit too rough for my taste but, once they hit their stride with 1987’s “Expurse of Sodomy” E.P., I found them to offer a consistently energetic, high-octane brand of thrash that very much appealed to my tendency towards the more aggressive & generally gnarly exponents of the genre. Interestingly though, it’s 1990’s “Better Off Dead” fourth full-length that still sits at the top of the pile for me which is a little unexpected given that it saw Sodom watering down their approach a touch, instead focusing on some high-quality song-writing that was ultimately very successful. My positive experiences with that record saw me hanging out for the follow-up in 1992’s “Tapping The Vein”, an album that I’d purchase on CD as soon as it hit the shelves & one that would see Sodom turning up the heat significantly on the sound I’d enjoyed so much on “Better Off Dead”. Sodom had very clearly made a conscious effort to produce their most intense thrash record to date & I for one was totally up for it. “Tapping The Vein” is still a record that I revisit every so often these days but I’ve never gone to the effort of seeing where it sits in the overall Sodom back catalogue until now so let’s see how it’s faired, shall we?
“Tapping The Vein” is a rip-roaring, middle-finger-raising beast of a thrash record that would seem to be very much an attempt to draw back any parts of their fan base that they may have lost with their more accessible sounding previous record. The Harris Johns production job is nice & raw which suits the generally frantic material very well & most of the eleven-song tracklisting is made up of light-speed thrashfests with new guitarist Andy Brings showing some very impressive right-hand speed & endurance. In fact, I’d suggest that the dude must have seriously gone to town on himself as an early teenager based on the evidence here. There’s not a lot of originality or creativity in the majority of the riffs though with many of them sounding suspiciously like Sodom’s previous work or relying heavily on straight-forward, tremolo-picked bottom-string pedal-points. Band leader Tom Angelripper performs his role admirably, spitting out his words of war with an unbridled ferocity that only adds to the album’s dark & aggressive feel.
The tracklisting is pretty consistent with only the lacklustre German-language speed metal track “Wachturm” failing to reach a reasonable level of quality. “Bullet In The Head” relies on similar musical themes with Motorhead’s more metallic numbers being the order of the day. Sodom had successfully slowed things down a number of times on their last couple of albums & “One Step Over The Line” is another solid example of them taking more of a classic heavy metal direction, although it's admittedly pretty similar to the popular “The Saw Is The Law” single from “Better Off Dead” if you look at it closely. The rest of the record can only be described as a relentless bombardment of maximum-velocity Teutonic thrash metal which may not take many risks but still offers plenty of reward for an old-school thrasher like myself. The high point comes in the form of the wonderful “Hunting Season” which I rate alongside most of Sodom’s best work although opener “Body Parts” & the excellent title track are also worthy of mention as some of the stronger inclusions.
While “Tapping The Vein” can be seen as being fairly regressive from an artistic perspective, I’m not sure that most of Sodom’s fan base cares to be honest. I certainly don’t, particularly when the results are as rock solid as this collection of German thrash anthems are. I honestly can’t see too many Kreator, Slayer or Destruction fans complaining too much when presented with a vicious, bruising affair like “Tapping The Vein”, even if it might not be the Sodom record that they immediately reach for when they feel like revisiting the band. After looking at it closely, I’d suggest that “Tapping The Vein” might even slip into my top five Sodom releases these days, sitting just behind “Better Off Dead”, “Persecution Mania”, “Agent Orange” & “Expurse of Sodomy”. I’d easily take it over their highly regarded pre-1987 works but then I’ve never been much of a fan of releases like “In the Sign of Evil”, “Obsessed by Cruelty” or their earlier demo tapes.
