SLAYER - REIGN IN BLOOD ALBUM REVIEW

 

A hipster’s worst nightmare, a true metalhead’s paradise - 100%

By EnvenomedThunder666, November 23rd, 2020

In the series of me ranting about how much I love metal, we have arrived at the classic album that started the hell raising in my putrid mind. Slayer is definitely the most important band for me when it came to getting into metal and they will always be one of my favorite bands of all time. I’m an absolute Slayer geek and it’s pretty clear. My nostalgia for this album and Slayer in general is far too extensive to fit into one paragraph, but I’ll put it all as bluntly as possible. Out of the many metal albums that have influenced me as a musician and a songwriter over the years, Reign In Blood is by far the album that has stuck with me for the longest time. I still vividly remember the first time my young ears heard Tom’s iconic “Angel Of Death” screech and being absolutely blown away. I had heard Metallica before Slayer as a kid, but Slayer are who really proved to me that metal was something that I was gonna be into for a long time. Slayer at that time felt like a freight train filled with napalm hit my ears at 1000 miles per hour. Tom’s deliverance of “ENTER TO THE REALM OF SATAN!” on Altar Of Sacrifice proved to my 12-year-old brain that you can make such a basic line sound so devastating. Not to mention nailing “Raining Blood” back on Guitar Hero 3 for the first time was one of the most satisfying feelings of my life. With nostalgia covered, I present to all of you wonderful folks an essay on why Reign In Blood is in fact NOT overrated, from the ashes of my repulsion filled soul.

Songwriting and song structural wise, Reign In Blood never ceases to satisfy me. Right off the bat, “Angel Of Death”, the controversial and brutally honest tale of the holocaust, begins the lyrical massacre with a fistful of steel. I really love how a lot of the songs on the album feel incomplete from one another, especially the infamous combo of “Postmortem” and “Raining Blood” as well as the bludgeoning combo of blows to all that is holy “Altar Of Sacrifice” and “Jesus Saves”, because it forces everyone to listen to the entire album if they want to get the full experience. Jeff and Kerry have absolutely phenomenal chemistry and they are both great songwriters who have their own style of writing haunting lyrics. Jeff specializes on the gritty war and social lyrics, while Kerry specializes on the horror fantasies and anti-christian songs. “Piece By Piece” is a fine example of how well Kerry specializes in the gore obsessed lyrical content approach, and his riffs are bone crushingly fast in addition. Despite the song only being 2 minutes long, not a second is wasted in ripping everyone’s fucking head off. The same applies to the following track "Necrophobic". “Altar Of Sacrifice” and “Jesus Saves” are a menacing combo of hostility, the first song obviously being a satanic anthem and the latter being a devastating blow to all that is holy. The following track “Criminally Insane” is a first person story about a serial killer: “Epidemic” is self-explanatory, and you could even argue that Slayer predicted 2020 with the song. “Postmortem” is a song once again spoken in first person, this time however about dying, and what the afterlife has in store for the deceased soul. And of course, I shall not rant about Slayer and not talk about the band’s most career defining and most popular song, “Raining Blood”. Everyone who’s ever listened to metal in their life knows this song, but not too many people look at it in-depth from start to finish. Written musically by Jeff and lyrically by Kerry, the song is an antichristian barrage of terror, telling a fantasized story about a genocide of a group of souls who are in a purgatory, and it finalizes on it’s aftermath. Tom’s performance on the album closing line “Raining blood from a lacerated sky, breeding its horror, creating my structure, now I shall reign in blood!” pretty much sums up what Slayer as a band are all about in just one sentence. They take no prisoners and slay anything in their path.

There’s no doubt that there’s plenty of high-speed, razor-sharp aggressive instrumentation all throughout this monstrosity. The guitar solos are infamously messy and over the top fast, but in my opinion they fit the chaotic tone of the albums perfectly, and the iconic and super headbang-able thrashing riffs totally make up for the sloppiness of the solos. Some of the solos actually serve a good purpose in addition to the madness, especially on “Criminally Insane” where the solo turns into demented whammy bar madness towards the end. No matter what all the annoying contrarian hipster “metalheads” try to say I’ll always back that up. And of course, Dave Lombardo is one of the best fucking drummers of all time and this album shows what he is capable of. So many rapid fire machine gun skank beats and double bass blasting is present and the fills make the already insanely over the top songs even more crushingly intense. The previously mentioned dual track musical piece of carnage “Postmortem” and “Raining Blood” is where the tempos become less predictable and the songs get slightly longer, but the furious attitude and catchy riffs remain in prominence. Hell, “Raining Blood” contains arguably the most recognize-able metal riff ever written.

