3 1/2 Stars...Not a bad debut, just doesnt stand up with the other classic Thrash Debuts Anthrax's "Fistful of Metal" isn't a bad debut, it has some good stuff on it, but at the same time it doesnt stand up to the other Thrash Debut classics such as Metallica's "Kill Em All" Exodus "Bonded by Blood", Slayers "Show no Mercy", Overkills "Feel the Fire" and Kreators "Endless Pain". All of the previous albums I mentioned are four to five star efforts and have easily stood the test of time. "Fistful of Metal" sounds more like a Demo, and it let it also be known that Joey wasnt the vocalist here, he didnt come until the following album "Spreading the Disease" Still, out of the ten tracks, five of them are very enjoyable. "Deathrider", "Panic" "Metal Thrashing Mad", "Subjector", "Death From Above" are classic, and the cover of Alice Coopers "18" is decent, so that is five strong tracks, one decent song, and four songs that are god-awful. But hey, not all bands can release a decent debut, and you are talking back in the day when most of these debuts were all on Indie labels. Megaforce, Metalblade, and Combat records were all small independent Metal labels back then, and the bands just didnt have the pull like they do today to get singed, such as internet and reality shows, so I do give the band some credit here, but still, its not even close to the masterpiece of "Among the Living", but still worth to add to your Anthrax collection, and I would add this over the awful "Volume 8, the Threat is Real" or the mediorce "Stomp 442".
One of the pioneering albums to create Thrash This album is the one that did it for me. Thrash at it's best! Vocals that are at times powerful, to Rob Halford screams. This is still my favorite Anthrax album. I saw them on their Spreading the Disease Tour and though Joey can sing, Neil's vocal style suits the heaviness better. Just my opinion. The songs are fast (Panic, Metal Thrashing Mad) to a heavy driving rhythm (Death from Above)...my favorite. It's not a Spreading the Disease or Among the Living album, it's more raw.
Horrid Remaster The reviewer James Prosser stated that it sounds like mp3's were used when doing this reissue. I have been thinking the same thing the past year or so that I've owned this.
It makes me think that we are truly living in a sad age when music is done on the cheap, and that fans seem to be just as apathetic as the musicians themselves.
Not all is terrible, at least metal is on the upswing again, but its releases like this that are truly showing its a scary time in music.
The album? Its classic early thrash seasoned with some incredible hooks and vocals.
This "remaster"? It seems like they took the original songs, compressed them into mp3 format (or similar) and smooshed them onto the cd.
I am 100 % serious with this assumption. As someone who has downloaded thousands of mp3s, but also owns thousands of cds, tapes and records, I know the difference between the two.
Too bad the people behind this rerelease pulled a fast one with this.
pure thrash... oops i meant trash this thrash metal or whatever it's called is disgusting. it shouldn't be listened to! these guitar...um.... riffs are sorta fast so it isn't memorable. and the drummer only uses double bass drums which get boring real quick. for real music you gotta check out eminem. the only reason i gave it 2 stars is because anthrax was in taht one chappelle show episode. I dunno what you metal heads like to listen to, but for ppl like me, avoid this! the only reason i bought this is because anthrax's and public enemy's "Bring the noise" was good. i guess i was wrong....
Old, cheesy, cool. You can't really fault this album for being cheesy. It's old. Its nearest cousin is Metallica's Kill 'Em All, which is infinitely better by the way... Still, you've got to admire the musicianship in this band, and most of the songs are pretty cool.
Anthrax has re-recorded a bunch of their music. If you find yourself laughing at this album, check out The Greater of Two Evils. It's less, uh, 80s
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