4/5
Sepultura - "Third World Posse" E.P. (1992)
By 1992 Brazilian thrash metallers Sepultura had quite literally changed the world, at least as far as the then-struggling thrash metal genre went. A commanding grunge rock wave had all but washed away the once thriving thrash metal scene with most of the more senior bands now resorting to dilution in order to stay afloat but these four heroes from Belo Horizonte had managed to not only stay afloat but to give the thrash world the shot in the arm it so sorely needed. I first discovered Sepultura through their classic 1989 third album "Beneath The Remains" & quickly indulged in their much rawer earlier material, all of which I really enjoyed. 1991's inspired "Arise" album hit me for six &, in doing so, almost managed to match "Beneath The Remains" (which still sits in my top five for the thrash metal genre overall to this day) for sheer class. So, needless to say that when I heard that Sepultura were coming to my hometown of Sydney in 1992 it saw my excitement levels reaching a fever pitch. The fact that these foreigners felt the occasion was significant enough to warrant a dedicated Australian tour E.P. left a 16 year-old me feeling somehow special so, despite the fact that "Third World Posse" didn't contain much in the way of new original material, I picked it up on CD as soon as it was released & indulged in it consistently throughout the next few years too. It's been eons since I've listened to it now but I thought I'd keep my obsessive completist urges at bay by giving it a revisit this week.
"Third World Posse" is a five-track, fifteen-minute E.P. that acts as somewhat of an extended single that's built around one of Sepultura's most popular songs in "Dead Embryonic Cells" which was drawn from the "Arise" album. It's backed with a cover version of Dead Kennedy's "Drug Me" & three live recordings that would appear to be taken from the same Barcelona show that made up the outstanding 1992 live video "Under Siege (Live at Barcelona)" which I also bought. While I've always been a big fan of "Dead Embryonic Cells", I have to admit that I've never felt that it was one of the strongest tracks on "Arise" & don't think of it as the classic that most people seem to. It's certainly a very solid inclusion though & it has the desired effect in kicking off an E.P. which was obviously intended to draw in a new audience through a fairly cheap release that coincided with their tour. Sepultura's version of "Drug Me" is also very impressive, coming across as a high-octane crossover thrash assault that's chock-full of energy & aggression. The three live cuts are all of a very high quality too to be honest with the magnificent "Inner Self" from the "Beneath The Remains" album unsurprisingly representing the highlight of the EP. "Troops of Doom" had been given a tidy-up during a session that took place in August 1990 & the version we receive here is much more in line with that re-recording than it is with the youthful enthusiasm of the original that appeared on Sepultura's 1986 debut album "Morbid Visions". It's a really good thrash song in this format too & it isn't let down by the closing track either, a very successful heavy metal cover version of the title track from Motorhead's 1986 "Orgasmatron" album that sees the band taking the song in a slightly different direction & one that saw it taking on a whole new personality.
So you see, while "Third World Posse" may not offer anything terribly new for the more experienced & obsessive fans out there, it certainly served its purpose very well. For me personally, it acted as somewhat of a calling of the guard before one of the live shows that I've placed at the very top rung of my metal experiences over the years. Sepultura may never have been the same after that tour but I guess those days can never be taken away from me & I'd encourage anyone that has similar feelings about Sepultura's peak period to give this E.P. a couple of listens, if only for old time's sake. For those that are new to the band but have been lured into the thrash world by bands like Slayer or the gods of the Teutonic scene like Kreator & Sodom, this record should also offer plenty of appeal to you as well & will no doubt open up a brand-new can of worms for you too.
4/5
Tourniquet - "Psycho Surgery" (1991)
Unlike Believer's 1990 "Sanity Obscure" album which I reviewed a couple of days ago, I definitely know that I first discovered Los Angeles thrash metallers Tourniquet through a copy of their 1991 sophomore album "Psycho Surgery" which Ben had borrowed from one of his Christian mates who was trying to prove to him that Christians could be metal too. I think it's fair to say that I was skeptical about the whole concept initially but, by the time I'd gotten through my first spin of this high-quality thrash metal record, I had to admit to myself that I'd been converted (to Tourniquet, not to religious fairy tales). I don't think I told Ben at the time because, you know... I was a dark & evil death metal master & all... but the experience saw me secretly seeking out Tourniquet's equally impressive debut album "Stop The Bleeding" & following them on to their third record "Pathogenic Ocular Dissonance" which wasn't too bad either. I've even gone so far as to investigate a couple of their releases from the 21st Century since my return to metal in 2009 & this all stems from the impression left that day in Ben's bedroom all those years ago. I've actually returned to Tourniquet's first two albums quite often over the years but have never given any of Tourniquet's releases the dedicated attention required to justify a Metal Academy review until now & I've been interested to see how "Psycho Surgery" would stack up in the modern day.
