Thrash metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and often fast tempo. The songs usually use fast percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead guitar work. The lyrical subject matter often deals with criticisms of The Establishment and concern over the destruction of the environment, and at times shares a disdain for Christian dogma resembling that of their black metal counterparts. The language is typically quite direct and denunciatory, an approach borrowed from hardcore punk.
Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Mille Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and bassist Frédéric Leclercq. The band's lineup has changed multiple times over its 38-year career, most noticeably with their bassists and lead guitarists. Petrozza and Reil are the only two original members left in Kreator, though the latter had been out of the band from 1994 to 1996. Yli-Sirniö has been the lead guitarist of Kreator since 2001, while Leclercq joined in 2019 as the replacement of Christian "Speesy" Giesler, who had been a member of the band since 1994.
Prong is an American heavy metal band formed in 1986 by bassist Mike Kirkland and guitarist Tommy Victor, the band's sole constant member. To date, they have released twelve studio albums, one live album, four EPs, one DVD and one remix album. Prong had two independent releases — Primitive Origins (1987) and Force Fed (1989) — which attracted the attention of Epic Records, who signed the band in 1989. Their first two albums on Epic — Beg to Differ (1990) and Prove You Wrong (1991) — were released to critical acclaim and garnered attention on MTV's Headbangers Ball. The band's 1994 album Cleansing was also very successful, and included one of their well-known songs "Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck". After releasing one more album, Prong disbanded in 1997, but reformed in 2002 and has continued to tour and record since then.
Destruction is a German thrash metal band, formed in 1982. They are often credited as one of the "Big Four" of the German thrash metal scene, the others being Kreator, Sodom and Tankard. In addition to helping pioneer black metal by containing several elements of what was to become the genre, Destruction was part of the second wave of thrash metal in the late 1980s, along with American bands Testament, Sacred Reich, Death Angel and Dark Angel. For most of the 1990s, the band was not signed to a record label and was forced to self-produce their albums until they signed a contract with Nuclear Blast in the early 2000s.
Haunting the Chapel is an extended play (EP) released by American thrash metal band Slayer in 1984 through Metal Blade and Enigma Records. Slayer's debut album Show No Mercy became Metal Blade's highest-selling, leading to producer Brian Slagel wanting to release an EP. Recorded in Hollywood, the recording process proved difficult when recording drums in a studio without carpet, although it resulted in drummer Dave Lombardo meeting Gene Hoglan who was to become an influence in his drumming style and speed. It was during the recording of this session that Lombardo first had the double bass added to his kit. Hoglan, working for Slayer at the time, sat at the kit and played a double bass for the first time. Lombardo was impressed and although Hoglan never gave him lessons, he did give him tips regarding the use of the double kick drum.
Hirax is an American thrash metal band from Cypress, California. Starting in 1984 under the leadership of vocalist Katon W. De Pena, the band played in Los Angeles and San Francisco with several of their thrash metal peers such as Metallica, Exodus, and Slayer. The band was an early example of thrash metal, speed metal and crossover thrash.
Integrity is a hardcore punk band originally founded in 1988 by vocalist, musician, lyricist and visual artist, Dwid Hellion. Integrity relocated to Belgium in 2003.
Nifelheim is a Swedish black metal band. The band was formed in 1990 by the twin brothers Erik and Per Gustavsson, under the stage names Tyrant and Hellbutcher and is known for their "old school" style of black metal.
Municipal Waste is a crossover thrash band from Richmond, Virginia, formed in 2001. To date, the band has released six studio albums, three EPs and four splits. They have gone through several line-up changes, leaving vocalist Tony Foresta and guitarist Ryan Waste as the only constant members. In addition to Foresta and Waste, their current lineup includes Nick "Nikropolis" Poulos on guitar, Philip "Landphil" Hall on bass and Dave Witte on drums.
Hatesphere is a Danish death and thrash metal band from Aarhus. The band was formed in 2000 by guitarist Peter "Pepe" Hansen. As of 2016, the band consists of vocalist Esben "Esse" Elnegaard Kjaer Hansen, guitarists Peter "Pepe" Lyse Hansen, and Kasper Kirkegaard, bass player Jimmy Nedergaard and drummer Mike Park Nielsen. The band has released nine albums and two EPs to date.
Exciter is a Canadian speed metal band from Ottawa, Ontario, formed in 1978. Named after a song by Judas Priest, they are widely considered to be one of the first speed metal bands and a seminal influence of the thrash metal genre; the band was heavily influenced by a variety of music styles, including Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, AC/DC, Deep Purple, Scorpions, Iron Maiden, Motörhead, Rush, Jethro Tull and Grand Funk Railroad. Despite many changes in personnel, Exciter has managed to keep a small but dedicated following over the years.
Gama Bomb is a thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland. Their 2009 album Tales from the Grave in Space was one of the first albums ever released as a completely free download while signed to a record label.
Hobbs' Angel of Death were an Australian thrash metal band that began in 1987 in Melbourne, and are one of the first Australian groups to perform in that genre. They released two studio albums, Hobbs' Angel of Death (1988) and Inheritance (1995) before disbanding in 1996. They reformed in 2002 and released a compilation album, Hobbs' Satan's Crusade (2003), and a third album Heaven Bled (2016).
Grand Belial's Key (GBK) is a black metal band founded in Oakton, Virginia in 1992 by guitarist Gelal Necrosodomy and vocalist Lord Vlad Luciferian. Lord Vlad Luciferian was later ejected from the group due to internal differences. The band is considered National Socialist black metal, a label in response to which the band has argued that its lyrics are simply "anti-Jewish/Christian and/or anti-religion". However, Gelal Necrosodomy has stated that "black metal to me is paganism, and paganism is neo-fascism, and neo-fascism is anti-christian, and anti-christianity is black metal. It is a circle that cannot be altered for everything fits in perfectly."
Machetazo was a grindcore/goregrind band from A Coruña, Spain formed in 1994. They were one of the few surviving bands from the Spanish underground extreme music scene of the nineties.
Toxic Holocaust is an American thrash metal band from Portland, Oregon.
Scorpio Rising were an English rock band from Birkenhead active from 1989 to 1994.
SIC is a modern hardcore/thrash metal band from Tórshavn, the capital of the Faroe Islands.
Intruder is an American thrash metal band from Nashville, Tennessee. Formerly known as "Transgresser", the group began as a four-piece cover band. They saw the addition of rhythm guitarist Greg Messick after signing with Metal Blade Records.
Suicidal Angels are a Greek thrash metal band formed in 2001 in Athens, Greece, by guitarist/vocalist and main songwriter Nick Melissourgos. Since its inception, the band has released seven studio albums, and has gone through several line-up changes leaving Melissourgos as the only constant member.
