Copyright (c) 2007 THE THRASH METAL
GUIDE 0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
S.A. SLAYER (USA)
At this early stage of the genre's
development one shouldn't expect very forceful thrash, and this is not the case
here. This is the band where Ron Jarzombek (Watchtower, Spastic Ink) showed his
great skills for the first time, although here he barely hints at his much bigger potential (well, the style doesn't give him many opportunities to do
that). The music is mostly traditional power metal, with some thrashy elements, catchy and entertaining, an obvious influence on the
future thrash metal scene.
Prepare To Die EP, 1983 Vibrations of Doom S.D.I. (GERMANY)
S.D.I.'s self-titled (the SDI abbreviation stand for "Satans Defloration Incorporated") debut was an instant thrash/crossover classic, the best achievement in this sub-genre to ever come out of Germany. Light-hearted, very catchy, and quite fast and intense all at the same time, this album has lost nothing of its initial magic all these years. This trio differed from their American counterparts (Nuclear Assault, D.R.I., Prong, etc.) mostly based on the stronger speed metal aesthetics coming straight from the early efforts of Destruction, Vectom and Warrant, plus the very memorable shouted choruses, a staple mark for the band, and pretty much one of a kind at those times. Along definitive thrash/crossover hymns ("Quasimodo", "Absolute Banger", "I Don't Care", "Take Off Your Hands") stand the pure hardcore outbursts ("Wanker", "Chainsaw Massacre") and, of course, the so popular at that period "I Wanna Fuck Ya"; at the time when most acts were shying away from using directly this frank direct request/invitation/promise/expression, disduising and veiling it under various preposterous euphemisms, these guys shouted it out loud and clear without any fears, and kudos should be paid for them for this "chivalry". Speed metal is also covered with the more melodic, but very memorable "Panic in Wehrmacht", but watch out for "You're Wrong": a marvellous ballad with a furious crossover finish and one of the best choruses ever heard on a thrash metal album; and for the closer "Bloodsucker": a curious moody doom/thrasher. Rainhard Kruse acquited himself with a cool mid-ranged semi-clean tember which nicely fitted both the harder and the softer songs.
Satans Defloration Incorporated Full-length, 1986 My Space S.E.K. (GERMANY)
This act is actually only one person: Necron, who is also a member of quite a few German metal acts. The style is old school black/thrash in the Bathory
vein, but not as fast and violent as the very early works of the Swedish hero (R.I.P.); it has a more playful, crossover edge, and Necron feels comfortable
enough singing in a minimalistic, raspy, terrifying tone, recalling the sounds emitted by the Orcs from "Lord of the Rings".
Mehr NSgel fnr das Schwein Demo, 2004 Official Site S.G.M. (USA)
Melodic thrash/crossover with a jolly, punk-ish attitude, mostly mid-paced, without any fast aggressive parts.
Aggression Full-length, 1988 S.I.C. (AUSTRALIA)
A cool entry in the thrash/crossover sub-genre of the faster more brutal type, crossing early The Accused with Wehrmacht; the tracks are short seldom going over the 2-min limit, except for "Brown Paper Bag Man", which tries its hands on purer thrash, and is less intense. The rest is very fast extreme stuff without any gimmicks.
Screaming In Churches EP, 1988 S.N.F. (CHILE)
A good demo with some awesome Alex Skolnick -like guitar work, courtesy of Ilvaro Soms (who later moved to another
Chilean metal band, Dorso). The music is Testament-influenced and something else
which is hard for me to define (perhaps it's the joke punk-ish moments like "Mr.
Harry").
...Acting Like A Fool Demo, 1989 My Space S.S.A. (USA)
Modern thrash which sounds quite close to Tourniquet's "Vanishing Lessons", but far less good; this is mid-paced stuff, with a certain amount of groove,
and one very cool short instrumental "Herbie Perogie", which nicely mixes funky elements with hard-hitting riffage. The rest is too one-dimensional and
boring, without any other highlights, with one tender ballad as a finishing touch ("Sunshine").
Deal With It Full-Length, 1994 S.T.A.G. (ITALY)
Look no further than the gothic-tinged style of mid-period Cemetary ("Godless Beauty", in particular), with the vocals dead ringers for the Mathias Lodmalm early singing style, assisted by more vigorous galloping power/thrash metal sections. The guitar work is too melodic, and fits better the slower doomy and the balladic more quiet passages which also come aplenty.
8 p.m. Full-length, 2009 My Space S.T.I. (BRAZIL)
Cool aggressive thrash metal ala
Sepultura and Atomica, with some punky parts and hardcore-ish
outbursts in the vein of S.O.D. ("Eternal Shit"). The songs are short, fast outbursts, with sharp riffs, and gruff, throaty vocals.