It's always baffled me that Tourniquet didn't manage to break out of the underground a little more as they were clearly a very talented bunch of dudes & you can easily hear that on "Psycho Surgery". I can only guess that it's the religious aspect that's turned people off a bit & I can understand that as the lyrics do get a bit preachy at times. Thankfully I'm able to switch that element off because I've never been one to place too much emphasis on lyrical themes. The musicianship is the real highlight here though with the lead guitar work of Gary Lenaire being the standout performance. This dude has some major chops & knows just how to use them too. In fact, he could stand toe to toe with some of the elite performers of his craft if I'm being honest & never fails to impress me. The vocals of Guy Ritter are pretty cool too as he has quite a versatile range of tones & deliveries, sometimes sounding a fair bit like Overkill's Bobby Ellsworth & then running very close to Dave Mustaine territory during some of the spoken word-ish sections. The production job can sound a little wishy washy during some parts of the album but the instrumentation maintains a level of class throughout & never sits still for too long with Tourniquet showing off a wide array of influences.
"Psycho Surgery" kicks off in classic thrash metal form with a couple of mosh pit friendly numbers but things get a little more interesting when progressive metal outing "Viento Borrascoso (Devastating Wind)" enters the fold. It's a sound that Tourniquet do very well & would explore further on records like "Microscopic View of a Telescopic Realm" & "Antiseptic Bloodbath" later in their career. "Broken Chromosomes" also explores that more progressive direction & does a reasonable job at it too. Rap metal experiment "Spineless" is probably the track that stands out the most in the tracklisting & not in a good way either but monster doom metal closer "Officium Defunctorum" more than makes up for that creative failure & challenges the wonderfully catchy thrash metal anthem "Dysfunctional Domicile" for my favourite song on the album. The forty minute run time is well suited to Tourniquet's sound & I think the plethora of different sounds keeps things really interesting with even "Spineless" conatining a couple of great riffs.
Don't let the whole Christian thing turn you off because Tourniquet are worthy of any diehard thrasher's attention in my opinion & if you do happen to be a Christian then "Psycho Surgery" should be considered to be essential listening. I'm not across their entire back catalogue but "Psycho Surgery" is one of the better releases from the five that I've heard with all of them being at least worth a few listens. It's been a while since I heard it now but I think the debut "Stop the Bleeding" might just slightly pip "Psycho Surgery" for my favourite Tourniquet release overall but there's very little between their first three & I'm yet to experience a Tourniquet release that was likely to disappoint.
For fans of Deliverance, Believer & Megadeth.
4/5
Happy 40th to Ride the Lightning!!!
... but it's not listen in the anniversaries page. I just checked the date.
That would be because Ben has the release date pegged at 30th July 1984.
Ben, any particular reason for that?
Seems like we will have to wait two days for that Metallica album to appear in the anniversaries page.
And in other thrash-related news, Coroner has 8 songs ready for their upcoming album! If they're going the No More Color/Mental Vortex route, then we might have a strong complete comeback release from the band. Tune in this Wednesday for the full interview with Agoraphobic News:
That would be because Ben has the release date pegged at 30th July 1984.
Ben, any particular reason for that?
No idea. One of the very first albums I added. Just corrected now.
Tyrus - "Rats Will Have Their Feast" (2012)
Short-lived Melbourne thrash metal outfit Tyrus may never have recorded a proper album with their entire discography amounting to just a couple of short & obscure demoes but they still managed to cement their place in Australian metal folklore, mainly due to the role they played in the creation of the local thrash scene but also because of their association with other early Melbourne metal bands like Hobbs Angel of Death, Fair Warning, Depression & Mass Confusion who they shared members with. When I first took my first tentative steps out into the Sydney extreme metal scene in the very early 1990's, I would quickly find that there was an underground subculture that held aloft widely unknown artists (many from other states) as dark overlords of our chosen field & Tyrus would be mentioned in whispers as one of the founding fathers. In the years that followed I would repeatedly hear those lone Tyrus recordings at drunken after-parties at older metalheads homes so they would them become very much ingrained in my youth, perhaps more than they ever had a right to from a quality perspective. It's been many years since I've revisited them now but the discovery of this compilation of all of Tyrus' studio recordings has lured me in to see how they've held up an incredible 38 years later.
