Review by Tymell for Exodus - Bonded by Blood (1985)

Exodus’ Bonded by Blood is quite rightly hailed as a cornerstone and firm exemplar of thrash metal’s early days, a benchmark and measuring stick for others of its kind, one of the classics.

It might seem a bit odd to say ‘quite rightly’ when I myself give it a more middling score. That’s because, as good as the album is at what it sets out to do, in certain regards that goal just isn’t as ambitious as some of its peers, and so while it remains a satisfying brick to the jaw, its identity can feel less flavourful compared to others.

It isn’t trying to be especially dark or extreme or smart. It just wants to belt out thrash metal, and to do it well, to do it forcefully. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that, of course, and they do it well. It’s also worth noting that this came out in 1985, and simply playing flat-out thrash metal (as opposed to a more wild form of classic heavy metal) was by itself pretty ballsy and fresh. So you can certainly appreciate the impact it had at the time, acting like a codifier for the whole genre at a time when there weren’t many other examples of that, or at least that pulled it off this energetically. But it does mean that, in hindsight, the album can lack some identity.

This is exemplified also in the lyrics. Baloff belts out with every bit of force and bile you could want, there’s nothing lacking in their delivery. But where Slayer or Kreator might plumb darker, more visceral depths, calling up grotesque tapestries of hellish violence, and others like Megadeth and Metallica hurl venomous satire at more real-world but no less gritty topics like war and socio-political issues, Bonded by Blood is an album of metal, through and through. In a way, that gives it its appeal, since it’s so firmly ‘by metalheads, for metalheads, about metalheads’. But lyrically it’s very content to sit within that one, safe region, to revel in its roots. There’s nothing wrong with that, but it can feel a little unambitious, especially as the album ages and those lyrical pathways become heavily worn, and especially since most tracks end up covering the same ground in not-that-different ways.

All that said, I reiterate: Bonded by Blood does what it does well. This thing is pulling absolutely no punches for 1985, cementing what thrash was at the time. It stabs the genre’s head-banging, neck-breaking, throat-ripping flag squarely into the landscape.

“Metal Command” and “Bonded by Blood” are rock solid thrash anthems even on an album where the whole identity is to be “the thrash anthem”. “Strike of the Beast” has instantly gripping riffs: “Someone’s about to die, and that someone…IS YOU!” It’s a solid gold banger.

Even the tracks less commonly heralded as classics are quality. “No Life” shifts gears without losing any power, and heralds some of what would become Exodus’ trademark bite. “Piranha” fucking (appropriately) rips. It’s short, sharp, to the point, and that solo section ERUPTS like Holt and Hunolt just got electrocuted straight to the balls. Then right back into that galloping, irresistible riff.

Bonded by Blood might not have quite the same hold on you if it didn’t play a role in your own journey into the genre, and its somewhat indulgent contentment with being ‘metal about metal’ might not stand out as much as some others. But there’s also no denying it never lacks enthusiasm for what it does. It’s an album that loves thrash, and it wants you to love it too.

Choice cuts: Bonded by Blood, Metal Command, No Love, Strike of the Beast, Piranha