Average Rating: 3.88 Rating Variance: 0.55 Objectivity Score: 62% (Fairly Balanced)
Sort by: Rating | Release Date | Rating Date | Name5.0 classicDarkthrone A Blaze in the Northern SkySo mighty, evil, raw and extremely dark at the same time. Pure awesomeness.Darkthrone Transilvanian HungerDeath SymbolicMr. Schuldiner takes you into a totally different world with Symbolic. The Album is so much full of everything awesome that I don't know what to say. This is simply the best album I own. RIP Chuck.Death HumanNot quite up to the phenomenal level of Symbolic, but this is very close. Brilliance.Destruction Infernal OverkillSeriously. This is very likely THE best teutonic thrash album I've heard..... The riffs are like Satan's devastating force (sorry for cheesiness but I do mean it) The production may not be perfect, but it SUITS the music fantastically: Evil riffs, riffs and riffs (they really are incredible), solos, psychotic vocals and fitting drumming, all that make a great mixture to grab you into the world of Infernal Overkill. Not to mention the album is perfectly consistent for me, every track is great, unique and memorable in its own way. Even the length is nearly perfect, about 39 minutes. As a CD, this comes together with their first (official) EP Sentence of Death, making it an essential purchase for all old-school thrash fanatics. Get this or may you perish like illustrated on the cover... Personally, this is among my top 3 thrash albums ever. Absolutely a 5/5.Mayhem De Mysteriis Dom SathanasDespite all the infamous events surrounding this album, music-wise this is excellent. Calling this one of the most talented/capable lineups (well save for the vocalist Attila) among the Norwegian second wave musicians wouldn't be too far fetched. As this doesn't really have an abysmal production, plus having a few hints of death metal, this would be a great introduction into black metal. Add there great songs with variation, that's the recipe.Metal Church Metal ChurchThis is one fucking damn brilliant release, that is mainly speed metal , in my opinion, but combines elements of power metal, heavy metal and thrash metal... And does incredible work with it. Hell, even the Deep Purple cover is excellent. Every member totally gives it all and the production is top-class too! Essential. No more, no less.Morbid Angel Altars of MadnessThis is ABSOLUTELY RIPPING OFF EVIL.... Honestly, incredible.Overkill Feel the Fire Kill kill kill kill KIIIIIILLLLLLLL!!!Terrorizer World DownfallHoly hell I must have been a true fag for not giving this a 5. This is just too goodUlver Nattens MadrigalSincerely, this is one of the top black metal albums I've ever heard. Structured around lycanthropy theme, here you have eight songs of pure, raw, dark, lethal but still somehow beautiful black metal... I don't know how the guys did it, but this is one of the greatest things I own.4.5 superbAtheist Piece of TimeAtheist Unquestionable PresencedamnAutopsy Severed SurvivalSo ace old-school, a bit doom-influenced death metal.Autopsy Mental FuneralMental funeral doesn't demolish your family jewels with lightning-fast blast beats or double bass. It doesn't need to. What Mental funeral does, is that it fits the name perfectly. The atmosphere is unique for a death metal album, and every instrument makes sense at every moment. Still, Mental Funeral is far from being an overly-polished, boring product. The raw nature is very apparent and this is in no way a melodic metal release. When compared to the band's another excellent output, Severed Survival, the album is surprisingly different but still sounds like good ol' Autopsy. The consistency of Mental Funeral is close to perfect, every track has got something of its own and fits, but still the album feels like a book: not just a compilation of good songs, but excellent as a whole. And the same goes for the atmosphere. My only con would be the less badass bass guitar, which is still pretty apparent but can't be compared to DiGiorgio's performance on Severed Survival. Very highly recommended to fans of old school death metal. 4.5/5Bathory Under the Sign of the Black MarkQuorthon, a lone man gone years ago before the day. Mindblowing, especially as this is among the first released true black metal records!Bathory Blood Fire DeathBolt Thrower The IVth CrusadeBolt Thrower is quite an exceptional example of death metal. Musically, or technically, the band remains pretty simple, and the tempos are mostly closer to doom metal than, say, grind. But they make it work. Actually, it wouldn't be far too wrong to call this a death/doom album. For The IVth Crusade, Bolt Thrower focused more on creating a dark, desperate atmosphere representing the horror of war. The album doesn't have any insane blast-fests that rip you into pieces. Instead, it will devastate