The Technical Thrash Metal Thread
Coroner - "R.I.P." (1987)
The 1987 debut album from Swiss technical thrash metal outfit Coroner & I go wwwwaaaayyyyy back but we haven't always had an entirely amicable relationship in all honesty. I've often struggled with the blatant technicality of the riffs which regularly sound more like practice exercises than actual art & the neoclassical influence in the lead work has always seemed to me to be at odds with the ideals of the European thrash sound, particularly on the very popular instrumental piece "Nosferatu" which is still a bit too much for me personally. But time has a habit of doing funny things to old bastards like me & in this case it seems to have healed whatever wounds I may have sustained in the past as I now find myself enjoying "R.I.P." a little more than I ever have before. Don't get me wrong, I still think it's the weakest of Coroner's albums & I'm not sure there's a genuine classic amongst the tracklisting but the energy & urgency in the band's sound, the raspy vocal approach & astounding bass work of front man Ron Royce & the combined competence, vision & ambition shown by this trio of musicians all makes for a pretty rewarding listen these days, despite the fact that I can't ever quite forget about my previous qualms. For fans of Vektor, Voivod & Watchtower.
3.5/5
Coroner - "Punishment For Decadence" (1988)
My below review from many years ago still holds up but I'm now finding that I'd probably take "R.I.P." over the CD version of "Punishment For Decadence" due to the entirely unnecessary cover version of Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze" that's tacked on the end. The vinyl & cassette version (which is what I grew up with) is a step up though. There are some genuinely great moments, despite the fact that many of the riffs still resemble practice exercises more than artistic expression.
"This was my introduction to Coroner way back in 1988/89. I bought the album on cassette & listened to it quite regularly. It was certainly a much classier effort than their debut album "R.I.P." from the previous year but I still found myself struggling a little with Tommy's occasional neo-classical indulgences. Instrumental "Arc-Lite" with its Malmsteen-esque arpeggios was a particularly awkward listen for me as the neo-classical element seems to take away from the darkness of the atmosphere & at times it all seems a little cheesy. The rest of the album is generally quite enjoyable though with "Absorbed", "Sudden Fall" & "The New Breed" being the pick of the bunch. It's definitely a solid release but 80's Coroner never really appealed to me like 90's Coroner did."
4/5 for the vinyl/cassette version
3.5/5 for the CD version
Кровоизлияние - "Кровоизлияние" (1993)
I picked up the sole album from this Russian tech thrash outfit through tape trading shortly after release & recall thinking that it would only be a matter of time before Аспид blew up across the underground metal scene. It ended up taking a lot longer than I expected but they eventually got the recognition they deserved, even it it did come well after they'd disbanded. "Кровоизлияние" is a very complex record for a debut & showcases a band that already well & truly understood their sound. The production job is outstanding & is a real highlight in that It beautifully balances raw savagery with controlled power. The performances are well & truly good enough to back it up too with the rhythmic experimentation being particularly impressive for a newcomer from such an obscure location. I'm not the biggest fan of some of the Russion vocals & they're the clear weakness in Аспид's armoury in my opinion however there's plenty of instrumental fireworks to make up for it. The lengthy intro track in pretty cheesy & weak but there's a solid consistency to the rest of the material without ever pushing out into classic territory. It's very hard to fault a release of this sort of quality & ambition really. It's a feather in the cap of the mid-90's underground extreme metal scene.
For fans of Vektor, Coroner & Obliveon.
4/5
For this weekend's top ten list I decided to go for my Top Ten Technical Thrash Metal Releases of All Time. I've been very strict in my use of the MA subgenre tagging for this so there are a couple of borderline ones in my opinion. See what you think.
