A Guide to Thrash Metal Part IV: Hybrids
Welcome again to my final guide exploring Thrash Metal. This installment will focus on various hybrids of Thrash, mostly Techincal/Progressive Thrash, with some Blackened Thrash and Death-Thrash. Enjoy.
Absu: Absu are among the finest bands to blend Thrash with Black Metal. They are an eccentric band of Texans led by drummer and vocalist “Sir” Proscriptor McGovern. Absu’s debut, Barathrum VITROL, is fairly in the Death Metal camp and it was with subsequent releases that Absu began blending Thrash and Black into their own potent brew. Albums like Tara and the Sun of Tiphareph showcase this band’s adeptness and both writing epic songs and also furious Thrash fests that combine the best of both Thrash and Black Metal. I also quite like their lyrical content, which focuses on Mesopotamian and Celtic Mythologies. Rec albums:
The Sun of Tiphareth,
Tara,
The Third Storm of Cythraul.
Anacrusis: One of my all time favorite Thrash acts. Anacrusis emerged from St. Louis in the mid 1980s playing a primal version of Thrash, what set them apart from their peers was frontman Kevin Nardi’s unique vocal stylings and their habit of tuning to B (down tuning 2.5 semi tones) in a time where that level of down tuning was utilized only by bands like Carcass. They showed promise early on, their Annihilation Complete demo had won a readers poll in the Metal Forces zine and as they toured they began to attract attention from labels and soon ended up on seminal Metal Blade records. Like some bands they evolved quickly, their debut Suffering Hour was a fairly straight ahead Thrash recording.
Their progressive period began with their sophomore release, 1990's Reason. This album showed signs of both musical and lyrical maturity but was hampered by poor production. Nardi’s lyrics began dealing with frank and everyday matters. Cliched lyrics of Satan, destruction, headbanging, etc were ditched like an empty pack of cigarettes. 1991's Manic Impressions was a strong album, taking the progressive side of things even further. Despite the progressive nature, this album retains a strong Thrash feel and doesn’t suffer from poor songwriting as every song is memorable and quite heavy in its own right. Their final release would be their most abstract and ambitious, 1993's Screams and Whispers is an album that sounds like no other. The production is dense and claustrophobic yet clear, Nardi’s vocals have improved immeasurably and, despite the vulnerabilities presented in his lyrics, he sounds confident, no longer relying on studio wizardly to toy with his voice. Keyboards would be brought in, but utilized in sparse and complimentary way that would shame most keyboard friendly bands. The songwriting is truly amazing and brings to shame most bands who wear ambition and talent on their sleeves but forget about crafting interesting songs (*cough* Dream Theater *cough*). Upon touring for this album the band encountered a series of calamities and tension with Metal Blade led to them breaking up. There’s an oft trotted Neil Young lyric that it’s better to burn out than to fade away. Anacrusis were perhaps proof that it’s best for a flame to burn longer before fading away so that the flame has had the chance to reach its apogee. Rec albums:
Reason,
Manic Impressions,
Screams and Whispers. Be sure to check their website where you can get their entire discography, plus some other goodies, for free download.
Aura Noir: Mostly noted as being a project of Mayhem’s ex-guitarist Blasphemer. This is despite the fact that Blasphemer was a full time member of AN before he joined Mayhem. AN’s great contribution to the Blackend Thrash realm is the mighty and aptly titled Black Thrash Attack. Its an unrelenting 42 minutes combining the best of Thrash and Black Metal. It also features some pretty sick vocal stylings and you’d have a hard time telling that Blasphemer was a huge Voivod fan by some of the riffing in this project. Rec albums:
Black Thrash Attack,
The Merciless.
Carnivore: As I stated before, I’m not a fan of crossover. So the fact I’m including this band should be considered high praise. The mixing of the sacred and the profane is often one of the most important elements of satire. Carniovre, fronted by a firmly un-Goth Peter Steele, is a prime example of this. Carnivore’s hilarious lyrics are crass and all about taking the piss. With song titles like Male Supremacy and Angry Neurotic Catholics, you would expect the music to be equally blunt. However this isn’t the case. Carnivore’s music showed supreme songwriting ability, the core of their sound combining Thrash, NYHC and Doom to achieve stunning results. And because of their ability to combine amazing songwriting with crass lyrics, they offer something for everyone. Rec albums:
Carnivore,
Retaliation.