You may be asking yourself “why on earth are you reviewing Reign In Blood, everyone and their grandma has reviewed Slayer before! Why don’t you review *insert crappy obscure black metal album or awful contrarian worshipped album here* instead?” which is a question I often get from imbecilc contrarians who think liking Limp Bizkit makes their taste free from pretentiousness. The answer is simply the fact there’s still so much to talk about that most metalheads would either willingly ignore or try to debunk, despite all that has already been covered about this classic. Besides, I would rather review a timeless masterpiece with tons of coverage then an abysmal fluke with no coverage any day of the week.

“Oh my god Slayer is so overrated bro Infant Annihilator and Signs Of The Swarm and *insert awful generic overproduced slam band here* are so much heavier and betterrrr!!!!111” Well, sorry to break it to you, inexperienced deathcore kid with a lack of functioning brain cells and an extraordinarily underdeveloped taste, but pig squealing and generic chugging riffs with obviously programmed and overproduced production with horribly pretentious and cringeworthy lyrics does NOT translate to heavy music, LET ALONE quality music. You wanna know what defines quality music? Superb and impactful songwriting, razor-sharp yet intense and aggressive musicianship, catchy riffs, verses, and choruses, memorable songs that keep you coming back after each listen, which ends up creating a replay value that’s through the roof high. Try listening to music that isn’t made by computers for once in your life and you’ll learn to appreciate rawness.

“All slayer songs are just random fast notes being played super fast” sure thing, ignorant thrash kid who endlessly worships Anthrax and Vio-lence as if their music is anything more than painfully dull and generic thrash that you only talk about because your self-righteous contrarian mind doesn’t want to appreciate bands that are highly beloved and respected. You can’t handle music that never slows down or loses it’s intensity? Then go listen to the obnoxious hippie alternative bands that RYM users worship and get the hell out of the metal community, you puny pretentious hipster. Metal fans like myself have had enough of hipsterism in our community and we don’t want you here. Ugh, sorry about that, I hate people. I just HAD to get my pent-up irritation off my chest, back to the actual review.

The cover art for Reign In Blood is quite intriguing and quite notable for this review, considering how immensely it depicts the lyrical content. Painted by Australian painter Larry Carroll (R.I.P 1954 - 2019). The artwork is a visual representation of multiple songs from the album. “Raining Blood” being the most obvious of the bunch, as the album artwork features lost souls being trapped in a purgatory breaking free and proceeding to cause a morbid massacre in heaven. The artwork is also the band’s depiction of hell, as evidenced by the goat headed satan performing a nazi salute and being carried on a throne by morbid angels, which is possibly a reference to “Angel Of Death”. The demons are surrounded by waves of blood and fire, and severed heads on top of impaled bodies surrounding the carnage, representing the fast, aggressive, overtly satanic and anti-christian anthems that are “Altar Of Sacrifice” and “Jesus Saves”. These songs, the intense artwork, and the major label promotion of this album in 1986 resulted in a massive spike in popularity and critical acclaim for the band, and it all resulted in Slayer’s cultural impact. They became one of the most worshipped, idolized, and influential metal bands of all time and they deserve every single piece of it.

In my eyes, there are 5 aspects of a metal album that truly define whether an album is great, let alone a masterpiece. Rawness, hostility, memorability, speed, and bold, groundbreaking intention. Slayer knocked all 5 of those categories WAY out of the park in 1986 with Reign In Blood and no matter what, I will never get tired of listening to Reign In Blood or Slayer in general. What’s crazy about this entire review is that you’d expect this to be my favorite Slayer record (unless you know me better), but if you did, you’d be mistaken! I like Hell Awaits just a smidge more musically, although impact wise Reign easily takes the cake. My multi paragraph long thoughts on Haunting The Chapel and Hell Awaits are for different reviews, but either way, R.I.P Slayer, R.I.P Jeff, R.I.P Larry, and hail Slayer for the rest of the crypts of eternity!