"Rats Will Have Their Feast" draws together the four songs from the self-titled 1986 Tyrus demo tape & the title track from the "Liar" single from the same year in a short nineteen-minute recap of the band's short three-year career. These appeared very early on the Aussie extreme metal story & I'd argue that if Depression's 1985 crossover thrash effort "Australia, Australia" E.P. is the very first Australian thrash metal release then the "Tyrus" demo tape may well be the first conventional thrash one although that's open for debate as there are other seminal recordings from 1986 floating around & it's impossible to know exactly when each hit the streets. Personally, I've always thought of the 1986 demo tape from Sydney's Massive Appendage as ground zero for Aussie thrash metal as we know it dropped in March 1986 but there were other players like Tyrus, Slaughter Lord & Non Compos Mentis whose demo recordings from that year may well have been released earlier. It's just a little hard to say.
The sound quality of the two recordings differs greatly with the demo tape sounding vastly superior. In fact, the demo sports a really good production job for a demo from the time actually with all of the instruments being presented in complete clarity & being well balanced. "Liar", on the other hand, sounds a lot softer & a touch flat in comparison with the guitars being slightly muted & further back in the mix. Tyrus' riff construction is super-basic for thrash & one gets the feeling that band leader Peter Hobbs (Hobbs Angel of Death) had essentially borrowed them from the "Baby's First Thrash Riff" children's hardcover. There's something about the songwriting that gives these simple mosh pit tunes some added weight though, in much the same way as the great Celtic Frost material managed to overcome a similar trait. The performances are very tight & well integrated which certainly helps with plenty of space left in the songs thanks to an element of restraint having been taken with the arrangements. This is naive, youthful metal music for people that live & die by the genre & I just happen to be one of them which helps greatly in the appeal of a release like this one which seems to take the speed metal-infused sound of the earliest thrash records like Metallica's "Kill 'Em All" & Slayer's "Show No Mercy" & blends it with the influence of the classic Venom material.
The material drawn from the "Tyrus" demo is of a very similar standard with all four songs being enjoyable. There's a fair bit of variety in tempo across the tracklisting which keeps things interesting with even the slower numbers like "Crucifixion" & "Shrine of Satan" maintaining a solid footing in thrash thanks to their dark feel & evil lyrical themes. Hobbs sounds quite angry here, much more so than on "Liar" where you can be forgiven for thinking it's a completely different person because he sounds nothing alike, & you can very easily detect the impact of Venom's Cronos on his approach. Opening track "Bubonic Plague" reminds me heavily of Slayer's "The Final Command" & I don't think that's a coincidence although the guitar solo section may well have been lifted straight off of "Kill 'Em All". The speed metal influence is very noticeable on "Liar" & I get the feeling that it may have been recorded prior to the demo but it's hard to say for sure. It's certainly not as successful as the demo material & is the clear weak point of the release. "Cold Steel Warm Death" possesses a similar speed metal backbone & (along with "Shrine of Satan") sounds a little more raw & abrasive than the first two songs taken from the cassette thanks to some variation in the production between tracks.
While "Rats Will Have Their Feast" may not make for essential listening for the average international thrasher, it does offer a rare insight into the earliest attempts at emulating the thrash metal sound that had taken the world by storm a few years earlier. The fact that it took that long is really a testament to just how isolated Australia was from the rest of the world in a pre-internet era. These recordings will always hold strong nostalgic appeal for someone like myself who spent many late nights & early mornings raising their drunken metal claws to the sky to this material but it's actually held up pretty well by modern day standards too thanks to some pretty decent songwriting & a reasonably good sound quality so you could do a lot worse than to check it out.
For fans of Rampage, Renegade & Hobbs Angel of Death.
