The Groove Metal Thread
For this weekend's top ten list I decided to tackle my Top Ten Groove Metal Releases Of All Time. See what you think:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
03. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
04. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
05. Exhorder – “The Law” (1992)
06. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
07. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
08. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
09. Trepalium – “XIII” (2009)
10. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
Not one of my favourite genres by any means, but my top five looks like this:
1. Sepultura - "Chaos A.D." (1993)
2. Grip Inc. - "Nemesis" (1997)
3. Slayer - "Diabolus in musica" (1998)
4. Machine Head - "Through the Ashes of Empires" (2003)
5. Mutant - "Pleiades" (2016)
Pantera - "Cowboys From Hell" (1990)
Let me set the scene for you. It’s mid-1990 & a fourteen year-old boy (admittedly a very good looking one) sits in his bedroom in Sydney late at night with his headphones on listening to the radio with a cassette player set to record the show at the same time. The track changes & a chuggy throb starts up that’s unlike anything the youth has ever heard before. A guitar appears & starts playing a palm-muted melodic run then all of a sudden… IT HITS! The whole band kicks in & starts slamming out one of the tightest, chunkiest grooves metal had ever heard to the time. It's fair to say that the young man’s ears have more than pricked up by this stage but what’s this? The guitar solo comes in unaccompanied in a similar way to his idol Eddie Van Halen. And Jesus Christ this dude can shred! He’s got chops for days, weeks & years! And those vocals! They exude a powerful hardcore attitude but still maintain a strong sense of melody. The boy would replay this song repeatedly over the next week until the late night metal show returned the following week. This time we had another inclusion from this supposedly new band Pantera but it was a heavy metal inspired ballad with soaring vocals & dive-bombing guitar solos like none he’d heard before. This ongoing week-to-week process would go on for some time before the boy felt the need to pick the full album up through tape trading & he would give it a good ol' thrashing over the next year or so. Pantera would release their breakout sixth album in 1992 & would subsequently change the world with their story going down in metal history for all eternity.
I imagine that this would be a fairly familiar story for many of us but it’s one that I remember vividly. It was immediately apparent that there was something different about Pantera’s “Cowboys From Hell”, an album that most fans assumed was their recorded debut until they’d learn otherwise. You see Pantera had begun life as a decidedly run-of-the-mill heavy metal band with an unusually talented lead guitar virtuoso in their early teens under the guidance of Darrell & Vinny’s record-producing father. They’d release four albums between 1983 & 1988 that would drift a long way under my radar before finally discovering a new sound & taking it to the world. The resulting “Cowboys From Hell” album not only showcased that new direction to the world but it would also signal somewhat of a changing of the guard for a thrash metal scene which was starting to decline in the wake of the fast ascending grunge phenomenon that would completely explode the following year. But listening back now it’s hard to deny that “Cowboys From Hell” was very much a transitional album too as the tracklisting doesn’t completely embrace this new sound (known as Groove Metal) at the expense of past glories. I think it’d be more accurate to suggest that it incorporates it as the primary source of creativity while blending it with more familiar sounds. As a result, I find it hard to deny that this is as much a thrash record as it is a groove metal one with the remnants of Pantera’s Judas Priest worshipping US power metal experimentation still showing their head on quite a few occasions.
I think it’s important to note that if I had of rated this album back in the day I would likely have scored it a bit higher than I have here but it’s also worth mentioning that I’ve somehow managed to shun it completely for a good couple of decades which seemed kinda strange too. When listening to “Cowboys From Hell” with new ears now though it’s certainly not a perfect record & I can easily see why it wasn’t the soundtrack for my youth that it was for so many others. You see it hasn’t aged as well as I’d hoped. The production sounds kinda dated now, particularly the rhythm guitar tone which left so many jaws on the ground back in the day. It’s also easy to forget that there are three or four weaker tracks amongst the twelve on offer. No weak ones mind you, it’s just important to recognize that it wasn’t all hits. I have to admit that the whole groove metal thing isn’t really my cup of tea & that’s reflected in my opinion on some of the supposedly classic tracks on the album. Songs like the title track & “Domination” don’t smash me like they do/did other metal fans. I certainly like them (& I adore the guitar work in particular) but they aren’t going to see me reaching for my elite scores. Those are reserved for the tracks that steer away from the new groove metal sound with thrash metal anthem “Message In Blood” being the clear album highlight for me. It’s interesting that it’s also one of the least popular tracks on the album but that’s not unusual for me. The other track that completely slays is the classic heavy metal ballad “Cemetery Gates”. The main riff has clearly been inspired by Randy Rhoads era Ozzy Osbourne & is one the greatest in the history of metal in my opinion, particularly when used in conjunction with Phil Anselmo’s wonderfully emotive chorus hook. What an amazing climax Darrell & Phil created at the end too!
