Post by GL on Jan 1, 2010 14:35:35 GMT -5
Thrash Metal this year, for me at least, was a tale of two halves. If I would’ve done this list around June/July as a sort of encapsulation of what came out so far, it would be filled with the upstarts and newer practitioners of the genre, while the second half would’ve been the old guard stepping up as the masters laid down the hammer with their own stuff, resulting in a fine meshing of the two and giving us an overall fantastic year for the genre two years running. After the resurgence of the newer groups last year and this year with the old guard piping in, the next few years in this genre will be fun to watch.
10. Swashbuckle-Back to the Noose
Not content to let Power Metal have the only metal pirates in the genre, these guys also take to the high seas and bust out modern style thrash (no real hint of the 80s in here) that are in terms both memorable and highly original. Their lyrical restrictions are put to good use here as they manage to work around it and make the music work nicely in creating a nautical theme for the lyrics to marry to, where it also has the best moments of the album. As the music goes, the shortness of most of the songs doesn’t really leave a lot of room for the pyrotechnics many of their contemporaries employ, and if that can be fixed, they might stand out a little more in the crowded scene.
9. Municipal Waste-Massive Aggressive
Just as much influenced by the Crossover scene as full-on 80s Thrash, this one here is just a fun album to listen to, and you need that sometimes. Sure, it’s not got the fastest stuff, nor is it the most serious in tone, but there’s a point where that becomes acceptable and doesn’t cross over into self-parody, and that is helped immeasurably here by the insanely catchy music that’s on display. Not only is there a lot of memorable and sing-along musical passages here, but it also comes through in the gang-shouts behind the vocals that makes this group so catchy, and again, if only they’d try to infuse a little bit of uniqueness into their sound will allow them to go forward.
8. Tenet-Sovereign
A slightly more industrialized take on the genre, fusing Strapping Young Lad and Exodus (which is to be expected considering the line-up on here) this one is a brutal kick in the nuts for thrash fans old and new. With the riffing geniuses in here blasting out the aggression while the fire-lined venom-and-hellfire vocals shout over the top of everything, this one is a very acquired taste for a promising supergroup, but even still there’s a few moments when they ease off the chaos and go for a little more melody that they show some startling potential. Considering that the members’ other bands are quite active, it will be a while before these guys have a chance to follow this one up, but if they can find how to exploit those melodic moments with their chaos-infused thrash, they’ll be monsters for a while to come.
7. Hirax-El Rostro de la Muerte
One of the most overlooked of the original Thrash Metal scene, these guys are one of the most dependable of the reformed guard still going strong. With well-done, but fairly typical, by-the-book Bay Area thrash, strafing thrash riffs and battering polka beats with frenzy, fervor and the skill, this is one monster of an album sonically that sounds as fresh now as they were back in the late 80s, and again come fully charged with the main reason why they get overlooked, the maniacal shrieking, love-it-or-hate-it yowl that bursts forth on the vocals that, while managing to make the band stand out for their uniqueness, still manage to get irksome and a little tiring at times. Still, minus the vocal issue, this is one for the old guard out there who still insists on living in the 80s.
6. Shadows Fall-Retribution
In a similar vein to 3 Inches of Blood in that they manage to merge two similar styles into one cohesive one, this one does have the bright spot of not having as much Metalcore in their sound as previous ones did, making it easily the most Thrash-friendly of their releases, which is where they belonged all along anyway. Surely not a lot of bad songs on here, but a few clunkers on the second half does keep this one down, and judging on their past material, they could’ve done a lot better. They’ve still got the chops, as the soloing is among the best of their career and the rhythm section has never sounded heavier or more intense and the much more liberal use of clean vocals is going to do these guys a world of good. While it’s not as big or grand as previous attempts at their style, this one still slots in nicely with their past catalog and is a worthwhile addition.
5. Kreator-Hordes of Chaos
I really struggled with the placing of this one, seeing as this one was an incredibly tough one to understand. The writing, the performances, the chops and brutality are all there, as it feels like prime Kreator all the way through, and the new addition of gang-shouts to several of the songs are a nice touch, but there’s still something missing from this one. This one here is a prime example of why I like a thick, juicy production: otherwise it sounds flat and lifeless. Nothing here has any life to it because the guitars sound flat and punchless, compared to the powerhouse they had on the last album. In conjunction with that, the rhythm section, long a Kreator standout, again lacks a punch and instead is really dry and gives a desolate feeling. This would be higher up if that were fixed.
