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

W.A.K.O. (PORTUGAL)

A modern mixture of thrash, groove and death metal sounding somewhere on the road from early Machine Head to Fear Factory. "The Road Of Awareness" is a more dynamic affair now clinging more towards the Gothenburg thrash/melo-death standards with a good sense of melody added. The groove still comes up on several moments, but generally the concentration is on a more intense delivery with sparce more stylish semi-technical inclusions (the closing "Coronation of Existence").

Symbiotic Existence EP, 2005
Deconstructive Essence Full-length, 2007
The Road Of Awareness Full-length 2011

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W.C.NOISE (PORTUGAL)

Based on the debut, this is cool power/thrash metal which will remind you of Meliah Rage's "Kill To Survive" and late-80's Overkill. The singer is a bit of a letdown with his gruff, semi-clean delivery, but the music is definitely on the positive side with energetic, mid to up-tempo riffs, and a slight shade of crossover ("Godless"). Seldom will the guys surprise you with more aggressive all-out thrashers: "Nuclear Poo", "You'd Better Shut Up", the latter coming with great leads, again containing a touch of crossover.

Loud & Mad Full-length, 1992
Reality Asylum Full-length, 1994

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W.D.M. (FINLAND)

4 songs of edgy energetic thrash/crossover reaching Wehrmacht extremes ("Confuture") at times which are well compensated by the mellower punky material ("Communist Disease").
The debut demo is noisy, intense thrash/crossover with buzzy guitars and very shouty vocals. The music is way more amateurish compared with the subsequent EP, being one-dimensional bash with a few melodic digressions ("Brains", which is a more carefree punkish number).

Democracy? EP, 1985
Tomorrow's Gone EP 1985
Freedom of Music EP, 1987

WACKOR (HUNGARY)

Groovy modern thrash, quite jumpy at times, but there's nothing technical here, maybe some alternative moments ala Rage Against The Machine or Helmet, so don't expect anything heavy or fast.

Lobotomy EP, 2001
Methanolid Full-length, 2004

Official Site

WAKBOTH (FINLAND)

Based on the "Cass.Lp + Demo' 96" demo, we have two styles mixed here, reflecting on two diffrerent periods of the band's career: one is mid-paced, stomping thrash ala Celtic Frost and Slaughter, the other faster, more energetic one, with touches of the modern black metal scene. Both styles work well, although the former comes with a much worse sound quality and more screamy, hysterical vocals.

Dreamking Demo, 1996
Cass.Lp + Demo' 96 Demo, 2005

WAKE UP (BELARUS)

Two people are behind this obscure project, which offer curious progressive thrash with bad deathy vocals which are very thin, and at times plainly shout without a tad of emotion. The album starts with the early Meshuggah-worship "Depression" which features fierce galloping sections and much more quiet balladic ones. More consistent thrashing will one come across on "Welcome To The Hard Times", which is another brisk galloper with very good leads. Then comes the semi-balladic oddity "Sorrows Of The Moon", before the technical thrasher "Silent Temps Of Future" takes over with its complex heavy riffs. "Wake Up, Hate" is probably the only unmitigated failure, being a modern proto-groovy filler, but "Space Remains With You" is a different story, a jumpy number with nice melodic leads. "Sentimental " is an excellent instrumental mixing intense, almost doomy, riffs with beautiful melodic arrangements and surreal ballaidc passages within just over 3-min. "Look" is progressive thrash at its best: brutal proto-deathy riffs meet eclectic jazzy structures among the obligatory standout leads, a complex multi-layered picture which flows into the closing relaxed speedster "The Tramp" which wraps thing up with carefree guitars and merry rhythms. This is an interesting, albeit a bit hard-to-swallow at times, effort, which adds up nicely to the good technical scene from Russia and the former Soviet republics of the early-mid 90's.

Look Full-length 1992

WAKE UP DEAD (USA)

Jumpy modern thrash smelling metalcore quite a bit with technical pretensions, but the frequent time and tempo changes leave quite a lot of ideas hanging in the air unfinished. As a result the few faster passages ger rudely intercepted by hectic slower ones which do very little else apart from killing the pace.

God Bless The Future Full-Length, 2009

WAKLEVÖREN (NORWAY)

Members of renowned Norwegian acts (Inferno, Aura Noir, Red Harvest, Gorgoroth, Immortal, etc.) have gotten together here. Based on the full-length, this band plays retro black/thrash which is not terribly far from the "antics" of Aura Noir, but comes with more simplistic guitar work and slower doomy passages of the chaotic Hellhammer type. The singer is more on the noisy hardcore side, but kind of suits the bleak misanthropic musical delivery.

Brutal Agenda EP, 2005
Tiden lager alle sår EP, 2007
De Dødes Arkiv Full-length, 2010

Official Site

WALHALLA (FINLAND)

This act is another stop for the tireless Roope Latvala (Stone, Children of Bodom, Latvala Bros., Sinergy, Warmen, etc.). He has been invited by members of the symphonic black metallers Gloomy Grim to assist them in this project where the guys have added a big doze of thrash to their black metal delivery resulting in good music staying closer to thrash metal with sparce hyper-blasts present. The approach is expectedly fast calming down towards the end, first with the crossover happiness "Winterführer", which, by the way, is completely cancelled by the furious death metal bomb "War Over Nordland" which follows right after, and second with the cool roller-coaster cover of Bon Jovi's "Runaway" which would be ultimately hard to recognize although the tone is much softer compared to the rest, with a nice gothic edge, but those scary raspy vocals...

War Over Nordland EP, 1997
Firereich Full-length, 2000

WALKEN (USA)

Based on the self-titled sophomore effort, this act pulls out a mix of 90's post-thrash and hardcore which surprisingly concentrates on a slower mid-paced delivery, abandoning the faster twists which such a blend generally offers aplenty. There are a few faster offerings ("Bitter Red") with a classic edge, but the tender attempts at ballads (Dylans Song") have not not skipped, either. Watch out for the nice, albeit a bit overlong (8-min), doomy/balladic/funeral closing instrumental "The Bridge". Some of the band members try their hands on much more thought-out music with the progressive metal outfit Grayceon.

Unstoppable Full-length, 2004
1/21/07 E.P. EP, 2007
Walken Full-length, 2009

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WALKYRIA (ARGENTINA)

This band offer 3 tracks of melodic power/thrash sung in Spanish; the music reminds of a more aggressive version of the Spanish rock legends Heroes del Silencio, especially the heavy, semi-balladic "Guardian Del Infierno". "Walkyria" is a 9-min opus which nicely mixes balladic, more quiet sections with some faster, galloping ones. This is not a very thrashy stuff, but is enjoyable and well played.

Walkyria Demo, 2004

WANTED (USA)

These guys have woken up a bit late for the classic sound, but have caught up fast with one demo and one full-length released the same year. Based on the EP, they play melodic mid-paced power/thrash, not very hard-hitting, with one pleasant surprise at the end: the furious merciless speed/thrasher "Slaughterhouse".

Wanted EP, 1992 Othello's Revenge Full-length, 1992

WAR-HEAD (CROATIA)

A promising demo of late 80's-early 90's thrash/death metal with a slight technical edge with occasional brutal ultra-fast sections. The vocals are worth mentioning, being sinister throaty semi-growls.
The full-length loses both the technicality and the brutality from the demo, opting for slightly monotonous semi-technical thrash metal which recalls the Dutch Warchitect, but this one is not as impressive. The lead guitar work is quite good, but the rest is just a little above average with one pleasant deviation: the "1000 Eyes" (which is not a Death cover, although in the riff sector comes close), which comes with all guns blazing, providing a delight for both the technical and the aggressive metal fans: an impressive track which sticks out awkwardly amidst the much less striking rest. "Who Dares Wins", its immediate follower, retains some of its brilliance, but goes over the top in terms of speed and aggression on a few moments. "Away" serves a more stylish play, but again, too much aggressive blasting... The demo promised more, but apparently the 4-year gap has taken its toll.

Demo Demo, 2004
No Signs of Armageddon Full-length, 2008

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WAR-SAW (POLAND)

Based on the "Spiral of Violence" EP, this is classic thrash metal of the blitzkrieg fast type slightly ruined by the bad deathy vocals. The sound quality is pretty good giving a nice boost to the guitars, and nice variations are offered on the closing "City Of Death": good female vocal inclusions, and arguably the fast blasting burst in the middle and towards the end.

Thrash Metal War Machine EP, 2009
Spiral of Violence EP, 2010

Official Site

WAR-TOG (BOTSWANA)

One of the few African thrash metal acts presented here, this band pulls out (based on the 2nd demo) heavy modern thrash, a bit boring and clumsy, relying on a pounding mid-paced rhythm section. There are semi-progressive attempts ("Mind Control"), but the insertion of the odd balladic interlude would hardly make them reach soon the heights of the genre, especially when there is so much to be desired in almost every department (the singer in particular is awful with his unemotional hardcore-ish rending).

Stampede Demo, 2001
Second Demo Demo, 2008

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WAR COMMAND (CANADA)

THis is an intense fast mixture of thrash, death and black metal which is both aggressive and melodic in a way not too dissimilar to Destroyer 666 and Suicidal Winds. The raging hyper-blasting tracks are only occasionally intercepted by the odd more epic riff the latter never extending into a full-fledged number. The mainman here is Sven Cannon, a famous undeground figure from the Quebec underground, having taken part in the foundation of the first Canadian black metal act Blasphemy, as well having taken part in other purveyors of the black metal idea from the recent and more distant past, like Cudgel, Lust, Domini Inferi; and had also hit the drums for the thrash metal legends Infernal Majesty.

Warlords Supremacy Full-length 2010

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WAR DANCE (USA)

Classic power/thrash metal in the Bay-Area tradition with uplifting punk-ish touches.

A Short Sharp Shock Demo, 1988

WAR DANCE (USA, Venice, CA)

Heavy groovy thrash which contains more stylish moments, recalling mid-90's Voivod ("My Country Tis Asleep"), but the guys' desire to be all over the place (the bluesy instrumental "Red Bridge", the stoner ballad "The Ballad Of Crazy Horse", etc.) leads them nowhere, with only one other track (the dark doomy creeper "Vision Quest") capturing the attention, but only for a while.

Path of Power Full-length, 2008

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WAR MIND (BRAZIL)

Based on the "The War of Mind" demo: this band offers quite cool old school speed/thrash in the vein of the German school and the Canadians Sacrifice. The songs are fast-paced with slower, more laid-back implements, very good guitar work, and harsh vocals sounding like more vicious, and higher-pitched Rob Urinari (Sacrifice).

The War of Mind Demo, 2007
Into the Mad Circle Demo, 2008

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WAR OF ATTRITION (USA)

Standard modern thrash/death metal, not very fast and aggressive, with tasteless metalcore breaks which awkwardly interrupt the few attempts the guys make to liven the sound up. The singer delivers, though, with his very angry, semi-death metal-ish growl.

...And The Void Stared Back EP, 2008

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WAR RIPPER (USA)

A 4-sond EP of raging black/thrash metal with heavy twisted riffs ala Hellhammer and a considerable doze of punk.

Hell Storm 7" EP, 2007

Official Site

WAR WITHIN (USA)

This is the band where the guitarist Greg Messick from the speed/thrashers Intruder has decided to play some more metal again for a change. If you look for bombastic, technically-tinged speed/thrash, you have to look elsewhere, because his new act play heads-down angry groovy modern thrash; well done, with heavy crushing riffs and the right attitude, but nothing really exceptional.

War Within Full-length, 2007

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WARANFO (COLOMBIA)

Brutal amateurish black/thrash metal, fast raw stuff totally marred by the awful sound quality. There are only two original songs here, the rest being covers: of Impaled Nazarene's "The Lost Art of Goat Sacrificing" done in a frolic jocund manner not matching the original's manic intensity; and of Venom's "Black Metal" done in a more faithful way ruined by the hissing whispered vocals.

Live in Terror Live, 2010

WARATTAH (FRANCE)

An intriguing 4-track demo of chuggy, groovy thrash not too far from Machine Head; the good news is that these Frenchmen are far from satisfied to sound derivative, and they "insert" genuine technical touches which turn their music in a different direction, towards the technical modern thrash realm where bands like Baghead, Obliveon and mid-90's Voivod belong. At times the sound is accessible with a good headbanging potential, but suddenly it takes a more unusual, harder to follow turn. It would take a few spins before one learns to fully appreciate this band.

Distorsion Demo, 2006

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WARBASTARD (USA)

A good 4-track EP of sharp and speedy Razor-like thrash metal with slightly awkward synthesized vocals, similar to the ones Razor themselves used on "Decibels", but these here are more in the whispering mould. "Thrashbastard Hell" takes a more melodic turn, sounding like something which bands like Motorhead, or Tank, could have done, but is enjoyable and catchy nonetheless.

Thrashing Bastard Hell EP, 2004

Official Site

WARBEAST (USA)

The guys from Gammacide have teamed up with Bruce Corbitt (Rigor Mortis, among other acts) for the recording of this decent mix of modern and retro thrash which is less intense, and arguably less impressive, than the aggressive technical thrash/death of the Gasmmacide only effort. The songs are well-executed, alternating between slower and faster ones with a good balance between the two sides. Corbitt sounds too hardcore-ish here consequently favouring the modern half more. The band was previously known as Texas Metal Alliance under which name they only released one demo in 2008.