Twen Two Visions Full Length,1993 S.T.R.E.E.T.S. (CANADA)
Based on the debut: energetic brisk thrash/crossover along the lines of early Broken Bones and early Rumble Militia, in other words there's not as much
thrash as hardcore/crossover; some interesting guitar decisions can be caught from time to time, but the emphasis is clearly on catchiness and melody. The
songs vary from short speedy 1-1.5min to some heavier slower ones, closing around the 5-min line ("Skate In The Heart"), but without the fast-paced riffage
the latter are a bit more than a waste.
Worms Full-length, 2002 Official Site SAARS (CZECH)
Modern thrash which tries to spice the intense groovy sound of 90's Pantera with some more laid-back hardcore moments ala Biohazard or early Pro-Pain, but
except for the more energetic, slightly technical ala Meshuggah "Public Assault", all this is too pedestrian and painfully familiar.
Public Assault Demo, 2006 Official Site S-CORE (FRANCE)
Based on "Gust Of Rage", this is modern aggro-thrash with elements of hardcore, which unfortunately loses its edge and intensity on some tracks, but the
smashing steam-rolling riffs for most of the time will keep the Pantera fans entertained.
Fat And Wet EP, 2001 Official Site SABBAT (JAPAN)
One of the oldest Japanese metal
bands, the band's style has mutated throughout the years starting with primitive,
Venom-influenced black metal on the first EP's to a combination of thrash, black
and death metal on the 90's releases, with the Venom-influences being present all
the time.
Sabbat EP, 1985 My Space SABBAT (UK)
Often considered the finest British thrash metal band, Sabbat have a very original sound with a unique pagan atmosphere, frequently imitated, but seldom achieved. "History of a Time to Come" is a sure-handed debut, establishing immediately the band as a major thrash force on the UK metal scene. Along with the more direct, headbanging thrashers (the opener "Cautionary Tale", "Hosanna In Excelsis"), there are longer, more ambitious songs, which are not technical achievements per se, but are quite interesting: the heavy, stomping "Horned Is The Hunter", which introduces the genuine pagan touch; the intense semi-technical thrashing fury "I For An Eye"; the excellent mix of heavy, doomy riffs and sharp, faster, galloping ones on "Church Bizarre".
History
of a Time to Come Full-length, 1988 My Space SABRETUNG (AUSTRALIA)
A young Australian thrash metal band who turn to the 80's for inspiration, and have obviously found it in the
thrash/crossover side of the scene, in particular D.R.I., Corrosion Of Conformity's more thrashy works, and
D.B.C.'s debut. The problem is that these young Australians get tired of keeping the music at a faster, more
aggressive pace and slow down to mid-tempo, even slower at times. This can be easily fixed on later efforts
as the guys definitely have a lot of energy, and the musicianship at display is not bad at all.
The Price
Is Pain EP, 2006 My Space SACCARA (GERMANY)
This obscure act offer energetic hardcore-ish thrash in the tradition of early Rumble Militia and D.R.I. This is not too bad, by the way, since the guys
add some stomping slower riffage when needed, and some songs are really intense takes on crossover/thrash: "Urlaub im Knast", "Acceleration of
Annihilation", "Wasted Money". Certainly, there are compositions which are direct exercises in brutal proto-grindcore: "Pickel Dir Einen".
Urbi et Orbi Full-Length, 1990 SACKRACE (HUNGARY)
An intriguing album mixing modern thrash with stylish Voivod-ish technical riffs (think both "Killing Technology" and "Negatron"). There are also
shades of early Meshuggah and Equinox. The music is mostly mid-paced with numerous interesting moments as well as stylish lead guitars. The riffs are
quite choppy and technical, quite mechanical and dry at times, but never too complex or abstract. The vocal styles also vary according to the style
meanderings, although neither of them is suitable to the much better music; some of them are shouted hardcore-ish ones, others are clean, alternative ones,
and those could be quite irritating with their absolutely non-metal blend.
Pain in the Fist Full-length, 1997 SACRAMENT (FINLAND)
The band's style calls to mind the Canadians Eidolon, their early, less thrashy period. Powerful, dark sound which
could fit even Nevermore very well; heavy songs which never drag or lose coherence, aggravated by good, mid-ranged vocals.
