The Thrash Metal Thread | Metal Academy

Daniel

June 19, 2025 07:35 PM

Post #23512

Nasty Savage - "Abstract Reality" E.P. (1988)

I never really got on with the early releases from this Florida outfit with both their 1985 self-titled & 1987 "Indulgence" albums falling pretty flat with me. It wasn't until this short twenty-minute, four-song E.P. that they started to tweak my interest although I wouldn't say that it left me thoroughly convinced either. It saw Nasty Savage further embracing the new thrash metal sound they'd adopted for "Indulgence" & making a reasonable fist of it too. The highlights are definitely seen when they don't overcomplicate things with the more technical "Eromantic Vertigo" proving to be a step too far. "Unchained Angel" sees them returning to their more traditional heavy metal & US power metal roots which certainly isn't my preference either. Thankfully, the conventional thrash metal of the two songs that bookend this release are solid enough to carry the weaker middle section in the middle & leave me with a generally positive feeling at the completion of the release. The Mercyful Fate-inspired guitar solos of Ben Meyer & David Austin are particularly impressive &, despite not thinking front man Nasty Ronnie's vocal delivery was anything to write home about, the experience would see me following Nasty Savage throughout the remainder of their career.

For fans of Hallows Eve, Destructor & Exorcist.

3.5/5

Daniel

June 27, 2025 06:53 PM

Post #23595

Nuclear Assault - "Handle with Care" (1989)

The third full-length from these Queens-based thrashers was my introduction to Nuclear Assault at the time of release & is still my pick of their discography to this day. I've always liked the band's 1980's records with releases like 1986's "Game Over" & 1987's "The Plague" E.P. receiving regular replays from me in the several decades since. "Handle with Care" is perhaps a little more consistently thrashy than some of their earlier efforts though & I think that probably helps its cause with someone like myself. It's bookended by two absolute belters in "New Song" &
Trail of Tears", both of which sit amongst my favourite Nuclear Assault tracks, & this certainly holds the album in good stead but the rest of the twelve-song tracklisting is consistently engaging too with only the confusing inclusion of the fairly redundant novelty tune "Funky Noise" failing to capture me. The gritty vocals of front man John Connelly are right up my alley while I also enjoy the hardcore edge that the band display at times. While I wouldn't go into "Handle with Care" expecting to hear anything terribly original, there are some great thrash riffs on offer & I'm surprised at the fairly lackluster ratings of our regulars thus far because I would have thought this would be essential listening for most of our The Pit clan members.

For fans of Anthrax, Overkill & Vio-lence.

4/5

Shadowdoom9 (Andi)

July 31, 2025 12:40 AM

Post #23856

Annihilator is one of the most prolific bands around, as well as one of the chameleon-esque bands when it comes to its lineup, having dozens of lineup changes throughout these past 4 decades. This includes having several different vocalists throughout their tenure, one of them being remaining founding member Jeff Waters. I enjoy all of those vocalists, but if I were to do a ranking of all the ones that appear in different albums, here's what it would be, from worst to best:

7. Joe Comeau - Carnival Diablos, Waking the Fury

These early 2000s albums are a couple of the most furious releases by the band. However, Joe Comeau's vocals are OK but not so great. If the band could've re-recorded those two albums with Dave Padden while he was still in the band, I would've enjoyed them more.

6. Jeff Waters - King of the Kill, Refresh the Demon, Remains, Suicide Society, For the Demented, Ballistic Sadistic

As much as I enjoy the guitarwork of Jeff Waters, his singing, not a huge lot. It's the same problem with Scorpions' Uli Jon Roth; better at guitar than vocals.

5. Aaron Randall - Set the World on Fire

I don't have to explain much when the one album Aaron Randall was in is one of the lowest but still enjoyable parts of the discography.

4. Dave Padden - All for You, Schizo Deluxe, Metal, Annihilator, Feast

Dave Padden is the vocalist who was able to stay with the band the longest without leaving or passing vocal duties to someone else, with a decade-long run of 5 consecutive albums. Metal is one of my all-time favorite Annihilator albums besides the first two. Though he still can't beat some one of the one-off vocalists in my opinion.

3. Stu Block - Metal II

I'm familiar with the vocals of Stu Block from Into Eternity and Iced Earth, so hearing him in the Metal re-recording was like a cherry on top an already perfect metal sundae.

