Thrash Metal

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Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized by its fast tempo and aggression. Thrash metal songs typically use fast, percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work. Thrash metal lyrics often deal with social issues using direct and denunciatory language, an approach which partially overlaps with the hardcore genre. The "Big Four" bands of thrash metal are Anthrax, Megadeth, Metallica, and Slayer, who simultaneously created and popularized the genre in the early 1980s.

The origins of thrash metal are generally traced to the late 1970s and early 1980s, when a number of bands began incorporating the sound of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, creating a new genre and developing into a separate movement from punk rock and hardcore. This genre is more aggressive compared to its relative, speed metal, and can be seen in part to be a reaction to the lighter, more widely acceptable sounds and themes of glam metal.

Thrash metal generally features fast tempos, low-register, complex guitar riffs, high-register guitar solos, double bass drumming, and aggressive vocals. Most thrash guitar solos are played at high speed, as they are usually characterized by shredding, and use techniques such as sweep picking, legato phrasing, alternate picking, string skipping, and two-hand tapping. Thrash lead guitarists are often influenced by the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement. Thrash guitar riffs often use chromatic scales and emphasize the tritone and diminished intervals, instead of using conventional single scale based riffing. For example, the main riff of Metallica's "Master of Puppets" is a chromatic descent, followed by a chromatic ascent based on the tritone. Rhythm guitar playing is characterized by extensive palm muting and down picking to give the riffs a chugging sound, along with extensive use of the pedal point technique (creating what can be considered a distinctive, 'thrashy' sound). Speed, pacing, and time-changes also define thrash metal. Thrash tends to have an accelerating feel which may be due in large part to its aggressive drumming style. For example, thrash drummers often use two bass drums, or a double-bass pedal, in order to create a relentless, driving beat. Cymbal stops/chokes are often used to transition from one riff to another or to precede an acceleration in tempo. To keep up with the other instruments, many thrash bassists use a pick. However, some prominent thrash metal bassists have used their fingers, such as Frank Bello, Greg Christian, Jack Gibson, Steve DiGiorgio, Robert Trujillo and the late Cliff Burton. Several bassists use a distorted bass tone, an approach popularized by Burton and Motörhead's Lemmy.

Lyrical themes in thrash metal include isolation, alienation, corruption, injustice, addiction, suicide, murder, warfare, and other maladies that afflict the individual and society. Humor and irony can occasionally be found, but they are limited, and are the exception rather than the rule.

Inclusive thrash metal music subgenres:

Crossover thrash, often abbreviated to crossover, is a form of thrash metal that contains more hardcore punk elements than standard thrash. It is sometimes referred to as punk metal, though this is generally incorrect due to the existence of other music genres that combine forms of punk rock and heavy metal, such as grunge, crust punk, and more recently metalcore and its subgenres. While thrash metal is heavily influenced by hardcore punk, the overall sound of crossover thrash is more punk-influenced yet more metal-sounding and aggressive than traditional hardcore punk and thrashcore. The term was coined by the band D.R.I. with their album Crossover, released in 1987. The term 'crossover' is based on the metaphor of crossing over from one genre into the other, thus capturing artists the operate within the transition zone between thrash metal and hardcore punk. With the metaphor comes the conception of directionality, such that the genre is applied to hardcore and crust punk artists who have crossed over into thrash metal territory, such as D.R.I., Discharge, The Exploited, The Accüsed, Agnostic Front and Suicidal Tendencies (who eventually ventured into alternative metal), and thrash metal artists who crossed over into hardcore punk territory, such as Nuclear Assault and S.O.D. A number of death metal bands (especially those of the first wave of Swedish death metal) draw on hardcore punk, mainly because their members listen to crossover thrash - these bands are included under the death metal subgenre here at the MMA.
Death-thrash combines elements from thrash metal and death metal. The most common type of death-thrash is based on thrash metal music (often played a bit faster than standard thrash metal) with growled vocals. Sepultura's "Schizophrenia", "Beneath the Remains", and "Arise" are considered examples of death-thrash. Given that death metal is derived from thrash metal, many early death metal bands played a style that was anchored thrash metal and could be considered death-thrash. Many of those artists are included under the death metal genre here on MMA.
Technical/progressive (or tech/prog) thrash metal is considered a legitimate genre by some (or even two legitimate genres), while others argue that it is a pseudo-genre. Bands included in this genre take emphasize technicality in their music, in the form of complex riffs and/or complex song structures, while others apply the ethos of progressive music more broadly without straying from their basic thrash metal sound. Examples of artists that are sometimes considered tech/prog thrash metal acts are Dark Angel, Death Angel (especially on "Act III"), Annihilator, Artillery (especially on "By Inheritance", "When Death Comes", and "My Blood"), and Invocator. Releases like "Master of Puppets" and "...And Justice For All" by Metallica are quite progressively oriented with complex song structures and numerous sections per song. Some bands like Voivod, Antithesis and Watchtower took the progressive approach so far that they are primarily considered progressive metal artists rather than thrash metal artists.
Blackened thrash metal is thrash metal with black metal elements. Its thrash metal basis is more primitive and akin to early German thrash metal. Examples of blackened thrash metal bands are Assaulter, Aura Noir, and The Metaphor. It should be mentioned that much early black metal, such as Venom and Hellhammer/Celtic Frost actually had its roots in thrash metal.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thrash_metal