Highlights: Angel Of Death, Piece By Piece, Altar Of Sacrifice, Jesus Saves, Criminally Insane, Epidemic, Postmortem, and Raining Blood

Track List  : 

1. Angel of Death
2. Piece by Piece
3. Necrophobic
4. Altar of Sacrifice
5. Jesus Saves
6. Criminally Insane
7. Reborn
8. Epidemic
9. Postmortem
10. Raining Blood

Line Up :

Dave Lombardo Drums

Tom Araya Vocals, Bass

Jeff Hanneman (R.I.P. 2013) Guitars (lead), Lyrics (tracks 1, 3, 6, 9, 10), Songwriting (tracks 1, 3-10)

Kerry King Guitars (lead), Lyrics (tracks 2-8, 10), Songwriting (tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 8)

***Disclaimer*** 

I do not own any copyright for any of this material!

Copyright belongs to Slayer and Def Jam Recordings! 

Purchase your remastered copy today!

SLAYER - REIGN IN BLOOD FULL ALBUM 

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SLAYER - HELL AWAITS ALBUM REVIEW

 

Slayer's Masterpiece, They Never Topped This - 100%

By ThrashFanatic, April 25th, 2018

Written based on this version: 2004, CD, Metal Blade Records (Reissue, Remastered,, US)

In my last review, I discussed how much I enjoyed Slayer's classic debut record, "Show No Mercy". That was a awesome slab of thrash, but THIS is just on a whole new level! Slayer's follow-up "Hell Awaits" certainly raised the bar higher than it could go, with even more Mercyful Fate influence and stronger songwriting. The riffs are more varied, and Tom Araya's vocals are even more dark and sinister than the previous record. In my eyes, this is Slayer's undisputed masterpiece, and one that would never be topped.

The production is even more grittier and more evil sounding than "Show No Mercy". The atmosphere is truly diabolical, very dark and hellish. The guitar tone perfectly captures this imagery, with Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman's razor sharp riffs and solos. Tom Araya's bass is audible as audible can be, this is how you mix the bass on a record! His bass lines shine throughout, and they are amazing. Araya has always been one of my favorite thrash bassists. His vocal performance here is the best vocal performance he has ever done on any Slayer record. His vocals resemble that of a tortured soul suffering the most barbaric torture imaginable! Dave Lombardo is amazing as usual, with his lightning fast drumming and creative fills. You also can't forget his remarkable double bass!

As for the record itself, the opening begins the whole listening experience with some of the most demonic voices played backwards. These voices if played backwards continue to repeat "Join us". Then, a voice resembling that of Satan himself proclaims "WELCOME BACK". The chaotic riffing of "Hell Awaits" soon follows, and Araya's barks out the vocals with rapid fire intensity. The title track is truly a classic, easily in the top 5 Slayer tracks of all time. The voice that growls "HELL AWAITS" is quite possibly the beginnings of death metal.

My favorite track on this record however is the creepy "At Dawn They Sleep" which is about vampires, this song from what I can recall is Dave Lombardo's personal favorite Slayer song. The opening is as creepy as creepy gets. The haunting melody then leads into amazing riffs, and this section of the song is quite possibly the best example of Araya's bass talents. The solos on this track in particular are the best solos Hanneman and King have ever done. This track is essential listening. "Necrophiliac" has some incredible riffs, especially during the opening. I have always thought this track was a precursor to "Necrophobic" from "Reign In Blood". Anyways, this is a awesome track too!

This record is by far Slayer's most ambitious and progressive. I really wish Slayer did more albums like this, because this easily blows away any of their later stuff with maybe the exception of "Reign In Blood". The song structures are complex, the riffs are heavy, the solos are varied and aren't just whammy bar wankery, the bass is audible, the Araya's vocals are at their peak, and Lombardo's drumming is on point. These 7 tracks will drag you through the fiery depths of hell, I highly recommend this to fans of Venom, Mercyful Fate, Exodus, Dark Angel, and Exumer.