you with its melancholic atmosphere and make you think about how lucky you are not being involved in war, or the Fourth crusade of the 13th century.Carcass Symphonies of SicknessProbably one of the greatest grind albums ever. Fucking sick.Carcass Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious1991 was one sick year for death metal - Human, Mental Funeral, Effigy of the Forgotten, and many others. Necroticism: Descanting the Insalubrious is definitely right up there, being my favourite Carcass along with Symphonies of Sickness.Coroner Punishment for DecadenceDark Angel Darkness DescendsDarkthrone Under a Funeral MoonThe excellency of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th Darkthrone albums continues with Under a Funeral Moon. I read that this album would be great, too, but was still surprised!rNot as awesome than the mighty ABINTS, but on the same level as TH, which is still very very much! (Thought there would be nothing beneath TH in terms of sound quality, but nope! haha. just kidding) PURE black metal.Death LeprosyDeserves more credit than it gets.rWhen does this go to a 4.0....Death The Sound of PerseveranceDeath Individual Thought PatternsDemolition Hammer Epidemic of ViolenceDestruction Release From AgonyWith no doubt a great Destruction release. It's got a pretty good deal of variety, 7 nearly equal songs, a nice intro plus a heavy, yet not a perfect production. Where Destruction does win hard, is uniqueness: You can easily recognize Schmier's psychotic vocal delivery, he sounds like a madman that accidentally managed to escape from a madhouse. Add there a bit odd but fitting production, with even pretty audible bass. The album really has got a creepy atmosphere that won't give up until the funny ending of Survive to Die. A few really good examples would be the solo section of the title track or the song Sign of Fear. If I missed something on here, it would be the furious guitar attack of Infernal Overkill.dISEMBOWELMENT Transcendence Into The PeripheralA truly brilliant album - dISEMBOWELMENT have created a genuinely dark and devastating meld of death, doom and grind on here - not to mention original. Essential to anyone searching for dark, ambient and heavy metal. Yes, this is really heavy as fuck. Atmosphere the album creates is beyond words, listen to it yourself. I would go even that far and say that this is the best metal album of 1993.Dissection Storm of the Light's BaneSome really, really good black metal with good kind of melody. Not melody in your usual melodic metal sense, but something that adds to the music without taking away any of its heaviness and harshness. Actually that's what the album is: Heavy, harsh, cold but still melodic. And damn good.Emperor In the Nightside EclipseEnslaved Hordanes LandThe first song alone is maybe one my all-time favorite black metal tunes... so dark, so black... kvltEntombed Left Hand PathFlotsam and Jetsam Doomsday for the DeceiverGorgoroth PentagramA superbly atmospheric album, without any cheap tricks. No bullshit, just some great black metal!Gorguts ObscuraThere's one word I can describe Obscura with: A journey. The album is a journey through your mind, well, the music is there too, and it's simply excellent. My only real con is that the album is perhaps a little too lengthy.Immolation Close to a World BelowImmolation is definitely not your usual death metal. They've got the heaviness and relentlessness of the genre, as some *very* good dark and growling vocals. Though what is the group's area of specialization, is the music itself and the ambience created: You'll get a journey into that world below... Yes, you know what I mean. Can you survive? Immolation Dawn of PossessionRules. Everything is top caliber on this one. This review is likely too short.Immolation Here in AfterSlays just like many other albums of theirs. Great atmosphere and somewhat unconventional instrumentation in terms of death metal.Immortal Pure HolocaustA really, really great album of raw black metal by Immortal. They hit the black metal scene like a meteor with their second LP Pure Holocaust. The best single element is definitely the drumming, which is just superb, incredibly fast and with some variation, too (enough for black metal, personally). I'm just annoyed by the fact that I really don't know who did the drumming!! Most people say it was Abbath who was behind the kit when recording, but there's also statemets that it couldn't be him. Nevertheless, Abbath's vocal performance is great, exactly as it should be in black metal. Some say his voice is annoying on this album, for me it isn't. Demonaz does his job very well as well, not anything complex (as expected in ol' skool black) but the riffing is fast and very effective, and there's both maniac fast and slow, evil riffs. Still, it's purely the songwriting and atmosphere that are the best things. And that's what counts, especially in black metal. Album loses its half a point for being a little too short. While I have nothing against short (excellent) albums, but some songs could've been a tiny bit longer. It's still great that the band didn't include anything even medicore material on the album just to make it longer. 