Review by Ben for Overkill (US-NJ) - The Years of Decay (1989)

I didn't really know what to expect of this album. After really enjoying Feel the Fire I'd been left feeling a bit disappointed by both Taking Over and Under the Influence. I think I've realized that what I enjoy about Overkill is not necessarily what many other fans enjoy. The Years of Decay initially gave me that same sense of disappointment, particularly considering many consider it to be the best album they've ever released. But it turns out this one’s a grower.

When I read other reviews on RYM, it seems a lot of people list Elimination and I Hate as two of the very best thrash metal songs ever. It's these songs that lead me to my initial frustration as I don't rate them at all. It's not until the 10-minute Playing with Spiders / Skullkrusher that this album really takes off for me. So now it's clearer than ever that I like Overkill when they take their time and craft solid lengthy songs and not as much when they thrash about for three or four minutes. The three highlights on The Years of Decay are the aforementioned Playing with Spiders / Skullkrusher, Who Tends the Fire and the title track, which are all over the 8-minute mark. Time to Kill, Birth of Tension and exciting closer E.vil N.ever D.ies are also pretty good.