Track List  :

1. Hell Awaits
2. Kill Again
3. At Dawn They Sleep
4. Praise of Death
5. Necrophiliac
6. Crypts of Eternity
7. Hardening of the Arteries

Line Up  :

Kerry King Guitars, Songwriting (tracks 1, 2, 4, 6), Lyrics (tracks 1-3, 5, 6)

Jeff Hanneman (R.I.P. 2013) Guitars, Songwriting (tracks 1-3, 5-7), Lyrics (tracks 3-7)

Tom Araya Vocals, Bass, Lyrics (tracks 3, 6)

Dave Lombardo Drums

***Disclaimer*** 

I do not own any copyright for any of this material!

Copyright belongs to Slayer Metal Blade Recordings! 

Purchase your remastered copy today!

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SLAYER - SHOW NO MERCY ALBUM REVIEW

 

Heavy metal distilled into liquid obsidian--the cruel truth!

By GTO26, December 20th, 2020

Show No Mercy has a lot of things going for it--the songs are well written, well rehearsed, and considering the previous Slayer material it's clear that the band had a strong ethos of quality over quantity and what kind of songs needed to be written. It's situated perfectly between the plethora of heavy metal and hard rock influences to pull from and right on the cusp of the extreme metal blowout that Slayer would have a massive hand in bringing up. In addition, it's got enough speed to that even though it's retroactive we may finally use the descriptor "speed metal" to describe the metal contained within. For the occultic, Satanic freaks--it's finally the heavy metal album that actually FEELS like Satan worship this side of Venom. You thought Link Wray and Little Richard were selling Satan to children, Mr. Preacher?...it's time to face the Slayer.

One hallmark of a famed heavy metal album--and one as powerful as Show No Mercy--is that when brought up in crowds, and asked what the favorite song is, there's a plethora of answers. Some people prefer the gang-shouted ritual worship of "Evil Has No Boundaries," others prefer the mid-paced breakdown of "Die by the Sword," some prefer the catchy night stalker vibe of "Tormentor," and even some love the mid-paced, fist-pumping "Crionics," I settled on 100%--and probably the only album I'll ever call 100%--because I looked at every track and new that in some way each one held its purpose, each one deserved its place on the album, and even ones like "The Final Command" that seem out of place for the first twenty all of a sudden stamp out the tempo and riffs in a way still not yet demonstrated by the album. By the time the album is over--Slayer has never last place, showing something new on every track.

Show No Mercy is pure power, a resident of its time, and a template for apprentices that wish to worship at the altar of metal. The best part of it--there's so much meat to take, it's fair enough to say that some of the potential of Show No Mercy is still untapped to this day. It can't be imitated, because it was already made so.

Track List  :

1. Evil has No Boundaries 
2. The Antichrist 
3. Die by the Sword 
4. Fight till Death 
5. Metal Storm / Face the Slayer 
6. Black Magic 
7. Tormentor 
8. The Final Command 
9. Crionics
10. Show No Mercy 

LIne Up  :

Tom Araya Vocals, Bass

Jeff Hanneman (R.I.P. 2013) Guitars, Songwriting (tracks 2-9), Lyrics (tracks 1-4, 7, 9)

Kerry King Guitars, Songwriting (tracks 1, 2, 5, 6, 8-10), Lyrics (tracks 1, 5, 6, 8-10)

Dave Lombardo Drums

***Disclaimer*** 

I do not own any copyright for any of this material!

Copyright belongs to Slayer Metal Blade Recordings! 

Purchase your remastered copy today!

SLAYER - SHOW NO MERCY FULL ALBUM 

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SLAYER

 

In January 2018 the band announced it would embark on its final world tour, which began that May and ended in November 2019; the band is not breaking up but will not perform live anymore. Despite being referred to as a farewell tour for Slayer, their manager Rick Sales has stated that the band is not breaking up, but has no intention of ever performing live again. Kristen Mulderig, who works with Rick Sales Entertainment Group, has also been quoted as saying that there would be Slayer-related activities following the tour's conclusion.