4.5/5Kreator Pleasure to KillSoooo awesome, brings a smile to my face every time I listen to this. This is so madnessMegadeth Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?Finally got the original version of the album. Sure the production isn't as clean or loud as on the remixed one, but overall it's way better IMO: Bass is more audible (!), and in general sounds more natural. Can't say the best or worst tracks, the album is overall very consistent but varied. Still, terrific album and Megadeth's best. Simply put. Get the original.Megadeth Rust in PeaceThis is a bit overrated, but most of its fame is well deserved, IMO. Still, excellent nonetheless!Morbid Saint Spectrum of DeathNecrophobic DarksideThis is great and has a good atmosphere. This review is too short.Obituary Slowly We RotRules. One of the greater old-school DM albums. The guitar tone is one of the cruelest ever. A must hear for every death metal fan. It's not the fastest or most technical, but it's some real metal done just right!Overkill HorrorscopeWhat I must mention as first, is the close to perfection thrash riffing. Nothing too rtechnical, but so damn catchy and fast-paced that I have hard times looking rfor something equal. Probably Destruction's Infernal Overkill is one of the quite few rthat I can name... But that's another story.rThen, the production is great. The guitar sound is exactly how it should be in thrash, raw rand crunchy. Sometimes I hope that Blitz's vocals were a bit higher in the mix, as I rlove his vocals. But this is pretty much of a preference.rBut what's of course the most important, the album is full of excellent, enjoyable songs. rFrom the badass opener Coma to the sort of a thrash ballad track Soulitude, rit's hard to find a dull or boring moment. The first half of the album is pretty classic rOverkill stuff, having relentless thrashers all over, while the second half is more unique rand experimental stuff. Both sides are highly memorable, and the balance between rconsistency/variety is near perfect.rPestilence Consuming ImpulseHow the hell did I dare to almost forgot this... Shame on me. Album definitely rules hard.Possessed Seven ChurchesWay better than I expected, this is a really good album, being partly thrash and partly death metal. Probably the first album to be more death metal, something a bit different back in 1985. All old school thrash/death metal fans, listen up - You'd better get this. SIX SIX SIX!!!Sadus IllusionsSadus Swallowed In BlackWhen not quite as purely insane and flat-out fast as Illusions, the band hasn't slowed down on Swallowed in Black. The songs are more diverse and the already good technical level is squared on this one. There are still mad-fast moments in every song, as there is damn good sounding "slower" sections, too. Great examples would be tracks Black, Good Rid'nz and Arise, to name only a few. Instrument (and vocals) wise there are really no flaws: The guitars range from mid-paced, memorable riffs to pure crazy ferocity, and the guys are not afraid to solo. Not too wanky though, the guitar playing IS very technical but fits always the music. Drums are top-notch too, fast when needed and keeps the mood up be it a faster or slower section. Great variety there as well. On vocals Travis delivers some very pissed off screams and also compliments well with the instruments. No need to mention about the bassist, DiGiorgio: Simply one of the best bassists ever in metal. I can't think any real thrash/death metal fan could not like this. Swallowed in Black is one mean piece of thrash taken to extremes in terms of aggression AND technicality. Plus excellent songs. Get.Sarcofago The Laws of ScourgeIt's interesting how much different this is from their classy 1987 debut, INRI. While the music is not really the same anymore, changing from primitive (but so good) black/death fury into very refined tech-death (sort of). Though one shall not expect boring, incomprehensible wankfest, but a handful of VERY well written songs. Yes, songs; not only single solos or drum beats, but the music as a whole is almost perfectly executed. Imagine combining Death's Human and INRI, that's roughly what you'll get: the sheer brutality and aggression of INRI plus the mystical atmosphere of Human. Yeah! y is this no higher than 4.1??? cmon this is the shit guysSepultura Beneath the RemainsSepultura SchizophreniaGreat rifforama album from Sepultura, first of their three classic