Krush the Enemy Full-length, 2010

Official Site

WARBRINGER (USA)

A cool EP of classic thrash with a slightly raw production as though it had been recorded in the 80's; the style has something in common with the scenes from both sides of the Atlantic ocean, sounding like a cross between Exodus and Sodom. This act evolved from the short-lived one Zombie who released one split and one demo in 2006.
"War Without End" fulfills all the promises given with the EP, and goes well beyond that. This is heads-down classic thrash at its finest; "Total War", the album opener, will blow you away with its speedy assault (very sparce blast-beats involved as well), in the best tradition of Slayer and Vio-Lence. The attack continues through the whole album unabated, slowing down to galloping rhythms on the excellent "Dread Command", or reaching for the very extremes with the blast-beats on the furious "At The Crack of Doom". The album closer "A Dead Current" is a nice slower instrumental with heavy stomping riffs and a cool lead guitar which was not that well accentuated on the other tracks, but this is hardly a complaint. It's hard to think of a better beginning for the thrash metal scene in 2008...
"Waking Into Nightmares" is quick to capitalize on the debut's success seeing the guys thrash with no mercy, at least in the 1st half, in a way pretty faithful to the previous album. "Jackal" is an aggressive Slayer-esque opener, and the next "Living In A Whirlwind" is a ripping speedster touching later-period Death, if we exclude the somewhat unnecessary ultra-blasts. "Severed Reality" will "sever" you from "reality" big time with its fast lashing riffs, but your prayers for something a bit slower will, infortunately, remain unanswered since the following "Scorched Earth" is another maddening headbanger. "Abandoned By Time" is the late answer to those prayers crushing in a heavy mid-pace akin to late-80's Slayer. The problem is that this mid-tempo "infects" a whole string of songs, even including the tender instrumental ballad "Nightmare Anatomy" (are you serious?!). The headbangers will defintiely dissatisfied with the 2nd half, despite the brisk pace of the closer "Forgotten Dead", which nicely mixes technical with speedy riffs to produce the finest moments on the album. This effort leaves a certain aftertaste lacking the spontaneous "downpour" of the debut showing a band with a polished delivery where the enthusiasm obviously obeys the improved musical skills, for better or worse.
"Worlds Torn Asunder": the thrash machine carries on on regular intervals, and it seems as though this time the band are angrier and less willing to compromise, an attitude shown with the opening "Living Weapon", a headbanging delight, which pretty much sets the tone for what ensues. The classic attack is nicely spiced with the odd modern flavour ("Future Ages Gone"; the short trip down melody lane "Treacherous Tongue"), or with the more technical hooks ("Savagery"). The longer compositions ("Echoes from the Void") certainly offer something less intense, but bombs like "Enemies of the State", on the other hand, would hardly make the guys any "enemies" among the true (no pun intended) fans of the style. The quiet piano-driven instrumental "Behind the Veils of Night" near the end is kind off-context, but the closer "Demonic Ecstasy" will try to please the listener by summing up all which has been heard up to this point, by combining fierce riffage with heavy stomping moments to a positive effect. By no means as compulsive and arresting as the debut, this album is still a testimony that the band remain one of the major representatives of the new(old) school of thrash at present.

One By One, The Wicked Fall EP, 2006
War Without End Full-length, 2008
Waking Into Nightmares Full-length, 2009
Worlds Torn Asunder Full-length 2011

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WARCHEST (CHILE)

This young Chilean act offers a nice mix of modern and retro power/thrash metal which relies on heavy pounding riffs to pull it through, and not much speed, except on isolated moments (the vigorous headbanger "Contradiction"), but the guys' approach hardly needs them. There is one good ballad ("Let Me Down")in the middle, amidst the steam-rolling mid-pacers, and the closer "Fear of the Machine" is another enjoyable faster piece ala early Xentrix, similarities with the British act also in the vocal department where the singer delivers with a cool attached mid-ranged clean delivery.

Aftershock Full-Length, 2011

Official Site

WARCHITECT (HOLLAND)

An excellent representative of the traditionally technically-inclined Dutch metal scene, and quite original at that; "Mind" is a really good progressive thrash metal effort with slight shades of death metal; the music is heavy, never fast, with steam-rolling riffs and interesting time changes. Because the guys don't bother to spice things with occasional speedy riffs, the songs tend to merge into one another, carried by the slightly monotonous feeling. Some of the songs go beyond the 8-min limit, and this is where the band manage to show their best, trying to keep them floating with more stylish guitar work. "A Sea of Red" goes deeper into death metal territory, but the music is not radically different from the debut, resulting in another strong offering.
"Matter" arrives after a long 4-year hiatus, and sees the guys having acquired a more modern and a less technical sound. The riffs have the necessary edge, but the influence of the Swedish school has sneaked through, and the guitar work is considerably more melodic this time. "Seperate" comes up after 3 not very impressive semi-technical tracks, to provide both more complex and more aggressive guitar work, but then everything gets lost (no pun intended) on the slower groovy "Lost", which influences the remaining material, consisting mostly of mid-paced melodic thrashers, quite similar to the more recent Lyzanxia output. The good leads on a couple of songs ("Tolerate Intolerance", "The End", which is indeed the end, being the closer) can not improve the bland situation a lot, and as a whole this album is quite a step back from the cool calm progressive/technical death/thrash from the previous two efforts.

Mind Full-length, 2002
A Sea Of Red Full-length, 2004
Matter Full-Length, 2008

Official Site

WARCODE (GREECE)

Decent retro thrash metal of the brooding Infernal Majesty type with rough death metal vocals; the music moves between the mid and up-tempo the whole time "Demolished Lives" keaving the most positive impression with its fast headbanging riffs and the cool doomy exit.

Warcode Demo, 2008

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WARCOLLAPSE (SWEDEN)

Based on the full-length debut, this band plays fast hardcore-ish thrash with hoarse death metal-vocals and a somewhat black-ish attitude, reminding me of the first two Bathory albums. There is a certain Motorhead-atmosphere (the music is simplistic and catchy, resembling the legendary Brits) and light-hearted punk-ish moments ("No Hope") present as well.

Indoctri-Nation EP, 1993
Drunk Collapsed Destroyed Split album, 1994
Wandering in Darkness EP, 1994
Crust as Fuck Existence EP, 1995
Divine Intoxication Full-length, 1999

Official Site

WARCRY (USA)

A good blend of heavy, doomy riffs and up-tempo thrasy ones of the classic variety; there is a slight hardcore-ish touch in the music bringing to mind Carnivore, but this band display a higher level of musicianship, and are heavier.

Warrior's Path Full-length, 1999

Official Site

WARDANCE (GERMANY)

A German thrash metal band with a female singer; isn't that something new? The music is more melodic than that of Holy Moses, for example, and is more in the speed/thrash metal camp similar to Warrant, or the second Angel Dust album or, if you remember the 80's speed/thrashers from Canada Messiah Force (their singer there was also a girl). This is a good band although the music is more on the melodic side.

Crucifixion Full-length, 1988
Heaven Is For Sale Full-length, 1990

WARDEATH (BRAZIL)

An impressive debut of classic speed/thrash; "Prelúdio Para A Destruição" is a cool energetic instrumental, and a great way to open the album. The following songs are by no means less effective: short, blistering speed/thrashers, containing the best from the 80's scene; mighty speedy riffs in the Helloween, Iron Angel, the Finns Solitaire spirit, shake hands with aggressive thrashing ones along the lines of Kreator, Necrodeath, the Swedes Cranium, among others. This is an uncompromising speedy attack, which will never give you a chance for a break, but one will hardly need it carried away by this cool stuff. An excellent cover of their German colleagues Minotaur comes at the end: "Savage Aggressions", made much better than the original, with marvellous melodic, very fast guitars. This is pure old school delight, a main pretender for the "Best Debul Album" award for 2008.

Confronto Bestial Full-length, 2008

Official Site

WARDOG (USA)

This is Tom Gattis' (Tension, Ballistic) second and longest running project so far (and I would like to add the best). The style has something in common with Tension, but is rawer and heavier, mixing power, thrash and speed metal in almost equal dozes. The debut is a cool affair, blending heavy, slower power metal numbers ("Blasphemy") with smashing speed/thrashers ("Rip & Tear"), with Gattis in fine form.
"Scorched Earth" is more diverse and more power/speed metal-based (including one doom metal and one jolly crossover number), with less thrashing involved, a slight presence of modern 90's riffs, and Gattis sounding more restrained.
"A Sound Beating" carries on in the same vein with clear moments from the 90's power/speed metal scene present, but harder thrashers are still scattered around ("A Sound Beating", and the 1.5min closer "Breakneck"- watch out for broken necks on this one!), plus another doomy nuber: "Close Friends, Closer Enemies".

Wardog Full-length, 1994
Scorched Earth Full-length, 1996
A Sound Beating Full-length, 1999

WARDOM (AUSTRALIA)

Decent retro speed/thrash metal of the more laid-back type clinging more towards the American scene, plus the casual nod to the classic heavy metal scene ("United Thy Horde"). The main complaint would be the gruff low-tuned singer who would suit some death metal act much better.

When Darkness Reigns EP, 2010

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WARFAIR (GERMANY)

Melodic power/thrash metal which walks the fine line between the modern and the classic sound, not too far from 90's Flotsam & Jetsam and Sacred Reich's "Independent".

Existance Under Pressure Demo, 2001

WARFARE (UK)

A cult UK band with a style reminiscent of Venom, Motorhead, Tank with a jolly, punk-ish attitude; on "Conflict Of Hatred" the music moves towards more serious thrash, recalling the Canadians Pile Driver, or even the Dark Angel debut, a really good work. "Wax Works" is a haunting atmospheric intro, after which "Hate To Create" comes forward with fast, choppy riffs, with no traces of uplifting, merry moods. "Dancing In The Flames Of Insanity" switches onto almost progressive thrash being much longer, slower, with the inclusion of violins and sax in the middle. "Fatal Vision" thrashes with no mercy again, after which comes one more longer, more complex piece ("Deathcharge (Doomsday)") which doesn't forget to be dynamic, accompanied by very cool guitar hooks. "Order Of The Dragons" is a fine speed/thrasher with a cool inclusion of the leads and an imposing orchestral ending. "Elite Forces" is the most speedy track here, breaking the "fast song-slow song" formula. "Rejoice The Feast Of Quarentine" closes the album the way it started: in a nice energetic, headbanging fashion, showing a band now firmly belonging to the thrash metal brotherhood.

Their last release is a tribute to the legendary British Hammer Studios famous for their horror films from the 1950-1970's, and is quite an original effort with an atmospheric, orchestral intro, preceding each song. The style is still thrash-ornated, maybe not all the way, but enough to arouse the thrash metal fans' appetite. "Baron Frankenstein" is a nice mix of heavy, doomy riffs in the Celtic Frost vein and one more intense middle section. The 2 parts of "Scream Of The Vampire" are atmospheric tracks with cool guitars with a gothic shade. "Plague Of The Zombies" is a very enjoyable, more light-hearted speed metal number, but is cancelled by the more hard-hitting "Tales Of A Gothic Genre" and "Dance Of The Dead", which are full-blooded thrashers with good, energetic riffs. "Phantom Of The Opera" is an excellent melodic gothic song with great female vocals and haunting keyboard melodies; hey, there is strong guitar support as well, but it's not of the thrashy type and one can not help but notice how much the future doom/gothic acts owe to tracks like this.

Two Tribes EP, 1984
Pure Filth Full-length, 1984
Total Death EP, 1985
Metal Anarchy Full-length, 1985
Mayhem, Fuckin' Mayhem Full-length, 1986
A Conflict of Hatred Full-length, 1988
Hammer Horror Full-length, 1990

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WARFECT (SWEDEN)

Modern melodic thrash/death with the obligatory mix between energetic headbanging and slower groovy sections; the guys know how to mosh, and "Never to Return" is a really cool semi-ballad, but it'll take more for them to leave the comfortable middle ground of the style where so many of their colleagues have ended up. The clean vocals, another "compulsory" addition these days, are actually good and powerful, and may even give the music an additional boost if they turn into the dominating ones in the future.

Depicting The Macabre Full-length, 2009

Official Site

WARFIELD (BRAZIL)

Modern death/thrash metal of the pounding type not too dissimilar to Obituary and Gorefest, but still fast and even blasting on occasion. It holds a certain amount of technicality ("Mao Fechada"), and the sense of melody has not been completely forgotten, but overall the heavy crushing riffs bury it all ably helped by the brutal low-tuned death metal growls.

Death Full-Length, 2010

WARFIELD WITHIN (GERMANY)

These guys were previously known as Khaosick, under which name they released one album ("The Hunt Continues") in 2005, with the style being classic death metal. The name of the game now is a thrash/death metal hybrid, still more death metal-based, quite fast, but also technical. The overall approach comes a s a mix between the Swedish school and the Canadians Quo Vadis, with the same good sense of melody displayed (check out the addictive Oriental hooks on "Warfield Within", which will also remind you of Bolt Thrower's "As the World Burns" from "The IV Crusade"). "A Future Dark" is a stylish technical piece in a solid galloping pace, but the rest is played at breakneck speed for most of the time, which kind of impedes the technical leanings from developing fully.