Coroner: One of my all time favorite Thrash acts. Coroner were aided in the early days by their countryman Tom Fischer who provided vocals for their seminal Death Cult demo. Coroner’s sound is firmly in the technical field but they don’t overdo it. Thus if you’re scared by a Voivod or a Anacrusis, this band is ideal for you. Coroner’s riff work is superb, fueled by Tommy Baron’s inventive and heavy guitar playing. The pinnacle of their technical ability is deftly showcased on 1991's Mental Vortex and my personal favorite album of theirs. Rec albums:
R.I.P.,
Punishment for Decadence,
No More Colour,
Mental Vortex.
Deceased: Deceased began life more as a pure Death Metal act than anything else, although like many of their peers there was a distinct Thrash influence to their sound. Beginning with 1997's Fearless Undead Machine Deceased came into their own, their addictive sound combining Thrash, Death and Traditional Metal into their own potent brew. FUM is my personal favorite of them, and with zombies suddenly becoming very trendy, it’s a topical concept album to boot. I deal for putting on as background music when reading Max Brooks. Rec albums:
Supernatural Addiction,
Fearless Undead Machines,
As the Weird Travel On.
Demolition Hammer: In a nutshell, Demolition Hammer sound like a thrashier version of Suffocation. Or perhaps Soffo are a deathier version of DH. Either way, if you chose to investigate DH, as you should, you’ll be presented with some of the heaviest, most pummeling Deathend Thrash out there. Although I detect some NYHC in their sound, they are without doubt a premier Thrash act, one whose intensity led to some Death Metal tinges. Another thing that pushes them to the top is a clear production which doesn’t sacrifice rawness. A band that will give even the most stoic Metalhead whiplash. Rec albums:
Tortured Existence,
Epidemic of Violence.
Desaster (Ger): A blackened Thrash band that more thankfully veer towards the Thrash spectrum. Their debut, A Touch of Medieval Darkness was slightly more biased in favor of BM elements and that album doesn’t really do much for me. They really started to get things going with Hellfire’s Dominion where they began showcasing a wonderful knack for writing anthemic Thrashers (songs like Teutonic Steel and Metalized Blood are prime examples). A good band who should fit everyone’s taste. Rec albums:
Hellfire’s Dominion,
666 Satan’s Soldiers Syndicate.
Destroyer 666: Digging into you like the claws of a pack of starving wolves, D666's sound is deadly and dangerous and unrelenting. D666 are a fine example of raw BM production values, and BM’s penchant for epic songwriting, combining with the primal driving force of Thrash. This band of Australian Antichrists are equally adept at writing catchy and heavy
Thrash fests and
epic fare, thus they have something for everyone. An essential blackened-Thrash act. Rec albums:
Unchain the Wolves,
Phoenix Rising,
Cold Steel...For an Iron Age.
Devastation: As an disambiguation, I will state that this is the Devastation from Corpus Christi, Texas. Riffs. They are an integral part of Metal, so much that they are taken for granted. And then you run into a band who’s riffage is a level above most bands, and then you’re reminded of what makes Metal great. Devastation were such a band. Categorized as Death/Thrash, they sound like the bridge between bands like Slayer and Kreator and bands like Death and Morbid Angel. Further aiding the riffage is top notch production which makes everything sound even heavier. Rec albums:
Idolatry,
Signs of Life.
Gehennah: If you like Motorhead and Venom, you will like these inebriated Swedes. Gehennah play a quite raw form of Thrash with some slight BM tinges, but they make no bones about their love for Lemmy, Cronos, alcohol, leather and Metal. Gehennah are an ideal band to listen to on a very loud sound system and after consumption of large amounts of alcohol. Gehennah make you want to drink and headbang for the rest of your life. Feel encouraged to
Bang your heads for Satan with these
Decibel Rebels. Rec albums:
King of the Sidewalk,
Hardrocker,
Decibel Rebel.
Mekong Delta: One of the bigger progressive Thrash acts. Mekong’s progressive influences came more from the classical side of things, as opposed to bands like Watchtower or Anacrusis who were more influenced by jazz/prog rock. Right from the get-go they showed they weren’t content with writing simplistic Thrash. Their self titled debut is an amazing meld of progressive tendencies and kick ass Thrashing, as songs like Kill the Enemy and Shiva show in spades. Many consider their sophomore The Music of Erich Zann to be their best which plays like a refined and improved take on their self titled debut. The Principle of Doubt showed the classical side taking a more prominent role, with covers of the Twilight Zone theme and Julio Sagreras’ El Colibri making appearances. But this didn’t come at the expense of kick-ass Thrash. Dances of Death showed classical and progressive influences taking a bigger role, as the bulk of this fine album is taken up by the 17 minute title track and a monolithically crushing
cover of Modest Mussorgsky’s Night on a Bare Mountain.