albums. Kicks you right in the nuts.Sodom Persecution ManiaSodom really hit the thrash scene with their very unique second album to come out in 1987, Persecution Mania. This album took unfairly long to grow on me, but as now this is simply awesome! The crew here was: Tom Angelripper: Vocals, Bass Chris Witchhunter: Drums Frank Blackfire: Guitars Pros + + The atmosphere is VERY cruel and evil here, which is great + Angelripper's vocals are nearly perfect for this type of music + Blackfire's guitar playing is great, especially the solos + No song is bad + The overall sound pleases the music excellently + The production, heavy and evil enough but not too good and typical like most of new metal + The album cover is just awesome! Cons - - The production could still be better, mainly the overall loudness and drums - Some people might not like the fairly simplistic music - The drumming isn't bad, but still nothing special there really Best tracks: Nuclear Winter, Persecution Mania, Procession to Golgatha, Christ Passion NOTE: If you have the issue with bonus tracks, My Atonement is an awesome song. Overall: Persecution Mania is definitely one of the very best Sodom LPs with Agent Orange (1989) and M-16 (2001), if not THE best. Recommended to almost all thrashers. 4.5/5!Sodom Expurse of SodomyVery dark and atmospheric, and 3 great tracks. Contains the most classic lineup for the first time. Win! 4/5 Best track: My atonementSuffocation Effigy of the ForgottenDamn, damn sick...............................................................Rules!Suffocation Breeding the SpawnThe trivial aspect everybody notices is the lacking production, especially when compared to the heavy-as-the-ultimate-fuck-yet-clean-enough work Scott Burns did with their mighty debut, Effigy of the Forgotten. Personally it isn't that bad at all, everything can be heard pretty nicely, save for the bass drums at times. Mostly the sound is just different and unfinished. When you get over the "bad" production, the music on here, oh yes, is nothing but the same old Suffocation we all love. This is absolutely NOT your lacking, uninspired successor for a mighty debut album. No, no no no. I can say that apart from the production this is definitely on par with the debut, if not even slightly better. What you shall do, is to get rid of prejudices, the production is not that bad at all. And get this now. If you dig all-around great, very tight, vicious old-school death metal, you will dig this. If you still don't you might just be a plain fool. Suffocation Pierced from WithinOn Pierced From Within, Suffocation managed to compose more complex songs while still retaining the brutality and quality of the two previous albums. That combined with superb performances from each member and killer production, the album is nothing sort of essential... Go get it NOW, goddammit.Toxik Think ThisThis is insanely good. Very progressive, yet very catchy and very original. Puts a large amount of metal, let alone thrash, bands to shame.Vektor Outer Isolationholy shitVektor Black Futuresick stuff damnVio-Lence Eternal NightmareOne of the purest thrash metal albums I've gone across. No death metal influences, just very fast and very good thrash. The vocals might turn off some, but the overall instrumentation and great songs are enough of a reason to check this out, for anyone considering himself (or herself) a thrash fan. No bullshit, just 7 tracks of excellent in-your-face METAL!Voivod Dimension Hatross4.0 excellentAbigor Nachthymnen (From The Twilight Kingdom)A unique, great piece of black metal. Abigor has its roots in the Norwegian second wave music, but have a sound of their own on here. A slight usage of female vocals and synths here and there make up a great effect. But trust me, there's no overuse, the music is mainly very harsh and true black metal, but with an elegant side. In a good way.Annihilator Alice in HellAnthrax Among The LivingAnthrax Spreading The DiseaseMy favorite and in my opinion the best LP from Anthrax. The variety is great, the production fits the music and contains many memorable songs.Bathory BathoryBolt Thrower War MasterI just gotta love the vocals. Awesome. Perfect sounding death metal with some grind parts.Bolt Thrower Realm of ChaosBolt Thrower Those Once LoyalBolt Thrower ...For VictoryBrutal Truth Extreme Conditions Demand Extreme ResponsesCryptopsy None So VileFlo Mounier is probably one of the most sick and skilled drummers everD.R.I. Thrash ZoneA very fun listen with lots of great riffs on board! Some of the songs could be a little shorter, but even being slightly overlong the album keeps it up pretty well.Darkthrone PanzerfaustToo underrated, likely overshadowed by the phenomenal albums just before this. Panzerfaust is quite different with its more 'old school' approach, but that doesn't mean it's for bad. The album is full of great tunes and no fillers. Variation is the album's strongest point, aside of the material itself of course. 