This is a hilariously over-the-top thrash metal record that both manages to be one of the more diverse albums in the genre (at least for the era) and also definitely feels like it was at least a little bit influential on the kind of insanity (lyrical but also musical) that came after.
Tag: Speed Metal
Spreading the Disease (1985) by Anthrax
I have both come to Anthrax backwards – having heard a later record before this one – and come to Anthrax last among the Big 4. That makes it harder to appreciate them. But worse, I’ve been listening to Seven Churches, a way more brutal, way more innovative metal record, released the same month as …
Killing Is My Business…And Business Is Good (1985) by Megadeth
The Bach-inspired opening of this record gave me high hopes that I would be listening to something in the real of Celtic Frost in terms of its willingness to break from the conventions of thrash. Alas, it is the only sign that Mustaine has music ambitions beyond what I think of as Megadeth’s sound. (I …
War and Pain (1984) by Voivod
I had heard the name Voivod a bunch before I listened to this record. And I think I had always heard them mentioned as a thrash metal band. But somehow, right before I listened to this, I read they were a speed metal band. And though I think I knew that was wrong, that primed …
At War With Satan (1984) by Venom
I don’t know why I skipped Black Metal last year. I may have listened to it once but I honestly don’t remember. If I did listen to it, I assume that I didn’t hear black metal, and read something about how it was more the title and the production values, rather than the music, that …
Overkill (1979) by Motörhead
I have never listened to Motörhead’s debut in part because I have been warned off it by bad reviews. It came out a year and a half before this record but, in the meantime, the much more polished but still fast and relatively rough (for ’70s metal) Stained Class came out. What I’m trying to …
Defenders of the Faith (1984) by Judas Priest
I can’t say I loved Screaming for Vengeance. It felt pretty commercial to me – a little too concerned with selling records and not enough with Metal!!
Restless and Wild (1982) by Accept
I didn’t know what to think of this band with a hilariously un-metal band name, which was a good thing, as this record surprised me.
Rust in Peace (1990) by Megadeth
I have listened to a fair amount of Metallica and so I guess that instantly puts me in a “hey, Megadeth doesn’t sound like Metallica?” mindset which isn’t helpful.