Written by Time Signature.

Sub-genre collaborators (+ child sub-genres & shared with Speed Metal and Groove Metal):

Vim Fuego (leader)
Nightfly

thrash metal top albums

Showing only albums and EPs | Based on members ratings & MMA custom algorithm | 24 hours caching

Master of Puppets
METALLICA
4.53 | 302 ratings

Rust in Peace
MEGADETH
4.47 | 252 ratings

METALLICA Ride the Lightning Album Cover

Ride the Lightning
METALLICA
4.44 | 247 ratings

Twisted Into Form
FORBIDDEN
4.53 | 30 ratings

ANNIHILATOR Never, Neverland Album Cover

Never, Neverland
ANNIHILATOR
4.40 | 86 ratings

SEPULTURA Beneath the Remains Album Cover

Beneath the Remains
SEPULTURA
4.38 | 107 ratings

Arise
SEPULTURA
4.37 | 110 ratings

Alice in Hell
ANNIHILATOR
4.37 | 74 ratings

Among The Living
ANTHRAX
4.34 | 98 ratings

Dimension Hatröss
VOIVOD
4.38 | 54 ratings

No More Color
CORONER
4.39 | 45 ratings

FLOTSAM AND JETSAM Doomsday for the Deceiver Album Cover

Doomsday for the Deceiver
FLOTSAM AND JETSAM
4.38 | 46 ratings

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thrash metal online videos

GAMA BOMB - 'RUSTED GOLD' (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
GAMA BOMB
Tupan

GAMA BOMB - 'SPEED FUNERAL' (OFFICIAL VIDEO)
GAMA BOMB
Tupan

HIRAX "Relentless" Official Video from "Faster Than Death" album 2024
HIRAX
Tupan

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thrash metal Music Reviews

THE DEBONING METHOD Democracy

Album · 1993 · Thrash Metal

UMUR

"Democracy" is the debut full-length studio album by US, South Carolina metal act The Deboning Method. The album was independently released in 1993. It´s probably not a band or a release which many people have heard of, but if you look at the lineup you´ll notice that a certain Derek Roddy is credited for playing the drums. The Deboning Method formed in 1988 and it´s Roddy´s first band. Roddy subsequently went on to play with artists like Malevolent Creation, Aurora Borealis, Blotted Science, Council of the Fallen, and Hate Eternal (among others). Roddy also auditioned for and was in the run for being the new Dream Theater drummer when Mike Portnoy left in 2011 (a spot which ultimately went to Mike Mangini).

...in other words The Deboning Method is graced with one of the top drummers on the scene and not surprisingly the drumming on "Democracy" is one of the great assets of the album. Stylistically the material on the 11 tracks, 55:26 minutes long album is an aggressive type of thrash metal with both death metal and hardcore elemnts. It´s both fast-paced and crushingly heavy and groove laden, so this is not old school 80s influenced thrash metal, but rather a heavier and more brutal version. Artists like Solstice and Ripping Corpse are valid references. Lead vocalist Jason Skipper sounds pissed and his delivery is commanding and fierce. There´s a savage, brutal, and almost hysterical edge to his singing style, which is highly effectful. You´re never in doubt that he means business.