4.1/5Death Scream Bloody GoreThis is where it all begun for Death and the genre itself. But even by modern standards, this stands out with its excellent riffs and quite consistent songwriting. For me this was the introduction into the genre, and this still rules.Death Spiritual HealingDecapitated Winds of CreationOne impressive album from a group of underage teens! Seriously, you couldn't tell the guys were this young haven't you read it somewhere.Deep Purple Machine HeadOne truly fine hard rock album with some tasteful blues elements - essential for any fan of hard rock, or, simply great old-school music.Deicide DeicideDeicide LegionWhat's wrong with you guys, not liking this as much as the debut? I mean, the debut is also great, but this, holy lord, is full craziness! About as unrelenting and demonic as death metal can be. DamnDemolition Hammer Tortured ExistenceHere lies pure awesome, extremely solid death-sounding thrash album. People should rdefinitely have a listen to this to know how excellent thrash this is. Awesome.rSOMEONE REVIEW THISDestruction Eternal DevastationDying Fetus Destroy the OppositionI was very positively surprised that this DOESN'T sound overly digital and over-produced as too much of metal sounds today, but actually pretty nice and even quite old-school. Musically, this was also a pleasant surprise. Only 8 songs clocking at about 36 mins makes this a tight package, and makes the record nicely consistent. Instrumentation is very good, as one would expect, but not so wanky that the songs become boring. The music is actually pretty catchy. Very worth of getting if you are a fan of relentless and crushing death metal.Emperor EmperorA great EP, the versions of 'I am the Black Wizards' and 'Cosmic Keys to my Creations & Times' on this might be even slightly better than those on their debut album. Love the dark production and atmosphere.Enslaved FrostfuckEntombed ClandestineExhumed Gore MetalSome truly sick stuff in the vein of old Carcass. Very chaotic but good.Exodus Bonded by BloodGave this another chance. I regret my earlier rating... If you put aside the poor production (I actually like it) and are okay with vocals (I am), the album is a sheer masterpiece of Bay Area thrash. It's consistent, intense, not too technical really, but what's the most important the riffs are excellent. The album is catchy as hell. I could slightly agree this being a bit overrated, but only A BIT. For me this would likely be the second best Bay Area thrash album after Peace Sells. So if you are okay with the rather poor production and the vocals (personally I like both), and thrash, get this. Not joking. 4/5Gorgoroth AntichristI must say this album took some time to grow on me, and still needs more... But I think I'm close to have the album 'clicked' on me! Even if only mere 25 minutes long, this album has got pretty much variety to keep a listener interested and curious about what's coming up next. This may not hit you at first, though, so give it a few listens at least. Gorgoroth is one truly great song.Hypnosia Extreme HatredOne extremely pissed off thrash album with touches of death metal (some of the riffs) and black metal (the vocals) that doesn't only rely on its niche of being some old-school thrash hailing the good old days. It does resemble the listener of Kreator more than occasionally, but the music is, simply put, just excellent extreme thrash that any fan of the genre should not miss.Incantation Diabolical ConquestIron Maiden The Number of the BeastIron Maiden PowerslaveIron Maiden Somewhere in TimeUnfortunately, a far too overlooked 'Maiden album that shows quite a different side of the band. Dickinson's best vocal performance ever lies here, for example. The album is also goddamn consistent. 4/5Iron Maiden Seventh Son of a Seventh SonA great, very solid yet a bit different album from Iron Maiden.rThere isn't clear standout tracks on here, as most of those feel equally great. A tad sad is rrthat the weakest tracks stand out for me though: Can I Play with Madness, while not rnowhere near bad, isn't up to the standard of the other album. People seem to like it much rrhowever. Then, there's the track The Prophercy, which is easily the weakest effort.rIn conclusion, don't get me wrong, this is an excellent album in every way! Anyway if you're rrgetting into 'Maiden, this probably isn't the place to start. This requires time to be the rrbest, but it's definitely worth it! The music (meaning not the band members' skills rplaying/singing, which they do have well enough), and the songwriting are excellent, and rthat's what counts for me.r(Hey, I usually strongly dislike synths but on this