Your Top Three Thrash Metal Albums?

[no country for old wainds]

It's totally typical of the average person that doesn't actually like thrash to talk about Slayer's importance and obligatory position in top X lists; these same people also tend to hive-mind around Sabbat and Holy Terror.

just look at this cunt right here

 

[no country for old wainds]

anyway, i can barely think of more consistent albums than the first three slayers, i love just about every song. while i vehemently disagree, i get why people would say RiB is inconsistent because of how insanely great the bookends and one or two others are, and because the overall sound is quite homogenous (purposefully and effectively so IMO, but still). but hboy's insistence that SHOW NO MERCY is one of the least consistent classic albums (i'm paraphrasing) is beyond baffling to me, seems the opposite is true if anything. i think HELL AWAITS is a little unwieldy compositionally but only because it's so crazily ambitious, just about every song contains all-time best ever passages of coiled malevolence and explosive intensity.

i think KILLING TECHNOLOGY may be my favourite non-slayer thrash album. it doesn't hold the same sentimental value for me as RIDE THE LIGHTNING, BONDED BY BLOOD, BENEATH THE REMAINS etc 'cause i arrived at it much later, but i think it's probably better than any of those front-to-back. there are other albums that are more consistent than most of the ones i've mentioned, but they tend to have lower ceilings and a less singular sound, so who cares?

i'd like to delve deeper into tech thrash soon. i don't feel like i've given it enough of my attention really, but i'm way more open to it these days. watchtower in particular needs way more listens.

what's everyone's favourite thrash EP? i know it's a little 'underdeveloped' perhaps but i worship at the altar of SENTENCE OF DEATH myself, maybe even moreso than the wonderful INFERNAL OVERKILL. the only ones that rival it for me are MORBID TALES and IN THE SIGN OF EVIL if either of those count as thrash at all. i'd even rank HAUNTING THE CHAPEL behind these and needless to say i love that too.

 

[Slayed Necros]

I'd go with Haunting the Chapel. Sentence of Death is close, same with Freaks by Rigor Mortis and Protector's Misanthropy.

 

[no country for old wainds]

ooo i've never heard either.

 

[CiG]

Besides all the ones already mentioned (I love them all) Razor's Armed & Dangerous comes to mind.

Good question, let me think on it.

 

[TechnicalBarbarity]

Best thrash EP? Haunting the Chapel, without a doubt.

A few others worth mentioning

Destruction - Sentence of Death
Sepulutra - Bestial Devastation
Kreator - Flag of Hate
Sodom - Expurse of Sodomy
Sodom - In the Sign of Evil
Sarcofago - Crush, Kill, Destroy
Antangonist - S/T
Razor - Armed and Dangerous
Hypnosia - Violent Intensity
Evildead - Rise Above
Tankard - Alien
Acid Reign - Moshkinstein
Protector - Leviathan's Desire
Agent Steel - Mad Locust Rising
Protected Illusion - Swimming in the Moonlight
Protected Illusion - Sandman's Store

 

[Slayed Necros]

Good call on Bestial Devastation and Expurse of Sodomy. I like the Hypnosia EP more than the full length too, which is saying a lot.

 

[CiG]

Sextrash's XXX and Sarcófago's Rotting.

 

[no country for old wainds]

i fucking love BESTIAL DEVASTATION, forgot about that one. EXPURSE OF SODOMY is good, better than any of their thrash full lengths, but ItSoE is untouchable. i've only heard the hypnosia full length. i'm starting to think i should just devote this year to nothing but EPs and demos haha.

 

[Burkhard]

Actually I'd be very open to Progressive Thrash Metal recommendations, granted it doesn't lean Tech too much.

While there are other bands already mentioned (like Mekong Delta, Sieges Even - which I recommended a while back in the Progressive Metal topic -, Anacrusis and Watchtower) which I like more, I'd like to add the following two:





And also one of my overall faves:



While I'm not sure if Hexenhaus' entire debut can be considered Progressive Thrash, I'd say that at least the song linked above has some progressive elements. Having a look at my top 3 posted years ago, I'd like to replace Coroner's "Punishment for Decadence" by Hexenhaus' "A Tribute to Insanity", whereas I'd still include Voivod's "Killing Technology" (listened to it just now) and Détente's "Recognize No Authority".

And on the subject of Thrash Metal EPs, I would like to add:

Battlefield - "We Come To Fight"

 

[The Ozzman]

Liked for Toxik

 

[CiG]

Really enjoying that Drifter link.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

but hboy's insistence that SHOW NO MERCY is one of the least consistent classic albums (i'm paraphrasing) is beyond baffling to me, seems the opposite is true if anything.

The title track is almost certainly the worst song of their first five albums, and while some of the more trad/speed-oriented stuff is good, it's still nothing to compete with a Black Magic or Die By the Sword. Show No Mercy is one of those debuts where you can tell they were still working out kinks, ala Rocka Rolla, some riffs flowing so poorly it's amazing they even recorded them, even though there's obviously genius mixed in there.

I consider Reign in Blood to be pretty consistent btw, and I'd put at least a few tracks over Raining Blood regardless.

EDIT: Favorite EP is probably Antagonist's S/T btw.

 

[Satanstoenail]

Show No Mercy and Hell Awaits both have goofy bits in them and I prefer Slayer without goofy bits. Reign in Blood, South of Heaven and Seasons in The Abyss don't have goofy bits. Hell Awaits the song is pure genius though..

 

[CiG]

Explain.

 

[Satanstoenail]

The chorus in Kill Again and the main riff in The Antichrist are pretty good examples of what I mean. Goofy.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

The intro to Tormentor makes me cringe a little, especially Lombardo's drumming. Actually, controversial opinion: Lombardo was actually the weakest element of the band up until Reign in Blood.

 

[Satanstoenail]

That's another thing I love about South of Heaven. The drumming is fucking incredible. Better than Reign In Blood.

 

[TechnicalBarbarity]

The chorus in Kill Again and the main riff in The Antichrist are pretty good examples of what I mean. Goofy.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

The Antichrist riff is silly, but Kill Again's chorus is great.