The ‘Forgotten’ Thrash Albums Of 1986 (Part 1)

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With 1986 often regarded as the greatest year in thrash history, we have decided to cast our eye over the huge number of thrash albums that seem to be overlooked in favour of the likes of Slayer‘s Reign In Blood, Metallica‘s Master Of Puppets, Megadeth’s Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying?, Dark Angel‘s Darkness Descends, Nuclear Assault‘s Game Over, Kreator‘s Pleasure To Kill, Flotsam And Jetsam‘s Doomsday For The Deceiver and Destruction‘s Eternal Devastation etc, etc.

While those aforementioned classic albums of 1986 fully deserve all the endless plaudits sent their way – hell, we’ve waxed lyrical about ’em numerous times over the years – but ’86 was such a pioneering year for the burgeoning thrash scene because of the sheer wealth of quality releases that arrived in just one 12 month period. 1986 saw thrash explode and amongst the also-rans were some exceptional releases that often find themselves cast aside. This list isn’t exhaustive, it’s certainly not ranked in any order and its existence is to simply highlight why 1986 was such an important year for thrash, without resorting to analysing the same ol’ releases.

Sacrifice – Torment In Fire [Canada]

Sacrifice‘s debut (included here due to it’s U.S. Metal Blade release in 1986) was fiendishly evil, brutally effective and pure diabolical mayhem set to music.

Featuring some truly spine-scraping shrieks and riffs that threaten to veer into all out distorted noise, Sacrifice may have been undeniably immature at this stage but there’s no escaping the sheer impact this feral release still posseses.

These Canadian miscreants often sounded more like their unhinged German counterparts than the clinically precise riffing found south of the border. Subsequently, Sacrifice found themselves joining the demented ranks of Destruction, Kreator and Possessed without receiving the same level of exposure. And, while a god-awful production job slightly lessens its impact, Torment In Fire remains an integral stepping stone in thrash metal’s eventual transition to death metal.

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Exumer – Possessed By Fire [Germany]

Exumer‘s Possessed By Fire is a perfectly executed exercise in bestial devastation and should have elevated these Germans to superstar status.

Completely unpredictable, Exumer’s sound is defiantly thrash but not as intimidatingly raw as the albums produced at the time by their peers Destruction, Sodom and Kreator. In fact, at this stage in their career, Exumer were the more accomplished musicians; with each track running the gamut of time changes and mood-swings and exhibiting an addiction to attention deficit that still makes Possessed By Fire nigh on impossible to resist.

A legendary cult item, Exumer’s debut is one outrageously ornate thrash album that will continue to attract new fans, because its schizoid attitude and countless charms are just too damn addictable!

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Mysto Dysto – The Rules Have Been Disturbed [Netherlands]

Dutch thrashers Mysto Dysto may have gone on to become the slightly (but only slightly) more well known Mandator….but it all started here. 

With Peter Meijering’s ridiculous falsetto leading the charge, Mysto Dysto could hardly be accused of subtlety and while The Rules Have Been Disturbed may sound like utter nonsense to uncultured ears, the rest of us are left to revel in Mysto Dysto‘s metal majesty. 

With speed metal freakouts like opener “Power Of The Law” nestling next to the Iron Maiden-influenced semi-ballad “Confused”, The Rules Have Been Disturbed is, ironically, a confusing listen. But then Mysto Dysto were all about fucking with the rules, so this shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise!

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Razor – Malicious Intent [Canada]

Those damn Canadians were fuckin’ unstoppable in ’86!

Razor were hellish brutality and raw thrashing power personified and while Malicious Intent may be a few steps down from the speed-freak genuis of the previous years Evil Invaders, it’s still a barrage of fast and furious thrashing fun!

Sometimes sloppy, sometimes too primitive for it’s own good, but always (always!) attention grabbing, Razor‘s limitations – Dave Carlo’s riffing aside – may be all too obvious but that’s also where Razor excelled; pure balls-to-the-wall fury welded to riff after riff after lacerating riff.