01. Coroner – “Mental Vortex” (1991)
02. Sadus – “A Vision Of Misery” (1992)
03. Coroner – “No More Color” (1989)
04. Annihilator – “Alice In Hell” (1989)
05. Cryptic Shift – “Visitations From Enceladus” (2020)
06. Toxik – “World Circus” (1987)
07. Аспид – “Кровоизлияние” (1993)
08. Coroner – “Punishment For Decadence” (1988)
09. Vektor – “Black Future” (2009)
10. Annihilator – “Never, Neverland” (1990)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/173
Like I said in the Conventional Thrash Metal Thread, I enjoy a good amount of conventional and technical thrash metal. Technical thrash is actually the kind of direction I wanted to go for late 80s/early 90s thrash, but there's still a huge load to conventional thrash releases I've rated, about 40% of them coming from all the Annihilator albums (except their temporary switch into classic heavy metal in Set the World on Fire). Anyway, here's my top 5:
5. Mekong Delta - Dances of Death (And Other Walking Shadows) (1990)
4. Sadus - A Vision of Misery (1992)
3. Annihilator - Alice in Hell (1989)
2. Coroner - Mental Vortex (1991)
1. Vektor - Black Future (2009)
01. Coroner – “Mental Vortex” (1991)02. Sadus – “A Vision Of Misery” (1992)
03. Coroner – “No More Color” (1989)
04. Annihilator – “Alice In Hell” (1989)
05. Cryptic Shift – “Visitations From Enceladus” (2020)
06. Toxik – “World Circus” (1987)
07. Аспид – “Кровоизлияние” (1993)
08. Coroner – “Punishment For Decadence” (1988)
09. Vektor – “Black Future” (2009)
10. Annihilator – “Never, Neverland” (1990)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/173
Black Future has to be the top for me, but I'm really happy to see Visitations From Enceladus so high on there. I'm really hoping that Cryptic Shift only improves because if they release an album better than their debut it's gonna be huge. I HIGHLY recommend going to Demoniac's So It Goes and coming back to this list though Daniel, Sonny has been going through the Chilean Thrash scene recently and came to the same conclusion as me; I think that album is truly something special.
Rubbish at lists as we know but seeing Toxik in here warms my heart. Vektor absolutely has to be up here and you'll get no argument from me on Coroner being included.
That Demoniac has been on my to do list since I saw Sonny's high praise so I am throwing it on now to see what all the fuss is about. Sight of that nearly 20 min track puts me off though.
My updated Top Ten Technical Thrash Metal Releases Of All Time list after revisiting Ripping Corpse's "Dreaming With The Dead" album overnight & deciding that it deserves a spot in my top ten ahead of Annihilator's "Never, Neverland". I'm well aware that a lot of people don't regard it as being techy enough for the "technical" tag but you know what? The MA database says otherwise so it qualifies as far as I'm concerned.
01. Coroner – “Mental Vortex” (1991)
02. Sadus – “A Vision Of Misery” (1992)
03. Coroner – “No More Color” (1989)
04. Annihilator – “Alice In Hell” (1989)
05. Cryptic Shift – “Visitations From Enceladus” (2020)
06. Ripping Corpse - "Dreaming With The Dead" (1991)
07. Toxik – “World Circus” (1987)
08. Аспид – “Кровоизлияние” (1993)
09. Coroner – “Punishment For Decadence” (1988)
10. Vektor – “Black Future” (2009)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/173
That Demoniac has been on my to do list since I saw Sonny's high praise so I am throwing it on now to see what all the fuss is about. Sight of that nearly 20 min track puts me off though.
I gave this a spin and all was well in the main...until that saxophone came into play. Utterly unnecessary and completely out of place; it adds nothing to this album other than to distract from the good stuff that is going on. These guys can play and entertain me enough without going avant-garde and my attention was held pretty much for most of the final track which I was dreading as I alluded to. They are an established artist and it shows and in all seriousness, props to them for trying something different but I just cannot contextualise it in the grander scheme of what is going on and so after just one listen, I have lost all interest.
Coroner is back together and working on new studio material. Is anyone else as hyped s I am?
I'm certainly very interested to see what they come up with. I actually prefer their 90's material over their 80's albums so I hope it's a continuation of the development we saw from each progressive release to date.
Coroner is back together and working on new studio material. Is anyone else as hyped s I am?
*raising hand to the roof*
I hope for their new album to have more of the progressive tech-thrash from Mental Vortex, and also for a few other long-gone awesome 80s/90s thrash/tech-thrash bands to work on their upcoming albums like they said they would, such as Dark Angel, Demolition Hammer, and Sadus.
It must be four years since Coroner first made it public that they were working on new material. They're really taking their time here, aren't they?
I actually find out last year about the band's plans to work on an album from an Agoraphobic News interview video I've shared here: https://metal.academy/forum/13/thread/783
They were modernizing a little when they released their final album, making a shift into groove metal territory. Maybe they're trying to find the right "relevant" sound?
