JamesT

Metallica - "72 Seasons" Metallica - "Death Magnetic" Metallica - "Hardwired...to Self-Destruct" Girish and the Chronicles - "Back on Earth"

Dirty Looks - "Cool From the Wire" Twisted Sister - "Under the Blade" Bullet Boys - Self-titled Riot - "Fire Down Under"

Yep, that's correct! Really looking forward to the new Enforced album! "Kill Grid" is such a fantastic album - I hope this new one is on that same level. Definitely more on the aggressive side of thrash. It feels like death metal territory at times.

Overkill - "Scorched" Metallica - "72 Seasons" Enforced - "Kill Grid"

Very cool! Death is a band that I'm planning to get more into in the coming weeks and months. I've never done a deep dive into their catalog. I do enjoy some death metal - I just don't listen to it as much as I used to. Cannibal Corpse and Hate Eternal are my two favorites in the genre. Erik Rutan is such a beast, and he's a down-to-earth dude, too. But I highly respect Death for essentially spawning the sub genre. I really like "Leprosy" and "Individual Thought Patterns" thus far, so I'm looking forward to checking out more. I enjoy a lot more doom than death. Candlemass are an all-time favorite for me, and I also like Funeral, My Dying Bride, Doom:VS, Solitude Aeturnus and Saturnus, to name a few. Maybe so haha! I don't intend to belabor the point. I've just seen a lot of reviews - not just on this forum, but online in general - that seem to approach "72 Seasons" with the precise mindset we were just speaking about, which doesn't make any sense to me. "We're never going to get another album that sounds like "Ride the Lightning" or "Master of Puppets", so I'm not going to bother listening to anything new they put out." The's the comparison game that seems counterproductive. Those albums are legendary classics, and they're nearly 40 years old at this point. This new album isn't trying to sound like those albums. It's a fantastic album on its own merit. Of course, ultimately, people are free to choose what they want to listen to, based on any criteria they see fit. It just seems that Metallica's newer material gets bashed - when it's actually quite solid - more so than perhaps other bands, due to what they did nearly 4 decades ago. In my opinion, the listening experience would be far different - and much more satisfying for a lot of folks - if they would try and approach it with a clean slate. Anyway, "72 Seasons" is an excellent album to my ears, and I'd recommend it to anyone. Now I'll put the point to rest haha!

Definitely a worthy endeavor! I did that about 2 months ago - I listened through the whole catalog. I will say there are still a handful of songs I enjoy from Load/Reload, but the others I just can't really get into. But that's okay. I do enjoy most of the Black Album but find it to be incredibly overrated in the grand scheme of things. I genuinely enjoy "St. Anger" and just listened to it last night. The drum sound actually adds to the experience for me, so I've never understood all the hate for it. It's got some ferociously heavy songs. I was just glad they veered back into a much heavier direction after the Load/Reload era. And of course, the 80's material is just legendary and NEVER gets old. I'm currently listening through "72 Seasons" once again, and it gets better with each listen. Very happy with the final product.

Totally agree! "Ironbound" is the #2 album in the entire Overkill catalog for me. But I literally enjoy all 20 of their albums to varying degrees, so I'm a true Overkill fanboy haha. I completely respect your view on it, though. My tastes have shifted quite a bit over the years, too. I used to be into nothing but metalcore and hardcore/screamo stuff (and I still indulge from time to time), but these days, it's all groove, thrash, traditional heavy metal, rock 'n' roll, and hard blues-rock for me, with the occasional doom and power metal thrown in. "Death Magnetic" is quite an enjoyable listen. I'd encourage you to dust it off again if you have the time and are considering it. I hear a lot of complaints about the production - and sure, it's not quite as crisp as these two most recent albums - but honestly, it's still not bad. It's still a very heavy album with lots of thrash-y moments. My favorite track is "All Nightmare Long" - 8 minutes of mostly pure, speedy thrash. Other standouts are "The Judas Kiss", "Cyanide", and "Broken, Beat, and Scarred". But really, the entire thing is a more-than-worthy listen. I enjoyed "Hardwired...to Self-Destruct" even more. To me, along with "72 Seasons" now, it's the best material they've released since 1988. The opening track, "Hardwired", is barely over 3 minutes long, but it's an absolute scorcher of a track. Pure speed all the way through. It's also bookended - the final track, "Spit Out the Bone" is a bruising piece of pure thrash through and through. Every song on Hardwired is enjoyable, though, in my opinion. "Atlas, Rise!", "Moth Into Flame", "Dream No More", and "Am I Savage?" (which has a PanterA-like groove, making it an automatic winner in my book) are a few other standouts. But again, the entire album is fantastic. Lots of fantastic material on those albums that I'd highly recommend if you're inclined to give them another whirl!

Definitely. I listened all the way through "Death Magnetic" and "Hardwired...to Self-Destruct" yesterday to get into Metallica mode and prepare to dive into "72 Seasons", and I thoroughly enjoyed them. Really solid heavy metal albums with occasional throwbacks to the thrash sound they helped invent.