The sound production values are overall effective and the music sounds powerful, heavy, and meaty, but sometimes it´s sounds like the tracks were recorded at different studios, which is slightly distracting and not a plus in my book. When listening to an album you want to get a feeling of cohesion. The Deboning Method are successful in achieving that with the consistency of the materal, but the slight drop in sound production values on a few tracks just sounds a bit amaturish.

When that is said "Democracy" is still a high quality brutal thrash metal release from The Deboning Method. Although at this moment "Democracy" is the band´s only full-length studio album, it´s interesting to note that The Deboning Method never disbanded. They have just been inactive for many years, but they have sporadically re-appeared, and they have also recorded and released a couple of minor releases in the 2010s (mainly re-recordings of early releases). "Democracy" may not be a high profile release, but for fans of brutal thrash metal it´s a recommended listen and a 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

15 hours ago
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Report #885976

SEXTRASH Funeral Serenade

Album · 1992 · Thrash Metal

UMUR

"Funeral Serenade" is the second full-length studio album by Brazilian thrash metal act Sextrash. The album was released through Cogumelo Records in September 1992. It´s the successor to "Sexual Carnage" from 1990. Sextrash was founded in 1987 by former Sarcófago drummer D.D. Crazy under the Insulter monicker but soon changed their name to Sextrash. They released the "XXX" EP in 1989 and their debut full-length studio album "Sexual Carnage" in 1990. Both releases featuring some pretty controversial cover artworks. Although "Funeral Serenade" also features a naked lady on the cover, the artwork is a bit more cartoonish and innocent.

While the two first releases by Sextrash features a raw, primitive, and savage sounding type of thrash metal, the band have added an additional death metal element to their sound on "Funeral Serenade". Given the major success of fellow countrymen Sepultura who followed a similar path, it´s not a strange move, and a move many other contemporary Brazilian thrash metal artists also made.

The band write some pretty effective, powerful, and also relatively varied tracks, and that´s the greatest asset of "Funeral Serenade". The playing is a bit sloppy/amaturish and the sound production lacks power and also belongs in the slightly amaturish end of the scale, but it´s not worse than the sound productions on many other Brazilian death- and thrash metal releases from that time. Had the performances been stronger and the sound production been sharp, detailed, and powerful, "Funeral Serenade" could have been a high quality release. As it is now it may hold some interest for fans of late 80s Sepultura and similar death/thrash artists, but you shouldn´t expect anything of the same quality as the output of their more famous countrymen. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

21 hours ago
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Report #885974

METALLICA Live Shit: Binge & Purge

Boxset / Compilation · 1993 · Thrash Metal

martindavey87

Originally released in 1993, ‘Live Shit: Binge & Purge’ is an audio and visual tour de force of live music by Metallica. During the absolute peak of their world tour for 1991’s ‘Metallica’, they released a monstrous box set featuring three different concerts, two on video (later DVD, thankfully) and one on three CD’s.

Having become worldwide megastars with their 1991 self-titled release, the band would go on to tour the world, multiple times for over a staggering three years. Which brings us to the CD’s and the first DVD; the live album part of it is from a show in Mexico City, whilst the DVD is of a similar show from San Diego. Both concerts are fantastic, with excellent performances, sound, and in the case of the DVD, great picture. However, one major downside is the endless “noodling” and messing around between songs.

Yeah, it’s come to be expected, and is pretty harmless enough, but there’s so many random solo spots, messing around, jams, and countless other bits of shameless banter, that after a while, it does wear a bit thin. At one point, there’s 20 minutes of tomfoolery before they start another song, and during ‘Seek and Destroy’ James interacts with the crowd for over ten minutes. It’s fun at first, but after repeated listens, it does get quite boring fast.

Then there’s the second DVD, filmed in Seattle and taken from the bands 1989 tour in support of ‘…And Justice For All’, and this is a fantastic concert. This was a great time for the band as they were still “on the way up”. The playing is incredibly tight, the sound and picture are excellent, especially given the age of the footage, and with a great set list to boot, this random addition to the box set makes it totally worthwhile.