Inner Bomb Exploding Full-length, 2010

Official Site

WARFIST (POLAND)

Based on the split: cool old school speed/thrash borrowing readily from the early German scene producing as a result a couple of major headbangers: the very aptly titled "Speed Metal War", "Abuse and Scorn". "The Heretik" is a surprise serving heavy slower riffs in the spirit of early Celtic Frost, before the last "1999: Karmakeddon Warriors", which is an Impaled Nazarene cover, shoots everyone at close range with its uncompromising fast-paced guitars. Some of the musicians also take part in the death metal outfit Ebola.
The "HellTyrant Rising" EP relies on heavy doom-laden riffs with a touch of epic except for the slightly faster "Night of the Wicked Ones", and the nice faithful cover of Behemoth's "Pure Evil and Hate".

Pure Fucking Hell Demo, 2005
Tunes of Hell and Alcohol Demo, 2006
United In Annihilation Split, 2008
HellTyrant Rising EP, 2008

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WARFX (BRAZIL)

This band is the continuation of the underground act Prophecy, although at the time of writing that other band is still active as well. Nevertheless, this one here is still hesitating between several styles, offering bland modern groovy post-thrash in the first half (based on the full-length). Fortunately, the second half takes off, with "New Order", which is a nice little headbanger managing to even sound retro at some point. The other cool moments are the up-tempo "The Meaning Of Terror", the sombre doomy "Eye Of The World", the proto-Megadeth "The Anger Day", and the excellent brisk closing thrasher "Alone".

War Effects EP, 2003
War Songs Full-length, 2006

Official Site

WARGASM (USA)

"Why Play Around" is a triumphant album, one of the ten best thrash releases ever, pretty much the culmination of the whole scene (and 1988 was indeed the peak year for thrash metal); some of the finest thrash pieces are here, folks: "Wasteland", "Revenge", "Undead", "Humanoid", and all the rest. No more comments about a masterpiece like this.
A follow-up was badly needed immediately to place the band on the forefront, but the guys lost momentum, and took it easy (or could have been label problems, or other obstacles) right until 1993, when they struck again with "Ugly". The album title is not very attractive, but the music is quite good, although much less striking tha the one on the debut: it opens in a nice fast-paced way with "Rude Awakening", promising another great riff-fest. Well, the very next track ("Enemy Mine") shows the band having accepted the new 90's laws with a much more restrained, almost groovy sound. Later on the speed returns ("I Breathe Fire" and the very aggressive, but also technical "Dead Man's Smile"), alternating with slower, more modern-sounding songs. "Ugly Is to the Bone" is a fine energetic thrasher, the highlight here, even worthy to be on the debut. The guys attempt something more complex and technical ("One Man Army") suggesting at new, future tendencies. Alas, these were just solitary experiments as "Suicide Notes" is too far from anything the band have done at that point, being plain modern metal, more melodic than the old material, and much weaker.

Why Play Around Full-length, 1988
Ugly Full-length, 1993
Fireball EP, 1995
Suicide Notes Full-length, 1995

Official Site

WARGOD (MEXICO)

80's speed/thrash metal with more brutal death-like vocals and other influences thrown in along the way; the music is cool, ranging from all-out thrash assaults ("Wargod", "Sangre y Acero") to mellower speed/power metal offerings ("Somos Eternos"). "Crimenes De Guerra" is high-octane speed/thrash at its best and fastest: the finest song on the demo. "Vertigo" is the odd slow number which doesn't quite belong here; "Tormenta De Sangre" is way better with its galloping speed/power/thrash rhythm. "Muerto" is a ballad with a faster twist at the end, but watch out for the next "Mente Criminal": aggressive death-laced thrash metal with cool melodic guitar interludes. "Reptando I" is blasting death metal, quite good, but it remains to be seen which direction the band will follow on future releases... this wide amalgam could be reduced to fewer styles...

Crímenes De Guerra Demo, 2008

My Space

WARGOD (USA)

This is the band from where the drum-machine Gene Hoglan started his career, along with the guitar wizard Michelle Meldrum (R.I.P.- she sadly passed away on May 21st, 2008), who later founded the all-female Shrapnel outfit Phantom Blue. Their first demo is furious devastating thrash which precedes "Reign in Blood" and "Darkness Descends" with a few months, and have definitely been an influence on the formation of the death metal genre; fast aggressive stuff, interrupted by short, but very coherent listenable leads.
The 1986 demo is only two tracks compared to the 4 ones on the first one: the music is in the same vein, merciless speedy thrash with very good, more melodic, higher-pitched vocals.

Demo Demo, 1985
Demo Demo, 1986

WARHAMMER (GERMANY)

A band exclusively devoted to Hellhammer and early Celtic Frost; this is truly an impressive commitment, and the band should get kudos for that, but there is absolutely no variety here; once you've heard one album, you know exactly what to expect from the rest: pure Hellhammer-worship through and through with a few faster twists added here and there to stir the depressive mood.

The Winter of our Discontent Full-length, 1997
Deathchrist Full-length, 1999
The Doom Messiah Full-length, 2000
Curse of the Absolute Eclipse Full-length, 2002
No Beast so Fierce... Full-length, 2009

Official Site

WARHATE (BRAZIL)

Based on the compilation, this band's style is not too far from the early wave of Brazilian thrash- Sepultura, Sextrash, Volcano, Sarcofago. In other words, we have here brutal raw thrash/black/proto-death with unlikely heavy slower parts ala early Protector, plus the thousandth cover version of Motorhead's "Ace of Spades".

Thrash Invasion Demo, 1988
Biological Decimate Single, 1990
Action & Attitude Demo, 1993
Destructive Years Best of/Compilation, 2005

WARHEAD

4 tracks of mid-paced heavy Celtic Frost-like thrash which livens up for the occasional headbanging section ("Curse of Death", and the 2.5-min Slayer-esque bomb "Wartorn"). Not bad at all, with hypnotic one-dimensional riffage, rough, semi-clean vocals, not far from the ones of Cronos, with a pinch of James Hetfield.

Warhead EP, 2000

WARHEAD (BELGIUM)

When people talk about Belgian thrash metal, this band is often being forgotten, and it shouldn't be so. Perhaps the reason is that their style is more speed metal-based with hints af thrash mostly on the second album, and an overall style recalling the German heroes Helloween, Steeler and Grave Digger. "Speedway" is a good slab of power, speed, and a little bit of thrash metal which works quite well, and separate numbers really pack a punch: the energetic instrumental "Attack and Kill", the excellent short speed metal killers "Driver" and "Kill the Witch", the cool intense speed/thrasher "Speedway".

"The Day After" introduces a harder sound, and although the music still remains more in the speed metal camp, cool mixtures of speed and thrash are present ("Devil's Church", "Evil Night"), which for some reason remind me of the Pile Driver's second album "Stay Ugly" with their direct, sincere approach. The new instrumental "Fall Out" is even better, albeit more quiet and slower, but with very cool lead guitar performance, which actually takes the whole space, and that's well deserved. "Last Night" is a good semi-ballad with a nice speedy section, recalling Living Death's "Grippin' a Heart" from "Metal Revolution". "Legions of Hell" is another good take on speed/thrash metal with a heavy, doomy beginning, followed by the awesome thrashing closer in the Iron Angel-vein "The Day After". I've always wondered at the unexplained disappearance of good acts like this one (Warrant, Iron Angel, Attacker, Savage Grace, to name a few others), at the peak of the genre development who played fashionable, and quite good for the time, music, with a wider appeal.

Speedway Full-length, 1984
The Day After Full-length, 1986

WARHEAD (GERMANY)

This obscure, but quite prolific band have done a fairly good job in the German undergroung; their debut is a nice slab of classic speed/thrash metal which apart from the lashing thrash pieces ("Let Me Die", "Good Christian") offers more quiet, longer tracks which still hit hard, but in a more sophisticated way ("Hatred", "Good Part For Each"). The overall style reminds of the first two Squealer albums with a pinch of mid-period Testament; the singer also recalls Chuck Billy at times. On some songs the music loses its edge sounding like pure power/heavy metal; there is a cool ballad, too, in the Testament vein again ("Missiles").
"Perfect Infect" takes a more modern direction, but fast thrashy numbers of the old school are still present ("Celebrate Your Loot", "Perfect Infect"). The modern side of the music is not bad, and boasts some fine songs: the very cool progressively-tinged opener "The Other Side" which reminds me of early Vicious Rumours in a great way; the heavy, atmospheric thrasher "Into the Light"; oh, and another good ballad: "Behind My Eyes", this time more romantic and softer.
"Captured" is a fine return for the band to the scene after a long, 7-year hiatus. The guys still thrash in the good old way on most songs, which this time are longer, but are still of the more immediate type. The new material even surpasses the better achievements from the past: the speed/thrashing "Captured"; the jolly speedy piece "Alive"; the raging thrasher "Zombie Ride"; no ballads this time, and no fillers. The new singer does a fine job with his style now reminiscent of Steve Souza (Exodus) and Scott Waters (Ultimatum).

Good Part for Each Full-length, 1997
Perfect Infect Full-length, 1999
Beyond Recall Full-length, 2000
Captured Full-length, 2007

My Space

WARHEAD (POLAND/UKRAINE)

Although on some sites this band are presented as a black metal act, at least based on "Bloodthunder" there are no many reasons for that. This is heavy mid to up-tempo thrash, sounding like more one-dimensional Abomination; the singer also recalls the Paul Speckman's performance on that band's works. This is good headbanging stuff with short lashing songs and simplistic guitar work which delivers the goods most of the time. All the tracks are in the same fast tempo, so don't expect any highlights, but rest assured that this is not the same song played over and over again.

Warhead EP, 2000
Defenders of the Blood Full-length, 2001
Aryan Nation's Rebirth Full-length, 2003
Explosion Split, 2004
Bloodthunder Full-length, 2006

WARHEAD (RUSSIA)

Based on "Various Views of the Present - Day Reality", this act plays modern power/proto-thrash metal with more elaborate arrangements, and gruff semi-clean vocals. The apporach is mid-paced with not very sharp guitar work relying on cool melodic hooks which work well since at least half of the songs lean towards the semi-ballad ("We Love", "The Pain", the romantic closer "She", etc.).
"Strange Age" is harder effort with more adherence to sharp thrashy decisions, althoguh the dreamy aspect of the guys' early period is stil present. The guitars are crunchy and more dynamic, although again seldom leave the mid-pace coming with a pinch of doom/gothic ("Grave Worms") ala mid-period Cemetary those moments accompanied by better cleaner vocals with a deep tember.

The Realms of Fancy Full-length, 1996
Various Views of the Present - Day Reality Full-length, 1998
Hate Full-length, 1999
Strange Age Full-length, 2002
Death Rattle Full-length, 2010

Official Site

WARHORDE (USA)

This is a one-man project who goes under the abbreviation P.H. He does a good job handling all the instruments to come up with cool retro black-ish thrash metal in the vein of early Bathory and the Slayer debut. "Death Rattle" is a tad more laid-back now sharing quite a bit of the playful atmosphere of early Motorhead. The new gimmicks, however, ruin the impression from the cool music: the vocals are very strongly synthesized, and the guitar sound is very fuzzy and dirty making the faster songs sound like a string of chainsaw massacres. The innovations only work on the slower "Witch Cult" which is a nice nod to Bathory's "Raise the Dead".

Satanic Lust Full-length, 2007
Death Rattle Full-length, 2010

Official Site

WARHORN (FINLAND)

Based on the "Expanded Holocaust" demo, these guys pull out classic black/thrash metal which is as close to early Bathory as it is to Impaled Nazarene. The music is often quite fast, but the more controlled thrashy breaks are quite a few as well topped by horrifying satanic rasps. The band members play much softer classic heavy metal with their other band Northern Invasion.

Demo Demo, 2003
World Wide Desolation Demo, 2003
Expanded Holocaust Demo, 2004

Official Site

WARISE (BRAZIL)

This is classic thrash metal ala Assassin and Paradox. The title-track opens the album in a furious speed/thrashing manner, and the next "The Prisoner" does its best to be on pace with it. "By Your Glory" calms the ball down with meaty semi-balladic riffs which go up the speed scale a bit on "Poisoning". When "Blood On Earth" refuses to speed up beyond the mid-tempo, the listener may start worrying that there would be no more intense thrashing here, but comes "The World", and things get back to normal with another portion of fast blitzkrieg delivery. The remaining two songs are dynamic, albeit not as fast, topped by the great leads which are the highlight all over. The singer is not bad pulling out confident clean mid-ranged performance reminiscent of Heinz Mikus (Risk).

The War Is The End Full-Length, 2011

WARKULT (FRANCE)

An intense mix of death, black and thrash metal generally comprehensible slightly recalling the early Messiah efforts, except for the blasting sections which in their turn are assisted by nice melodic technical leads the latter being the highlight of the album. The music zig-zags between heavy stomping sections, thrashy up-tempo ones, and brutal fast outbursts with both a death and a black metal flavour. "Time for Oppression" is a cool thrashing instrumental with melodic hooks, and the closing "Mother Earth Revenge" is the other exercise in pure thrash relying on heavy pounding rhythms and sparce speedy insertions.