Glad to hear that! I think a lot of the disappointment and disillusionment with modern Metallica albums stems from the incessant need for people to compare each one to their 80's classics. I love their 80's stuff, but I don't listen to their more modern albums with the hopes that they'll suddenly start to sound like the thrash material from back then. I make a judgement on whether or not the album is good based on its own merit. No preconceived notions - just entering the listening experience with a clean slate. And "72 Seasons" is fantastic. Would I rank it ahead of any of their 80's masterpieces, IF I were to try and rank the catalog? No. But that's not the point or the goal. It is a great, enjoyable album from beginning to end. The material is heavy, fierce, and it's well-executed on every front. High marks all around!

Just finished listening through "72 Seasons" a couple of times for my initial listening experience with it. And goodness, this album is fantastic! I enjoyed "Death Magnetic" a decent bit, and I'm a huge fan of "Hardwired...to Self-Destruct" (at the time of its release in 2016, I thought it was the best album they'd put out since "...And Justice for All"). After these first couple of listens, I'd have to put "72 Seasons" right up there with "Hardwired...to Self-Destruct" as their best album since 1988. And yes, I've always found the Black Album to be highly overrated. But back to this monster. I wasn't sure what to expect going into it, but this thing is a beast. It has thrash-y moments that recall the 80's classics, but it mostly offers lots of meaty riffs and grooves. The production is fantastic, the drumming is great, and it's a heavy, lumbering beast from start to finish. Thankfully, there's nothing here like "The Unforgiven III" or "The Day That Never Comes", or anything resembling a sappy ballad. I'm pleasantly surprised and impressed by how much I enjoyed this album. This one will be getting lots of repeated listens in the days and weeks to come. Well done, Metallica.

Leather - "We Are the Chosen" Leather - "Leather II" My goodness, Leather Leone hasn't lost a step! She has the perfect hard rock/metal voice, and the music is killer. Also enjoy her stuff in Chastain as well.

The feeling is mutual, my friend! I enjoy reading your posts on here. I appreciate the humor and the great insight into various bands and albums that you bring to the table. I'm definitely an Overkill fanboi - what can I say? Haha. It's incredibly difficult to rank Metallica's classic era for sure. There's very little separation between them in my book. I'll be getting around to checking out "72 Seasons" this weekend and looking forward to hearing the new tunes. I'm not the fan of Metallica that I used to be, but I'm intrigued, nonetheless. Awesome to see you're listening through some of the 90's Overkill material! "Necroshine" is my favorite album from their middle period, with "From the Underground and Below" following closely behind. And "W.F.O." has some killer material on it, too. Can't go wrong with any of it!

Lot of great picks there! Especially the new Overkill. I haven't checked out the new Metallica album yet, as Overkill has gotten my full devotion since the release on Friday. But I'm looking forward to hearing "72 Seasons". I'm a huge fan of "Hardwired...to Self-Destruct" and thought it's the best album they've released since my favorite one, which is "...And Justice for All" back in '88. Excited to see what this new one has to offer. I don't care about comparing it to their 80's classics - I'll be judging this one based on its own merit and the things it brings to the table.

Overkill - "I Hear Black"

Loving the new album! My favorite thrash band never disappoints! I'm now listening through the entire catalog from start to finish. Currently listening to "I Hear Black" (1993). Not a single clunker in the discography (of course, some are better than others), and that's pretty incredible in a discography like this one.

The Wings of War was an awesome album! It kicks off with "Last Man Standing", which is just a blazing track, and "Batshitcrazy" is another favorite of mine from that one. The Grinding Wheel is an album that actually took a bit of time to grow on me to the point where it is now. Initially, following up "Ironbound", "The Electric Age", and "White Devil Armory", "The Grinding Wheel" didn't resonate with me as immediately as those three did. But now, I'd rank it ahead of "White Devil Armory" and "The Wings of War". I'd put it at #6 in their catalog. Once I have a few more months with "Scorched", I'll have a better idea of where I might personally slot it within the whole discography. I do find myself enjoying the "middle period" a bit more now than I used to as well (from "I Hear Black" up through "Immortalis"). I've always said there's not a true clunker in the entire catalog. On this new one, I'd say "Know Her Name" is a track I've become more and more fond of with each subsequent listen. And I completely agree that "Fever" is really cool track as well. "Scorched" achieves a fantastic balance of offering variety while also being very much an identifiable thrash album. Can't wait to start spinning it some more!