they feel okay!)Iron Maiden Iron MaidenHas got all the properties that make classic Iron Maiden so great: A consistent bunch of great songs, flawless instrumentation (including Harris' bass of course!), enough variety and very good, fitting vocals. Iron Maiden May be quite a bit different from the 'classic' Maiden aka Powerslave or Seventh Son. Many chances are you've heard something from those two albums before, and also that the first two albums of Iron Maiden had a different vocalist. True, the front man we have here is Paul Di'Anno: His style is pretty punk-ish with hard rock influences when compared to Dickinson's falsetto. He may sound odd at first, but when you got used to him, he's great. To sum it all up, Iron Maiden is an excellent debut album with all the things that made the later-to-come Maiden so good. The presentation is just more raw and punk-like, with young attitude. An absolute must-have if you consider yourself a real fan of the band and/or great old-school metal.Judas Priest PainkillerKataklysm SorceryKreator Extreme AggressionThis is really an excellent album, and Kreator are here on its top musically. While the rmusicianship is near-perfect here, album lacks some of the uniqueness and originality found ron Pleasure to Kill. Nevertheless, any thrash fanatic should get this album!Kreator Coma of SoulsA great album, Frank Godzik definitely adds an extra punch. However the album drags a bit towards the end, but it's still well worth listening.Marduk Opus NocturneAn excellent album, extreme speeds mixed with darkness, a hint of beauty and grim slower parts. The sound is cold as a winter in Siberia.Metallica Ride the LightningMunicipal Waste Hazardous MutationHazardous Mutation might not have reinvented the wheel of crossover thrash. But it does contain several great riffs, fun songs and whatnot. What's best though, it simply FORCES you to damn MOSH!!Napalm Death From Enslavement to ObliterationAgreed, this MUST be reviewed. Sigh! So great stuff.Napalm Death Harmony CorruptionI was pretty skeptic about this as I heard this being far more death metal than Grind, as opposed to FETO. What then, I was surprised that this worked well. Nowhere has gone the grind brutality, don't worry, insane blasting, double bass and some fills are right there, they're just not quite everywhere. It works, I'd say. As for the actual songs, I think FETO probably have some stronger ones, but as a whole I'd prefer this. But those are two quite different styles after all. All in all worth listening, it's better than you might think.Nile Amongst the Catacombs of Nephren-KaThis is one interesting record. Very brutal and chaotic, but at the same time very atmospheric. The atmosphere on here is dare I say, quite mysterious. Even if some fans may find it bad, I think the raw sound fits the album really well. Sadly most the songs feel a bit too short, but otherwise this is some great brutal yet atmospheric death metal.Nile Black Seeds of VengenceQuite massively underrated. Black Seeds of Vengeance is not only absolutely crushing, but tastefully crafted and at times even pretty melodic. Yes, the sound engineering isn't the best, but I personally dig the filthy, somewhat old school sound. Sadly this was to be the one and only performance of Derek Reddy behind the drum kit of Nile. His playing is absurdly inhuman, both in terms of hyperspeed and creativity. Possibly my favourite drummer they've had, sorry fans of Kollias.Overkill Taking OverOverkill The Years of DecayAn excellent Overkill offering, just behind Horrorscope. You've got excellent straigth-ahead thrash songs like Elimination and E.vil N.ever D.ies, more melodic and complex tracks like the title track and even doomy efforts like Playing with Spiders/Skullkrusher. 4/5Rainbow RisingRipping Corpse Dreaming With The DeadRotten Sound ExitSome very intensive and pissed-off shit! Excellent grind, with that Entombed-esque guitar tone and all.Sarcofago I.N.R.I.This is so filthy and damned record I can only like itSatyricon Dark Medieval TimesSepultura AriseSlayer Hell AwaitsMy favourite Slayer album. There's a great atmosphere haunting in the background through the entire record. Sadly a bit hard to get, but definitely worth the purchase if you're into old-school thrash. Too underrated!Sodom M-16Enough epicness, originality, rawness, purity, darkness and lots and lots more combined rtogether with great yet quite simplistic music and a bit black metal like vocals, and near rperfect consistency, this album is only what it's supposed to be: fantastic. With M-16 Sodom delivers you an atmospheric, but still very original, load of thrash that is ressential for all thrash fanatics. It takes some time to grow, and doesn't impress with technical awesomeness, but when listening to this, it isn't even needed. 