The AV Club's Heavy Metal Primer

Anthony · 06-30-2009, 09:23 AM

continued

The Essentials:

1. Black Sabbath, Paranoid (1970)

If you don’t have any Sabbath in your record collection, read no further—just go out and get the band’s second album and listen to it all the way through. If it doesn’t convince you of the validity of metal as an art form, nothing will. Any one of Sabbath’s first four albums is a must-own, but Paranoid is probably the strongest overall collection of songs, from the unforgettable “War Pigs” to the impossibly heavy “Iron Man” to the jumpy “Electric Funeral” to the ridiculous—and ridiculously catchy—“Fairies Wear Boots,” it’s a stone classic from beginning to end.

2. Iron Maiden, The Number Of The Beast (1982)

Anyone who wants to know why the new wave of British heavy metal was such a big deal needs look no further than Iron Maiden’s third album—and the first to feature vocalist Bruce ****inson, whose voice is one of the all-time great instruments in rock ’n’ roll. Half the songs on the album (“Invaders,” “The Prisoner,” “Run To The Hills,” and the title track) are instant classics. Clive Burr will never get enough credit for his clever drumwork—he actually makes the drums the catchiest part of many a song—and guitarists Dave Murray and Adrian Smith do some of their best playing here. Maiden’s quality has varied over the years, but on this album, the group sounds like it could take over the world.

3. Slayer, Reign In Blood (1986)

Producer Rick Rubin took liberties with Slayer’s sound on its third album, and the group’s members couldn’t have been happier about it. Kerry King’s wailing guitars stood out like Christ crucified against the blinding speed of the songs, and Rubin wisely brought Dave Lombardo’s astonishingly powerful drumming to the fore. “Angel Of Death” is still eye-gogglingly great 20 years later, but there isn’t a dud track on the entire record. The true birth of extreme metal, and by any estimation, a great leap forward for heavy music.

4. Death, Individual Thought Patterns (1993)

Any number of great Florida death-metal bands could fill this slot—Cynic’s Focus, Atheist’s Unquestionable Presence, or Deicide’s debut album were all fantastic records from around the same time—but those looking to get started in death metal might as well go with Chuck Schuldiner, the father of the whole scene. Individual Thought Patterns finds him sharing the solos for the first time, which opens up Death’s sound substantially and adds whole new levels of complexity to this most intricate of musical subgenres, and the rhythm section of bassist Steve DiGiorgio and drummer Gene Hoglan is one of the greatest team-ups in metal history.

5. Anaal Nathrakh, The Codex Necro (2001)

Britain’s dark master of extreme metal kicked off what has been an amazingly rich decade of metal music with this masterpiece. Its last three records—Eschaton, Hell Is Empty And All The Devils Are Here, and In The Constellation Of The Black Widow—have all been terrific, but it’s unlikely that it’ll ever surpass the raw power, surprising eclecticism, and sheer sonic intensity of its debut album, an unprecedented mix of black metal, death metal, industrial, and grind. Mick Kenney and Dave Hunt haven’t made a bad record yet, but they don’t come much better than The Codex Necro.

almauro · 07-02-2009, 02:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anthony

5. Anaal Nathrakh, The Codex Necro (2001)

Anaal is as extreme as I go. Borderline chaos, they always pull it together before being engulfed by their own madness. As much as I respect Schuldiner, he's not the father of Death Metal per se, but was part of a influential group which consisted of Possessed, Morbid Angel and Sepultura.

06-30-2009, 09:23 AM	#1 (permalink)
Anthony Groupie Join Date: Jun 2009 Posts: 34	continued The Essentials: 1. Black Sabbath, Paranoid (1970) If you don’t have any Sabbath in your record collection, read no further—just go out and get the band’s second album and listen to it all the way through. If it doesn’t convince you of the validity of metal as an art form, nothing will. Any one of Sabbath’s first four albums is a must-own, but Paranoid is probably the strongest overall collection of songs, from the unforgettable “War Pigs” to the impossibly heavy “Iron Man” to the jumpy “Electric Funeral” to the ridiculous—and ridiculously catchy—“Fairies Wear Boots,” it’s a stone classic from beginning to end. 2. Iron Maiden, The Number Of The Beast (1982) Anyone who wants to know why the new wave of British heavy metal was such a big deal needs look no further than Iron Maiden’s third album—and the first to feature vocalist Bruce **inson, whose voice is one of the all-time great instruments in rock ’n’ roll. Half the songs on the album (“Invaders,” “The Prisoner,” “Run To The Hills,” and the title track) are instant classics. Clive Burr will never get enough credit for his clever drumwork—he actually makes the drums the catchiest part of many a song—and guitarists Dave Murray and Adrian Smith do some of their best playing here. Maiden’s quality has varied over the years, but on this album, the group sounds like it could take over the world. 3. Slayer, Reign In Blood (1986) Producer Rick Rubin took liberties with Slayer’s sound on its third album, and the group’s members couldn’t have been happier about it. Kerry King’s wailing guitars stood out like Christ crucified against the blinding speed of the songs, and Rubin wisely brought Dave Lombardo’s astonishingly powerful drumming to the fore. “Angel Of Death” is still eye-gogglingly great 20 years later, but there isn’t a dud track on the entire record. The true birth of extreme metal, and by any estimation, a great leap forward for heavy music. 4. Death, Individual Thought Patterns (1993) Any number of great Florida death-metal bands could fill this slot—Cynic’s Focus, Atheist’s Unquestionable Presence, or Deicide’s debut album were all fantastic records from around the same time—but those looking to get started in death metal might as well go with Chuck Schuldiner, the father of the whole scene. Individual Thought Patterns finds him sharing the solos for the first time, which opens up Death’s sound substantially and adds whole new levels of complexity to this most intricate of musical subgenres, and the rhythm section of bassist Steve DiGiorgio and drummer Gene Hoglan is one of the greatest team-ups in metal history. 5. Anaal Nathrakh, The Codex Necro (2001)** Britain’s dark master of extreme metal kicked off what has been an amazingly rich decade of metal music with this masterpiece. Its last three records—Eschaton, Hell Is Empty And All The Devils Are Here, and In The Constellation Of The Black Widow—have all been terrific, but it’s unlikely that it’ll ever surpass the raw power, surprising eclecticism, and sheer sonic intensity of its debut album, an unprecedented mix of black metal, death metal, industrial, and grind. Mick Kenney and Dave Hunt haven’t made a bad record yet, but they don’t come much better than The Codex Necro.