Everyone performs brilliantly on all three concerts. Even Lars, bless him, far from the best drummer in the world, but his boundless enthusiasm and excitement is infectious, and Jason Newsted’s copious amounts of energy makes me sad for how things turned out for him. With around nine hours of content, ‘Live Shit…’ is certainly not for the faint of heart, but overall, any detriments aside, this is an absolute beast of a box set, and truly belongs in every Metallica fans collection.

3 days ago
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Report #885955

VIOLENT SOLUTION Period of Depression

Demo · 1990 · Thrash Metal

UMUR

"Period of Depression" is the second demo recording by Finnish thrash metal act Violent Solution. The demo was independently released in February 1990. Violent Solution formed in 1987 and originally featured future Amorphis members Jan Rechberger (vocals, guitars) and Tomi Koivusaari (guitars, backing vocals). The latter also had a short but important stint with Abhorrence during 1989-1990 and he is therefore not a part of the lineup who recorded "Period of Depression" where he is replaced by another future Amorphis member Esa Holopainen (guitars). So it´s safe to say that the Amorphis connection is strong in Violent Solution. The remaining members who recorded "Period of Depression" are bassist/backing vocalist Miika Kulinock and drummer Petri Eklund. Both also performed on Violent Solution´s first demo "Disorder of Composure" from 1989.

Amorphis connection or not the music featured on the four tracks, 19:06 minutes long demo sounds almost nothing like Amorphis (there´s maybe a whiff of Amorphis in the opening sequence to "Capital Punishment", but that´s it). Instead the listener is treated to a raw yet sophisticated type of thrash metal with both raw vocals but also intricate lead guitar work and a generally well playing band. The tracks are well composed, memorable, and powerful thrash metal, and the demo features a heavy, sharp, and detailed sound production, which isn´t far removed from sounding like a professional studio recording from that time.

"Period of Depression" is definitely a Finnish thrash metal demo worth a listen or two. Good quality sound production values, intriguing and varied songwriting, and a band who can handle their instruments and also a singer with a raw voice and convincing singing style. A 3 star (60%) rating is warranted.

4 days ago
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Report #885935

DEFECTION War of Losers

Demo · 1987 · Thrash Metal

UMUR

"War of Losers" is the first demo recording by Finnish thrash metal act Defection. Defection formed in 1987 and released "War of Losers" later the same year. Some sources claim that a 1990 demo also exists, but I have found no evidence of the existence of such a demo yet.

Stylistically the four tracks on the 20:01 minutes long demo is pretty standard fare thrash metal with a staccato shouting/talking type vocalist, and although Defection certainly are a capable band and they also write some pretty effective thrash metal tunes, "War of Losers" is overall a standard quality release for the genre. The sound production is a bit thin sounding, but especially the lead guitars and harmony parts actually sound pretty great.

Upon conclusion Defection is a footnote in the history of Finnish thrash metal, but it´s not because of the quality of "War of Losers" which is decent, but it´s because of the songwriting which may be effective, but it´s not particularly memorable and Defection´s style of thrash metal simply doesn´t stand out on the scene, if you take into consideration that this is a 1987 thrash metal demo. A 2.5 - 3 star (55%) rating is warranted.

5 days ago
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Report #885923

thrash metal movie reviews

METALLICA Quebec Magnetic

Movie · 2012 · Thrash Metal

martindavey87

Pretty standard Metallica live DVD here. Great set, fantastic sound and visuals, and the band all on top form as always (even Lars does alright!). The metal legends, touring to promote 2008’s ‘Death Magnetic’ have gone back to their old-school way of having the stage in the middle of the venue, kind of making this feel like ‘Cunning Stunts’ all over again, except, ten years wiser and more mature. And while they may not have the same drive and ambition as they did in the 90’s, it’s clear to see that this is an alcohol and drug-free band, who are just having the time of their lives up on stage.