4.5/5Sodom Agent OrangeI'm struggling on whether to give this a 4 or a 4.5 ... Anyway, the better production enhances the drums nicely, and the drumming is a step up from Persecution Mania, as is the overall instrumentation. However, bits of the dark atmosphere is lost, and Angelripper's vocals aren't as evil on this one. That could be explained as natural progression, from a primitive group to an advanced band. Not really flaws, as the songs are still great quality... But heck, Persecution mania is something very evil. Still, this rules!Sodom Tapping the VeinThe first impression about this album I got was that it is HEAVY. The leave-no-survivors style of Body Parts gives the album a kick start, combined with some of the greatest heavy productions I've heard. Even more than many death metal albums. If you want to hear Sodom at their most brutal and most heavy, this is the album to get. Sadly Tapping the Vein is not as known as their most praised works like Agent Orange or M-16. While being not as great as Persecution Mania or Agent Orange, in my book this would come next after those. If there were a few songs less, this would be a very kick-ass album. While it's quite not, this is still worth a listen if you like extreme thrash that is actually 50/50 death metal. Beware, this is heavy, this is fast, this is dark. And brutal.Sodom In the Sign of EvilThis was released in 1984!??rHOLY SHIT! This is evil, very evil......Stormtroopers Of Death Speak English or DieStormtroopers of Death proves that simple (crossover) thrash with a completely unserious sound or attitude can be awesome and heavy enough without sounding annoying. Thumbs up!Suffocation Despise the SunWhen not quite on par with their nearly phenomenal efforts before this, Despise the Sun is still well worth getting for fans of the band and genre.Taake Nattestid Ser Porten VidTestament The LegacyTestament The New OrderCan't tell why hadn't I bothered to get this much, much earlier. A great example of classic Bay Area thrash.Testament The GatheringVoivod Killing TechnologyVoivod Target EarthI was very pleasantly surprised when I heard a few songs off this on youtube. Then I thought 'right, I NEED to get this album some time' and I did. Definitely no disappointment, Target Earth really sounds quite much like a natural successor for Dimension Hatross and Nothingface.Vulcano Bloody VengeanceWhile nothing short of primitive really, this is very good. A great mix of very extreme thrash/death/black, take your pick. Only 23 minutes in length but more (well delivered) attitude than in 23 other bands combined. Recommended to fans of raw, somewhat old-school extreme metal.Winter Into Darkness3.5 greatBlack Sabbath Heaven and HellBurzum FilosofemThe first four songs are great, but then comes the pretty useless 25-minute instrumental rcollection of a few notes, and Decrepitude II which has no significant different to the I, ronly that's a bit less interesting.rAside of those, this is excellent.Cacophony Speed Metal SymphonyPutting aside the obviously incredible guitar playing, the songs are itself quite interesting and enough varied. As a positive surprise, the drums are very good as well and the bass can be heard decently. However, the lacking vocals brings this down a little for me and so does the average production. If you like superb guitar virtuosity combined with (mostly) interesting songs, good neo- classical/hard rock/speed metal fusion with bits of oriental influence, pick this up.D.R.I. Dealing With ItDestruction Inventor of EvilDestruction The AntichristDestruction Sentence of DeathDio Holy DiverDio The Last in LineWE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK WE ROCK Rules.Disincarnate Dreams of the Carrion KindRather a disappointment, lots of great riffs, solos and the atmosphere is good as well but... somehow the album lacks the final punch, unfortunately.Immortal At the Heart of WinterThis is pretty good, though not as good as Pure Holocaust. What's especially nice is the rconsistency, 6 songs and no bullshit. Though the production is quite horrible, and not in a rgood 'black metal way'. Tagtgren my assIron Maiden Brave New WorldIron Maiden Piece of MindIron Maiden KillersKreator Terrible CertaintyEven though I consider Blind Faith as one of the very best Kreator songs, the album itself is a severe step down from Pleasure to Kill. The dark and cataclysmic atmosphere is very much lost on this one, as is the cruelty.Krisiun Black Force DomainHoly damn this is HEAVY. Very very fast but still catchy and skilled.Megadeth EndgameClearly the best Magedeth record since the phenomenal Rust in Peace. The album has rgot many great tracks such as the opening duo Dialectic Chaos, This Day We Fight!r and Endgame. Then there's some quite uninspired, more "regular" heavy metal rsongs. Album lacks the originality of