Not to be confused with Texas power metal band S.A. Slayer, who was initially known as Slayer.

Slayer was formed in 1981 by Los Angeles schoolmates and guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. Tom Araya soon joined on bass and vocals, and drummer Dave Lombardo joined last in 1982. They played in a style reminiscent of early Exodus, influenced heavily by Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, before their attendance at a mid-1982 Metallica concert convinced them to play faster and heavier.

"Black Magic" was written in February 1983 and marked Slayer's definite venture into thrash metal. They secured a spot on the compilation appearance Metal Massacre III in 1983, contributing the speed metal song "Aggressive Perfector". They also recorded two demos in 1983 and became a popular live act in the Los Angeles area (in 1983, Bob Gourley filled in for Dave for one gig and later appeared in Dark Angel). Their debut LP, Show no Mercy, was recorded in November, 1983.

Show No Mercy was released after Slayer appeared on Brian Slagel's Metal Massacre III compilation. Then came the two EPs Haunting the Chapel and Live Undead, the latter of which was actually recorded in the studio in front of 50 of their closest friends.

After 1985's Hell Awaits, Slayer were signed to Rick Rubins Def Jam record label, better known for acts like Run DMC. This led to three studio albums, including the brutal Reign in Blood, as well as a 1991 live double CD, Decade of Aggression.

Dave Lombardo left the band in 1987 for several weeks and was replaced for a few live gigs by Tony Scaglione (Whiplash), and then again left in 1992. Finally, in 1994, Paul Bostaph from Forbidden was brought in and three more albums were recorded. Drummer Jon Dette was an official member of Slayer briefly in 1996.

In 2001, Bostaph left to join Systematic. Lombardo, who had been in Grip Inc. and Fantômas, rejoined the band.

While both have sometimes been reported, the band was never known as Dragonslayer, and Slayer is not an acronym for 'Satan Laughs As You Eternally Rot', even though those words appeared on the first vinyl pressing of Show No Mercy between the grooves of the record (known as dead wax) and the paper label in the middle.

Slayer Discography

Show No Mercy Full-length 1983

Live Undead Live album 1984

Hell Awaits Full-length 1985

Reign in Blood Full-length 1986

South of Heaven Full-length 1988

Seasons in the Abyss Full-length 1990

Decade of Aggression Live album 1991

Divine Intervention Full-length 1994

Undisputed Attitude Full-length 1996

Übernoise Compilation 1998  

Diabolus in Musica Full-length 1998

God Hates Us All Full-length 2001

Soundtrack to the Apocalypse Compilation 2003

Christ Illusion Full-length 2006

World Painted Blood Full-length 2009

The Vinyl Conflict Boxed set 2010  

Repentless Full-length 2015

The Repentless Killogy (Live at the Forum in Inglewood, CA) Live album 2019  

 

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ANTHRAX - FOR THE KINGS ALBUM REVIEW

 

Anthrax continue their resurgence with a career highlight 

By DerekB2323, January 5th, 2021

Written based on this version: 2016, CD, Nuclear Blast

For All Kings is one of Anthrax's best albums.

No qualifiers. No addendums. No bullshit. This is a classy, powerful release from a veteran band who, after a long drought, are experiencing a genuine career resurgence. For All Kings incorporates elements from their entire musical history into a perfectly balanced version of their sound, and the fact that it has some of their best songwriting only solidifies its place near the top of their catalog.

So what's so good about it? A few specific things, but also something general—the record has an intangibly large feeling. It feels big. It feels grandiose. It feels supremely confident, which is especially gratifying coming from Anthrax. After years of unsure releases in which they seemed to be trying to sound like other bands, it feels like Anthrax has rediscovered themselves. It feels like they've finally embraced who they are and their place in the history of metal. And that's a good thing, because few bands do this particular style as well as Anthrax.

For All Kings begins with a fury in "You Gotta Believe," a blistering thrasher in which we're treated to Scott Ian's tight riffing and Charlie Benante's driving rhythms. When these two lock in, it's thrash perfection. From there, the pace slows down a bit, but the songwriting is strong enough to maintain the momentum. The title track "For All Kings" is a gorgeous metal song, with escalating thrash riffs that build up to one of the biggest choruses Anthrax has ever written. "Breathing Lightning" comes in next as the clear "single" and centerpiece of the album. Often in thrash, the "single" just means "the boring money-grabbing song," but again, the songwriting here is good enough to more than carry the load. It's a perfectly catchy and classy kind of accessible metal single.