2. Randy Rampage - Alice in Hell, Criteria for a Black Widow

The albums with Randy Rampage are two of the most awesome albums by the band, and rightfully so. Rampage's vocals rule! RIP... However, there's one other vocalist that I think should've had more time in the spotlight...

1. Coburn Pharr - Never Neverland

Since Coburn Pharr's passing last February, I've given the one album he appeared in, Never Neverland, some more listening, and believe it or not, I just realized how glorious he sounded! No disrespect to Randy Rampage and other vocalists, but Pharr really should've stayed with the band, as I think his vocals would've made them more popular and less everchanging in the lineup, at least in the vocal department. Sadly he's gone now. RIP

Anyway, all of these vocalists are quite good, and not super terrible in any way. I just prefer some over others, and that's my true opinion. Any vocalists you think shine more in Annihilator's discography? Discuss!

Rexorcist

August 11, 2025 09:08 PM

Post #23990

This is the three year anniversary of my of my first ever review: Ride the Lightning. But I never posted it on this thread. :P

In my younger days, like many other young peeps, my knowledge of Metallica was practically limited to The Black Album and a couple of singles from the earlier days like “Master of Puppets” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls.” I wasn't fully in tune with thrash. Well as I got more in-tune with thrash I had Master of Puppets ranked as the number 1 metal album of all time. But I didn't put in in my top 20 despite how much I love metal because I always considered it a little bit bloated. Well after a lot of personal growth and re-evaluation of my life, I also re-evaluated how I rate some music, especially metal.

At first I was NOT willing to give Ride the Lightning a spot above Master of Puppets (I even had And Justice for All ranked above it). Why? Simple. Puppets' production is much cleaner, the rhythms are more developed and progressive, and Metallica's style fully matured. After re-assessing myself, I realized that the big question was not “What's the best Metallica album,” but “what's the best METAL album?” If my metalcore phase taught me anything, it's that any type of production is acceptable depending on the situation. Let's be honest. Ride the Lightning's production but not be as clear as that of Puppet's, but it really is way more metallic. They obviously came a long way in that short one-year time when the were one of the best up-and-coming metal acts playing typical early thrash, and became the very band that defined thrash.

Believe it or not, my first encounter with Metallica's “Fight Fire with Fire” was not a pleasant one. Before I was used to the idea of thrash metal (or even heard of it for that matter), I would originally type the name in to look for a Kansas song. I wouldn't hear the actual album until four years later when I first started exploring music forums and charts. It would take a few years more for me to grow fully accustomed to the harshest side of metal, and that included death metal and black metal. I have Symbolic by Death to thank for that. It was the first death metal album I had ever heard and I gave it a 100/100 right then and there. The whole point of making this the opener is to give you an idea of how much power your exposing yourself to. By the time you're done with the album, you'll already be glowing blue. Da ba dee. I mean, after that soothing guitar solo at the beginning, you're dealing with BOOM BOOM BOOM! They don't call it “Ride the Lightning” for nothing! The way that atmosphere in the production works just makes it more metallic! Sure, the intro to the opener isn't as good as the one from Puppets, but it's overall a better song than “Battery.”

I admit, I'm not so well emotionally connected to “For Whom the Bell Tolls” as many other Metallica fans are, but I'm not denying that it's one of the high points of an album loaded with high points. Taking a literally dramatic shift from the thrashing thunder of the gods, the early stages of the poetry that would be seen on Master of Puppets drives this song as much as the heavy metal melody. “Take a look to the sky just before you die, It is the last time you will. Blackened roar massive roar fills the crumbling sky, shattered goal fills his soul with a ruthless cry.” Edgar Allen Poe's getting owned here. Screw the talking raven (OK, that's my screamo band name). Much of Metallica's best "guitartistry" is boasted on “For whom the Bell Tolls,” each player doing their part to add their unique vibe to the aura and all work as well as any harmonized group while still being very creative.