Confuse My Mind Demo, 1999
Official Site SACRAMENT (GERMANY)
Based on "Agony", the band's style is close to early Iced Earth and Meliah Rage, but lacking those bands' flair and stylish guitar work, without any
particular claims at a more original or a non-standard play. There are pure thrash headbangers, and they are definitely the better and more attractive
side of the band's music (the very good "Scat the Dark Eyes Aglow", and "Prophets of Doom"). "Guilty", on the other hand, has a pagan/viking flavour, and
would fit on any of the Falconer albums. "Feed the Memory" is a magnificent acoustic ballad, and is very close to being the highlight of the whole album. The few attempts at a more technical play are directly stolen from other bands (riffs from "Seed of Scorn" are taken from Annihilator's "Alison Hell";
the beginning of "Thin End of the Wedge" is a direct nod to Artillery).
Agony Full-length, 1995 Official Site SACRAMENT (USA, IL)
Badly produced, but energetic thrash; the guys definitely have ideas to pull it through, and at times the music gets really inspired and interesting, but
the sound quality and the annoying hardcore-ish vocals impede the proceedings. The pace varies from heavy and pounding moments similar to Nasty Savage's
debut, to some up-tempo Slayer-esque ones, plus one chaotic, early Voivod-ish number: "AFU".
Demo Demo, 1988 SACRAMENT (USA, PN)
Arguably the finest Christian thrash metal band; the debut is an aggressive, uncompromising thrash offering, in the vein
of Dark Angel's "Darkness Descends" and Devastation's "Idolatry": a relentless, fast assault, with quite a few clever, semi-technical riffs present, as well as some nice melodic touches in the lead department. "Haunts Of Violence" tones down the aggression, and concentrates on the more technical play, already hinted at on the debut, resulting in a really enjoyable listen. The music is still fast-paced, but the slower, technical breaks are more
frequent, as well as the tempo changes, which don't stay in the speedy parametres for too long. A good example for these tempo changes is the heavy, slow-ish number: "Souls in Torment", which flows in a slightly sleepy fashion, until it's interrupted by a much faster, intense passage in the middle, after which it calms down again. This is probably how the third Forbidden album would have sounded like, if they had followed the road up after
"Twisted Into From". Unfortunately Sacrament had apparently no more to give to the thrash metal fans, and disappeared soon after.
Testimony of Apocalypse
Full-length, 1990 My Space SACRAMENT LA (USA)
Yes, you guessed right, the band come from Los Angeles, but the sound is vintage San Francisco Bay Area thrash (at least they didn't have to look for
inspiration much further), akin to Forbidden's debut, and the Germans Pyracanda (their debut, too). The tempo is fast-paced, except on the heavy stomper
"Getta Life".
Getta Life Demo, 1990 SACRARIO (BRAZIL)
An obscure gem from the Brazilian scene; this band pulls out exemplary aggressive thrash in the mid-period Sepultura mould ("Beneath the Remains",
"Arise"), and Devastation ("Idolatry"). Actually this album sits comfortably between the two aforementioned acts, and could easily pass for a lost
Sepultura release. These guys are probably a bit more aggressive, touching proto-death at times. The first two tracks are furious fast-paced thrash at its
best, and such intense delivery inevitably requires a break, and it comes in the form of "Drug Addiction": a nice mid-paced, very heavy piece. But that's
it, since immediately after the assault carries on, producing brilliant raging moments: "To Die is the End ?"; "Wasted Land", which is a bit more
controlled, but nicely insert the only technical momnets on the album, recalling Pestilence's "Testimony of the Ancients"; "Extreme Unction". The closing
"Divine Existence" again steps the pedal on a more technical approach, but the stomping, smashing riffs take over. This is a must-have for fans of the more
brutal side of thrash, and is definitely not for the faint-hearted.
Catastrophic Eyes Full-length, 2007 My Space SACRED CHAO (GERMANY)
This band was formed by Thorsten Bergmann and Atomic Steif (both ex-members of Living Death), after the Living Death guitarists Reiner Kelch and Frank Fricke decided to spend more time with their other project Mekong Delta, and could be considered the continuation of Living Death, albeit for a very short while. Since Bergmann and Steif had no rights over the band name, they decided to name their new act after a song from the "World Neuroses" album: "Sacred Chao". Steif had previously lended his drum talents to the one-album-wonder Violent Force, and this time it was that band's bass player Lemmy to give the guys a hand in the recording of this 4-song EP, which would be a big surprise for the Living Death fans, and not a very pleasant one at that. These are 4 tracks of very bland unimpressive heavy/power/speed metal, with no ties to thrash at all, and with the Bergmann vocals taking an even more melodic tone. The guitars completely lack an edge, and the few moments where the music speeds up a bit are ruined by the very ordinary derivative riffage. It was really good that this project lasted for just this effort. The Kelch brothers (the founders of Living Death) did a much much better job on the comeback Living Death album "Killing in Action" two years later.