The new groove metal sound is best championed on the title track, “Primal Concrete Sledge”, “Clash With Reality”, “Medicine Man” & “The Sleep”. “Heresy”, “Message In Blood” & “The Art Of Shredding” are pure thrash metal though while tracks like “Psycho Holiday”, “Cemetery Gates” & “Shattered” give hints towards US power metal & even your more traditional heavy metal. The fact that you can very easily differentiate the different songs & parts of songs into their various categories tells you that Pantera’s sound was still a work in progress at this stage. It was a very impressive work in progress of course but I wouldn’t say that “Cowboys From Hell” is where we see groove metal being truly defined. That would have to wait for Pantera’s 1992 sixth album “Vulgar Display Of Power”, a record that I’ve now decided I appreciate a touch more than this one after all these years. There can be no denying the power of this band as a unit though. The rhythm section were as tight as you’d find & when they hit on one of their classic grooves it draws a physical response from the listener. For me though I’d suggest that there’s not a lot of depth to some of the groovier material outside of that head-nodding, body swaying thing that happens. I find songs like “Heresy”, “Domination”, “Clash With Reality” & “The Sleep” to be more of a pleasant experience than essential listening. Phil’s vocal performance still has one foot in the higher register Rob Halford camp most of the time & I wonder whether my knowledge of his screamier & more aggressive hardcore-inspired future is seeing me subconsciously craving a bit of that when listening to “Cowboys From Hell” these days.
Ultimately it’s very hard to be critical of this record as it sounded so fresh at the time & changed the metal landscape forever in several ways. While my score is still a good one it’s definitely limited by my musical comfort zones. I think I might need to revisit some of Pantera’s later works over the next few months to see how those records have been treated by time too. I suspect that I might find at least one of those to overtake the two early 90’s big boys at this point in my life.
For fans of Soulfly, Sepultura & Exhorder.
4/5
Here's my updated Top Ten Groove Metal Releases Of All Time list after revisting Pantera's "Cowboys From Hell" this weekend:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
03. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
04. Exhorder – “The Law” (1992)
05. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
06. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
07. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
08. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
09. Trepalium – “XIII” (2009)
10. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/175
Sepultura - "Roots" (1996)
It came as a bit of a shock to me but I actually don't think I've ever listened to "Roots" up until now. I was previously under the distinct impression that this was the point that Sepultura lost me but given that I've experienced no semblance of familiarity with most of the tracklisting I can only assume that my interest was simply too heavily entwined in the extreme metal scene to pay any notice to the Brazilians sixth full-length. But you know what? It's not a bad record to tell you the truth. It was certainly the band's least appealing offering to the time & is far too inconsistent to even think about my higher scores but I can't say that I find it to be as repulsive as many other ol' thrashers seem to.
"Roots" offers an interesting combination of styles with Sepultura having completely dropped their trademark thrash metal sound by this stage, instead adopting an approach that sits somewhere between groove metal, nu metal, hardcore punk & Brazilian tribal folk music. I can't say that it always works & there are a fair few failures along the way (particularly the God-awful "Ratamahatta") but when the band get it right they can still produce a very solid piece of bottom-heavy metal music, even though it won't be as musically & melodically impressive as they were capable of in their late 80's/early 90's prime. The Korn influence is plain for all to see but that's not to say that Sepultura do a bad job at incorporating nu metal into their sound. The parts that annoy me the most tend to be when they use the scatty Brazilian vocals over a metal backing or even opt for snippets of turntablism. The hardcore sections sound really natural though with gravel-throated Max Cavalera fitting the mould very well while the expanded focus on the traditional music of their Brazilian homeland was the natural destination for the journey they'd started with 1991's classic "Arise" album. The noticeable omission is Andreas Kisser's lovely touches of lead guitar melody seem to have become the victim of a more modern approach which is a shame.