3.5/5
Slaughter Lord - "Demo 1986" (1986)
As I mentioned in the above Tyrus review, there were a number of early Aussie extreme metal artists that were referred to in hushed terms as the founding fathers of the extreme metal movement in this country during my formative years but Sydney's Slaughter Lord are perhaps the one that's achieved the most global notoriety, despite never having produced a proper release. All of their fame comes off the back of their early demos with a number of high-profile international artists like Fenriz, Bathory, Morbid Angel & At The Gates having been open about the influence these young thrashers had on them during the middle of the 1980's. They also represent the earliest Australian dalliance with the death metal genre with this release being the very first, despite still being more closely aligned with brutal thrash from an instrumental point of view.
Slaughter Lord's first demo tape is a three-song affair featuring a five-piece lineup that differs from their more classic "Taste of Blood" one in that they have a dedicated vocalist in Colin Butcher who would only appear on this release. Opening track "Destructor" is more of a conventional thrash metal tune in the vein of the Teutonic scene, especially Kreator with Butcher sounding quite similar to Mille Petrozza. His vocals get noticeably more deathly on the other two tracks "Onslaught" & "Slaughtered Corpse" though which leaves them feeling more like death/thrash. The opener is the clear highlight in my opinion & the only song that I connect with much. The other two suffer from sloppy performances & a lack of any sort of production. You can certainly hear the potential here as the band clearly know how to create chaotic underground thrash glory but are yet to find their feet by bringing all of the individual elements together smoothly.
As seminal as Slaughter Lord are to the Aussie extreme metal scene, I've never really appreciated this first demo tape, despite hearing it in a number of pretty suitable environments alongside some fairly committed devotees. Slaughter Lord would go on to improve significantly before "Taste of Blood" though which is a much more important recording in my opinion. It's certainly interesting to hear the early roots of Mick Burke (Mortal Sin), Sandy Vahdani (Sadistik Exekution) & drummer Steve Hughes (Mortal Sin/Nazxul/Sadistik Exekution) though as they'd all go on to play such important roles in Australian metal folklore.
For fans of Order From Chaos, Poison (GER) & Sadistik Exekution.
3/5
Massive Appendage - "Demo 1986" (1986)
Now, leading on from the speculation about the Tyrus demo potentially being the earliest example of conventional Aussie thrash metal, I thought I'd revisit the earliest recording from Sydney's massive Appendage which my gut tells me is probably the release that deserves the honour of being known as the very first given that it saw the light of day on 21st March 1986. These guys aren't talked about half as much as the early Melbourne bands like Renegade, Tyrus & Nothing Sacred but they were a seminal act in my local town & are connected to a number of other important Sydney bands. Three of the four band members who contributed to this demo were a part of a heavy/glam metal band called King's Cross who put out one of the earliest releases in Australian metal history in 1984's "Gimme" E.P. before falling into the hands of the thrash metal demons & changing their musical direction.
Massive Appendage was very much a novelty act with humour being a big part of their appeal. Their major lyrical theme was sex & it was presented in a pimple-faced teenage way that reeks of someone that's still yet to lose their virginity. The vocals of guitarist Big Bird (King's Cross/Fester Fanatics) were very ordinary at this point & it's really the guitar solos of Bird & his brother Jed Starr (King's Cross/Fester Fanatics/Killing Time) that are the highlight of the release, being particularly accomplished in comparison to the music around them. The four songs include three tracks that would go on to be re-recorded for Massive Appendage's seminal debut album "The Severed Erection" later that year with awful closer "Beefcake City" dropping by the wayside in the interum. This release starts off well with the enjoyable thrasher "Ejeculator" & we then see things descend a little more with each track. I'm guessing that the first two songs "Ejaculator" & "A.N.A.L. Spices" were the most recently written of the four included as the other two songs (i.e. "Auntie Claire" & "Beefcake City") are very much thrash/heavy metal hybrids that hint at the band still being in transition from their heavy metal roots with King's Cross. Despite a lot of the riffs reminding me quite a bit of Anthrax, there's not quite enough quality to keep me interested here which is perhaps why Massive Appendage aren't spoken of as often as Tyrus when it comes to the earliest Aussie thrashers. Massive Appendage would go on to morph into legendary Sydney thrash metal outfit Fester Fanatics not too long after the release of "The Severed Erection", perhaps in order to escape the childish sex themes of their previous band. "The Severed Erection" is definitely worth checking out but I'd suggest leaving the demo alone as it was pretty touch & go as to whether I'd go with a lower score on this one.