The second half of the record is where things get more interesting musically. "Suzerain" features a chugging riff that feels more "modern metal" than the rest of the record, but things storm back into more familiar territory with "Evil Twin." Anthrax's years of writing more melodic music really benefit their return to thrasher material, as they can apply those melodic sensibilities to that old thrash template. The result is songs like "Evil Twin" and the aforementioned "You Gotta Believe," vicious thrashers that include enormous hooks. It's a beautiful thing.

"Blood Eagle Wings" is a massive, sprawling song that explores a lot of different dynamics, and later, the album closes with a pair of gems. "This Battle Chose Us" features a huge chorus that's impossible to NOT sing at the top of your lungs, and "Zero Tolerance" closes things with some of the album's thrashiest riffs.

If you're able to sideline your nostalgia and judge it based on its merits, For All Kings easily tops records like State of Euphoria and Persistence of Time. No kidding. The songs are more memorable, the music is more ambitious, the performances are tighter and the skippable tracks that interrupted the flow of their earlier records are largely absent here. It's not quite at the level of Among the Living or Spreading the Disease, but For All Kings is shockingly good for a band this late in their career. Bravo, Anthrax, and congrats on taking back the throne.

Songs to check out: You Gotta Believe, For All Kings, Evil Twin

Track List  :

1. Impaled

2. You Gotta Believe

3. Monster at the End

4. For All Kings

5. Breathing Lightning

6. Breathing Out

7. Suzerain

8. Evil Twin

9. Blood Eagle Wings

10. Defend / Avenge

11. All of Them Thieves

12. This Battle Chose Us

13. Zero Tolerance

LIne Up  :

Scott Ian Guitars, Vocals (backing)

Charlie Benante Drums, Percussion, Guitars, Guitars (acoustic)

Frank Bello Bass, Vocals (backing)

Joey Belladonna Vocals

Jonathan Donais Guitars (lead), Vocals (backing)

***Disclaimer*** 

I do not own any copyright for any of this material!

Copyright belongs to Anthrax  and Megaforce Recordings! 

Purchase your remastered copy today!

  ANTHRAX - FOR THE KINGS  FULL ALBUM 

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ANTHRAX - WORSHIP MUSIC ALBUM REVIEW

 

Worship Anthrax - 90%

ViciousFriendlyFish, December 2nd, 2013

With Joey Belladonna deciding not to stick around after the band's 2005-2007 reunion tour, most fans were left in doubt as to whether he would record an album with Anthrax again. This album began life in 2008 when the band had new vocalist Dan Nelson in their ranks. However, there were obviously problems between Nelson and the rest of the band and by the next year, he was out. They went back to their other old singer, John Bush, and together they carried on touring, and it made fans speculate as to whether he would be the singer for Worship Music. However, Bush simply didn't want to commit to it and decided to leave again, which opened the door for Belladonna to return. Soon, it became pretty clear that Belladonna would be the singer, and this decision was certainly no mis-step.

This albums finds the bands revisiting their old thrash metal roots, yet does not sound like a rip-off of their classic albums. However, the band sounds more metal here than they had in many years, with their Bush albums generally having more of a straightforward rock feel. I'm a fan of Bush-era Anthrax and did appreciate those albums, but it's great to see Belladonna reunited with his old bandmates and making some great, heavy music together. It's a reunion album that sure doesn't suck.