Kult Of Disorder Full-length, 2009

My Space

WARMACHINE (CANADA)

A good debut which is mostly classic heavy/power metal with occasional more aggressive thrashy parts.

The Beginning of the End Full-length, 2005

Official Site

WARMATH (FINLAND)

Another hidden gem in the metal underground: on "Damnation Play" Warmath play power/speed/thrash metal in the tradition of Agent Steel, Wrath and Toxik with nice technical riffs, brilliant solos and great galloping rhythms; very good guitar-driven music which would have fitted nicely even into the Shrapnel catalogue. The opener "Damnation Play" is a strong technical up-tempo track, and sets the tone for the remaining ones. The album flows in an energetic speed/thrashy mood, seldom exiting the field with softer heavy/power metal numbers ("The Land Of The Living", "The Fifth Season"), but this is nicely compensated by the more aggressive ones ("Slavery", "The Darkest Age"). After all, this is not an all-out thrash metal effort, but is a blend of the aforementioned 3 styles, so it is not strictly for thrash fans.
The EP is slower with a heavier sound, now fully focused on thrash, recalling the Bay Area scene, and more particularly late-80's Metallica and Testament. The guitar work is still on a high level, but the concentration is not on speed anymore; the riffs are heavy, pounding, with separate sections within the songs speeding up, but just a bit ("The Death Joy").

Gehenna EP, 1990
Damnation Play Full-length, 1991

WARMONGER (ITALY)

Cool classic thrash metal: the music is close to Destruction and the Toxic Shock and Iron Angel debuts. "Rites of Vengeance" is a good example of perseverance the guys finally getting to the official release stage 5 years later without having lost their penchant for the good old speed/thrash metal. The album starts ambitiously with the long speed/thrasher "Possessed by Metal" which is an obvious nod (title-wise) to the Exumer debut the music being full-fledged Germanic speed/thrash all the way. "Senseless War" is a short explosive number the rest following close in terms of speed and intensity, "T.N.T." is trying hard to break the sound barrier, and almost succeeds. The middle will be quite a surprise: a nice speedy cover of Celtic Frost's "Into the Crypts of Rays" here turned into an optimistic speed/thrash roller-coaster. "Right of Vengeance" is a very good tribute to early Destruction, and the closer "Merciless Riot" is a speed metal killer in the best tradition of the Angel Dust debut. Without offering anything new, the band delivers on all counts by taking the listener on a thorough entertaining tour around the early days of German speed/thrash metal.

Marching On The Warpath Demo, 2002
Beer maniac Single, 2003
Mors tua, vita mea Single, 2004
Rites of Vengeance Full-length, 2009

My Space

WARMONGER (SWEDEN)

This obscure swedish trio acquit themselves with the typical for the time intense blend of thrash and death metal. The approach is expectedly pretty close to their compatriots Merciless' debut, also sharing some of the atmospheric qualities of the Floridian movement (think early Death, above all). The guitars have a characteristic dark tone which will also remind you of Bolt Thrower (the battle-like "Dawn Of Obscuration"), and the singer is a gruff, albeit pretty intelligble, low growler. Expect a pleasant surprise near the end: a cool energetic cover of Venom's timeless hit "Black Metal"; followed by the closer "Skinned Alive", which betrays the energetic feel of the demo treading slow doomy waters for most of the time.

Only Death is Real EP, 1992

Official Site

WARNAMENT (MACEDONIA)

Pretty cool retro thrash which starts in a more laid-back crossover manner before "Disturbing The Peace", which is a smashing speedster giving the album an enormous boost which is immediately evident on the next ultra-thrasher "Hollow Of The Innocent Victims". "Life Consequences" is another commendable piece, slower and stomping, but the next "Alarm" is a fine edgy speedy number with cool technical leanings. "Violator" could have been more intense to justify its title since it's more of a power/thrash metal mixture in mid-tempo. "Game over" with the final "Game Over" which thrashes hard with power in the best manner of Paradox's "Riot Squad" adding the casual more clever hook. Some of the guys are also active in the classic heavy metal warriors Steel Thunder.

...Where Home is Found... Full-length, 2010

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WARNING (GERMANY)

A 3-song demo which dedicates one song to each of the following metal genres: power ("Blind Hate"), speed ("Revelation"), and thrash ("Victims of the Insane": this track is more of a mix between speed and thrash) metal.

Victims of the Insane Demo, 1986

WARNING SF (USA)

This is the new band of Jon Torres- a guitarist who has made a name for himself during his involvement with bigger names from the thrash metal world in the past (Laaz Rockit, Heathen, Ulysses Siren). Whoever/whatever he liked from those bands, he used to take it with him; that's why in Warning SF there are also members of Ulysses Siren and Laaz Rockit. This band's style is more along the lines of mid-period Laaz Rockit ("Know Your Enemy") combining thrash and power metal in a good way with nice guitar work and fine forceful mid-ranged vocals.

Aftermath Full-length, 2002

Official Site

WARPATH (BRAZIL)

Sharp classic thrash; fast brisk music topped by vicious Mille-like vocals. The first track is a short immediate headbanger, but later on the guys take things more seriously, and start thrashing in a slightly longer and a more complex manner, again remaining within the German thrash confines, "courting Destruction, above all, by adding the odd clever hook on the next 3 numbers. Then end is given in the form of live songs from their debut demo which alternate direct with less immediate thrashers boasting a very good sound quality.

Massacre EP, 2010

Official Site

WARPATH (CHILE)

The first two demos are of a more simplistic, but enjoyable, nature, whereas the last two are excellent technical thrash. "Torture" is by all means the band's highest achievement; it starts with the title track which hits with its heavy, but also energetic guitar sound which will bring to mind even Dark Angel's "Time Does Not Heal", as well as Heathen's "Victims of Deception" (and these two albums were released later). The songs are complex with plenty of great technical riffs and interesting musical decisions which never leave the metal field. The singer is the only drawback having a slightly undeveloped tember, something like how Dave Mustaine would sound after a long drinking party.
"Mental Acceleration" is in the spirit of the other two 1988 demos thrashing in a direct semi-Bay-Area/semi-Slayer-esque fashion. The guitar sound is really abrasive taking away from the sharpness of the riffs. The music is up to mid-tempo, and "Endless Zone" is a nice technical piece, the only reminder of the future metamorphosis, offering excellent twisted riffage with a shade of Coroner. The vocals are again close at times to Mustaine, but here sound even more drunken.

Alternative Dose Demo, 1988
Shock Force Demo, 1988
Mental Acceleration Demo, 1988
Torture Demo, 1989

My Space

WARPATH (GERMANY)

Based on "When War Begins...Truth Disappears": heavy, mid-tempo thrash metal with crushing riffs; the style is not too far from the UK thrash masters Cerebral Fix, but the riffs here are slower and more aggressive. The songs are long (6-7min), and perhaps it would have been better if they were a bit shorter, because the guys refuse to speed things a lot, except on a few occasions.
"Kill Your Enemy" adds more speed in the proceedings, and the result is more satisfying, and more diverse; at the same time there are pure doomy songs ("Die Maschine") and modern tendencies have found place in the band's sound (the slightly boring and monotonous "Overrollin'"), plus pure crossover delights ("Sign of Hard Times").

When War Begins...Truth Disappears Full-length, 1992
Massive Full-length, 1993
Against Everyone Full-length, 1994
Kill Your Enemy Full-length, 1996

WARPATH (UK)

This band could be considered the continuation of the short-lived Headless Cross. The music on the debut is more aggressive, and better than the one of the old band, being excellent classic thrash, recalling the Japanese Ritual Carnage and Vio-Lence's "Eternal Nightmare". So expect steel sharp riffs, mostly in up-tempo, accompanied by good mid-ranged intelligible vocals. Some songs betray the fast-paced character of the album ("Hostile Takeover", "Spitting Venom"), but this is when the guitars add nice melodic hooks. There are plenty of moments to break your neck here: the heavy mid-paced crusher "Face to Face", which blasts out at the end; the explosive opening duo "Damnation" and "Infernal"; the Slayer-esque "W.M.D. (Weapons of Mass Deception)"; the merciless closer "Expendable Forces". This band, along with other young acts like Gama Bomb and Evile, does a really good job to elevate the British thrash metal scene to the high levels of the 80's.

Cataclysm EP, 2005
Damnation Full-length, 2008

Official Site

WARRANT (GERMANY)

"First Strike" will strike you (no pun intended) with its sharp speed/thrash attack, sounding like a cross between Angel Dust's "Into the Dark Past" and Living Death's "Metal Revolution". "Satan" is an explosive opener, which will make you headbang for days. "Ready To Command" slows down, showing the softer, power metal side of the band, but "Condemned Forever" will stir the blood again with cool speedy riffs. The next couple of tracks follow the same pattern, maybe with a less thrashy edge, but the closing "When The Sirens Call" is another heavy metal hymn, maybe a bit too long a number for just an EP.
"The Enforcer" followed a few months later, as though the guys were not willing to lose the accumulated inertia. The opener "The Rack" wastes no time thrashing forcefully with a cool speed metal shade. "Ordeal of Death" is a mid-paced power/thrasher, followed by another fine faster number: "Nuns Have No Fun" (which is not a Mercyful Fate cover), and those two approaches take turns until the end, resulting in another good effort, which is probably closer to speed/power metal in a way similar to Iron Angel's "Winds of War" and Angel Dust's "To Dust You Will Decay", but this band was the first to soften down. Whether the guys would have taken a more aggressive, thrashy turn in the future, remained a mystery, since they joined the group of acts which untimely, and inexplicably, disappeared from the scene at the peak of the genre's development.

First Strike EP, 1985
The Enforcer Full-length, 1985

My Space

WARRAX (USA)

A very obscure, but recommended band who play cool thrash with nice catchy riffs in the vein of the Brits Cerebral Fix. The opening "Social Decay" thrashes awesomely with heavy, pounding riffs in the mid-paced sector. "Victim of Innocence" is a more complex track, and longer, which refuses to speed up, but the stomping guitars and the quiet interlude in the middle (which some of you may find too long for their taste) create a nice opposition, which many progressive metal acts would find hard to match. "Risen Again" is another very cool song which adds faster galloping rhythms, but the focus is again on the heavy, pounding guitar work. "Chamber of Doom" is a very good mix of fast-paced riffs and some heavy ones, followed by the short instrumental "440 Interceptor" which gives an opportunity to the lead guitarist to show his skills. "Tight Grip of Society" is a classy exit: heavy, steam-rolling technical thrasher with a cool speedy passage near the end. It is nice to hear music which gives a twist to the traditional thrash metal sound by concentrating on its heavier slower side with a pinch of technicality.

Chamber of Doom Full-length, 1991

WARRICK (USA)

Based on the full-length, this act indulges in retro thrash of the heavy, stomping variety. They never let the monotony drag them down, though, and here come more vigorous peces like "The Scourge" and the galloping power/thrasher "Martyr". "Mouth Full Of Shit" is an all-out headbanger offered near the end, energizing the remaining cuts, the closing "For Those Once Loyal" (no references to Bolt Thrower music-wise) thrashing in a more stylish, clever manner for 6.5-min adding several nice melodic hooks as a finishing touch. The singer doesn't really shine, but his emotional hoarse semi-clean antics are by no means impediment to the music.

Metal as Fuck EP, 2007
Beyond Diplomacy Full-length, 2012

Official Site

WARRIOR SOUL BAND (COLOMBIA)

A very abrasive guitar sound meets you from the very beginning, which makes this death/thrash hybrid a not very pleasant listen at times. Otherwise the band try hard, playing with understanding of the old school canons, sticking to familiar mid-paced patterns, spiced with sudden outbursts of energy, assisted by really brutal low-tuned growls.

Heavy Clouds Demo, 2011

Official Site

WARTHANE (SOUTH AFRICA)

Based on "Black Divine", this act offers a cool atmospheric twist to the black/thrash mixture, excelling in evoking moods and emotions with dramatic arrangements in a way quite similar to Dimmu Borgir's 'Enthrone, Darkness, ..." and The Kovenant's "Nexus Polaris". The songs are sustained in a solid mid-pace with keyboards and spacey passages added, plus the odd faster break, assisted by husky black metal vocals which insert a desirable sinister edge into the album. Shades of more recent Satyricon ("Illumination of God and Lucifer") sneak in, as well as doomy operatic ("Betrothed Black Winter's Dawn") moments which give the album a solemn, officiant feel. The leads are brilliant coming out of nowhere, not lasting for very long, but lifting this effort up the professional music scale. This is beautiful music with a great sense of melody which may not score high from a thrash metal point of view, but would be a grand scale entertainment for fans of the atmospheric, moody side of metal.

Day 13 EP, 2007
The Gallows Are Calling Full-length, 2008
Black Divine Full-length, 2011

Official Site

WARTHRASH (BRAZIL)

A really cool 3-song demo of Germanic thrash along the lines of early Destruction and Iron Angel's "Hellish Crossfire"; the singer is an obvious Schmier worshipper, and he does a really good job imitating him. The opener "Refugio" follows on the steps of the great intro from "Eternal Devastation", preceding "Curse the Gods". This is cool, fast-paced music which will satisfy mostly the Destruction fans, as well as those who enjoy thrash metal with a German flavour.

