The 10 Greatest Thrash Albums Of 2016
2015 was a good year for thrash....2016 was arguably even better!
4. Exumer – The Raging Tides
Source // metalblade.com
Exumer’s follow up to their excellent 2012 effort Fire And Damnation (not discounting their fearsome 80’s output of course) was a violent, speed-obsessed lesson in how shockingly effective teutonic thrash can still be.
Tighter than Scrooge’s wallet at christmas, Exumer have rarely sounded this charged, this focused and so capable of thrashing our tits clean off! Ever more frantic rhythms jostled with perfectly pitched solo’s on each and every track with The Raging Tides maintaining a furious pace throughout and once the balls-out crunch of album closer “Death Factory” had stomped you into submission, a new set of lungs once required.
You need to hear: “Catatonic”, highly addictive and showcased Exumer’s knack for writing the most criminally effective thrash songs we’d heard in an age!
3. Testament – Brotherhood Of The Snake
Outstanding musicianship and rousing tunes from another of thrash’s original titans, who unbelievably sounded stronger and tighter than ever.
A brotherhood of thrash led by Chuck Billy (still the finest vocalist in thrash) and one of the genre’s greatest ever guitar tag teams (Alex Skolnik & Eric Petersen), Brotherhood Of The Snake struck harder and faster than bands half Testament’s age!
As expected, the most reliable thrash band in existence (not one bad album, right!) stepped up to the plate and unleashed hell once again. We’d expect nuthin’ less.
You need to hear: “The Pale King”, those verses are beyond catchy, they’re positively venereal! Another sublime vocal performance from Chuck Billy!
2. Anthrax – For All Kings
Perhaps the least ‘thrashy’ album on this list, For All Kings was still Anthrax at their finest, Joey Belladonna now fully enconsed at the helm and delivering his greatest vocal performance since those heady days back in the 80’s!
Anthrax have been at this game long enough to know that speed is not the be all and end all (pun completely intended) and there was a grinding malevolence to the music – alongside a political edge – that harkened back to their classic album, Persistence Of Time.
“Breathing Lightning” may have been to AOR for some, but it proved that Anthrax’s songwriting credentials were still never in question and Anthrax were in the mood for delivering a melodic thrash masterclass.
Mission accomplished.
You need to hear: “Evil Twin”, a foot-stomping modern melodic classic from a thrash institution! Plus, that breakdown…sweet!
No Hobbs Angel of Death?
Afraid not….good but not great. Thanks for reading and commenting! \m/
No Vektor? Really?
Vektor are going to pop up in our prog metal best of 2016…haven’t forgotten them, honest! \m/
Ever listen to any band formed in the last 20 years?
How is it possible to overlook Vektor’s “Terminal Redux”?! Hands down one of the, if not *the*, best Thrash releases of 2016.
It seems to me some people like to pretend nothing new is being done.
Yes, just look at our reviews section….all new material from outstanding bands. See above re. Vektor. Not forgotten, just falls into a different sub-genre for us \m/
I have all these albums love em to! Not bad for a 40 yr old metal head! \m/
You have fine taste sir!
Nice list. I like new Metal Church, Exumer and Death Angel. Testament and Anthrax also put a solid albums. As for Metallica i am not a fan but few songs are pretty catchy. As for album that i miss in the list is Decision Day from Sodom. To me the best thrash album in 2016.
Sodom were included in the honourable mentions at the bottom…just couldn’t squeeze it in! Thanks for the kind words and for reading and commenting \m/
I think Suicidal Angels – Division Of Blood deserves a mention too… Solid trash!
Cracking suggestion! A great album…may crop up in a future feature \m/
Helstar deserves mention as power/thrash, shit if more power metal albums released gems as dark and vicious as this, I might be more of a fan!! Still, when you mention Megadeth’s new one is no “Rust In Peace,” you’re right, but I hear more ideas that were lifted directly from their best of all time “Peace Sells…” All you have to do is listen to some of those songs and if you know Peace Sells front to back, those similarities are hard to miss… Everything from the title track’s (“Peace Sells”‘ title track that is) crunchy lead riffs on ‘Post American World’ to the speedy, blazing wordplay lifted RIGHT from ‘Black Friday’ incorporated on the cut ‘Fatal Illusion.’ Yes, this record borrows HEAVILY from “Peace Sells,” complete with kick ass punk cover (‘Foreign Policy’ is a FEAR cover), like Megadeth always does… YET, this record still retains some individuality as well… Megadeth: always able to create REAL metal better than Metallica has in the last, oh, 25 or so years???
first off if you listen real close any band that has been around for 20 or more years,will from time to time have different music,megadeth imo have all of the music from all albums and like to see what they can do in different music.And,sometimes its not DAVE”S fault that some people dont like it,after all how would we like to eat dry toast and water for 35 years ,variety is it.Im sayin its all great .Its like painting would you paint with just one color or use all the color’s you can find.I cant wait to see how much better the next album with dirk will sound too,variety rock on.
Megadeth and Metal Church have not ever been thrash. Listen to Kreator, Razor, Sodom, etc, those are thrash bands.
Megadeth have never been thrash??? Dave Mustaine invented thrash! I do listen to Kreator, Razor, Sodom etc but 2 of those 3 didn’t release an album in 2016 so their inclusion would be weird, don’t you think?