The album's lyrical themes vary, but there's still definitely a theme running across: a celebration of metal. The album title and artwork alone strongly alludes to it, as well as references to metal bands in some song lyrics. "In The End" is an emotional tribute to fallen rockers Dimebag Darrell and Ronnie James Dio - now the band were especially affected by Dimebag's loss due to his work with the band on previous albums, providing additional solos, and was even referred to by band members as the sixth member of the group. The song is one of the best on the album. Belladonna's vocals are melodic and strong, and the band are tight. "Judas Priest" is...well, it's kind of obvious from the title - a tribute to the metal band Judas Priest! There are references to several Priest songs throughout. Another epic. In keeping with the metal celebration, there is an instrumental intro titled "Worship" and two "Hymns" that serve as musical interludes. When the track listing was revealed, I was a little worried that the band would be going overboard with the whole worship music theme with these tracks and that they would resemble a church meeting, but with heavy metal as the religion. Thankfully, when I listened to the album upon its release, I was proved wrong. This instrumentals serve as nice introductions for the track that follows.

The band's general attitude shines through well throughout. "Fight 'Em Til' You Can't" on the surface is a song about killing zombies, but is also, in Scott Ian's own words "a metaphor for out attitude" and that sounds just about right. The band has had to fight through a lot of obstacles in their career such as lineup changes and record label shutdowns, and they've sure come out on top. Many great metal songs are about protests and taking back what's yours, and Anthrax has songs like that on here, too. "Earth on Hell" and "Revolution Screams" are anthems that have apocalyptic undertones; they speak of the fall of empires and oppressive powers and the rise of a free world. And of course, Anthrax were inspired by books, films, and TV back in the day, and this tradition is carried on in "The Constant", which was inspired by the TV show "Lost". I'm sure "Lost" fans will certainly appreciate the lyrics on this one.

Stepping away from the faster songs ("Earth on Hell", "Fight 'Em", "The Giant") is the slow moving, menacing "Crawl". It's the first time we've really heard Belladonna sing a downbeat Anthrax song, and it's quite new to hear him sing in a lower register like he does here for some parts, but also rather refreshing.

Overall, fans should not feel much disappointment from Worship Music, if any. The band play very well and are just as fast, heavy and full of attitude as they always have been. Belladonna's voice has become a little deeper with age but if anything, this fits in well with the material on the album, perhaps more so than if his voice sounded exactly the same as it did in the 80s, yet it's still undeniably Belladonna's voice. The album has so many memorable moments and it does heavy metal a lot of justice, giving us a reminder that there are great things still to come from Anthrax.

Track List  :

1. Worship 
2. Earth on Hell 
3. The Devil You Know 
4. Fight 'em 'til You Can't 
5. I'm Alive 
6. Hymn 1 
7. In the End 
8. The Giant 
9. Hymn 
10. Judas Priest 
11. Crawl 
12. The Constant
13. Revolution Screams 
14. New Noise (Refused cover) 

Line Up  :

Frank Bello Bass, Vocals (backing)

Scott Ian Guitars, Vocals (backing)

Charlie Benante Drums, Guitars (electric, acoustic)

Joey Belladonna Vocals

Rob Caggiano Guitars

***Disclaimer*** 

I do not own any copyright for any of this material!

Copyright belongs to Anthrax  and Megaforce Recordings! 

Purchase your remastered copy today!

ANTHRAX - WORSHIP MUSIC FULL ALBUM 

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ANTHRAX - THE GREATER OF TWO EVILS ALBUM REVIEW

 

A more modern take on Anthrax's thrash classics. 

By Beyond_Recognition, January 13th, 2011

Back in 2004, Anthrax was celebrating the 20 year anniversary of the release of their debut album "Fistful of Metal." The anniversary celebration included the release of the "Music of Mass Destruction" live album, and this album "The Greater of Two Evils": a live in the studio re-recording of many of Anthrax's most famous songs from their classic thrash era.

I have read a number of reviews of this album over the years and the general consensus has been the same since this album came out. The John Bush fans like this album and the Joey Belladonna fans slam it and call it pointless. Being a fan of both singers and both eras of Anthrax, I feel this album is almost a best of both worlds...

With "The Greater of Two Evils" (referred to as TGOTE from here on) the songs stay relatively faithful to the original versions. The only differences are that the verse sections of Deathrider are slowed down to half tempo and songs such as "I Am The Law" and "Caught in a Mosh" are very slightly slowed down (albeit still very thrashy and certainly not overly slow). However, a few songs including "Panic" and "Gung Ho" manage to bring the intensity to a much higher level than the original versions ever were. Thus, I feel that in terms of speed, heaviness, and other musical/instrumental factors, many song differences tend to even each other out as the album plays it itself through.