Meanings of War Demo, 1988

WARTHRASH (CHILE)

Fast ripping old school thrash mixing the more thrashy attitude of Exodus' "Bonded by Blood" with the rougher speedy antics of early Whiplash. Not bad, suffering from a raw amateurish production and bad shouty vocals.

Gritos de Guerra Demo 2009

My Space

WARTHRASH (COLOMBIA)

Cool old school thrash of the fast intense variety with rough death metal vocals; the guys shred with power seldom crossing the border towards death metal ("Creation Of Hate"). Apart from cutting riffs one will catch more melodic hooks which come with the slower pounding sections the latter never anything more than the needed more moderate "pause".

Si Vis Pacem Para Bellum EP, 2011

WARTIME (BULGARIA)

The band's style varies from old school power/thrash to very technical Death-meets-Watchtower hybrids. "Entrapment" is the better achievement, containing quite nice technical thrash with long compositions and interesting complex arrangements, along the lines of later period Death and the Russians End Zone. The guitar work is excellent, not aggressive, but meandering all the time; the sections where some acoustic and bass performance could be heard, are quite a few, but they are perfectly intertwined with the riffage. There is a wide use of leads, which are superb, and are arguably the highlight (check out the magnificent short instrumental "Prelude to Damnation"). The last track "Against Destiny" speeds up, but the guitars are more melodic acquiring power/speed metal tendencies.
"Preordained Game" is only 2 songs, but it continues the technical style from 2 years ago; both tracks are in a vein similar to the previous one: technical thrash of the less aggressive variety, maybe with more melodic hooks and more ordinary leads than previously, but still engaging ehough. The vocals have become more brutal compared to the Chuck Schuldiner (R.I.P.) ones used on the first demo, this time being lower and closer to death metal.
"Against Destiny" uses the songs from the two demos as a backbone, but the new material sounds more ordinary and less eventful reducing the technical riffage a bit settling for more conventional modern thrash. The album takes off in the middle with the excellent vortex "Entrapment Of Time" (from the 1st demo) and the instrumental "7 Years" which are dynamic, but also melodic, affairs which set the tone for the better second half featuring the up-tempo thrasher "Awakening (1000 Days In Coma)", another instrumental opus: "Awareness" (both already heard previously), and the more dream-like closer "The Drifter" which still contains the obligatory number of hard-hitting riffs mixed with nice leads which are on a high level on the whole album. After the long wait for a full-length release the band's fans may be a bit disappointed: the technical prowess displayed earlier shows up here and there, but the approach is safer and not very daring including in the more aggressive department. Certainly the guys are capable of more...

Perfect World EP, 1998
Entrapment Demo, 2000
Preordained Game Demo, 2006
Against Destiny Full-length, 2010

My Space

WARTORN (USA)

Based on the "Seek Shelter" demo, these guys take no prisoners with their aggressive uncompromising thrash coming as a cross between Exhorder's "Slaughter In The Vatican" and Vio-lence's "Eternal Nightmare". Wartorn are more diverse perhaps adding ultra-fast blasts sparingly, and there are also attempts at choppy, more technical, play. The singer is also good sounding like a more vicious version of Sean Killian.
The debut demo is the better effort thrashing in a consistent heavy galloping fashion on the semi-technical opus "Rigormortis", before moving onto fast aggressive thrash on "Serpent" and the brutal proto-death lasher "Oppression". "Infantry Of Desolation" is a slow doomy number, and the closer "M.A.D." provides another portion of pounding galloping riffs, very good reminders of the not so distant past 80's American scene, as well as the good forceful vocals reminiscent of Harry "The Tyrant" Conklin (Jag Panzer).

Oppression Demo, 1990
Seek Shelter Demo, 1990

WARTUNE (SLOVENIA)

Based on the self-titled demo, this band play cool melodic thrash metal of the classic variety with a black/death metal singer, seldom interrupted by deep clean vocals ("Return of the Wolves"), filled with genuine dark gothic atmosphere. The pace goes from more headbanging riffs to slower doom-laden ones. The guitar work is quite good, and some melodic lines are very catchy and memorable. It's not clear whether the guys will follow their thrash, or gothic heart, on future releases, but they can as well produce good results mixing those two contrasting genres.

End of Grace Demo, 2004
Wartune Demo, 2005

My Space

WARYAG (GERMANY)

This satanic trio from Berlin with a Russian connection pulls out a raw early mix of thrash and death metal with an abrasive noisy guitar sound, which may have been intentionally made to sound like that, in order to recreate the dark underground past more faithfully. The delivery is suitably up-tempo with both slower doomy and more extreme proto-blasting elements, but all gets cancelled on the brilliant progressive/technical masterpiece "The Heavens Dripped With Poison", a surreal dreamy all-instrumental piece with great cacophonic structures and dissonant rhythms; surely a sign of much greater things to come...

Waryag Demo, 2010

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WASTE OFF HUMAN (USA)

A sheer representative of the already trite metalcore saga, slinging at times towards aggro post-thrash, plus the obligatory more dynamic hardcore passages. The singer is an angry death metal growler, but his expressive rendings are a cool asset to this pretty pedestrian effort.

Inumani Full-Length, 2011

WASTED MORALITY (USA)

A 4-song demo which is a fine and an interesting cross between D.R.I.'s "Thrashzone" and Viking's "Man of Straw"; at times the sound comes close to crossover, but at others thrashes admirably, even with a certain technical shade. The pace goes from up-tempo to fast, and the singer is a dead ringer for Kurt Brecht (D.R.I.).

Stitches Demo, 1987

WASTED SHELLS (SWEDEN)

Based on "The Debt", this band plays the prototypical modern thrash metal with aggressive death metal vocals. The music is melodic descending to post-thrash at times, but one can not ignore the impact of vigorous headbangers like "Never Enough" and "Imprint", for example. Unfortunately, the rest is pretty toothless and soft, although the ambitious closer "The Darkness" manages to get the most out of such an approach with consistent mid-paced riffage and appropriate progressive and balladic insertions which spread it up to 8-min of good atmospheric, more thought-out, thrash.

Self-Inflicted by Insanity Full-length 2008
Imprint EP 2009
The Debt Full-length 2011

My Space

WASTED YOUTH (USA)

From their punk past on the first efforts, the guys have decided to go into thrash metal; some punk passages are still present, though, but the headbanging thrashers are also here, and some of them deliver the goods no worse than the bigger names on the field: the excellent dynamic pounding opener "Any Gun Can Play". "Ordinary Woman" slows down, and is more light-hearted, but the catchy crossover-laced riffs will stay in your head. "Bucket Head" is a very good instrumental showing the band elevating their music to a more technical level: a really worthy exercise in intense, technical thrash metal. "Black Daze" is a letdown: a melodic, unfocused track, which dissipates the hard-hitting guitars with heavy-handed slower sections; this was apparently another attempt at something more interesting, but the guys have messed it up. "Good Day For A Hanging" is an energetic, but soft speed/thrasher in the early Exciter spirit. "Gang Violence" finally brings back the more aggressive delivery, but the following "On Fire" concentrates again on a more laid-back play, featuring a short bluesy part, followed by a few jumpy riffs. "The Gift of the Death" is a surprising take on a more complex song-writing, a good technical number, albeit a bit overlong: 9-min, filled with quite a few tempo changes, but never losing the thrash atmosphere.

Black Daze Full-length, 1988

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WASTELAND (GERMANY)

Pretty decent, more classically-sounding thrash with more aggressive death metal touches added, mostly in the vocal department, but also in the music. The guys follow closely on the steps of Kreator and Destruction, and surely the best for them is yet to come. "Genuine Parts" is a slightly uneven debut; it starts with a couple of all-out speed/thrashing tracks, aggressive and fast. Later on up-tempo, calmer pieces spring up ("Lavatory Charwoman"). "Dead End", on the other hand, is a sheer speed metal killer, short and direct. "Revelation of Fear" is a bit pointless, being slower and modern, as opposed to the firm classic sound of the rest. "How To Get Mentally Cracked", instead of capturing the intensity of the earlier material, is not too different, but at least is more dynamic, and not as openly modern. The bad news is that after this one the more aggressive delivery never returns, and the remaining songs are pretty much in the same vein, not that impressive and samey, finishing with the awkward crossover piece "Torture Garden, Paradise Of Pain".
"Torture Tactics - Mercy Killings" is a lot more consistent release, thrashing with full force for most of the time, again recalling Kreator and the Swedes Hypnosia. The guitar work is very sharp, and the approach is not constantly fast, although furious stripped-down speed/thrashers, like the opener "In Hell's Kitchen" and the vicious "Gang-Bang-Bitchcraft" are truly the more attractive side. Jolly thrash/crossover moments ("Torture Garden, Paradise Of Pain", "Break-Choke-Dance") are scattered around, but they have much more edge compared to the similar tracks from the debut. "The Sweet Suffering" is a nice touch, offering a very nice peaceful section in the middle, but the fierce 2-min bomb "Axedental Pain And Pleasure" "apologizes" for that. The 2nd half loses the speed somewhere relying mostly on a more moderate pace, but the riffs remain cutting and heavy.

Mare Tranquillitatis EP, 1995
Genuine Parts Full-length, 1998
Torture Tactics - Mercy Killings Full-length, 2003

Official Site

WASTELANDER (USA)

Old school black/thrash do these guys offer mixing fast aggressive tracks ala Bathory with slower mid-tempo riffs. Moments from the punk/crossover scene are also audible on some songs, and there is the presence of the odd heavy metal track: the closing "Transmission Lost", which adds more to the diversity of this enjoyable, but not very hard-hitting album.
"Wardrive" is an updated version of the Motorhead and Tank sound, a melodic offering, which shows its teeth here and there: the intense black-ish "Mindsweeper", the atmospheric majestic mid-tempo blacker "Knee Deep in the Dead", the sinister black/thrash bomb "Final Combat". This is feelgood, enjoyable stuff which even manages to sound cheesy and poppy: "Wastelander".

Wastelander Full-Length, 2007
Wardrive Full-Length, 2008

Official Site

WATCH ME BLEED (GERMANY)

Modern mid-tempo thrash mixing groove with a little bit of straight riffage ala Dew-Scented and early The Haunted; the vocals are hoarse death metal ones, but are too low-tuned to fit this kind of music. Interesting guest musicians can be heard on the closing "The Bleeding Chalice", which is by far the finest track here, switching from epic power/thrash to furious death metal without losing the dominant tone of the album: Andy B. Franck (Brainstorm), whose soaring clean vocals are a nice stark contrast to the other singer, and Constantine (Mystic Prophecy) whose guitar performance easily sticks out of the rest much more ordinary delivery.

Souldrinker Full-Length, 2009

WATCH MY DYING (HUNGARY)

Heavy modern technical thrash metal; sounds like a mixture between later period Obliveon and the Canadian industrial "monsters" Soulstorm spiced with orchestral moments in the vein of the Swedes The Project Hate (the very good gothic thrasher "B-Terv"). There are quiet moments, too, where there is a use of clean vocals, and generally the vocal variety is quite big. When the guys speed up, they do a good job with hard-hitting aggressive thrashers.
"Klausztrofónia" is arguably the band's best work, full of chunky heavy guitars and short, but very cool mechanical leads, gruff death metal vocals, and quite a few intriguing technical sections. The "brutal-melodic" vocal blends work well as well as the sudden switches onto ambient, atmospheric passages, "besieged" by aggressive heavy guitar work. Certainly there are moments when the guys speed up, and then the music takes a cool headbanging turn, but for a while: "Klausztrofonia", and the short ball of fury "Technika Angyala 2", which also features some of the most technical performance on the album, but on the other extreme we have purely atmospheric, orchestral short instrumentals: "Nullpont", the nice acoustic outro "Kek Eg Zold Fu", which are not annoying, by the way, and are a nice touch. The only irritation would perhaps be the "dance industrial versus metal" composition "Tuladagolt Ido", which would be more suitable for the works of KMFDM or Die Krupps.
"Fényérzékeny" is a heavier, more aggressive, mechanical and drier sounding release, with the band embracing the industrial idea much tighter, losing energy and technicality in the process. Still the riffs punish without mercy, but the stylish deviations which decorated the predecessor are being decreased, and the overall approach is a bit one-dimensional. The album actually starts in a fairly energetic and interesting way, with the intense thrashy "Elsõbbségi", which boasts nice technical decisions. Then the music slows down, but retains the intriguing part, although those technical decisions are left undeveloped. "Ohm" speeds up again in the middle, and is a nice up-tempo thrasher, with a few quiet breaks thrown in. "Háttal Álmodó" is a fine romantic ballad sung by a female singer, and sounds like a completely different band. After it the album takes a more aggressive turn with heavy pounding pieces, like "Hinar" which also features a very good fast part; and the industrial thrashing closer "9 Kapu" which again gives its tribute to the headbangers with a short raging middle section.
"Moebius" is much more melodic than its predecessor, with the speedy passages completely gone. The music is pretty bland and boring, bordering on alternative, with clean both female and male vocals taking part. Some riffs hit hard, but they only serve as a further annoyance, adding up to the disappointment which this below average industrial post-thrash offering will throw you into. There is a lot of atmosphere ala the depressive Front Line Assembly manner, and it would be no surprise if this act serves plenty of electro beats next time.