“Turn it up, LOUDER!”

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Angel Dust – Into The Dark Past [Germany]

Before they fully embraced power metal, Germany’s Angel Dust had a pop at thrash and, as debuts go, Into The Dark Past was a fast, frantic, thrill ride!

Resolutely obsessed with speed over finesse, these 8 ripping tracks were less Sodom and Kreator and more Iron Angel; a thrilling hybrid of speed and thrash that was equal parts melody and barbarity.

Romme Keymer’s vocals may have received a bit of stick over the years but they fit the music perfectly. Ugly, forceful, yet furnished with glimpses of power metal harmony, Keymer was actually an unorthodox yet perfect match-up.

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Hirax – Hate, Fear And Power [USA]

Hirax‘s second album was thrash how it was meant to be played – short, sharp and savage.

Marching on from their iconic debut, Hate, Fear and Power was a multi-rhythmic nail bomb; firing off in all directions and causing maximum, head-banging, damage. Thrash undoubtedly burned through to the very core of scene legend Katon W. DePena and his compadres, resulting in a crossover thrash classic that burns just as bright nearly 40 years later.

16 minutes of hate, fear and power….did you expect anything else?!

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Hallows Eve – Death & Insanity [USA]

Dialing down the frantic nature of 1985’s Tales Of Terror (a little), Hallows Eve‘s sophomore effort was a prime slab of power thrash and the finest of their three albums released in the 80’s.

Upping the ante from production to songwriting, all element of Hallows Eve‘s sound were finessed on an album that arrived just a mere year after their debut. Take the scuzzy stomp and aggression of “Lethal Tendencies” as a prime example of their controlled rage….a mid-tempo wrecking ball that’s lost none of its heft!

Hallows Eve may not have been the fastest, they may not have been the heaviest but, with Death & Insanity, they contributed an unsung classic to the scene.

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Exorcist – Nightmare Theatre [USA]

A true cult classic, Nightmare Theatre may have sprung from the mind of David DeFeis (Virgin Steele) but its horror overtones and occult tendencies were far removed from Virgin Steele‘s power metal output.

Like an unholy coupling of Destruction and W.A.S.P, the appeal of Nightmare Theatre lies in its camp 80’s feel and video nasty sensibility that renders it oddly nostalgic whilst still kicking ass with 15 tracks of occult-obsessed noise!

The only Exorcist release (to date) can lay claim to influencing death metal and black metal but needs to be remembered for being one hell of great mid-80’s thrash/speed metal record.

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Flames – Merciless Slaughter [Greece]

Horrific cover art, nasty as fuck sound; Greece’s Flames were an unholy racket of lightning fast trebly riffs and barked vocals….awesome 80’s thrash in other words!

Another record lost in the avalanche of outstanding titles from 1986, Merciless Slaughter still holds up as an intriguing time-capsule from an era when thrash was king and should seriously surprise those yet to hear its delights!

Tupperware drums aside, Flames picked up a (disembodied) head of steam and their dirty raucous sound still packs a killer punch. A cult curio that deserves to be heard!

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Onslaught – The Force [UK]

The first band to truly raise hell in the name of British thrash, Onslaught turned heads with their punk-infused debut, Power From Hell, but it was with 1986’s The Force that they truly announced their arrival in the scene.

The Force was an appropriate title, as Onslaught‘s forceful and vitriolic sound hit you like a ten ton hammer; thrashing harder than most and with as much conviction as the likes of Dark Angel and early Slayer.

Still considered an all-time thrash classic, The Force is probably the most convincing thrash album ever recorded by a British band. Capable of ripping your head clean off, Onslaught were a powerhouse who unleashed a multitude of sinister, stabbing riffs without even breaking a sweat. It all seemed too easy and their place in the thrash elite should have been virtually guaranteed.

That’s Part 1 done, look for Parts 2 & 3 over the coming weeks….there’s plenty more thrash where these bad boys came from!