old-school thrash records, even though the instumental rsection is great and Dave is doing pretty nice vocals, too (by Megadeth standards, of rcourse). No big flaws on here really, just nothing very special. Nevertheless, this shows rMegadeth is not a forgettable act even these days, and obviously puts the best efforts out rof the Big Four in these days.Metallica Master of PuppetsMorbid Angel Abominations of DesolationSome genuinely evil stuff, especially the vocals. Need to listen to this more.Overkill IronboundOverkill The Electric AgeRainbow On StageA great live release from one of my favourite hard rock lineups!Slayer Reign in BloodSlayer Seasons in the AbyssTaake Over Bjoergvin Graater HimmerikSurvived the almighty boing, this is pretty unique stuff.Ulver BergtattA very good album, but was a slight disappointment for me as the black metal - or just metal - parts are not that many on this. The music itself is very well written though, not saying I don't want to listen to this just because it's not all that 'metal'. There aren't any specific flaws in the music, just the folk/black balance leans more to the folk side. With a bit more metal parts in it and/or more of a real mixture of black/folk (now it's more like separated black and folk parts) would make this better. I may sound harsh, but don't be fooled: it's a great record. I wouldn't recommend this to people who want 'real' metal, but for those who like good, ambient music that is a blend of folk and black metal music.Vader LitanyPretty much brutal in-your-face thrashy death metal. The production is not too good, very brickwalled. Nothing too bad though. 3.7/53.0 goodAt the Gates Slaughter of the SoulA good listen, but expected way more from this. Maybe melodeath isn't my thing though.Black Sabbath Mob RulesBlasphemy Fallen Angel of DoomAs a lover of raw, filthy and dark-as-hell black metal, I very rarely complain about production. But on this it sadly annoys me, as it's inconsistent (meaning that on some tracks it's better/different that on some others) and most of the time much unbalanced, oriented to the left channel (at least on my CD version). I know I sound like a douche but a balanced L/R production is the very only thing I must have production-wise. Otherwise, this is pretty nice slab of some really hatred-full black metal with death metal influences. The vocals are really good, which is the best thing on this. Not your usual Norwegian screeching, but a very dark tone he has. Tracks worth of checking are at least Ritual and Darkness Prevails, the latter having one of the most demonic and hateful intros ever.Darkened Nocturn Slaughtercult Nocturnal MarchA solid piece of black metal, gotta listen to it some more.Iron Maiden Fear of the DarkKreator Flag Of HateMegadeth So Far, So Good... So What!Megadeth Killing Is My Business...Overkill Under The InfluencePantera Vulgar Display Of PowerPantera Cowboys from HellSlayer South of HeavenThis album contains some really great tracks, such as South of Heaven, Silent Scream, Ghosts of War, but also rather weak ones too like Mandatory Suicide and Spill the Blood. The slower and cleaner style on this (than on Reign in Blood) is okay for me, but sadly the album suffers from inconsistency. The instrumental section is as good as ever, but Araya's vocals are maybe a bit 'lame' compared with what he did on RiB. All in all, I'd want to like this more but anyway can't give this more than a 3/5. Sodom Obsessed by Cruelty2.5 averageAnnihilator Never, NeverlandBlack Sabbath DehumanizerChildren of Bodom Something WildDio Dream EvilDio Killing The DragonMegadeth Countdown to ExtinctionMegadeth The System Has FailedMetallica Kill 'Em AllMetallica ...And Justice for AllPantera Far Beyond DrivenPantera The Great Southern TrendkillVenom Black Metal2.0 poor1349 HellfireThe plain lacking vocals are the main thing that annoys me.rAnyway, to be fair, the drumming is great and very fast, and the guitars are pretty nice as rwell, though not on the level of the drumming.rMusically, this is so-so, some of the songs hit me well like Celestial Deconstuction rand Slaves to Slaughter, but equally some other songs are pretty dull. What is a good rand a bit of an unusual thing, the album gets better towards the end.rFor now, sure above average black metal, but nowhere near as good as it could be considering rthe lineup's potential.Iron Maiden No Prayer for the DyingMetallica MetallicaSlayer Divine Intervention1.5 very poorMegadeth United AbominationsMetallica Death Magnetic1.0 awfulMetallica Garage, Inc2 Great songs? Yes. A great album? No, hell no. I'm not a huge fan of cover songs, and this album is almost completely ignoreable for me, almost. Am I Evil? and Blizkrieg covers are excellent, but IMO that's all good things here.
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