DIS vs DAT Thread - The Pit Edition

Inspired by the new DIS vs DAT thing on Metal Academy, in turn inspired by that weekly feature on Utopia Records' Facebook page, I decided to turn this conversation-starting activity into a full thread instead of separate threads. Got a couple albums with the same genre and release year that you can't decide which has the greater edge? Share them here!

I came back to this old thread to share two thrash metal albums released in 1988. I'll tell you what I think of them once I get some feedback. Which one of these albums has the greater edge? Choose one and explain the reason!

I actually quite like both of these albums - they are very similar in that they have some great tracks, some filler and a cover version apiece. So let's start with the covers - Megadeth's cover of the Pistols classic is an abomination in every way (Dave can't even get the lyrics right), whereas Anthrax's cover of Trust's Antisocial is better than the original in my view, so first point to Anthrax. Both have quite a weak original track, 502 in Mustaine's case and the single, Make Me Laugh, in Scott Ian's case. I prefer 502 over MML, so point 2 goes to Megadeth and it's 1:1. Both LPs kick off strongly, Be All, End All is a great opener and Out of Sight, Out of Mind is a solid follow-up track, but the instrumental Into the Lungs of Hell is an absolute killer of an opening track and Set the World Afire is also a great track that carries the openers momentum forward. 2:1 to Megadeth. Both first sides also end well, but Mary Jane just pips Who Cares Wins for me so Megadeth go 3:1 up. The side two openers is a walk over for Anthrax - Now It's Dark is the album's best track and 502 isn't. 3:2. The remainder of State of Euphoria is solid and Finale is a great ending. So Far's last three tracks are much better though - Mustaine's cynical vitriol is in full flow. In My Darkest Hour is classic and contrary to other Academy members I fuckin' love Liar - Dave's venom spitting is a treat to behold. Hook In Mouth's tirade against Tipper Gore, Mary Whitehouse and all the other fucking self-righteous assholes who seek to censor what we supposedly free-willed adults listen to is worth the price alone. So that's 4:2 to Megadeth. One interesting point is that all the available modern versions of So Far... (well, the CD version I own and the streaming versions anyway) seem to have a very different mix than the original vinyl version I also own which seems to have toned down the album's bite, so I gotta knock a point off I'm afraid. Still I pronounce Megadeth the winners for me, 3:2.

I picked up both of these albums on cassette at around the same time in late 1988 & played the shit out of them at a very young age so I've possibly got a stronger emotional attachment to them than most people would. I haven't listened to "State Of Euphoria" is decades now though which is probably saying something to me in regards to which release should win this debate. "So Far, So Good... So What!" certainly has a few duds on it but none of them are horrible. They're more disappointing or flat than anything else. The rest of the tracklisting is nothing short of spectacular though & showcases a level of sophistication & technical proficiency that the thrash world was yet to experience from anyone else. I regard "So Far, So Good... So What!" as Megadeth's third best album behind the records either side of it whereas I wouldn't place "State Of Euphoria" in quite so high a position in Anthrax's back catalogue. Therefore I'm gonna have to go with Megadeth here even though I've always regarded "State Of Euphoria" as being unfairly underrated.

I like both albums, having given each of them 4 stars, being great albums (though not what people consider the best) from two of the Big 4 of American thrash metal. But the one I prefer is... Anthrax's State of Euphoria! I agree about that Anthrax album being underrated, there's a great amount of thrash classics that sadly many other listeners put down over the years thinking the sound is not the same as earlier. So Far, So Good... So What! is a good classic too, with nearly 5 of the 8 songs being perfect and would've made me gained interest in this band...if not for 3 meddling stinkers that made the rating plummet slightly lower than that Anthrax album. With that, Anthrax makes my vote!

Anthrax: 1

Megadeth: 2