Song differences aside, this album was obviously meant to showcase the best of Anthrax's early material with a more updated modern production. The result is highly successful as the songs recorded for this album sound extremely punchy, defined, clear, and thick. In my opinion, this is possibly the best production job of any Anthrax album to date. The guitars are powerful, the bass guitar is mixed well and audible, the drums are not overly powerful but still solid, and the vocals fit nicely among all the instruments.

This album was also meant to give Anthrax fans of the 90's and 2000's period a chance to hear studio renditions of the older songs with John Bush on vocals. Again, I feel the result is successful as John makes the songs almost sound like they were wrote with his voice in mind. His voice is melodic, but in deeper, more baritone fashion, which lends a more unique and different character each and every song recorded for this album in comparison to their original versions.

In terms of the other members, I feel they put in a strong performance as well considering that these tracks were recorded in live takes with likely few to no overdubs. Scott Ian and Rob Caggiano tear through each song adequately and even though one can hear a few hiccups, string noises, and other sounds associated with live metal, it all only adds to organic feel of this recording. Though some of Rob's solos do not follow the exact template of Dan Spitz's solos on the original versions of the songs, I feel that Rob's improvisation is very tasteful and executed quite convincingly. Elsewhere, Frank Bello and Charlie Benante do not miss a beat on the bass guitar and drums respectively. Charlie in particular puts in a stunning performance on the drums and proves that he is still one of metal's elite drummers even in the present day.

Still, the majority of old school Anthrax fans do not seem to enjoy this album one bit. I'm not one to push my opinions or say that others opinions are wrong. Instead I will say that as a 14 year old youngster just beginning the journey of learning to play metal guitar when TGOTE was released, I was inspired to play faster, heavier, and more aggressively after just one listen to this album. Yes, I already knew a few of the songs from their previous versions and respected them for what they were, but when I heard these versions, I knew that I needed to practice my playing for a long time to match the performances on this album. Years later, I appreciate the original versions of these songs much more and have come to like and admire them very much. To this day however, when I pop in TGOTE, I still get that feeling I had as a 14 year old hearing this album for the first time.

So overall, my opinion on this album is that is a classic, even if it is only re-recordings of old songs. TGOTE does not replace the original song versions recorded in the late 80's and early 90's, but I believe the versions here stand on their own and are great in their own right. So for anyone on the fence about checking out this album if you have heard the original versions, keep an open mind about this record. Yes, it sounds different and maybe very different at times, especially vocally. However, if you are a general metal fan with an interest in thrash metal, I think you will like this album. Scott Ian's linear notes in the album indicate that this album was released to give older ears a reminder of the golden age of thrash as well as give newer ears a chance to hear it for the first time. Figuratively for this reviewer, I'd say that this album did just that!

So, in closing I give this album a 95 rating. The only -5 about it comes from the production end. Yes, I said the production is well done. However, some static and clipping is audible on TGOTE due the loud mastering that has become all too common in modern metal releases. I'm hoping to someday hear a version of this album mastered with a lower volume in order to hear more dynamics and rich sound quality. Otherwise, this album is rock solid in my opinion!

Track List  :

1. Deathrider 
2. Metal Thrashing Mad 
3. Caught in a Mosh 
4. A.I.R. 
5. Among the Living
6. Keep It in the Family
7. Indians
8. Madhouse 
9. Panic
10. I Am the Law 
11. Belly of the Beast
12. N.F.L.
13. Be All End All 
14. Gung-Ho 

Line Up  :

Charlie Benante Drums

Scott Ian Guitars (rhythm), Vocals, Guitars (lead) (on "Panic", "Anthrax")

Frank Bello Bass, Vocals (backing)

Rob Caggiano Guitars (lead)

John Bush Vocals

***Disclaimer*** 

I do not own any copyright for any of this material!

Copyright belongs to Anthrax  and Megaforce Recordings! 

Purchase your remastered copy today!

ANTHRAX - THE GREATER OF TWO EVILS 

FULL ALBUM 

( Poor Quality Audio )

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