While this might not be the most inspirational or addictive Sepultura release it's hard to deny that the band's intentions were in the right place as they can't be accused of simply repeating the formula that they'd built their career on. My personal preference in metal isn't really in line with the groove/nu metal direction that "Roots" has taken but the simple riffs contain enough quality to keep me interested, especially on the darker songs like "Cut-Throat", "Lookaway" & "Ambush". The beautiful acoustic folk guitar piece "Jasco" is a nice addition too. "Roots" may not be essential listening but I think it's worth a few spins nonetheless.
For fans of Soulfly, Machine Head & Korn.
3.5/5
Here's my updated Top Ten Groove Metal Releases Of All Time list after revisting Pantera's "Far Beyond Driven" over the lasy couple of days:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
03. Exhorder – “The Law” (1992)
04. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
05. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
06. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
07. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
08. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
09. Trepalium – “XIII” (2009)
10. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/175
Pantera - "Far Beyond Driven" (1994)
I count myself lucky to have been one of the privileged few that picked up on the whole Pantera groove metal phenomenon very shortly after its conception & subsequently had the pleasure of watching them develop & go from strength to strength over a number of years. I wasn’t in any way aware of Pantera during their 80’s heavy/glam metal days but their important 1990’s “Cowboys From Hell” album had already been pleasuring my ears for a good 18 months by the time they completely realigned the global metal scene with their career-defining 1992 sixth album “Vulgar Display of Power”. Despite my being firmly entrenched in the extreme metal scene at the time, it was absolutely impossible not to be impacted by the wave of euphoric adoration that seemed to engulf the band & that would only increase further with 1994’s hugely successful seventh full-length “Far Beyond Driven” which topped the charts in my home country of Australia. Everyone appeared to love it at the time (myself included) but it seems that time has seen it’s qualities down-played versus it’s two older siblings & I thought it was time I investigated why.
Let me start off by saying that there are a few elements that differentiate “Far Beyond Driven” from its highly praised predecessors. For starters, it’s the most focused of the three records in that Pantera had finely honed the groove metal style they were responsible for creating down to an easily identifiable sound & this album sees them thoroughly indulging in that by milking it for every last drop. In doing so we see legendary guitar virtuoso Dimebag Darrell coming up with some of the greatest groove metal riffs ever written but I think it’s fair to say that (unlike “Cowboys From Hell” & “Vulgar Display Of Power” which offered a bit more variety) you really do need to buy into the whole groove metal thing if you’re gonna dig “Far Beyond Driven”. The other major difference is that front man Phil Anselmo takes a consistently more guttural & aggressive hardcore-inspired vocal approach for the vast majority of the run time & in doing so leaves behind any semblance of his higher-register Rob Halford-impersonating singing voice. Neither of these things are negatives as such. They’re simply observations & if I’m honest I found the added focus on pure adrenaline & masculinity to be quite the drawcard at the time even though the public perception seems to have flipped a bit towards a feeling of super-macho posturing over the years.
The musicianship on “Far Beyond Driven” is outstanding & we really see the rhythm section of bassist Rex & drummer Vinny Paul setting the bar extremely high for the competition, particularly Vinny whose performance here is one of the highlights of the album as a whole. In fact, I think Pantera relied a lot less on Darrell’s amazing shredding by this stage & I don’t feel that the production places as strong a focus on him as a result. Instead Pantera come across as a well-oiled & finely-honed unit that know their sound extremely well & conduct themselves with complete professionalism. The production job does sound pretty dated with the rhythm guitar tone being very much of its time but this can easily be forgiven when you consider that Pantera were one of the primary instigators in changing the way we viewed guitar tones in general during that period. It’s very easy to be critical from an historical perspective but if we’re honest with ourselves none of us had a problem with it at the time.