Albums like Kaleidiscope and Visions Fugitives brought more progressive and classical features, at times sacrificing the Thrash for something approaching the more general Progressive Metal field, but still very worthy efforts. This band’s only misstep was the ambitious Pictures at an Exhibition album, featuring two renditions of Mussorgy’s famous composition, one run through featuring band and orchestra and the other featuring band sans orchestra. Despite the admirable ambition, all this served to demonstrate was how nothing, not even a wall of Marshall stacks, can compare to the power of a full symphony orchestra. The band’s reunion album, 2007's Lurking Fear was seen as a return to the earlier style of their first couple of albums. As you can tell by looking at my playlist, I like this band a lot! Their only weakness really is that the various vocalists who’ve sung for this band have been less then stellar in their talents. Rec albums:
Mekong Delta,
Music of Erich Zann,
Principle of Doubt,
Dances of Death (And Other Walking Shadows),
Visions Fugitives,
The Lurking Fear.
Morbid Saint: Veni, vidi, vici. Those are the famous words of Julius Caesar, one of the great conquerors in history. Those words translate as I came, I saw, I conquered. That one sentence perfectly describes the career of Wisconsin’s Morbid Saint. They formed in 1986, released two demos and a single full length and disbanded 6 short years later. But sometimes to achieve quality, one must sacrifice quantity, and in the case of this band that is a worthy compromise. Spectrum of Death is simply one of the greatest, heaviest and most intense Thrash albums ever released. Such is its intensity that it seems to owe more to the still young Death Metal scene than anything else and in fact they caught the eye of Chuck Shuldiner and Spectrum was actually produce by Death’s manager. My first impression was that they sounded like an even heavier version of Sodom. They certainly took influence from the Teutonic Greats, and were no less influenced by the greats of the American scenes, and merged those into their own, impossibly potent brew. If you haven’t heard of this band, get Spectrum of Death now. No Thrash fan’s existence can be complete without this masterpiece. Rec album:
Spectrum of Death.
Necrodeath: One of the first bands to emerge from Italy was also one of the nastiest. A thrash outfit with enough evilness and intensity to make Euronymous shit his satanic pants. Showing clear influences from early Bathory, Kreator and Slayer they created some of the most intense, raw and evil Thrash released at the time. Supreme songwriting manages to break through the brutality of it all. Into the Macabre made quite a stir in the underground when it was released. Their follow-up Fragments of Insanity was more technical and even Death Metal influenced. They split up shortly after its release but thankfully reformed nine years later. 2001's Black as Pitch is my personal fav of their new albums, oozing with thick atmosphere and raw intensity and ending with one of the greatest anti-Christian epics in Metal history with The Church’s Black Book. Rec albums:
Into the Macabre,
Fragments of Insanity,
Black as Pitch.
Poison (Ger): One of the problems with last.fm is the difficulty of seperating different bands with the same name. This is most strikingly obvious in the case of Germany's Poison, a band who has absolutely nothing in common beyond a name with a certain american pop band of the 80s. They're listed as Death-Thrash but I feel its fairer to call them Blackened Thrash. In fact, given the time period when they were active I think its quite fair to lump them in with the first wave of Black Metal. Poison's music fits in very well with other first wave bands, especially Bathory and Hellhammer. The riffing is brutal and eerie, often at the same time, and is filled with potent atmosphere. Highly recommended. Rec albums:
Into the Abyss .
Further Into the Abyss [/ur].
[url=http://www.last.fm/music/PossessedPossessed: One of many acts who were there for the transition between Thrash and Death Metal. Possessed actually coined the term Death Metal. Musically its pure Thrash but due to the lyrical content, and the song Death Metal, they’ve been included in on the DM side of things. They were quite influential as well. A quite enjoyable and influential band, even if guitarist Larry Lalonde is too busy sailing the seas of cheese to acknowledge the importance of this band. Rec albums:
Seven Churches,
Beyond the Gates.