Now we get to the crown jewel of Metallica's songs: “Fade to Black.” This was Metallica's first ballad, and it was recorded at a time when James Hetfield not only had some obsession with death, but had to deal with much of the band's equipment being STOLEN, including his favorite Marshall amp! Damn. As you can imagine, that helps set the mood for one of Metallica's most iconic songs. The poetry of “For Whom the Bell Tolls” continues as one of the most beautiful and emotional moods in all of power ballad history ends side B of this album. There's no need for crazy solos when you can feel the sadness touching you. How human can a song get? It does get heavier towards the end, but that's a Metallica staple right there. That doesn't stop Hetfield from delivering some of his most heartfelt vocals in his career.

Alright, the first half of side B is considered the weak point of Ride the Lightning, but what album doesn't have a weakness? I admit, I'm not in love with the intro to “Trapped Under Ice.” It slowly gets better until WEEDLY-WEEDLY-WEEDLY comes along, returning to the raw thunder of the first two songs! Even though it's more like one of the basic thrash songs like on Kill 'Em All, the Ride the Lightning energy is still there, never damaging the album's flow or consistency. I mean, come on. Is speed metal not the perfect subgenre to feature on a thrash album? Besides, for a song about literally being trapped under ice, the lyrics are really freakin' good. The song almost feels crossover-thrash-esque the way it rides on energy and quick reactions.

“Escape” is considered the worst song on the album, but I like the intro more than I like the intro of “Trapped Under Ice.” It's more rhythmic and true to the Metallica style. I think the problem here is that it's written more like a song from your average hard rock / heavy metal album instead of one of the first thrash albums. Maybe that actually works, considering that the roots of thrash come from acts like Deep Purple and Black Sabbath. Hell, I wouldn't mind a good Scorps cover. Besides, the song still rules overall. The solos are still great and the lyrics are still human and relatable.

“Creeping Death” is one that I find particularly interesting because of its lyrical content. As opposed to the satanism often showing in albums at that time, Metallica decided to write a song about the Angel of Death from the book of Exodus! Well, you gotta keep the concept strong somehow. Although the song is more formulaic to the thrash stereotype, the badassery is at its peak. “Creeping Death” is balanced out between Metallica's energy, sense of rhythm, and lyrical drive. Unlike every other song on the album, it doesn't rely on solos to make its mark because of its balance.

“The Call of Ktulu” is the closer, and the only instrumental on the album. This nearly nine-minute epic pretty much covers everything that was going on throughout the album but with a deeper sense of mystery than every other song. Starting out with that slightly creepy solo was the perfect way to go. Like other prog-infused epics of its time, it slowly gets heavier and relies on a clever collection of combined solos to make its mark on the album. I don't know about you, but I think that's a perfectly epic way to end such an incredible album.

It's so utterly weird when you finally catch on to why an album is so great, because a whole new world opens afterwards. Ride the Lightning opened up a whole new level of understanding in the world of thrash (and maybe metal) for me, and I plan on making the most of it. In my opinion, it's the single greatest example of metal in the world. It's atmosphere is flawless, the energy of the album is rivaled only by a select few like Pleasure to Kill by Kreator, and the theme and concept never suffer. In fact, Ride the Lightning is much better at delivering its concept (of death and humanity) than most albums are at delivering their own concepts. It goes without saying that Ride the Lightning is an indisputable essential for any metal collection, and I'm glad I love the album as much as I do now.

Daniel

August 14, 2025 07:07 PM

Post #24008

Grungeon - "End of the Trail" demo (1993)

This one-off demo tape represents the only release from a pretty decent Sydney thrash metal act that I enjoyed live on more than one occasion, the most notable being an excellent support slot for Bolt Thrower on their tour for "The IVth Crusade". These guys offered a gruff thrash sound that seems to have been highly influenced by classic Sepultura. Neither one of the two tracks included should be regarded as being essential but there's a naive energy to them that gives the song-writing a bit of extra oomph. The vocals of bassist David Colless (Apostasy/Tribe Maelstrom) are nice & masculine, almost touching on death metal a lot of the time, while guitarists Greg Morelli (Nazxul) & Anthony "Hefty" Hoffman (Baltak/Mortal Sin) & legendary drummer Wayne Campbell (Baltak/White Trash/Mortal Sin) lay down a competent brand of extreme metal that was always going to offer more appeal in a live environment than in the studio.

For fans of Sepultura, Mortal Sin & Tribe Maelstrom.

3.5/5

Rexorcist

August 15, 2025 07:00 PM

Post #24015

THEY'RE FUCKING BACK!