Sacred Chao EP, 1989 Vibrations of Doom SACRED CRUCIFIX (FINLAND)
The first band formation dates back
from the late 80's, and they have been releasing demos on irregular bases, right
until this time. Heads down for the band's perseverance to finally get the
opportunity to release a full-length. This album obviously includes songs from
all their periods, but the style is pretty consistent, being old school death metal with
hints at thrash, somewhat along the lines of Massacre, or Massacra. Their later
period is more technical, drawing also resemblances to Death.
Aeon of Chaos Full-length, 2004 Official Site SACRED CURSE (BRAZIL)
Based on the debut, this band plays cool Bay-Area-influenced thrash, sounding close to Forbidden's debut and Exodus. The music is fast and energetic,
with sharp, cutting riffs. "My Reflections" is a deviation into a more melodic, crossover direction, which is followed by a couple of laid-back, softer
tracks, carrying on in the same vein, maybe a bit more intense. Their number is probably bigger than necessary, and at some point the listener might stop
looking for aggressive thrash riffage, until the last two songs: "Utopy", which returns to the thrashy style of the beginning, and the instrumental
"Fuckin' Up", which is not as hard (and definitely not "fucked up"), featuring cool melodic guitars.
Sacred Age Full-length, 1992 SACRED DENIAL (USA)
Thrash/crossover of the more aggressive thrashy type; the approach resembles the one of early Nuclear Assault, but here we have very bad whining semi-
clean drunken vocals which very often just powerlessly balllessly shout. The music sometimes acquires a more laid-back Motorhead-ish edge ("Some
Curiosity"), but be prepared for full-blooded thrashers as well ("Brother's Inventions", "Conquer", the explosive Slayer-esque "Take a Look Around").
Sifting Through Remains Full-Length, 1988 SACRED REICH (USA)
The band started very promisingly with "Ignorance", energetic fast thrash akin to Evildead's debut and even
Slayer's "Reign In Blood". "The American Way" is the band's magnum opus: slower, but heavier than the debut with great, smashing riffs and a stunning
performance by everyone involved (even the rap-joke "31 Flavors" sounds fresh and
original). "Independent" is surprisingly melodic, with a laid-back power/thrash metal sound and a few balladic touches. Their last effort brings back the
aggression again, but comes with a more modern, groovy sound.
Ignorance Full-length,
1987 Official Site SACRED STEEL (GERMANY)
This band was formed after the one album wonder Tragedy Divine split up. The guys started quite well with "Reborn in Steel", resurrecting the old school
American power/speed/thrash sound from the 80's, bringing to mind all the heroes from the period: Agent Steel, Attacker, Omen, Anvil, Exciter, etc. at a
time when very few acts felt tempted to look back. The music packs a punch, highlighted by the high, soaring vocals of Gerrit P. Mutz, which are clearly an
acquired taste, and might annoy some when hitting the higher tones. The next two albums repeated the established on the debut formula almost note-by-note,
and were consequently a disappointment, showing the band acting a little more than just the next "victim" to the so widely spread in Germany "Running
Wild" syndrome (a band playing the same stuff over and over, with no any intentions to move just a bit away from the trite pattern, named after...
well...). "Slaughter Prophecy" is a big improvement, seeing the guys hardening the course, with more thrash added, and Mutz inserting some unholy death
growls from time to time. Most of the tracks are forceful speed/thrash killers, with razor-sharp guitars and cool memorable choruses.
Reborn in Steel Full-length, 1997 Official Site SACRED STORM (USA)
Based on the "Extreme Assault" EP, these guys offer vintage retro speed/thrash wiht cool semi-technical guitar work. The music recalls Paradox's early output, but at times it goes into more aggressive fields (the blast-beats on "Extreme Assault", which well justifies its title). "Skullcrusher" and "Virus" "crush" in a more laid-back slower way, but the closing "Confessions of a Killer" is a brisk speed/thrasher with nice melodic hooks.
Man Versus Machine Full-length, 2007 Official Site SACRED THRASH (ARGENTINA)
These guys are one of the oldest metal acts in Argentina, having virtually started the whole scene with Lethal, Horcas and Hermetica. Based on the EP, they
pull out mid-paced atmospheric thrash with gothic overtones, coming mostly from the keyboard implements, and the gruff death-ish, Crematory-like vocals.
The heaviness comes too much, perhaps, on songs like "Injusticia", which is quite doomy and gloomy, but is nonetheless a satisfying slab of slower thrash.