Rendszerhiba EP, 2000
Fleshmagnet EP, 2003
Klausztrofónia Full-length, 2004
Fényérzékeny Full-length, 2006
Moebius Full-length, 2009

Official Site

WATCHTOWER (USA)

The fathers of progressive thrash metal, Watchtower showed that metal could be also complex, thought-provoking and appealing at the same time. The debut is a ground-breaking release, with startling riffs and weird time signatures- definitely not easy to swallow, especially back in the mid-80's when noone could even think about such kind of music. On top of that we have the unique, high-pitched vocals of Mike Soliz (also Militia, Assalant), which might be unnerving to some with their hysterical, dramatic blend. Ron Jarzombek creates a great bass bottom showing for the first time that bass can play an important role in the creating of quality metal. The hectic delivery might be startling to some in the beginning: the jumpy, intense riffage on "Meltdown", the slower, but complex, twisting "Tyrants in Distress", the weird, multi-layered "Cimmerian Shadows": arguably the first genuine progressive thrash masterpiece, but with every subsequent listen one will start appreciating this music more and more, because, apart from the elaborate song-structures, the guys have inserted enough sharp riffs to satisfy the more level-headed fans.
Four years later technical/progressive thrash metal has established itself as a leading metal genre, and "Control And Resistance" doesn't sound as revolutionary anymore, but comes right on time to show that the founders are still alive and well, and there is still a lot to be done by the others to catch up with them. Another high shouter has come to replace Soliz- the former Hades singer Alan Tecchio, and he does a very good job, too. The style is pretty much the same complex, frantic one, maybe more polished, with a more proficient, accentuated lead performance, and with longer compositions, although at least to these ears the shorter brisk technical thrashers ("The Eldritch", "Hidden Instincts", which are gems of perfectly executed, tight technical music, without any unnecessary stretches) seem to work better. Still, eventful progressive pieces like "The Fall of Reason", which has introduced the ultimate progressive structure with the time changes, quiet breaks and jumpy guitars, and has definitely been an influence on hundreds of bands later, are hard to be ignored, despite the lack of many thrash merits. "Control and Resistance" is the other highlight in this aspect, but this one thrashes more intensely. "Dangerous Toy" is a take on slower, less hectic, semi-balladic progressive thrash, but works almost as well: this particular, fairly intriguing approach has later been picked by other quality acts from the progressive metal field (Psychotic Waltz, the Austrian progressive metal wizards Neue Regel (whose music has no ties to thrash, though), Catharsis (again no ties to thrash metal), The Last Things, etc.).
The first line-up has gotten together in the late 90's, and although rumours of a new album (under the working title "Mathematics") in the makings have been quite consistent all these years, apart from an Accept cover song ("Run If You Can" from "Breaker") made for a tribute album, nothing else has come out of their hands so far.

Energetic Disassembly Full-length, 1985
Control And Resistance Full-length, 1989

My Space

WATTAMEZZ (NORWAY)

This band are a pleasant deviation from the black metal-dominated Norwegian metal scene: based on the debut, this is a fairly good take on the 90's sound of The Black Album and Flotsam & Jetsam. A good example of this obsolete, but appealing approach, are the nice semi-ballads "Modern Symbology" and "Sweet Sister"; there are actually quite a few of those here, which may not please the hard sound lovers, but those should never bother to track this album down in the first place. When the guys feel like thrashing, they show their teeth quite wide: the heavy, mid-paced thrasher "When You've Gone The Devils Distance", but such exits from the established formula are rare, the other being the semi-groovy "Devils Dance". The singer offers a cool, clean tember which he hardens on the more aggressive material, where he comes close to James Hetfield.

Kinky Bastard Full-length, 1997
Soulfuel Full-Length, 2006

WAYWARD SON (USA)

This demo boasts a fairly good and clear sound quality, and besides that decent melodic power/thrash metal which develops in mid-tempo, until it hits the headbanging piece "Hammerhand" which deserves its title, and adds more life to the proceedings. One more bomb awaits you at the end: the speed/thrash killer "Ashes On Air", which should be followed as an example for the band's future efforts.

Death Or Dawn Demo, 2007

My Space

WC MASCULINO

Aggressive thrash/crossover mixed with a slight doze of grindcore; this is brutal, primitive stuff, but will surely find its fans.

Blasfemia e Terror Full-Length

WE ALL FALL (SPAIN)

This young Spanish act provides clever, progressively-tinged, modern thrash which boasts a very clear guitar sound and various, ever alternating, tempos. The songs are within the 5-8min range, which gives the guys a chance to use their imagination more fully. The opening "Captive Of Fear" is a more immediate piece, but enters "Murder, Slavery & Incestous Rape", and the approach is already way more complex, the band shredding in mid-tempo more with a surprising speedy twist at the end. "Dead Man Walking" is a galloping invigorator which smells the old school, before "Fragile" calms you down being a heavy ballad with Opeth-esque overtones. Time for more aggressive thrashing with "System Failure", which disappears on the 9-min opus "Blackened Tide", replaced by clumsy, one-dimensional riffage. The speed never returns after this one making the remaining two cuts just rehashed modern thrashers with a pinch of death metal. Despite the obvious promise shown here and there, the band still have to work hard to achieve bigger consistency which sadly lacks in the 2nd half. The singer is the staple deathy shouter ala Peter Dolving (The Hunated), maybe a bit lower-pitched.

Paradise Paradox Full-Length, 2011

WE ARE HELLBRIGADE (POLAND)

Energetic classic thrash, which turns to splash brutal death metal at some point ("Darkness Falls"), which in its turn suits better the brutal vocals. If we exclude this short moment the rest is thrash all the way, which kind of sounds better when it slows down ("Unbeliever's Pride") and the guitar start crushing heavier.

We Are Hellbrigade Demo, 2009

My Space

WE WERE GENTLEMEN (USA)

Groovy modern indistrialized post-thrash which brings nothing new to the table, developing in the expected jumpy mid-tempo mode, seldom bringing the sound close to early Pantera ("Illusions").

Living Hell Full-Length, 2009

WEAPON 13 (USA)

Modern thrash with crossover elements recalling a more thrashy Biohazard at times; you can hear classic thrash riffs here, too ("The Bleeding Never Stops"), and the guys have the right attitude, plus the guitar work is quite good; if they could only abandon those detrimental groovy tendencies...

Demo Demo, 2005

My Space

WEAPONEX (USA)

An interesting EP offering stylish power/thrash with progressive overtones; the guys play with confidence, and the overall approach will remind of Symphony X and even Zero Hour on the more twisted moments. "Gods and Sages" is a genuine virtuoso piece with jazzy/balladic breaks intertwining with hard, hammering riffs. "Danger Is My Middle Name" is a more immediate jumping cut with a crushing rhythm-section, and "Tong Soo" is a twisting, multi-faced instrumental with a great fast thrash/deathy section as a finishing touch. The singer has a deep clean, soulful tember which ably assists the ambitious musical delivery.

Nuclear Winter EP, 2011

WEB (PORTUGAL)

Based on the 2-song promo tape, these guys offer cool classic power/thrash metal which sounds more aggressive and faster on the vigorous "Strong Winds, Strong Waves", and more laid-back and even doomy on "Last War".
The "Awake" single is only one song (guess the title!) providing heavy proto-modern doomy thrash with sterile semi-shouty vocals and crushing mid-paced riffs; an atmospheric macabre number, but hardly faithful to the band's older material.
"Deviance" sees the band delving deeper into modern post-thrash waters relying mostly on heavy quasi-doomy riffs and slightly faster hardcore-ish sections. "House of Salvation" nicely recalls their early days with a slab of more energetic rhythms, and things only get wilder later with the shredding speedster "(In)Sanity" and the proto-death blaster "Beautiful Obsession". The final "Journey" would be quite a "journey", though, an 11-min opus with galloping rhythms interlaced with sprawling balladic passages and groovy breaks all finished with an imposing orchestral exit and acoustic guitars accompanying the falling rain. Not bad as a whole, but kind of underwhelming showing the guys not fully prepared to "shed their old skin"...

Evil Tape Demo, 1994
Promo Tape Demo, 1995
World Wild Web Full-length, 2005
Resilient Casket Single, 2008
Awake Single, 2010
Deviance Full-length, 2011

Official Site

WEHRMACHT (USA)

A thrash/crossover band who play so fast that at times one could get the feeling that everything would fall apart soon; these guys are responsible for some of the most aggressive and fastest sounds from the 80's. This is funny, but also frequently brutal stuff, with a lot of cheerful spirit involved, and as such delivers the goods quite well. The guys tried their hands on something more serious under the name Macht releasing a nice technically-minded demo in 1990; and a year later two of the band members formed the one-album-wonder Spazztic Blurr, who released one album in 1991 titled "Before...and After", pretty much in the same brutal vein, with touches of grindcore (after all, the effort was released by Earache).
"Fast as a Shark Attack" is a cool joke containing the debut title-track played fast and tight, quite faithful to the original, if we exclude the slightly abrasive guitar sound. Next comes the very nice crossover take on the Accept classic "Fast as a Shark" moving from laid-back thrash/crossover to a more blasting delivery. "United Shoebrothers" is the only new track here being furious maddening thrash/death/crossover, and could have been placed on any of the two full-lengths. The jokes are given in the form of spoken interludes and one whole empty track, the latter aptly called "Blank" (there's nothing there). The band are active now, and reportedly a full-length is in the makings...

Shark Attack Full-length, 1987
Biermacht Full-length, 1989
Fast as a Shark Attack EP, 2010

My Space

WEHRWOLF DIVISION (RUSSIA)

4 songs of calm atmospheric mid-paced classic power/thrash metal with epic elements ala the Swiss Drifter included; "Dangerous Freedom" speeds up a bit, recalling early Iced Earth, boasting good melodic tunes. The real surprise, however, is the final "Werewolf Division", which thrashes in a more intense fashion, adding a fine acoustic break in the middle. The singer is the weakest spot, to these ears at least: his gruff semi-clean delivery ala Cronos is perhaps not the best choice for the more dynamic music.
"Master-Wizard" sees the band alive and well after all these years to finally produce a full-length which betrays the classic spirit of the debut EP aiming strictly at the modern power/thrash metal audience, and as such it may be considered the lesser achievement sounding like quite a few other acts around, Children of Bodom, to name at least one, but well less speed-inclined. The gruff vocals remain, but the music has become much more ordinary with just a couple of more atmospheric epic elements present.

Lycanthropy EP, 1994
Master-Wizard Full-length, 2008

Official Site

WENCH (USA)

An all-female thrash metal band; such formations are generally not taken seriously, and these shouldn't, either. This is melodic thrash/power metal, and although the girls show their teeth ("04501 Blues") at times, it happens very seldom.

A Tidy Sized Chunk Full-length, 1991

Official Site

WENGELE (FINLAND)

Very good 80's thrash metal with a Bay Area-flavour; "Mind" is a mid-paced, softer thrasher, sounding close to mid-period Testament; "Pi" is a more dynamic number, recalling early Metallica; "Pity" is a combination of the two: the beginning is faster, followed by slower, stomping riffage later.

Promo Demo, 2004

Official Site

WERVOLF (USA)

Based on the "Dark Union for Baphomet" split, this band offers misanthropic fast back/thrash metal not far from early Bathory and Burzum with unpleasant shouty vocals which are very hard to comprehend constantly trying to deafen the messy wall of guitars which hardly changes throughout the two tracks. One guy is nehind it all; his name (or alias) is Frost Ruebenstahl, and he takes part in several other underground black metal projects.

Ork Metal EP, 2007
Blut und Schmerz Full-length, 2007
Warriors of Suicide Split, 2007
Mortiis Daemonium / Wervolf Split, 2008
Dark Union for Baphomet Split, 2008

Official Site

WESLEY WYATT (USA)

This guy offers pretty cool modern, all-instrumental, thrash with a technical/progressive pinch. His aggressive shreds are not far even from the manic delivery of Toby Knapp's "Guitar Distortion" at times (check out "The Absence Of Light"), but Wesley has a good sense of melody which comes in the form of quiet balladic breaks on the longer compositions. Still wild thrash is what one will get on short explosive pieces like "Lost" and "Willow Tree", and elsewhere. The technical riffage is not very explicit except on occasion ("Enclosed Eyes"), and when the lashing riffs acquire a more doomy direction ("What We've Become"; the short orchestral haunter "IIIXXIIMMVII") things become unbearably heavy, also thanks to the very thick production. "Funeral March" is not exactly a rendition of the funeral march, but is a kind of a filler being a not very eventful jumpy groove/thrasher. The end is suitably intense, with "Desert of the Pharisee", which is hammering thrash in mid-pace, and the closer "Dissonance" which is dramatic shred with brutal deathy "interludes" in the middle. The man never exceeds in the lead department, leaving the super-sharp riffage to take the whole space at times, making this effort one of the few riff-driven instrumental albums.

The Absence Of Light Full-Length, 2011

WESTERN DECAY (AUSTRALIA)

Based on the demo: thrash/death metal with a strong Swedish influence: think Dark Tranquillity and early In Flames, mixed with modern thrash ala The Haunted.

