SLAYER - Haunting the Chapel (1984)

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Only a three track e.p., but a landmark in Thrash Metal history and an essential purchase because none of the tracks feature on any 'proper' Slayer album in their original studio versions. The first thing to notice is that the leap in production from 'Show No Mercy' to this is huge, the guitars here are bristling with energy and the tempo's that Slayer where playing at had dramatically increased too. 'Chemical Warfare' remains a live-set staple and in 1984 this really did sound immense. 'Haunting the Chapel' and 'Captor of Sin' can't quite live with 'Chemical Warfare', but otherwise hold there own against any other early Slayer tracks and again both reek of an increased in aggression and quality over the primitive (but much loved) 'Show No Mercy'. Completely and utterly essential for any Thrash fan.  

RATT - Out of the Cellar (1984)

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I don't know if they have one now, but for years Ratt were denied a Metal Archives page because they just weren't Metal enough! I guess that might be because their first proper album came out on a major and all the rough edges were sanded off straight off the bat, whereas Motley came out a little earlier and did a couple of rougher sounding albums before their glossy overhaul. Regardless, this is a good album, yes it's not remotely heavy in the modern sense, and it has a massive pop feel to it, but it's still, at it's root, a metal album. Sorry.

QUEENSRYCHE - The Warning (1984)

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After the 'Queen of the Reich' e.p. expectations were high for this debut album, but somehow, Queensryche managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of the victory that was their's for the taking! I don't really know why that is, but one massive problem here is the dreadfully 'gloomy' production. It's all just so downbeat. Where the 'QOTR' e.p. bristled with electricity, this is the production equivalent of one of those energy saving lightbulbs. Which is a shame, because there's some good material here that isn't presented in the best light. That said, if you are in the mood for it, this is a good album

T.K.O. - In Your Face (1984)

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Looking at the cover you would be forgiven for thinking this was real nancy-boy stuff, probably even in the Pretty Boy Floyd league of naffness. But you'd be wrong. Because what we have here is Grade-A early 80's Glam Metal. Think early Motley Crue or Ratt, only heavier, grittier and with a better singer and a more bad ass attitude. Most bands of this ilk sounded great until they got signed to a major and glossed up to fuck in the studio. Thankfully this album is raw and all the better for it, it's Glam Metal with the emphasis firmly on the METAL.

CELTIC FROST: Morbid Tales (1984)

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Hard to believe this mini album was created by (largely) the same people that spewed up the hugely overrated 'Apocalyptic Raids' e.p. just a few months previously. For early dark Thrash Metal you can't go wrong here, awesome guitar tone, simple but effective riffs and superb aesthetics, Celtic Frost certainly made their mark here and went a long way to putting 'Hellhammer' behind them.

ANTHRAX - Fistful of Metal (1984)

MMMM

Still my favourite Anthrax album, this one sees the band playing a slightly more traditional form of uptempo Metal, but with still plenty of proto-Thrashing going on. I still say Neil Turbin was the best singer Anthrax ever had and this album is just a blast from start to finish.

METALLICA - Ride the Lightning (1984)

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Always slightly less impressive to my ears than the debut, nonetheless 'Ride the Lightning' is without doubt a quality release. In fact if anything the stand-out tracks are the slower more intricate songs, with 'Escape' a particular favourite of mine. Sadly it's the faster songs that let the side down with 'Fight Fire With Fire' sounding a little bit 'off the cuff' and 'Trapped Under Ice' a good belter but no 'Metal Militia'. The real winners here are 'Fade to Black', the massive chug of the title track and the instrumental 'Call of Kthulu'.

DESTRUCTION - Sentence of Death (1984)

MMM

Noisy, sloppy, everything good German Thrash should be, and yet this slightly misses the mark. Sure 'Mad Butcher' is a classic in the making, 'Total Desaster' is brutal fast for the time and the overlooked 'Black Mass' is well worth a listen, but Destruction were still honing their skills and the other two tracks are a bit weak in comparison. Still it wouldn't be long before the band were unveiling their masterpiece.

VOIVOD - War and Pain (1984)

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Still for me this band's crowning glory, in 1984 this truly sounded like the nuclear holocaust come to life. Totally uncompromising, brutal, noisy, and gnarly as hell, this isn't going to appeal to everyone but this primitive noise certainly endeared them to plenty of thrashers back in the day. Of course, over the coming years Voivod's sound became far more accessible and polished, but this for me remains their greatest recorded achievement. 

VENOM - At War With Satan (1984)

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A difficult album, and one which relies disproportionately on it's first half for the majority of it's marks. Side one should give it a 5, side two should score 3, so it evens out to a very fair 4. Side two isn't completely without merit, but there is undoubtedly filler lurking towards the end of the side. Rip Ride is great though, and you can't help wondering why Venom always used most of their best songs on singles that didn't feature on their albums...

ARMORED SAINT - March of the Saint (1984)

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Armored Saint's finest hour just manages a four, but is critically wounded before it even starts by the dullest production ever given to a Metal album. The songs are there and there's nowt wrong with the performances either, it's just flat as a pancake, and what a crying shame that is.

BATHORY - Bathory (1984)

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I can't in all honesty give this 5/5, but this scores a high four indeed. Horrible production, total Venom rip-off/worship (whichever way you want to look at it) but undeniably evil and utterly classic. Not quite essential though, and Quorthon made a few albums that bettered this before he died.

JUDAS PRIEST - Defenders of the Faith (1984)

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Remarkably even the last couplet of songs can't drag this album down from it's status as Metal of the Godliest order. The greatest Priest album ever, dripping with killer songs including Priest's finest single moment 'The Sentinel'!