"Patria o Muerte" starts with an overlong orchestral intro, but later on the guys show no mercy, thrashing with full force, without forgetting about the
genuine gothic edge, which makes their style quite unique, by the way. "Maldita Polucion" is a sudden switch onto full-blooded headbanging thrash.
Demo Demo, 1991 My Space SACRIFICE (CANADA)
One of the most prominent Canadian thrash metal bands; their debut was quite raw and primitive, recalling Possessed's "Seven Churches", sounding well more aggressive and intense on quite a few times. Still, it's worth hearing with its appealing primal approach, coming as the most extreme official full-length release at this stage, beating the Possessed's aforementioned album and the first 2 Bathory efforts in terms of both musicianship and speed. The Canadians are probably more varied than the 2 other acts, adding some slower pounding riffs ("Homicidal Breath", "Burned at the Stake") here and there, but brutal bombs like "Warrior of Death", "Infernal Visions", "Burned at the Stake", and "Necronomicon" could easily pass for the first genuine death metal pieces, the latter boasting some of the most extreme unholy screams on the scene. "The Exorcism" is one of the first attempts at aggressive speedy instrumental metal, offering relentless thrashing with a cool semi-technical edge. The bigger complexity of the follow-up is nowhere felt, even the longer, almost 6-min long "Beyond Death" bashes hard from beginning to end. After listening to this spontaneous outburst of aggression, the thrash fan's ears should have been well prepared for what came in the next few years, right up to the first full-on death metal attacks from Florida.
Torment in Fire Full-length, 1985 Official Site SACRIFICE(JAPAN)
A less known, but a pretty decent Japanese band; the debut is a heavy, mid-paced affair sounding like a mixture
between Carnivore and Venom with weak, hardcore vocals. It's a bit monotonous and one-dimensional, but is strangely listenable, with its naive, but sincere
approach; it includes some more up-tempo numbers for stirring the blood ("Tank", "Redrum"), but at other times the music almost completely loses its edge,
sliding down to pure heavy metal ("Lucifer Smiles").
Crest of Black Full-Length,
1987 Vibrations of Doom SACRIFICE (SOUTH KOREA)
This is a brand new album coming from South Korea to offer us some more heavy, groovy thrash with hardcore
vocals not too far from Pro-Pain. The music is not too stale, and moves around, becoming too aggressive at
times ("You Know The Truth"), and "Tribal" is a nice chunky thrasher. Just when one thought that the 90's sound has been fading away into obscurity, here
come acts from the distant corners of the world (the Far East in this case), to give it another breath of fresh air...
Go For The Throat
Full-length, 1984
Despite the catchy and appealing material offered on the debut, one couldn not help but see this band as a bit more than the occasional "antidote" to the more serious and more technically-proficient music which the German scene was offering aplenty at the time, but this "antidote" threatened to become a constant presence on the thrash metal fan's "menu" with "Sign of the
Wicked". One of the 10 best speed/thrash metal efforts to ever come out of Germany, this album is a bit more than half hour of sheer metal brilliance: diverse, melodic, technical, catchy, you name it. Once the acoustic intro to the opening "Comin' Again" starts, one instantly knows that this will not be the carefree unpretentious music heard on the debut, and indeed this number is a standout speed/thrashy tour de force with progressive overtones, and it seemed as though this band looked well-equipped to join the increasing group of technical acts which was becoming particularly big in Germany (Deathrow, Sieges Even, Living Death, Destruction, etc.). Well, not really, as the title-track carries little of the technical charge and energy of the first one, but is an utterly compelling piece of doomy sinister thrash with an addictive main riff. "Megamosh" (the guys shout their name here as well) is the only reminder of the more simplistic debut being a straight bashing thrash hymn closing on a little more than 2-min. "Alcohol" slows down again, but the chunky riffage and the memorable chorus make it another keeper. "Quick Shot" is the analogue to "I Wanna Fuck Ya" with explicit sexual lyrics and mighty speedy guitars. The attack continues on "Always Youth" which scores high in the chorus department again. "Long Way From Home" switches onto a more melodic speed metal-based approach quite reminiscent of the first two Blind Guardian albums, but the diverse thrashy mid-break will totally delight you with the ever-changing rhythms and the fine melodic sing-along chorus insertion. "Killer's Confession" is more aggressive speed/thrash, but another brilliant melodic deviation awaits you in the middle which touches the ballad with marvellous lead guitars and simply amazing bass performance which is very strong on the whole album making Kruse one of the best bass players of the 80's. "Fight" begins somewhat tastelessly with a guy reciting something in Turkish, but rest assured that later on there will be no one disappointed with this sincere slab of speed/thrash with a pinch of crossover which doesn't forget about the more melodic experimentations which here come as a nice "duel" between the bass and the lead guitar followed by another, this time not as exciting, balladic section which at least shows Kruse in a fine vocal form; he does a good job behind the mike trying to scream high at times, and succeeds, at times offering cool melodic lines, but still his bass pyrotechnics by far overshadow his vocal abilities.