I completely respect your feelings on it. I can certainly understand how strongly nostalgia can factor into a fan's impression of more recent material. I'm now listening through the whole discography and have listened to "Feel the Fire" and "Taking Over", along with about 2/3 of "Under the Influence" today. I love those classic albums, but I still rank "The Electric Age" and "Ironbound" as the top two, respectively, in their catalog. But as you stated, I was born in 1990, and sometimes, weaker-sounding production can take away from the listening experience for me (taking nothing away from the quality of the songs). Modern production has more crunch to it, so perhaps that's why I prefer their more recent material, comparatively speaking. That being said, I would rank "Taking Over" at #3 and "The Years of Decay" at #4 and "Horrorscope" at #5, so I do have a solid mix of classic and modern albums at the top of my list. "Scorched" is already a top-10 Overkill album for me, and I'm still loving every minute of it. After 4 listens all the way through, it's such a pleasurable listen - increasingly so with more listens. But again, I absolutely respect your perspective on the new album, and I'm glad to hear you've found some songs that you do enjoy from it. Like you said, we have very different tastes in metal styles for the most part, but it's still really cool that we both enjoy Overkill. And I'm also glad you mentioned Candlemass as another band we both dig, because those guys are putting out incredible modern material as well!

Overkill - "Scorched" The guys never disappoint! It was well worth the 4-year wait. On my 4th time listening through the album now, and it's gotten better with each listen. It's got a bit of everything - definitely the killer thrash sound, but also deftly balances it with groove and even some doom-y parts here and there. The guitar work is fantastic as usual, and the drums really steal the show here. I loved Ron Lipnicki's work in the band, but Bittner is just as good. The drumming style even carries some hints of death metal at times. Absolutely love this album.

Oh, I have no concerns about that whatsoever with my favorite thrash band of all time! And after 3 listens through the entire thing so far today, I'm digging every second of it!

In this day and age, it's more about supporting the band. With very few physical sales, due to the internet age, I want to support my favorite thrash band by buying their stuff. Hopefully, I'll catch them on tour again this year, too! Saw them last March (2022), and they were phenomenal.

The day has arrived!! Wasn't even out of bed yet this morning when I added the new, sure-to-be-glorious "Scorched" to my Apple Music library. Also planning to get this one on vinyl, CD, and cassette (if it's available in that format). But, Mr. GG, I completely neglected to address the news you shared that you live incredibly close to Blitz! Please forgive my unacceptable oversight! If you ever run into him and think of it, let him know Overkill has a superfan down here in North Carolina! I'm heading out to work here in just a few minutes and will have this fantastic slab of thrash playing throughout the day to get well-acquainted with it. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts! Have a fantastic day, my metal brethren!

I appreciate the kind words, good sir! Yes, I totally agree. I rather enjoy the fact that we have different tastes - keeps things from getting stagnant. I actually was just listening to "Sons of Northern Darkness" by Immortal and "In the Nightside Eclipse" from Emperor last night, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I also enjoy Burzum from time to time. So I guess I have a select soft spot for some black metal! I absolutely cannot wait for "Scorched" to come out tomorrow. It's been 4 long years since the last glorious Overkill release, the longest gap between albums in their entire career (no doubt due to the pandemic). It would have been out in 2021, I firmly believe, had the pandemic not happened. At any rate, release day has finally (almost) arrived. My goodness, it's like Christmas morning for me! I'll be eager to share my thoughts here once I've spun it a few times through and will be eagerly anticipating your thoughts as well! In the meantime, I'm hitting the hay so that Christmas will come just a bit faster!

Yes, sir! It's purely because the entire catalog is so consistently great. If I were to try and rank their discography from 1-12, there would be minimal separation between #12 and #1. That can't often be said of any band, much less a band with a larger discography like this. Plus, I'm just really digging the straight-forward, traditional heavy metal sound at the moment, and HammerFall does it perfectly.

Good point! I should clarify that it's taken me (now) 10 days to listen through the entire catalog twice over. They have 12 albums in total. Some days, I'm not able to listen to music as much as others. I've just begun listening through a 3rd time, but I doubt I'll make it through before I dive head-first into the glory that is Overkill. I make it a point not to listen to singles, because I'd rather listen through the entire album completely fresh. But from what you've said, I'm even more confident than I already was (if that's even possible) that this will only continue the absolute tear they've been on with the last 6 albums now (including "Scorched"), dating back to 2010's Ironbound. Totally agree regarding Blitz. The guy is just incredible. I saw Overkill live a little over a year ago (March of 2022), and it was a dream come true. Been checking out a few recent interviews Blitz has done on various podcasts lately, and I absolutely cannot wait for the new album. I also completely agree regarding the so-called "Big Four", who have basically been dormant for awhile as far as I'm concerned, although I do enjoy the newest Megadeth album a good bit. Metallica's newest album drops on Friday as well, and I'll eventually get around to checking it out, but it gets absolutely dwarfed on my priority list by Overkill.

HammerFall - "No Sacrifice, No Victory" HammerFall - "Infected" Been 9 straight days listening through the catalog in chronological order and enjoying every second of it. The only thing that will eventually interrupt it is the 20th release from the greatest thrash band of all time - "Scorched" by Overkill - due out on Friday.