Protector: Imagine if Sodom, circa Obsessed by Cruelty/Sign of Evil, instead of streamlining their sound into what they would evolve into, decided instead to try their hand at what would become known as Death Metal. Further imagine that this early, fictional, incarnation of Sodom found a bunch of more than capable musicians, thus abandoning the sloppiness factor. Protector is roughly what you’d get. A German outfit who wrote great pummeling riffs to coincide with a lethal dose of headbanging speed. One of the best bands I’ve been introduced to while writing these guides. Rec albums:
The Golem,
Urm the Mad,
A Shedding of Skin.
Rigor Mortis: One of the more riff-tastic Thrash outfits out there. They played Thrash with a respectable dose of Death Metal, especially in the lyrical department which read like a dash of Slayer mixed with a heavy love of gory B-movies. RM’s strength was due in main part to vocalist’s Bruce Corbitt’s very baritone range (one reviewer called him the Unicron of Thrash) and Mike Scaccia’s incredible riffing. The riffing is heavy, memorable, fast and catchy, all in the same breath, without compromising a single element of either of these. His soloing is also godlike in his frenetic energy. Scaccia’s thrashy riffing on Ministry’s Psalm 69 albums is one of the main elements that makes that album such a classic, and listening to this bands short output, its easy to see why Al Jourgensen recruited him. Rec albums:
Freaks,
Rigor Mortis,
Vs. The Earth.
Ripping Corpse: Without a doubt, the best Metal band with the word Corpse in their name. A band that featured guitarist Erik Rutan, known more famously for his passable stint in Morbid Angel and the unrelentingly monotonous Hate Eternal. Much like bands like Morbid Saint and Devestator, they are the link between Thrash and Death Metal. Their brief material favors quite favorably with the output of early Death Metal acts like Morbid Angel and Obituary. Their songwriting was quite ambitious, showing lots of technicality and Doomy interludes mixed in with the faster stuff. Vocalist Scott Ruth was a strong asset as well, showing himself to be versatile in sounding like different demonic entities yet still remaining relatively coherent. Rec albums:
Dreaming with the Dead,
Splattered Remains.
Sabbat (Jap): This band has released too many releases for its own good. Not that they lack quality...there's just so many of them. Sabbat are an intimidating band to check out but one thats worth wading into. Sabbat's music is at times rather raw Black Metal, other times its highly melodic and rather catchy, other times its very thrashy. I myself don't know this band as well as I should, so this is based on what I've heard and so take it with a grain of satanic salt. My personal fav is The Dwelling, a sprawling 50 minute epic song. Rec albums:
Satanasword,
Evenom,
Black Up Your Soul,
Fetisichism,
The Dwelling.
Sarcofago: They are in many ways typical of the bands within the first wave of Black Metal. Raw, dirty and quite evil. Playing raw Thrash Metal with a lyrical bent and a visual esthetic that we would come to recognize as Black Metal. Although there are times when they seem to not recognize that, or at the very least ignore it. You can’t imagine Immortal writing a song called Sex, Drinks and Metal can you? But then again, they also wrote a song called Fuck Off Melodic Black Metal. Sarcofago were inconsistent in terms of quality and when you think of it, not quite meriting a lot of mention beyond their seminal I.N.R.I. album and their early demos, but still worth touching on nonethless. Rec albums:
I.N.R.I, Rotting.
Sadus: When one thinks of Metal guitar gods, names like Rhoads, Tipton, Shuldiner come to mind. When one thinks of Metal drum Gods, names like Hoglan, Mournier, Lombardo, Mcbain come to mind. Vocal Gods include names like Halford, Dio, Dickinson. But when one thinks of Bass Gods, the names are quite short. Les Claypool is an amazing bassist, but asides from Blind Illusion and the odd
cover he’s had very little to do with Metal. Alex Webster from Cannibal Corpse comes to mind. But who else? Maybe Geddy Lee of Rush, but that would depend on if you consider Rush to be Metal or not. So you see that not too many names come to mind. Wether this is due to serial improper mixing, lack of talented bassists or too many bassists being guitar converts and not playing the instrument properly is difficult to say. Its most likely a combination of these factors.
Well, Sadus were blessed to have one Steve DiGiorgio within their ranks. A man whose bass playing sends tremors down to all the circles of hell. Luckily, Sadus are far more than a really god bassist. Sadus were a Death-Thrash outfit in the beginning. They would make a great Death-Thrash sandwich alongside Rigor Mortis and Morbid Saint. They became more technical as their career wore on and their more recent stuff leaves much to be desired. The most essential albums are their first three, which are a perfect combination of technicality alongside Thrash brutality. Rec Albums:
Illusions(Chemical Exposure),
Swallowed in Black,
A Vision of Misery.