Having found the right way to thrash with the best, the band looked well set to join the very upper echelons of world thrash, and one more album of the same stuff could have placed them there. Well, "Mistreated" is hardly this album; it had hardly come as a pleasant surprise to the fans being more melodic clinging towards power/speed metal with very little thrash present, decidedly more complex, and far less catchy. The longer numbers in the beginning are unnecessarily interrupted by spoken or balladic passages which serve to no purpose but kill the inertia and confuse the listener. Still, if you adjust your senses to this mellower offering, and manage to overcome your initial surprise, you may enjoy the jolly speedster "Night of Tears"; the energetic "leftovers" from the debut "Violence" and "Kiss Ass"; and possibly the mid-tempo steam-roller "Mother". The rest will be by all means a letdown, especially the clumsy heavy-handed metal anthem "We Want More" and the AC/DC worship at the end shamefully carrying the band name ("S.D.I."). The guys exited the scene in a not very impressive manner, with only the guitarist Rainer Rage later having been seen in the power metallers Enola Gay.
To my utter surprise I found out that this band had another full-length, released in 1991; but to my utter disappointment, it contained very bland heavy metal, with no traces of thrash and speed metal whatsoever. A few more dynamic songs still pack a punch, but they would make one even more upset, reminding him of the much better past: "Ruling The World", "Mad World". "Mistreated" already suggested at the changes, but wisely stopped on the edge, without crossing the border towards undesirable music fields; with this obscure release the guys have done it. Classic heavy metal was falling from grace, along with thrash at those times, and S.D.I. have done a cool job keeping it alive, but their hard-core fans had hardly been fascinated having heard this, to put it mildly.
Sign of the
Wicked Full-length, 1988
Mistreated Full-length, 1989
Unreleased Full-Length, 1991
Bo Bo Gnar Gnar Full-length, 2003
Invaders From Gnars Full-length, 2005
Riot... Process Engaged Full-length, 2003
Gust Of Rage Full-length, 2007
Born by Evil Blood EP, 1987
Desecration EP,
1989
The devil's sperm is cold EP, 1989
The Seven Deadly Sins EP,
1990
Envenom Full-length, 1991
Evoke Full-length, 1992
Disembody
Full-length, 1993
Sabbatical Devilucifer EP, 1994
Fetishism Full-length,
1994
Bloody Countess Full-length, 1996
The Dwelling Full-length,
1996
Karisma Full-length, 1999
Charisma Full-length, 2000
Satanasword
Full-length, 2000
Fetishism 2-LP Full-length, 2003
Karmagmassacre
Full-length, 2003
"Dreamweaver" is a masterpiece of classic thrash; the sound is darker and heavier, with sharper, and more technical guitars. "Clerical Conspiracy" starts
with crushing, up-tempo guitars, followed by a nice short, acoustic ballad ("Advent of Insanity"). Then three exquisite long, dark pagan thrashers follow
suit: one of the finest moments of the whole UK thrash metal scene; they sound like one small album together, being mid to up-tempo, slowing down to some
doomy moments, but very soon picking up respectable speed, thrashing with full force here and there. This incredible trilogy kind of overshadows the
exiting two tracks, which are otherwise good intense pieces, containing the most aggressive guitar work, especially the closing "Mythistory", which is a
fabulous pagan riff-fest at its best. Worth mentioning are the demon-ish, vicious vocals of Martin Walkyier: one of the most unique voices in metal.
After Martin Walkyier left to form Skyclad, it became obvious who the driving force behind the band's magnificent thrash style (also displayed on the
first two Skyclad albums) was; "Mourning Has Broken" is much weaker than the previous two offerings, although the Walkyier replacement, who was taken from
the one-demo-wonder Desmatron- Ritchie Desmond, does a fairly good job behind the mike, with his more melodic, dramatic, clean style. The songs preserve
the complexity, but the intensity is gone, or at least to a considerable extent. Some tracks stretch towards progressive metal ("Theological Void"), but
their overlength, and the lack of any more energetic thrashy riffs, place them on the not very impressive side. "Paint The World Black", albeit a ballad,
captures the essence of the band's atmospheric style better than the faster material, and gives a good opportunity to Desmomd to dislay his vocal talents.