The real difference between the first three Pantera groove metal outings is the quality of the song-writing though & there have been some sacrifices in their true-metal-at-all-costs mentality. Both “Cowboys From Hell” & “Vulgar Display of Power” were very consistent records with no genuinely weak tracks included & “Far Beyond Driven” is no different. What’s missing though are those few genuine metal classics that both of its predecessors contained as I don’t think I can say that any of its twelve tracks included qualify for that level of adoration. Instead we have twelve songs that range from pretty decent to very strong which amounts to a very rewarding listen, just not one that will see my life changing. That’s not to say that ANY of Pantera’s albums have changed my life terribly much as groove metal simply doesn’t appeal to me as much as it does to others but you know what I’m saying. In saying all that, I can’t say that I see “Far Beyond Driven” as sitting all that far behind its more readily celebrated peers. It’s still a very strong release with a lot of positives. I do think that some of its biggest tracks like “Five Minutes Alone” & “Becoming” are a bit overrated though. I’d also suggest that some of the tracks in the middle of the album that are generally regarded as being a bit weaker are actually very good with the two-song run of unusual change-up track “Good Friends and a Bottle of Pills” & the weightier “Hard Lines, Sunken Cheeks” being a fine example of that. Even the ill-placed cover version of Black Sabbath’s “Planet Caravan” (the original being an all-time favourite of mine) is very well done even if it is too closely aligned with the original & seems a touch inferior in comparison. For me the highlights of the album sit with muscular groove metal outings like main single “I’m Broken”, super-masculine opener “Strength Beyond Strength” & the thrashy “Slaughtered” but (as I mentioned earlier) there’s not a clear line of delineation between the stronger & weaker inclusions as the quality band doesn’t stretch all that far.
Overall, I’d suggest that “Far Beyond Driven” showcases a band that were still at the peak of their powers & were content to focus purely on further amplifying the things that made them different from the rest of the market when they first broke into the scene in 1990. Was it successful in what it was trying to accomplish? Yeah I think it was for the most part. It’s not quite as strong as “Cowboys From Hell” or career highlight “Vulgar Display of Power” but the gap isn’t large enough to see me scoring it any differently so it’s another essential release for fans of Pantera or groove metal in general.
For fans of Exhorder, Lamb of God & Machine Head.
4/5
Sepultura - "Chaos AD" (1993)
I think it’s fair to say that Brazilian thrash metallers Sepultura were more of an obsession than a passion for me from the time I first discovered their classic third full-length album “Beneath The Remains” in late 1989 right up until the release of this divisive fifth full-length. The timing of their infamous breakout from the underground was perfectly aligned with my own period of extreme metal discovery so they represented somewhat of a cult figure in my formative years & if it would have been up to me then the world would have waited until their arrival as a premier thrash act before deriving any sort of Big Four of thrash metal. But………. this brings me to the “Chaos AD” album from 1993, a record that would see the band dramatically altering the course of their careers via a fresh & innovative new sound.
I can still remember excitedly rocking up at Sandy’s Records in the Northern Beaches of Sydney on the day of release, racing home to experience “Chaos AD” for the very first time & the feelings of confusion I battled with as a result. It wasn’t that I found the music I was hearing to be unpleasant in any way. It was that it was so clearly very different from what I was expecting after the thrash metal icon that was 1991’s “Arise” album. The production job on "Chaos AD" is very solid with the rhythm guitars offering a chunky, heavy-weight platform that enables the fairly simple & uncluttered song-writing to do its work in workman-like fashion. Igor’s drums possess an organic depth, particularly the toms which were clearly meant to be a highlight of the record thanks to the continued focus on tribal rhythms that had been experimented with on “Arise”. There isn’t the brightness & energy to the guitars that I was expecting to hear though which is in large part due to the band having experimented with down-tuning their instruments for the first time. That’s not to say that the experiment didn’t work though as these more rhythmic & groovy riffs certainly benefited from the approach. It’s just that they sounded a little foreign to my fanatical thrash-trained ears at the time. You see, unlike the Sepultura of old, this Sepultura was in no hurry whatsoever with the songs given plenty of space & sticking predominantly to mid-paced tempos, the result of which was a more accessible product that was capable of seeing Sepultura crossing over into an as yet untapped market. Despite my initial hesitation though, I couldn’t deny that they'd managed to achieve this without losing much of their creative street credibility because “Chaos AD” is a long way from a sell-out.
Pantera had changed the face of the global metal scene in the very early 1990’s with their groove metal sound seeing a trillion bands adopting a more rhythmic approach to metal guitar playing & we can definitely see that influence on “Chaos AD” as there’s really very little that you can call legitimate thrash metal on this album. There’s an obvious hardcore punk edge to a lot of the material with Andreas Kisser having now turned all of his attention to creating dissonant, textured interludes rather than flashy, melodic guitar solos. The lyrics are predominantly politically focused which suits the material very well too. Igor is certainly the star of the show as far as the performances go as the groove metal platform afforded him additional room to move given the more rhythmic nature of the riffs around him. I saw Sepultura play live on the tour in support of the album back in 1994 actually & it was no surprise to find that the new material came across brilliantly in a live environment. I’d been lucky enough to see them two years earlier on the tour for the “Arise” album & they were just as impressive the second time around to be honest.