With the thrash revival happening recently, my prediction for the album to have the progressive tech-thrash of Mental Vortex is possible, though with a bit of the Grin groove.
My prediction is that they'll take the cash-grab option of every other old-school band that's reformed in the last decade i.e. they'll steer clear of the "Grin" sound as it was too divisive.
But.... Grin is their best album! (hides to avoid immediate backlash)
But.... Grin is their best album! (hides to avoid immediate backlash)
Honestly I couldn't give a crap about the backlash over stuff like that, especially since this whole "signature album" rule is broken often, especially by The Beatles. Sometimes it;s a war between two albums, like Cocteau Twins' Treasure and Heaven or Las Vegas. Plus, my favorite Coroner is No More Color and I'm kinda disappointed in the Beatles cover on Mental Vortex.
Plus, all the Coroner albums are good enough to justify a "favorite album" comment, and in Grin's case, if someone likes groove more that thrash, or is just tired of straight thrash, it makes sense.
Vektor - "Outer Isolation" (2011)
Despite finding enjoyment in all three of their highly praised full-lengths, I've always been pretty vocal about how overrated I think Arizona progressive thrash metal four-piece Vektor are. Interestingly (but perhaps not surprisingly) though, it's the least popular of the trio of albums that I find the most appeal in with 2011's "Outer Isolation" managing to top Vektor's more widely celebrated albums in terms of overall consistency for mine. There's not a weak track included here & the opening three song run sets a very solid platform for the rest of the album. Front man David DiSanto's Chuck Schuldiner-style rasp can be a touch divisive but I'd suggest that there will be very few Voivod, Coroner & Аспид fans that don't get long-term jollies out of Vektor's sophomore record.
4/5
Annihilator - "Never, Neverland" (1990)
This Canadian thrash metal outfit made a big impression on Ben & I with their 1989 debut album "Alice In Hell" (4/5) & Annihilator's sophomore record is generally regarded as another essential listening experience for any self-respecting thrasher. I have to admit that I've never quite seen it that way though if I'm being completely honest. The replacement of front man Randy Rampage with Coburn Pharr is certainly an obvious point of difference but I think Coburn does a reasonable job here, even if he does give the album a very different feel to the more aggressive & less melodic Randy. Jeff Waters guitar work is sensational & potentially tops his first up effort. His performances alone are really on another level to the rest of the thrash competition. The links to technical thrash metal were misguided with the debut but here Jeff has ramped up the complexity (particularly during the first half of the tracklisting) & I feel that the tag sits much more comfortably this time.
The album starts off in a rich vein of form with one of Annihilator's best tracks in "The Fun Palace" before continuing in solid fashion for the remainder of the A side. The B side sees the quality dropping a touch though with all of the highlights sitting on the other side. The only weak track as such is the silly "Kraf Dinner" but the rest of the B side is pretty decent without ever really commanding your attention. As with "Alice in Hell", there are a couple of speed metal numbers included in "Kraf Dinner" & "Reduced To Ash" while "Phantasmagoria" & "I Am In Command" take a more traditional thrash metal approach. We also get a little traditional heavy metal in "Stonewall" while the title track & "Imperiled Eyes" are fully fledged progressive metal works so there's certainly enough variety of offer. It just comes down to consistency & I'm afraid to say that "Never, Neverland" hasn't quite lived up to its potential when compared with its highly celebrated older sibling. Diehard fans of the more technically inclined thrash bands like Coroner, Heathen & Toxik might disagree though.
