Destruction - Release From Agony (1987)^{Release ID: 3007}

I seem to be a minority in my general disinterest in Destruction's early work. Many consider their first few releases to be classic thrash metal albums. I've tried over the years to get into them, but simply can't see any reason why so many metal fans rate them so highly. Neither Infernal Overkill nor Eternal Devastation were particularly bad albums, they just offered nothing very exciting and nothing beyond plain, average thrash.

So, I started listening to Release From Agony, their third full length album, with a certain level of pessimism, particularly as it doesn't receive as much praise as the above mentioned releases. Surprisingly, this is a fair improvement on everything the band did before it. Finally, they have a decent production that doesn't leave the whole band sounding wimpy, and there's also much more variety and musical experimentation to be found throughout the eight tracks included than could previously be heard. Sign of Fear is an example of what Destruction can do if they put their mind to it, with its eerie keyboard and acoustic guitar work adding to the normal metal blueprint. Release From Agony, Unconscious Ruins and Incriminated are really enjoyable also, but there are great riffs at pretty much every turn.

The problem is that when compared to other European thrash bands such as Kreator and Sodom, Destruction just don't reach the same level of excitement. Schmier's vocals, while better on this album, still annoy me somewhat. His almost embarrassing high-pitched squeals are not as prevalent than they were previously, but still raise their ugly head from time to time. I must admit that I occasionally enjoy his performance this time round. The solos are fairly rubbish at times, while OK at others. And finishing the album with that stupid little piece of music is completely out of character with the rest of the sound and well, just plain dumb. I enjoy Release From Agony more than anything other Destruction album I've heard, but it's still no classic.

After three decently energetic but artistically disappointing albums and one big improvement on writing in a four-track EP called Mad Butcher, I was really hoping the next track in this major thrash venture, Destruction, would show some real class and sophistication.  After a surprisingly moody and atmospheric intro, I'm assaulted with their heaviest thrash so far: Release from Agony.  But there's more unpredictability and rhythm involved in all the speed.  God was I hoping this would be a consistent thin, especially considering that this is the last of the classic Destruction era before the initial quality drop until four albums later with their comeback, The Antichrist (unless you count the live album, Live Without Sense).  The next track goes more or less the same way, but still boasts the improvements with ease.  But I found myself once again worried when track four, Sign of Fear, clocked in at nearly seven minutes.  It starts off with some doom metal before going into some straightforward heavy metal incorporating some thrashiness, but a slow enough pace to completely differentiate itself from the bulk of the generic Destruction catalogue.  This song gets dark and even creepy at times, so in a way it became my favorite Destruction track.

As I'd naturally expect, Unconscious Ruins goes right into the wild and insane hyperspeed thrash that we should come to expect from a band like Destruction.  This ups the ante on their previous heaviness yet again.  Being a fun-filled four-minute thrash track, it only really seems generic when compared to giants like later Kreator albums.  Otherwise, it's pretty fun.  Incriminated starts off with a slower, groovier approach before going into more hyperactivity, and like the previous track, remains fun.  But it seems that breaking new ground wasn't a focus anymore.  Still, it one again rocks all the improvements they made on their production, stylistic and rhythmic choices.  The rest of the album plays out very similarly, and maintains both its newfound improvements and standard behavior at the same time.

Boy did these guys rock the concept of a largely single-genre album.  Of course, this album's also a bit frontloaded because the second half doesn't really take any experimental directions like the first half did.  Still, this was a wild album and a huge improvement, a final testament to their golden age and IMO the best they had to offer at that point.

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