It didn’t take me all that long to find a level of acceptance for “Chaos AD”. My major challenge was accepting that the Sepultura I’d loved & adored was now a thing of the past & to treat the new Sepultura as almost an entirely different band. Once I was able to do that I found that it’s actually a very consistent, well written & professionally produced metal record that achieved a feat that so many have failed at. It had created something fresh & different that could draw the attention of a wider audience but still appeal to a large percentage of their existing fans (at least those with an open mind). I have to say that the New Model Army cover version of “The Hunt” was a poor choice as it stands out very clearly in an otherwise quite cohesive artistic statement & there aren’t many genuine classics here either but the majority of the album is very strong nonetheless with “We Who Are Not As Others” (the least popular metal track on the album unsurprisingly) being my clear standout. There’s no doubt that “Chaos AD” was a step down from the two classics that preceded it but I actually think it sits very comfortably next to the Sepultura’s earlier material these days. In fact, I’d probably take it over “Bestial Devastation” & Morbid Visions” & don't place it too far behind “Schizophrenia” either. Fans of the band’s earlier work really should give “Chaos AD” a chance as you may just find yourself buying what it’s selling.
For fans of Soulfly, Cavalera Conspiracy & Machine Head.
4/5
Here's my updated Top Ten Groove Metal Releases Of All Time list after finding that "Chaos AD" doesn't quite appeal to me as much as Pantera's two classics these days:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
03. Exhorder – “The Law” (1992)
04. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
05. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
06. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
07. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
08. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
09. Trepalium – “XIII” (2009)
10. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/175
I have a lot of love for Chaos AD as it was the album that got me back into metal after my early nineties hiatus. I'd take it over anything from Pantera any day.
Pantera - "The Great Southern Trendkill" (1996)
I wasn't exactly blown away by Pantera's eighth album after purchasing it on cassette at the time of release. I mean I didn't mind it but it certainly seemed to be a bit wishy washy alongside the band's previous three records. Listening back to it now though has seen me adjusting those sentiments as it's really another very solid effort when you give it the decency of a few consecutive active listens. It's probably not as metal as "Far Beyond Driven" was but I'd suggest that it offers more variety & is a touch more consistent too to tell you the truth. Darrell's southern rock influence has never been so obvious as it is in his lead work here. That doesn't sound like a good thing to someone with my particular taste profile but the reality is that he's a wonderful musician & pulls it off with absolute ease. Phil's vocal performance is muscular & aggressive but I actually think he's at his best when he goes for a grungier approach & those tracks inevitably end up being my favourite inclusions (see "10's" & "Suicide Note Pt. I"). The tracklisting does fade a touch at the end (particularly the flat closer "(Reprise) Sandblasted Skin") but the super-tight performances of the rhythm section & the signature rhythmic riffage makes this Pantera's third best record behind their two early 90's classics.
For fans of Hellyeah, Malevolence & Damageplan.
4/5
Here's my updated Top ten Groove Metal Releases of All Time list:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
03. Exhorder – “The Law” (1992)
04. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
05. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
06. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
07. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
08. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
09. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
10. Trepalium – “XIII” (2009)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/175
Here's my updated Top ten Groove Metal Releases of All Time list after checking out Gojira's "Magma" album over the last couple of days & being well impressed:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
03. Exhorder – “The Law” (1992)
04. Gojira - "Magma" (2016)
05. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
06. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
07. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
08. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
09. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
10. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/175
Here's my updated Top ten Groove Metal Releases of All Time list after voting Exhorder's "The Law" down for groove metal on its release page which sees it no longer qualifying for inclusion:
01. Coroner – “Grin” (1993)
02. Grip Inc. – “Nemesis” (1997)
03. Gojira - "Magma" (2016)
04. Pantera – “Vulgar Display Of Power” (1992)
05. Pantera – “Cowboys From Hell” (1990)
06. Sepultura – “Chaos A.D.” (1993)
07. Pantera – “The Great Southern Trendkill” (1996)
08. Pantera – “Far Beyond Driven” (1994)
09. Anthrax – “Sound Of White Noise” (1993)
10. Machine Head - "The Blackening" (2007)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/175