Actually the style here is seldom pure thrash metal: the exception is the excellent up-tempo instrumental "Dumbstruck"; power metal has come to stay, and
often takes the upper hand, especially on the last three elaborate affairs, where at one point you might not be sure whether you listen to the same song,
although "Without a Trace" tries hard to save this album from sinking without a trace (pun intended) inserting interesting technical guitar lines;
but it's overshadowed by the fine, short acoustic closing ballad "Mourning Has Broken" with an episodic, but very effective, participation of Desmond.
Dreamweaver (Reflections of Our
Yesterdays) Full-length, 1989
Mourning has Broken Full-length, 1991
Beginning of the End Demo, 2000
Escape From Reality Single, 2001
Walls of Hate EP, 2003
Withered
Dreaming EP, 1999
Aguante! Full-length, 2006
Haunts of Violence Full-length, 1992
"Frozen Dusk" is a capable follow-up, thrashing with gusto most of the time, this time with a stronger technical edge, well obvious on the opening "Stigma Of Delusion", a furious semi-technical headbanger. The rage goes on on the next "Reborn In Chaos", but "Infernal Paranoia" shows a taste for crushing mid-paced riffs in the beginning, before the carnage starts over later on. "Back For Blood" finally shows consistency in the mid-tempo department, recalling late 80's Slayer quite a bit. "Frozen Dusk" is very similar to the preceding song, and when "Trauma" begins in the same heavy slow manner, some may start frowning, albeit not for long since this number starts thrashing hard in the second half. "God Against God" is a pure speedy thrash attack, but the closing "Covenant" "flirts" with slower riffs again, "depriving" this album from the necessary final headbanger. This effort is not a full-on massacre compared to the debut, and the Sepultura influences have been left behind, now the more intense moments sounding quite close to early Pestilence and Slayer as the latter are given more than a few nods on the slower parts. The decrease of speed is noticeable, and some may find this a drawback, but overall the fierce approach from the debut is relatively well translated on at least half of the tracks.
Frozen Dusk Full-length, 2009
"Shallow Grave" is mostly in the death metal camp, and is very well-executed technical stuff, which stretches from fast-paced intense numbers (the excellent opener "The Wound - The Blade", "Sectarian") to slower complex opuses ("Single-Handedly", "I Will Kill"). The guys seldom go for just speed for its own sake, and all speedy tracks have their slower stomping moments, which may be a drawback to some, since the only two really fast songs are the aforementioned ones. The rest stays in the mid-paced sector, with deviations into more quiet progressive territories ala later-period Death. There are slight shades of Swedish death, but again of the less aggressive variety. The complexity fluctuates, being more accentuated on on some tracks, on some being left aside, but because of the lack of opposition on the side of the more intense riffage, it doesn't shine the whole time. Fans of late period Death, Extol, Wetwork, Acid Death will like this effort, but fans of the more aggressive brand of the genre may not be too happy.
s
From Beyond to... EP, 2008
Shallow Grave Full-length, 2009
The Raw Truth of Man Full-length, 1996
Surf Nicaragua EP, 1988
Alive at the Dynamo EP, 1989
The
American Way Full-length, 1990
A Question EP, 1991
Open Book/The Big
Picture Single, 1993
Independent Full-length, 1993
Heal Full-length,
1996
"Iron Blessings" already sounds familiar, staying true to the music heard on the predecessor, although some very heavy pounding power/thrashers deliver the
goods no worse, sacrificing the speed for the sake of the steam-rolling crushing riffage. "Hammer of Destruction" is a full-take on the 80's speed metal
sound, with a few deviations from the model, crossing again Agent Steel, Attacker and Exciter in a commendable way.
"Carnage Victory" promises good speed metal-based fun with the opening "Charge Into Overkill" and "Don't Break The Oath" (no relations to Mercyful Fate music or vocal-wise), but this time the band have decided to mix it up, and here comes the slower epic "Carnage Victory", followed by the even softer, semi-balladic "Broken Rites". The speed comes back with a vengeance on the excellent "Crosses Stained With Blood", but later on the pace decreases, leaving the final damage for "By Vengeance And Hatred We Ride", which speed/thrashes with full force in the first half, but in the second one the riffs become clumsy with a shade of doom. The guys try to offer more variety, for better or worse, like they used to do before, but in the present case the music is a step down from their more inspired stripped-down approach heard on "Hammer of Destruction" and elsewhere on their back catalogue.
