Thrash was the first genre of metal I really got into. It is now death metal. I imagine at some point it will be black metal.
Black metal. I really do not know what to do about this subgenre. So very little of it do I like. I hardly ever put on any Burzum, Mayhem, or Emperor. I totally listen to Immortal, though it is the thrashy and death-like elements that keep me coming back. It seems to me like black metal is background music, and I have always given music my full attention while listening to it.
Darkthrone 100% keep my attention actually, but I understand what you're saying. I'm very picky about Black Metal but the albums I like, I really like.
But, Aura Noir.
Good stuff. I am convinced that they have ripped off bits from Merciless.
Infernäl Mäjesty's debut rules. Seems like they were one of the few thrash groups in the 80s that really paid heed to Hell Awaits. Convincingly menacing stuff.
Yeah, Infernal Majesty is amazing, I didn't really appreciate them properly until recently. Their second album is surprisingly good too, at the very least much better than what nearly any other 80s thrash band was doing in the 94-99 period. The Hell Awaits thing particularly shows in the way they write their songs, not "progressive" maybe but more intricate than most that were just about speed and brutality.
I wouldn't say rare. Early Kreator, early Sepultura, Devastation, Slayer, Demolition Hammer, Morbid Saint, Sadus, Dark Angel, Malleus Maleficarum, etc. are all about as aggressive/intense/sinister than just about anything else out there.