Demo Demo, 2006
Western Decay/Naked Burn/Infinite Thought Process Split, 2007

My Space

WETWORK (CANADA)

One of the finest Canadian metal acts of recent years; their debut release is a very obscure item, badly sought out by many metal fans. The band belong to the technical wave which is generally connected with that country. "New Start Human" is very cool technical thrash with slight shades of death metal, which on its best moments reaches heights like Deathrow's "Deception Ignored" and Coroner's "Mental Vortex"; the album is full of interesting riffs, time changes, offbeat moments (not annoyingly many), and various vocal styles (including a female one), among which the shrieky death metal ones which sound like a more hysterical version of Kelly Shaeffer (Atheist), are a kind of an acquired taste. "Synod" is another masterpiece, not as diverse as the previous one, but a lot more more death metal-oriented, with heavier, and an even more technical guitar sound bringing to mind Martyr, Atheist and Pestilence.
The debut sees a band not having honed their "weapons" perfectly at this early stage, still producing a fairly listenable semi-technical brand of more modern thrash metal with nice semi-clean vocals very close to the ones of Dave Mustaine. The music is atmospheric and mid-tempo, and again brings mid-90's Megadeth to mind more than now and then. "I Caught An Angel By The Wings" is a good attempt at the semi-ballad with a haunting doomy exit with keyboards springing up to form a cool "duel" with the guitars. "Presence Disstilled" is a nice creepy doomy thrasher which solid hypnotic riffage will also remind of Fear of God's "Beyond the Veil". "Staining the Shine" is a relaxed progressive rock-ish composition with playful rhythms, kind of off-context, largely compensated by the aggressive heavy riffs on the moody proto-industrial "Temple of Red". The closer "The Executioners Song" is a pleasant surprise being the only open headbanger on the album lashing energetic galloping hooks with a strong technical edge, and wins the prize for the best song. Later the guys reached higher in the musical department, but their first effort has its charm as one of the better works to capture the post-90's Megadeth sound with a modern twist (remember also Lyzanxia's "Lullaby" released the same year).

Temple of Red Full-length, 1998
New Start Human Full-length, 2002
Synod Full-length, 2005

Official Site

WHAT’S UP? (SWITZERLAND)

Power/thrash metal with a more modern-based 90's sound similar to the Flotsam & Jetsam works from around the same time, but more stylish and diverse. The album is not completely toothless, and some tracks "bite" quite hard, offering sharp, dynamic riffs: the mid-paced power/thrasher "In This Life", the jumpy, funky "Explain", the heavy pounding "Dreams Go to Yet". There are also attempts at more varied technical performance ala mid-80's Voivod ("Robotized"), which work well, too. "Just a Child" is a good heavy thrashy ballad, and "Supreme Elevation" is a cool look back at the 80's introducing more classic-sounding guitars. "How Much Longer" is a typical happy groovy track in the spirit of 90's Anthrax as well as the closing "Who's Been the Devil" which is the softest number, and the only real drawback on this cool light-hearted album.

What's Up? Full-length, 1993

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT (USA)

Chaotic extreme thrash/crossover, ranging from super-fast grinding outbreaks ala Cryptic Slaughter to more sincere hardcore anthems in the vein of Agnostic Front and S.O.D. This is very simplistic music, constantly speedy, with expectedly short 1,1.5-min tracks.

The Second Year Full-Length, 2001

WHEELCHAIR X4 (UK)

This is a wild amalgam of hardcore, thrash and grindcore. The bashing goes on pretty much through the whole album, which consists of 12 "outbreaks", some of them coming with an intriguing sterile shade, echoing both Voivod and Strapping Young Lad. The guitars are clearly heard, but the vocals are too shouty to create a very pleasant impression. After all, this is done just for the laughs...

Contraception Full-Length, 2011

WHERE VICTIMS LIE (FINLAND)

Based on their first demo, this Finnish band are another fine addition to the massive thrash metal scene in this country. Excellent classic thrash, quite fast and intense, with nods to Slayer in particular, plus more modern "updates" in the The Haunted-vein ("Chapter 13") and cool technical licks.

Promo Demo, 2003
Promo Demo, 2007

Official Site

WHIPLASH (AUSTRALIA)

This is a more modern take on the thrash/crossover idea which comes served with a solid pinch of doom/stoner as well as groove, ballad and more traditional heavy metal. The singer entertains the most with his diverse clean tone which fits all styles which are not very well mixed together with contrasting songs alternating to a slightly comic effect. Needless to say, the really speedy numbers are really few ("Break" comes to mind, but...) leaving the rest hanging between the slow and the mid-pace.

Whiplash Full-length, 1996

WHIPLASH (NORWAY)

A cool demo of heavy, often energetic, thrash in the vein of early Slayer with softer crossover-laced tracks ("Prisoner") included; "Thunder Metal" is another less intense song (the demo is 9 songs long) with shades of power metal.

Phantasmal Force Demo, 1989

WHIPLASH (USA)

This cult band started with raw speed/thrash metal on their full with energy debut, and quickly made a name for themselves as one of the most uncompromising sounding bands (this band was also known as "trio Tony" as all the three original members had the same first name). The follow-up carried on in the same direction by also introducing a more serious approach to song-writing which two years later culminated on the magnificent "Insult To Injury": landmark semi-technical thrash which introduced a newcomer in the trio (now turned into a quartet): Glenn Hansen, a great singer with a deep clean emotional higher-pitched delivery who never recorded again with any band. After a long 6-year break Whiplash returned with "Cult Of One", but the music has moved towards progressive modern power/post-thrash with even alternative elements present; "Sit Stand Kneel Prey" was only a bit better bringing back some of the old faster riffs, but there was not much inside to be labelled as thrash. To the joy of the thrash metal world, the original line-up from the first two albums (the Tonys) got together for "Thrashback": a major improvement over the last two efforts, but with a more melodic and less hard-hitting sound than before. Unfortunately, the band will never be able to produce anything new in the same line-up as they lost Tony Bono (R.I.P.) who passed away in 2002.
The guys tried relatively well to bring thrash back with "Thrashback", but got lost after this one, and spent most of the movement's resurrection period inactive. Here they re-emerge more than 10 years later, during the genre's 2nd peak, although from the Tony's it's only Portaro who's left, but the Scaglione's replacement is more than capable: Joe Cangelosi, one of the drum heroes of recent times, having also taken part in Kreator, Massacre, among other acts. The other musician who had to replace the sadly passed away Tony Bono, Rich Day, is not that known, but has tried his hands on some retro thrash in the good old 80's, having pulled the bass strings for 2 underground bands: Death Corps & Primal Scream.
"Unborn Again" begins in the laid-back speed/thrashy style already introduced on "Thrashback" with "Swallow The Slaughter", a memorable number with varied tempos and good Portaro vocals which nicely mixe a harsher and a more melodic blend. "Snuff" is already a setback with its modern groovy riffs, which considerably ruin the faster moments. "Firewater" is even worse with its pointless doomy/power/heavy approach, but the smile on the listener's face will inevitably return with "Float Face Down", a fast dynamic piece, a direct ascent to their very early days. "Fight or Flight" is slower, but the riffs are heavy and this number doesn't lack pace. "Pitbulls in the Playground" is a cool nod to the Metallica debut, jolly roller-coaster speed/thrash with a head-splitting heavy mid-section. "Parade of Two Legs" is the odd instrumental piece, jumpy and modern, the obvious filler here, although the next "Hook In Mouth" could also pass for one, being a mild heavy rocker, the furthest possible song from thrash. The listener's mood is spoilt again, and the Montrose cover of "I've Got The Fire" does very little to lift it up. The last "Feeding Frenzy" is a logical take on headbanging retro thrash, otherwise this effort would have clung too dangerously towards the negative side. The crossover potential of this album can not be disputed, but the thrash metal fans will not be happy all the way, since at least half of the material on offer here will stretch their nerves quite a bit. Consequently it's not an improvement over "Thrashback", which was far from a masterpiece, but if the guys' aim was to bring back their mid-90's fans, then they have surely reached it.

Power and Pain Full-length, 1985
Ticket to Mayhem Full-length, 1987
Insult to Injury Full-length, 1990
Cult of One Full-length, 1996
Sit Stand Kneel Prey Full-length, 1997
Thrashback Full-length, 1998
Unborn Again Full-Length, 2009

Vibrations of Doom

WHIRSTRIKER

The album-title says it very well: this is merry-go-round speed/proto-thrash ala early Venom and Motorhead, interrupted by a few effective quasi-doomsters with a Saint Vitus vibe, the vocals clinging somewhere between Tom G. Warrior and Cronos. There is also a certain pukn-ish flavour in the guitar department, as well as a several references towards the classic heavy metal heritage (think early Riot, Saxon).

Crude Rock'n Roll Full-length, 2010

WHISTERIA COTTAGE (USA)

The beautiful band name shouldn't mislead you; this is not a gothic, or symphonic power metal outfit; this is a 3-track demo which offers fairly good fast-paced thrash/death metal with a Swedish flavour with horrifying screechy snarly black metal vocals mixed with deep death metal growls. This "duel" kind of doesn't work well (at least to these ears), but the music is cool slowing down sometimes acquiring atmospheric gothic tendencies.

Demo Demo, 2008

WHITE FEAR CHAIN (USA)

This band is the continuation of Realm, but apparently the guys have gotten tired playing complex progressive stuff for two albums, and have adapted to the less exhausting modern post-thrash formula providing heavy seismic riffs with a stoner/doom vibe completely losing the "thrash" metal idea near the end indulging in pure traditional doom ala Saint Vitus and early Cathedral. In the long run, it will be the doom metal fans who will be happier with this one.

Visceral Life Full-length, 1996

WHITE HELL (JAPAN)

These guys come up with mid-paced power/thrash in the Venom spirit with raw, undeveloped vocals and simplistic guitars, which often are completely stifled by the much better bass work.

Lucifer Single, 1985

Vibrations of Doom

WHITE TRASH (AUSTRALIA)

This band featured two members of Mortal Sin. The style is not miles away from that other band being energetic Bay-Area thrash, maybe more aggressive and faster ("The Watcher", "You") at times. On the other hand these guys offer a more diverse sound which sometimes comes in the form of semi-ballads ("Turning Away") and doomy, heavy short instrumentals ("Acid"). "Danse Macabre" is a very cool technical track with sharp meaty riffs. The singer has a high-pitched, clean voice, at times recalling John Connelly (Nuclear Assault), and he does a particularly good job handling the more melodic, balladic sections.

Demo Demo, 1990

My Space

WHITE THRASH (UK)

These young Brits offer modern power/thrash with an alternative, progressive edge, not very intense, but melodic and catchy. The music is not very dynamic, mostly mid-paced, and the tracks are mostly instrumentals. The guitar work is varied, but the sound quality is not very good, leaving the other instruments in the background. The tracks put on their My Space page are variations on prospective numbers for their eventual full-length, with only "Violent Metal" featuring vocals, which are hard to be described, since the sound boosts them up too much.

Let the Revolution Begin Best of/Compilation, 2009

Official Site

WHOREHOUSE (POLAND)

Here comes an undergorund gem from Poland; the obscene name shouldn't pull you back; this is not dull hardcore. The thrash metal scene in Poland has not been very active since the new millennium started, but if there are more acts like this one, things might quickly turn for the better. This is quite cool, mostly up-tempo 80's speed/thrash metal, which brings to mind promising new acts like the Germans Red to Grey, or Heathen (their debut) from the old ones.
The full-length is finally a fact, and one would be pleased to see the band preserving the good old thrash from their demos, although the speed is partly gone replaced by heavy mid to up-pacers which crush admirably with a fine technical edge, with the Bay-Area an obvious influence. After the pounding opener "Violent Storm" the tempo goes up gradually with each subsequent song, and the 4th track "True Living" already acquires nice headbanging tendencies further continued by the cool early Testament reminder "Step By Step". "Drink Till Xodas" is even fast and edgier, but the remaining three numbers are disappointing slowing down with repetitive not very energetic riffs.

Bow to Lord Demo, 1998
Hate Machine Inc. Demo, 2002
True Living Demo, 2003
Execution of Humanity Full-length, 2009

Official Site

WHORIZON (GERMANY)

The EP: a contrasting mix of heavy/doom and thrash; the guys mix both styles on every track coming with really intense thrashing moments: "A New Whorizon", "Metal Journey Pt1d", but the highlight is by all means the 7-min opus at the end "Descend", which thrashes for more than 7-min without losing the tempo, except on the nice doomy mid-break.
The demo: the approach is more aggressive with doom metal left for the end (the excellent high-octane "Tyranny", and the elegiac semi-acoustic "My Dream Of Equity"), and a bit of death metal can be heard ("Hu(manity)miliation") as well, of both the fast and the slower type.

An up and Coming Whore Demo, 2008
A New Whorizon EP, 2009

Official Site

WHY SHE KILLS (HOLLAND)

This band was founded by the people responsible for two of the finest Dutch thrash metal acts: Sacrosanct and Genetic Wisdom. More than 10 years have passed, and the guys have either lost interest in technical metal, or have decided to go with the flow, because with this new band they offer just decent thrash/death of the modern variety, not miles away from the efforts of Arch Enemy and the French Lyzanxia's more recent works. There are more aggressive moments, and the guitar lines are melodic, but this is nothing new, if we exclude the participation of the two female vocals which add an interesting touch to the proceedings with their vocal "duels" without diminishing the hardness of the riffs. The technical flair of the other two bands is nowhere to be heard, but one never knows what might happen in the future with musicians of such a calibre involved...