4. Slayer-World Painted Blood
Frankly, there’s an argument to be made that this one should be higher, and I would agree that it really should be, if not for one song on here, ‘Psychopathy Red.’ An utterly atrocious first single to introduce your album to the masses, as it fits right in with the rest of the material on ‘God Hates Us All,’ where that song belongs, and instead allows Evile to move up because they don’t have that kind of moment on theirs. Aside from that one mistake, this is easily as intense and determined as Slayer has sounded in years, blasting through their collection with a vim and vigor that they haven’t possessed since the mid-80s. With songs ranging the full gamut from insane thrashers to more mellow, melodic fare and a few mid-tempo areas that pretty chilling at times, this one stands as perhaps one of their best yet, and definitely their best of the millennium. If it weren’t for that one moment, how different would things be.
3. Evile-Infected Nations
Sure, it was a tragedy what happened to these guys, but let’s also not forget about the fact that they’ve got a really strong grip on the modern Thrash sound. About as close to Death Angel as you can get, which is a very good thing I might add, they’re off-the-rails sound and general mosh-inducing style is a real blast to listen to and definitely helps to make for an incredibly fun listen. While I suspect that the off-the-rails stuff will fade with time, they’re definitely one of the bright spots out there, and, as mentioned before, this might seem a little high to place this one, but it just didn’t have that ‘Psychopathy Red’ moment that ruined the whole album. Will have to wait and see where they go from here, but colored me intrigued so far.
2. Warbringer-Waking into Nightmares
As long as they don’t manage to pull a Cliff Burton, these guys are going to be the Metallica of the modern Thrash revival, and with good reason: they’re just that good. Hardly every slowing down, keeping the intensity up all the way through with some of the most influentially-noticeable 80s riffing, these guys sound like they’re from that time and are just having their material remastered and re-released to the masses in today’s time. Everyone in here smokes, with solid performances across the board and never letting up the intensity. I mentioned last year they were going to be the one to watch in this group of guys coming out, and damned if I didn’t hit it on the mark. A sure-fire number one if it hadn’t been the obvious, but well-deserved choice there.
1. Megadeth-Endgame
Quite frankly, I haven’t been crushed by a Megadeth album in some time (‘Rust in Peace’ if you want to know) and despite some promising stuff in their ‘reformation,’ but this is surely the magnum opus of their work so far. Never a dull moment (aside from a lyrically out-of-time one about the North Hollywood shoot-out nearly six years too late) they haven’t had such a strong collection of songs since that previously-alluded to album, and that makes this one so special. With some utterly intense soloing, brilliant technicality from the riffing department, manic vocals and a pummeling rhythm section, this one is just a barn-burner all the way around. This is what is generally referred to as an “all killer, no filler” album, and manages to just barely sweep overall Album of the Year away from a very worthwhile DevilDriver, giving Thrash this honor for the second year in a row.
10. Swashbuckle-Back to the Noose
Not content to let Power Metal have the only metal pirates in the genre, these guys also take to the high seas and bust out modern style thrash (no real hint of the 80s in here) that are in terms both memorable and highly original. Their lyrical restrictions are put to good use here as they manage to work around it and make the music work nicely in creating a nautical theme for the lyrics to marry to, where it also has the best moments of the album. As the music goes, the shortness of most of the songs doesn’t really leave a lot of room for the pyrotechnics many of their contemporaries employ, and if that can be fixed, they might stand out a little more in the crowded scene.
9. Municipal Waste-Massive Aggressive
Just as much influenced by the Crossover scene as full-on 80s Thrash, this one here is just a fun album to listen to, and you need that sometimes. Sure, it’s not got the fastest stuff, nor is it the most serious in tone, but there’s a point where that becomes acceptable and doesn’t cross over into self-parody, and that is helped immeasurably here by the insanely catchy music that’s on display. Not only is there a lot of memorable and sing-along musical passages here, but it also comes through in the gang-shouts behind the vocals that makes this group so catchy, and again, if only they’d try to infuse a little bit of uniqueness into their sound will allow them to go forward.
8. Tenet-Sovereign
A slightly more industrialized take on the genre, fusing Strapping Young Lad and Exodus (which is to be expected considering the line-up on here) this one is a brutal kick in the nuts for thrash fans old and new. With the riffing geniuses in here blasting out the aggression while the fire-lined venom-and-hellfire vocals shout over the top of everything, this one is a very acquired taste for a promising supergroup, but even still there’s a few moments when they ease off the chaos and go for a little more melody that they show some startling potential. Considering that the members’ other bands are quite active, it will be a while before these guys have a chance to follow this one up, but if they can find how to exploit those melodic moments with their chaos-infused thrash, they’ll be monsters for a while to come.