Wargods of Metal Full-length, 1999
Bloodlust Full-length, 2000
Slaughter Prophecy Full-length, 2002
Iron Blessings Full-length, 2004
Pounding Inferno EP, 2006
Hammer of Destruction Full-length, 2006
Carnage Victory Full-Length, 2009
"Man Versus Machine" has a more modern sound, although the stylish guitar work is already here; still, this effort is not as satisfying. The guys don't rely on speed at all, although the album begins in an energetic up-tempo with "Man Versus Machine" and "Thunderchariot", but it very soon after acquires a heavier slower approach which doesn't change until the end, so what one will hear is heavy pounding mid-paced riffs, quite similar on each track, except on the closing "The Revelation", which is indeed a "revelation" with cool leads, a few faster moments, and a nice large instrumental part, albeit of the more melodic variety.
Extreme Assault EP, 2009
Injusticia EP, 2006
"Forward To Termination" is a masterpiece of well-thought, but quite uncompromising and agressive thrash; arguably the band's best achievement. The instrumental brilliance "Terror Strikes" opens this album magnificently, recalling Destruction, both music and vocal-wise, as Rob Urbinati's vocals have this unique raspy blend as well, a not very common phenomenon on the scene. The album speeds up ahead, until it reaches the awesome epic riff-fest "Flames of Armageddon", which shows the more complex and ambitious side of the band. It is followed by another, equally as complex, and even technical number: "The Entity". The songs which follow go back to the aggressive patterns of the beginning, as the intensity remains until the very end.
"Soldiers Of Misfortune" is a strong follow-up, keeping the fast pace throughout, again including some more varied interesting songs with various
tempos and riffs: "Soldiers of Misfortune"; "Truth (After The Rain)", which is more than 10-min long, and tries to follow the high model of "Flames of
Armageddon", but fails, simply because it forgets to sound energetic and thrashy, but concentrates on atmospheric, semi-complex and melodic guitar work,
and on an unnecessarily long acoustic outro.
"Apocalypse Inside" offers a more abrasive guitar sound, and tries to keep the energy from the previous recordings, and succeeds in the beginning, with the
first two tracks, but then "Flesh" comes in, and the tempo slows down, with heavy guitars. Still, the rest is not a total waste, relying on more melodic
guitar hooks, which are quite appealing ("Salvation"), and even technical and haunting ("Beneath What You See"). Just when you start thinking that this
album will have no more speedy thrashers, comes the up-tempo "Incarcerated", but it is soon followed by slower, almost doomy tracks, which leave no room
for any faster moments later. Although less impressive than the previous band's output, this album still delivers the goods much better than the modern-sounding works of many 80's acts released around the same time. The band frontman Rob Urbinati along with the bass player Kevin Wimberley later formed Interzone, with which they paid their tribute to the 90's trends.
An unexpected return for these legends with "The Ones I Condemn", and an excellent one at that: from the furious openig instrumental "We Will Prevail" the assault begins and never lets loose. Fast razor-sharp merciless thrash will nail you down, more melodic and semi-technical on "Give Me Justice" and more aggressive, with a proto-death shade on "The Great Wall". "Tetragrammaton" is placed in the middle: a slow doomy 2.5-min composition, after which "Atrocity" nicely changes the course into a more galloping controlled pace, but only for a while, since "Hiroshima" is another heads-down up-tempo thrash piece. "The Devil’s Martyr" is ultra-aggressive Slayer-esque thrash, and with the end of the album coming one may start to ask for those longer elaborate songs, which were a considerable part from the band's older output. The good news is that yes, there is one: the closer "Desolation Alive", which lasts for more than 7-min, and is a great way to end this effort with clever arrangements, changing tempos, addictive melodic hooks, and a couple of more intense riffage in the middle and near the end. The bonus material is in the form of two remastered tracks: "Burned At the Stake" from their debut, and "The Entity" from "Forward to Termination".
Forward To Termination
Full-length, 1987
Soldiers of Misfortune Full-length, 1991
Apocalypse
Inside Full-length, 1993
The Ones I Condemn Full-length, 2009
"Total Steel" carries on in the same vein, but features a more proficient, and faster guitar work, but worse, shouty hardcore vocals (the ones on the debut were of the nosy, low-tuned, semi-clean type, sounding like a more melodic Cronos). The rock-ish numbers are here again ("Dancing Death Valley"- I don't know about the Death Valley, but you might find yourself dancing on this one). Their swansong is their heaviest, but also very modern-sounding work; it manages to thrash quite well: "Breaking the Silence", "Time Slips Through...", and the sound is more energetic compared to the first two offerings, but the groovy tendencies have found their way into it ("Down to You"), but just a little for a start.
Total Steel Full-length, 1990
Tears Full-length, 1992