For fans of Fester Fanatics, Addictive & Anthrax.
3/5
Slaughter Lord - "Rehearsal Demo 86" (1986)
I used to have this underground recording on the same cassette as the Sydney death/thrashers first demo tape, their 1987 "Taste of Blood" demo & their split E.P. with Morbid Angel during my tape trading days. Contrary to popular opinion, this is not the rehearsal material that was included on the "Thrash 'Til Death 86-87" compilation. It's much rawer & was recorded with a much lower sound quality which makes it a difficult listen for those with no tape trading experience. Honestly, even I struggle with it a bit & proto-war metal classic "Die By Power" is really the only track that manages to overcome the shocking handheld-tape-player aesthetic. Bassist Tony Noel had taken over the vocal duties from original front man Colin Butcher by this stage which gives the release a slightly more deathly feel than the first demo while Anton Vazquez (Sadistik Exekution) had stepped in to temporarily take the place of Sandy Vahdani (Sadistik Exekution). The thrashier feel of their earlier songs takes a little bit away from the more intense later tracks but I really enjoy the chaotic guitar solos of Mick Burke (Mortal Sin/Sadistik Exekution) & Vazquez. I'd recommend sticking with the compilation though as it provides you with all the Slaughter Lord material you'll ever need.
For fans of Order From Chaos, Poison (GER) & Sadistik Exekution.
2.5/5
Non Compos Mentis - "You're Next Punk" demo (1986)
This is another early Aussie extreme metal release that I had floating around my collection in my early tape trading days & which used to get pulled out at the drunken after parties I used to attend at older metalheads & band members homes during the early 90's. It's essentially a side project from Nothing Sacred members Karl Monara (Hobbs Angel of Death) & drummer Sham Littleman (Depression/Hobbs Angel of Death) & sees the duo having a bit of fun with a number of different genres. Opener "The Ballad of Phil Gresik" is an excellent way to begin proceedings & sits in the sludge metal space. The next two tracks "Kidney Punches" & "NCM" are up-tempo thrash metal numbers that are what the demo is ultimately known for. "Excreter" sounds very much like the NWOBHM while instrumental closer is a well-executed & enjoyable take on epic doom metal. Overall, it feels kinda like a combination of early Melbourne thrash metal acts like Renegade & more traditional heavy metal like Iron Maiden, very much in the same way as the two band members' main band Nothing Sacred. The main stumbling block is the ridiculous high-pitched vocal performance on some of these tunes which sounds half like an attempt at King Diamond & half like a complete piss-take. This ultimately ruins the release for me to be perfectly honest & I can't imagine why the duo thought it was a good idea.
For fans of Renegade, Nothing Sacred & Hobbs Angel of Death.
3/5
Rampage - "Acid Storm" demo (1986)
The debut release from another Melbourne thrash metal act that I was aware of in my youth. This time a trio that went on to a little more of significance but which I always struggled with. This demo tape is well produced for the time with the sound sitting somewhere between Iron Maiden style heavy metal & "Show No Mercy"-era Slayer. The performances are a little patchy but you can already hear that Rampage were quite ambitious from a compositional point of view. The vocals of front man George Mitrov are noticeably pitchy at times which doesn't help things but there's a little bit to interest me in the instrumentation. Bassist Dave Frew has also been involved with fellow Melbourne thrashers Tyrus & Hobbs Angel of Death over the years.
For fans of Bezerker, Tyrus & Midas Touch.
3/5
Rampage - "Rampage" demo (1987)
The self-titled second demo tape from Melbourne's Rampage is another one that I've always struggled with a bit. The two songs traverse a number of different genres from power metal to progressive metal to more up-tempo speed metal & thrash metal but overall I'd probably describe it as sitting between power metal & thrash metal. The higher register vocals are pretty ordinary but I do appreciate the fairly expansive instrumentation. It just doesn't seem to come together nicely in the end though & I find that I enjoy this one a touch less than the "Acid Storm" demo.
For fans of Bezerker, Tyrus & Midas Touch.
3/5