Sindrome: A band who if it weren’t for the advent of tape trading, or the modern equivalent of internet downloading, would’ve never come to light. Sindrome released only two demos in their short time together but I’ll take quality over quantity. Sindrome were notable for the very deep but still coherent vocals, think Rigor Mortis, and a relentless Thrash assault that owes a fair bit to Dark Angel. Together with a rather rough production they create a rather hellish atmosphere that not many Thrash releases have. Their second demo was a bit more ambitious, featuring more technical refinement and is basically a very short concept album. Very enjoyable and a must for any self respecting thrash fan. You can find these two demos for free on their website. Rec albums:
Into the Halls of Extermination, Vault of Inner Conscience.
Voivod: Voivod are probably one of the most challenging Thrash bands to approach. You wouldn’t know it from their early albums, all heavily raw and unpolished (but still very good!), that would go on to become of the most daring and progressive acts in Metal history, let alone Thrash. But moving on from their Venom and Motorhead inspired works, Voivod weren’t content to make it easy for their fans to move on with them. There’s mainly the late Piggy’s Robert Fripp-inspired and otherwise unworldly riffing and Snake’s unique and decidedly un-Metal vocal style. Their music paints the picture of a dystopian future, where choas reigns supreme and technology enslaves humanity. This lyrical picture is matched by the musical one, as the discordant and unpredictable riffing synthesizes perfectly with the lyrics. The progressive period began with 1987's Killing Technology and not long thereafter it was difficult to quantify the Thrash in their sound, but it was always there, an omnipresent undercurrent. I’m not a fan of the Eric Forrest era but I feel they redeemed themselves well with the posthumous releases. Katorz and Infini brought back Voivod’s seminal punk influence alongside the progressive side, showing they’d managed to come full circle. R.I.P. Rec albums:
War and Pain,
Killing Technology,
Dimension Hatross,
Angel Rat,
The Outer Limits,
Nothingface,
Infini.
Vulcano: A rather evil Brazillian band. Like MC5, their debut was a live album, although that’s where the similarity ends. They formed in 1981 as a NWOBHM act and as such proved highly influential on other Brazilian bands, especially when they underwent a stylistic change. Their studio full length was recorded and mixed in a single day, and is one of those records where this is a benefit and not a detriment. Bloody Vengeance is one of those albums that cannot be ignored or dismissed as background muzak. Bloody Vengeance grabs you firmly by the throat and never lets go for its merciless 24 minute (!) length. It’s the epitome of raw and primal Metal, loose and very spirited but not sloppy. Despite the raw production, the album sounds remarkably clear. Rec album:
Bloody Vengeance
Watchtower: Another progressive entry. Watchtower a probably the most difficult to get into due to the vocal style which is very much in the higher range. They were arguably the first progressive Thrash band. The debut Energetic Disassembly was released in 1985, the golden year of Thrash. They took a heavy jazz influence and were thankfully able to perfectly integrate those influences into a Thrash template. Riffs are fast and intricate, riffs change abruptly and unpredictably, time changes are commonplace yet unforeseeable. Drumming and bass playing are equally intricate and technical. They reached their brief apogee with their next and last album, Control and Resistence. Despite the new vocalist, it sounds very much like a successful continuation of the previous record. Rec albums:
Energetic Disassembly,
Control and Resistance.
Well, that’s the last of it. I don’t know what the future entails as far as my journals go. These bunch of Thrash guides were the hardest to write, hence the long time between journals.
As usual I hope you enjoyed these guides, leave any comments and worthy bands if you wish. I leave you now with some links to various internet resources for Thrash that I found helpful while writing these guides.
Cedes’ top 50 Thrash albums list. Even if you don’t agree with him he makes some very compelling arguments.
Classic Thrash: Pretty good site with tons of (small) reviews.
Thrash Metal Guide: Another pretty good site.
The
Encyclopedium Metallum is the greatest metal resource on the net. I find the following reviewers quite reliable when it comes to Thrash:
Gutterscream,
Gabometal86,
UltraBoris (so long as you avoid his Voivod and Anacrusis reviews) and
hells unicorn.
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Sodom
Killing In The Name had been chosen to spoil the fun.