3.5/5
My updated Top Ten Technical Thrash Metal Releases of All Time list after Annihilator's "Alice in Hell" became ineligible (i.e. is rightfully no longer listed as Technical Thrash Metal at Metal Academy) & my revisit to Vektor's "Outer Isolation" drew unexpectedly favourable results:
01. Coroner – “Mental Vortex” (1991)
02. Sadus – “A Vision Of Misery” (1992)
03. Coroner – “No More Color” (1989)
04. Cryptic Shift – “Visitations From Enceladus” (2020)
05. Ripping Corpse - "Dreaming With The Dead" (1991)
06. Toxik – “World Circus” (1987)
07. Аспид – “Кровоизлияние” (1993)
08. Coroner – “Punishment For Decadence” (1988)
09. Vektor - "Outer Isolation" (2011)
10. Vektor – “Black Future” (2009)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/173
Meshuggah - "Contradictions Collapse" (1991)
I feel that I was probably a little fortunate to stumble over Swedish djent phenomenon Meshuggah very early on in their recording career after taking in the first of Nuclear Blast’s “Death… Is Just The Beginning” video compilations & finding their video clip for “Abnegating Cecity” to be very interesting. It was the sheer complexity of the song & riff structures, the incredible ability of front man Jens Kidman to deliver his vocals while playing such obscure time signatures on his guitar & the ground-breaking use of Allan Holdsworth style jazz fusion guitar solos that really got me & I immediately proceeded to pick the “Contradictions Collapse” album up through the tape trading scene. I think it’s fair to say that I found it to be generally entertaining too but the song-writing hasn't proven to be consistently engaging enough to see me making regular return visits over the years & it wouldn’t be until 1995’s “Destroy Erase Improve” sophomore album that I’d become truly convinced of Meshuggah’s credentials as a genuine star of the global metal scene. “Contradictions Collapse” is a very different record to that one though to be fair.
I think one of the limiting factors in just how much appeal a record like “Contradictions Collapse” can offer is the production job as the rhythm guitar tone is quite dry & the snare sound isn’t the heaviest but the performances are nothing short of spectacular for a debut full-length. This music is as complex as metal came at the time with drummer Tomas Haake already proving himself to be an absolute machine. The unusual time signature changes fly past with high regularity but the whole band somehow manages to keep everything sounding tight & precise. The guitar solos I mentioned are exquisitely composed too, despite sounding pretty random at times. That style of lead work requires a lot of training & practice to perfect so I’ve been very impressed with how well it’s been presented for such a young band.
Kidman’s vocals aren’t as aggressive as you’re probably used to from him these days & he sounds a fair bit like a gruffer James Hetfield a lot of the time. He does a reasonable job of it but I definitely prefer his later work if I'm being honest. It’s the instrumental side of Meshuggah’s sound that was the most dramatically different to the signature djent sound they’d create shortly afterwards though & I’m not sure I heard anything that sounds like “Contradictions Collapse” during the early 1990’s. It really was one of a kind. A lot of people tend to tag it as a technical thrash metal release but I’ve always found that to be a little dubious… until now that is. When examined closely it soon becomes apparent that a lot of the riffs are extremely technical variations on themes that wouldn’t feel out of place on a Metallica or Anthrax record so I’ve had to change my tune a bit. That’s not to say that there’s not a lot more to this album than thrash though as I’d suggest that a good portion of it fits comfortably under the progressive metal tag, not the djent variety however as Meshuggah hadn’t yet homed in on that sound regularly enough to warrant the creation of a new subgenre at this early stage of their evolution. There are quite a few odd-timed, groove-oriented riffs scattered across the tracklisting too & this is where Meshuggah’s chances of achieving my higher scores start to diminish as I certainly find the thrashier material to be superior to the chuggier stuff which tends to sound a touch flat in comparison.
It's pretty hard to see why “Contradictions Collapse” is so poorly regarded these days to tell you the truth as it’s a very consistent record that sounds like no one else & contains no genuinely weak moments. It also highlights an inspired, talented & ambitious group of musicians with tracks like opener “Paralyzing Ignorance” (my personal favourite), “Internal Evidence” & “Greed” being very solid examples of where Meshuggah were up to in their evolution. Sure, it may be the band’s least impressive album overall but that’s more of a reflection on what a consistent band they are than an indication of any failure on this record’s part as it still holds up well today & should be of interest to fans of bands like Stam1na, Obliveon & Watchtower.
3.5/5
My updated Top Ten Technical Thrash Metal Releases of All Time list after revisiting Destruction's "Cracked Brain" fourth album this weekend. Vektor's "Black Future" is the unlucky record to drop out of the list:
01. Coroner – “Mental Vortex” (1991)
02. Sadus – “A Vision Of Misery” (1992)
03. Coroner – “No More Color” (1989)
04. Cryptic Shift – “Visitations From Enceladus” (2020)
05. Ripping Corpse - "Dreaming With The Dead" (1991)
06. Toxik – “World Circus” (1987)
07. Destruction - "Cracked Brain" (1990)
08. Аспид – “Кровоизлияние” (1993)
09. Coroner – “Punishment For Decadence” (1988)
10. Vektor - "Outer Isolation" (2011)
https://metal.academy/lists/single/173