Of Hope and Suffocation EP, 2006

WICCA (GERMANY)

This is a find: an album which combines in a very good way the speedy tradition of the German scene (think Angel Dust's "Into the Dark Past") with the sharp, hard-hitting style of the Bay Area (think Vio-lence's "Eternal Nightmare" and Forbidden's "Forbidden Evil"). The music is quite fast most of the time, reaching even a Slayer-esque intensity ("I.O.U."). "Splended Deed", on the other hand, introduces slower heavier riffage, still combined with sudden speedy outbursts. This is an encyclopaedia of classic 80's thrash which should be in every self-respected thrash metal fan's collection.
Thoe guys spent the 90's under a different name: Curare, and managed to pull cool competent modern power/thrash releasing two full-lengths and two EP's. Here they are back with their old name, and with their old sound, the good old school speed/thrash, and waste no time spraining the fans' necks with furious sounds, the opener "Sadsong" lashing wildly recalling both Exumer's "The Last Supper" from "Rising from the Sea" and the 2nd part of Mercyful Fate's "Satan's Fall" from "Melissa" with its escalating speedy dramatism. The album seldom reaches this intensity on the later songs, and settles down for more controlled Bay-Area thrash this time relying not only on high-speed numbers to pull it through, but also on intriguing semi-balladic arrangements (the excellent galloper "Disneyland") and heavy dark pounding riffs ("Bloodrush", "Mega City"). More complex structures can be encountered on the diverse "Generations Talk", which mixes raging thrash with great melodies, mostly in the lead department. Early Testament-esque technicality comes on the very good closer "Pull Down The Wall" which finishes this self-assured comeback effort with aplomb, and will hopefully arouse the interest in the band this time to make them stay around longer.

Splended Deed Full-length, 1989
Bloodrush Full-Length, 2010

My Space

WICKED ANGEL (USA)

Classy speed/thrash metal recalling Agent Steel's debut and Attacker's "Second Coming", but this is heavier, clinging towards later period Helstar quite a few times, with excellent technical guitar work involved at times. The only downpoint is perhaps the singer who uses this levelled, slightly indifferent voice making him sound like an undeveloped version of James Rivera.

Chaotic Intellect Demo, 1987

WICKED KICK (CANADA)

Modern groovy power/post-thrash, which would hardly be a "wicked kick" for the hard-boiled fans; heads down to the expertly made ballads, though, one of which, "Eyes Of A Child", is really worth hearing; the other one "Sands Of Time" is longer and dragging with shades of doom. Reportedly the guys are back into action, under another name: The Spoken, and have released a 6-track promo in 2005, with a cover of Black Sabbath's "War Pigs" included.

Mind Twister Full-length, 1994

WICKED MYSTIC (HOLLAND)

A very talented band who play technical power/thrash (quite progressive at times), which sounds like a more technical version of early Flotsam & Jetsam (the debut). The sound clings between the classic and the modern school, and the songs are heavy, mostly mid-paced with nice, high vocals reminding of Eric "A.K." Knutson (from the Flotsams again). "The Paramount Question" is a great debut, which starts in a very imposing, thrashy manner with the riff-fest "Stand Alone". "Shadow Dancer" is a brilliant progressive thrasher, slower and atmospheric, with a breath-taking flamenco guitar ending. "Depth Of Mind" will grab you from the very beginning with heavy, technical, and also intense riffs, which stop somewhere in the middle for another fine quiet passage; the flamenco guitars are here again, but are only slightly hinted at. "The Paramount Question" is a balladic song, still graced by heavy riffs, and although quite good, it is the reason for the album to lose its edge for a while. "Diversity" is a big relief after the short, but unnerving string of softer tracks, thrashing in a very intense and technical way, accompanied by a magnificent vocal performance and superb leads; arguably the best song the band have ever composed, truly a masterpiece of technical thrash. "Mind-Bomb" is an explosion of more aggressive, straight-forward thrash. "Doubt" is another take on the balladic form, but is a great one, and would hardly raise a doubt (pun intended) in the band's thrashy abilities, which at that point are more than proved. The bonus track comes in the form of the The Who cover of "Pinball Wizard", which surprisingly is placed before the last song: "Welcome To Life", which is a fine mid-tempo progressive thrasher with great vocals again, and crushing riffs.
"Lithium" begins in a more controlled way with a decidedly more modern sound, with the groovy "Toxemia" which features not very pleasant industrialized vocals. "Hollow Phrase" is a better, mid-paced thrasher of the more melodic type, followed by another, modern sounding track: "Knight Errant", after which the listener has no choice, but to adapt to the new style, because this album would apparently be an entertainment on another scale. "M.I.A. Man" is a pleasant surprise: dark brooding thrasher in the Nevermore mould, but this is the "oasis" here since very soon after the music moves back to the much less impressive modern, and more melodic patterns, hitting the bottom with the tender romantic ballad "The Reverie" which is miles away from the two great ballads from the debut, simply because there's no shade of riffage to be found- just a nice, peaceful acoustic dreamy guitar. "Mournful Rhymes" livens up again, but the real wake-up comes with the energetic thrashing piece "Warhorse", followed by the softer, but enjoyable "Inborn Jester". "Last Honesty" is a ballad, but this time it is way better with smashing riffs added in the second half, and the finest vocal performance on the album. As a whole this effort is much less satisfying than the mighty debut, but separate moments from it still deliver the goods leaving the final impression clinging more towards the positive side... I guess...

Mend Or End EP, 1994
The Paramount Question Full-length, 2000
Lithium Full-length, 2002

Unofficial Site

WICKED WAYS (USA)

A decent take on the classic thrash metal idea of the heavy Acid Reign-type, with a few faster surprises along the way: "Determination", the crossover delight "From The Outside", but to these ears the highlight would be the doomy semi-balladic closer "Love & Mourning", a moody atmospheric piece. The singer is not bad delivering with his deep clean emotional tone.

Pain to Power Demo, 1992

WIDOW SUNDAY (USA)

Heavy seismic post-thrash of the more angry type, but instead of reaching the Pantera intensity, the band turns to metalcore for inspiration, and kind of loses in the process. Still, the music is not completely without merits, like the pounding steam-roller "Symbiont", the industrialized crusher "Blood Money", and the dynamics seldom goes down, the melodic "reliefs" coming mostly in the form of Swedish-styled melo-death hooks.

In These Rusted Veins Full-Length, 2010

WILD FIRE (BRAZIL)

Capable, albeit roughly-sounding, thrash of the old school in the Bay-Area tradition with high-pitched clean vocals recalling Mark Antoni from the US progressive thrashers Realm quite a bit, as well as John Cyriis in the higher registers. The music is fast and intense with crushing sharp riffs, and it's a pity that the demo is only 2 tracks.

Thrash Til Death Single, 1993

My Space

WILD KARNIVOR (FRANCE)

Based on "Aeternum Vale", this band plays modern power/thrash with brutal death metal vocals and adherences to industrial. The music is suitably groovy, but scary brutal death metal cuts ("Le Livre") also "roam" around. "Cor Unum" is an energetic headbanger, but the rest has a sterile, mechanical feel reminiscent of a more playful, less robotic Meshuggah. "Dévotion" is a nice closer, though, an engaging composition with plenty of atmosphere and jumpy, stomping sections, hitting hard with steel thrashy riffs as well a times. The singer is a passable deathy semi-shouter who goes well with the music. Most of the band members are also involved in the death/groove hybriders Blood Troopers.

Embryon Full-length, 2006
Aeternum Vale Full-length, 2008

Official Site

WILD PUSSY (UK)

A 4-track EP of melodic speed/thrash with shades of the German movement: check out the nice melodic leads on "Evil Speaks", something which Helloween used to do a lot back in those days. The other more vigorous song is "Ready To Strike", whereas the other two are slower, "The Vigil" being heavy galloping thrash with the lead guitar again scoring high.

Mechanarchy EP, 1989

Fan Site

WILD SIDE (BELGIUM)

Thrash/crossover with a more melodic, punk attitude; the songs are long, which is hardly necessary since the music is very simplistic without any technical merits. An achievement in itself is the 9-min ballad "Scars Of The Past" which sounds like something Led Zeppelin could have done. It would have been better, if the guys had nailed more intense thrashers like "No Shit": no shit!; the rest is softer even clinging towards the 70's rock scene at times.

Social Drinkers Demo, 1993

WINDHAM HELL (USA)

This band is the brainchild of the guitar virtuoso Leland Windham. All his works are mostly instrumental with casual death metal grunts added, with strong emphasis on the guitar work, both in the lead and riff department. The style is a conglomerate of thrash, death metal and neo-classical shredding which hits the mark most of the time. The approach is too aggressive at times, and these are the moments when the guy will strongly remind you of Toby Knapp (his debut, in particular). The debut boasts quite a few delights for the more technical thrash metal fans: the intense steam-rolling technical "Exsiccation"; this is a 10-ton hammer with brilliant leads. "Wrapped in Plastique" is a wild chaotic piece which, however, bashes with controlled technicality with great aggressive riffs adding the obligatory quiet section in the middle. "God Swallow" takes a more laid-back mid-paced approach, but the riffage remains sharp and aggressive. "Paste Human" is a fine creepy, sinister (this is the best word to describe the overall atmosphere on the album) technical piece, with a marvellous "cosmic", semi-orchestral main theme. "Faces Of Carnage" is menacing gloomy doom/thrash which closes the album. Apart from the aforementioned songs, there are also a couple of short lead-driven instrumentals.

"Window of Souls" is another masterpiece of neo-classical thrash metal which wastes no time to introduce the sinister atmosphere with "Inversion Soil", which also admirably speeds up, something which one couldn't quite hear on the previous work; make sure you don't miss the magnificent "acoustic vs. lead" section on this one. "Clear Blue Plastique" is another heavy slab of doomy thrash with hammering riffs. "Excarnation" is 2.5-min of aggressive death/thrash shredding, and the next one "Crepusculum" is probably one of best examples of neo-classical shredding thrash, with some of the finest "duels" between the lead guitar and the constant sharp riffage, with a strong classical edge. "Corporal Compendia" thrashes more aggressively, with a proto-death shade again, softening in the 2nd part a bit, due to the lead guitar domination, but the exiting riffs will crush you big time. "Sacromonte (Popcatepetl)" is another immaculate display of musicianship, a progressive thrash shred with slow haunting passages. "Spiritual Bleeding (Faces II)" is stomping doom/thrash, followed by the complex progressive thrash insanity "The Rain", which offers an unforgettable concoction of twisting riffs and moods plus brutal proto-death bashing. "Darkness Deluge" is the closing 8-min progressive thrash composition, mid-paced, with a constant riff assault, which only stops for another breath-taking quiet section in the middle, after which the cutting riffs carry on, speeding up a bit.

"Reflective Depths Imbibe" follows the same patterns offering a wild complex whirlwind of standout lead guitar work and some of the heaviest and sharpest riffs around. "Nomis Syas Eid" is the traditional menacing mid-paced track followed by the wilder frenetic "Gathered Suicide" which is aggressive up-tempo shred. "Aeolachrymation (Faces III)" is hypnotic and a bit monotonous, but "Cold Granitic Bliss" is a revelation: a neo-classical instrumental at its best, also graced by a very heavy rhythm section; the guy reaches heights here which a few heroes from the Shrapnel catalogue have managed. "Nocturnally Consumed" follows a similar path, but here Windham concentrates more on creepy atmosphere and ultra-heavy smashing riffs which overshadow the leads at times. "Glacier Walk In Me" is a more elaborate composition with the leads taking the upper hand again, and the closing "Salterello Presto" shreds and thrashes with full force, finishing the album with a whirlwind of first-class guitar performance. On this album the short lead-driven and orchestral instrumentals are more widely used, but are quite cool.

South Facing Epitaph Full-length, 1994
Window of Souls Full-length, 1996
Windham Hell EP, 1998
Reflective Depths Imbibe Full-length, 1999

My Space

WINDS OF PESTILENCE (USA)

Dark retro thrash/death metal which is mostly fast with weird spacey technical leanings, recalling the more operatic arrangements of Nocturnus, which also stay around for the slower material ("Wolf Groan"; the misleading creepy opener "Christ Bane"). There is a certain sense of melody as well, both in the guitar department and the slight keyboard background, which boosts the technical pefformance, also creating a stark contrast to the subdued low-tuned semi-whispered vocals.

Demo Demo, 2008

WINNY PUHH (ESTONIA)

"TAAmba Odagu Praadimi Kunna: melodic jolly thrash/crossover, mostly in mid-pace, mixed with a big doze of heavy groove; things get more interesting when this groove grows into high-octane doom ala Cathedral ("Kolm POrsast", but don't pay attention to the rappy vocals). In the 2nd half the music loses inertia metamorphosing into alternative heavy rock ala Rage Against the Machine. There are ballads, jazzy/funky moments, and what not...
"Brääznik" is an even mroe diverse offering now starting as a pure techno/thrance affair with the dance floor hit "Wonderbra", and later on the guitars don't take a very big space the resulting mish-mash featuring proto-hardcore ala Biohazard, industrial, doom, funk, and of course, plenty of electronics. Don't bother...