7. Hirax-El Rostro de la Muerte
One of the most overlooked of the original Thrash Metal scene, these guys are one of the most dependable of the reformed guard still going strong. With well-done, but fairly typical, by-the-book Bay Area thrash, strafing thrash riffs and battering polka beats with frenzy, fervor and the skill, this is one monster of an album sonically that sounds as fresh now as they were back in the late 80s, and again come fully charged with the main reason why they get overlooked, the maniacal shrieking, love-it-or-hate-it yowl that bursts forth on the vocals that, while managing to make the band stand out for their uniqueness, still manage to get irksome and a little tiring at times. Still, minus the vocal issue, this is one for the old guard out there who still insists on living in the 80s.
6. Shadows Fall-Retribution
In a similar vein to 3 Inches of Blood in that they manage to merge two similar styles into one cohesive one, this one does have the bright spot of not having as much Metalcore in their sound as previous ones did, making it easily the most Thrash-friendly of their releases, which is where they belonged all along anyway. Surely not a lot of bad songs on here, but a few clunkers on the second half does keep this one down, and judging on their past material, they could’ve done a lot better. They’ve still got the chops, as the soloing is among the best of their career and the rhythm section has never sounded heavier or more intense and the much more liberal use of clean vocals is going to do these guys a world of good. While it’s not as big or grand as previous attempts at their style, this one still slots in nicely with their past catalog and is a worthwhile addition.
5. Kreator-Hordes of Chaos
I really struggled with the placing of this one, seeing as this one was an incredibly tough one to understand. The writing, the performances, the chops and brutality are all there, as it feels like prime Kreator all the way through, and the new addition of gang-shouts to several of the songs are a nice touch, but there’s still something missing from this one. This one here is a prime example of why I like a thick, juicy production: otherwise it sounds flat and lifeless. Nothing here has any life to it because the guitars sound flat and punchless, compared to the powerhouse they had on the last album. In conjunction with that, the rhythm section, long a Kreator standout, again lacks a punch and instead is really dry and gives a desolate feeling. This would be higher up if that were fixed.
4. Slayer-World Painted Blood
Frankly, there’s an argument to be made that this one should be higher, and I would agree that it really should be, if not for one song on here, ‘Psychopathy Red.’ An utterly atrocious first single to introduce your album to the masses, as it fits right in with the rest of the material on ‘God Hates Us All,’ where that song belongs, and instead allows Evile to move up because they don’t have that kind of moment on theirs. Aside from that one mistake, this is easily as intense and determined as Slayer has sounded in years, blasting through their collection with a vim and vigor that they haven’t possessed since the mid-80s. With songs ranging the full gamut from insane thrashers to more mellow, melodic fare and a few mid-tempo areas that pretty chilling at times, this one stands as perhaps one of their best yet, and definitely their best of the millennium. If it weren’t for that one moment, how different would things be.
3. Evile-Infected Nations
Sure, it was a tragedy what happened to these guys, but let’s also not forget about the fact that they’ve got a really strong grip on the modern Thrash sound. About as close to Death Angel as you can get, which is a very good thing I might add, they’re off-the-rails sound and general mosh-inducing style is a real blast to listen to and definitely helps to make for an incredibly fun listen. While I suspect that the off-the-rails stuff will fade with time, they’re definitely one of the bright spots out there, and, as mentioned before, this might seem a little high to place this one, but it just didn’t have that ‘Psychopathy Red’ moment that ruined the whole album. Will have to wait and see where they go from here, but colored me intrigued so far.
2. Warbringer-Waking into Nightmares
As long as they don’t manage to pull a Cliff Burton, these guys are going to be the Metallica of the modern Thrash revival, and with good reason: they’re just that good. Hardly every slowing down, keeping the intensity up all the way through with some of the most influentially-noticeable 80s riffing, these guys sound like they’re from that time and are just having their material remastered and re-released to the masses in today’s time. Everyone in here smokes, with solid performances across the board and never letting up the intensity. I mentioned last year they were going to be the one to watch in this group of guys coming out, and damned if I didn’t hit it on the mark. A sure-fire number one if it hadn’t been the obvious, but well-deserved choice there.
1. Megadeth-Endgame
Quite frankly, I haven’t been crushed by a Megadeth album in some time (‘Rust in Peace’ if you want to know) and despite some promising stuff in their ‘reformation,’ but this is surely the magnum opus of their work so far. Never a dull moment (aside from a lyrically out-of-time one about the North Hollywood shoot-out nearly six years too late) they haven’t had such a strong collection of songs since that previously-alluded to album, and that makes this one so special. With some utterly intense soloing, brilliant technicality from the riffing department, manic vocals and a pummeling rhythm section, this one is just a barn-burner all the way around. This is what is generally referred to as an “all killer, no filler” album, and manages to just barely sweep overall Album of the Year away from a very worthwhile DevilDriver, giving Thrash this honor for the second year in a row.