Featuring all the hits you’d come to expect, such as ‘One’, ‘Enter Sandman’, ‘Sad But True’, ‘Broken, Beat and Scarred’, ‘Battery’ and a whole host of others, including some “bonus track” surprises, such as ‘Turn the Page’, ‘Holier Than Thou’ and ‘Breadfan’, this is a great DVD that may not stand out in the bands discography as much as previous releases ‘Live Shit: Binge & Purge’, ‘Cunning Stunts’ or ‘S&M’, but is still plenty worthwhile owning, and certainly enough to satisfy any Metallica fan.

5 months ago
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Report #882775

METALLICA Metallica Through The Never

Movie · 2013 · Thrash Metal

martindavey87

Regardless of the results, I’ll always give Metallica credit for not being afraid to try new things. Going from thrash metal to alternative rock, playing with an orchestra, side projects with Lou Reed and now this… a concert movie?

And the results here, as expected, are pretty mixed. The actual movie aspect doesn’t make much sense. With a daft storyline interspersed with the concert footage, and at times tying into the show itself. Sometimes with the band actually even doing little choreographed bits on stage, this all comes across as a bit awkward at times, and is probably more of a detriment than anything.

However, the concert footage itself is absolutely gorgeous! The visuals are fantastic and the high-definition video really gives it a crystal-clear picture, with some very cool camera angles and some awesome close-ups. Along with all the usual Metallica pyrotechnics and on-stage stunts and props, this is like ‘Cunning Stunts’ on steroids.

But sadly, that’s pretty much the only highlight. There’s a whole hoard of extras, including behind-the-scenes documentaries, Q&A sessions, trailers, music videos, and a whole bunch more, but it’s mostly all pretty bland and generic, with the only saving grace being that live footage. I wish they’d just done an entire concert DVD recorded like this, because that part, really is THAT damn good!

5 months ago
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Report #882772

METALLICA Français Pour Une Nuit

Movie · 2009 · Thrash Metal

martindavey87

‘Francais...’ is one of three Metallica DVD’s that all seemed to pop up around a close time-frame of each other (the others being similar concerts from Mexico and Quebec). Released in 2009, it features Metallica touring to promote their fairly new release, ‘Death Magnetic’, from the previous year. On this concert DVD, the set list is solid, the playing is fantastic, and the visuals are excellent. The setting is an old amphitheatre that looks absolutely beautiful as a music venue. The only setback was that this lacks a lot of the pyrotechnics and effects that their arena shows afforded them. So unless you’re a huge fan, it might get a bit boring just sitting here and watching them, well, just play for over two hours.

Still, it’s a great DVD, and the band is on top form, with boundless energy and enthusiasm, we even see quite a few songs that hadn’t been played live in a long time! And with a few added extras (interviews, extra footage etc), this makes for a worthy addition to any Metallica fans collection.

5 months ago
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Report #882680

MEGADETH That One Night - Live in Buenos Aires

Movie · 2007 · Thrash Metal

martindavey87

It’s an alright DVD, the picture is fine, the sound is fine, the playing is fantastic, the set is fantastic, Mustaine’s vocals are a bit naff, but in fairness I’ve never really thought he sounded too good live anyway. The main feature is about 90 minutes long, and interspersed with random clips of Mustaine and Drover playing acoustically. It’s watchable, but a little disjointed. Overall, this release is simply “good”. It’s not mind-blowing, but it’s worth watching, and certainly if you’re a fan, then it’s nice to own. I think previous live DVD ‘Rude Awakening’ is much better though, and has more extras on it too. And what is up with the cover?

6 months ago
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Report #882633

MEGADETH Megadeth - VH-1 Behind the Music Extended

Movie · 2001 · Thrash Metal

martindavey87

The Megadeth episode of VH1’s ‘Behind the Music’ series is pretty much exactly what it says it is; a look at the history of one of heavy metal’s most beloved bands. The VH1 name gives this a bit more credibility and authenticity than your typical unofficial band biography, and as such, this features interviews with band members past and present, as well as other people associated with the band at one point or another.

Looking candidly at Dave Mustaine’s expulsion from Metallica, the bands early days and their later attempts to break into mainstream territory, as well as Mustaine’s endless battles with addictions, other than being a bit outdated now, (being released in 2001), this is overall a very interesting watch, and a worthy addition to any Megadeth fan’s collection.