RAZOR - Custom Killing (1987)

MM

Hmm, this is decidedly on the weak side. Malicious Intent was way better than this, but this still has a degree of charm, albeit it's once again hampered by the quietness of the guitar and the overloud bass and drums... Stace McLaren sounds like he's holding back with the vocals, almost like he's recording them in a bedroom and doesn't want to wake the neighbours. It's all a great shame, especially since this album saw a temporary change of tack from Razor, who decided to abandon their usual formula of 3 minute thrashouts for some seriously lengthy (and slower) tunes. It would have been interesting to hear them get the chance to try something different without being fucked over by the sound. Ultimately, though it pains me to give it a 2, I just can't honestly do anything else.

DEATHROW - Raging Steel (1987)

MMM

A definite improvement on the rough and ready 'Satan's Gift / Riders of Doom' album, but still not really quite good enough to make it a 4M album. Once again, it's frantic German Thrash that follows in Kreator's footsteps, but never really comes close to equalling that band's blistering attack and songwriting ability.

SAVATAGE - Hall of the Mountain King (1987)

MMMM

My favourite Savatage album by quite a long chalk, this one isn't sullied by the overuse of piano's or laden with Andrew Lloyd Webberisms, it's just proper Heavy Metal done, well... properly! Production wise, it's not perfect, but it certainly has energy and Chris Oliva is on good form throughout, throwing around a ton of great riffs and solos. Jon Oliva sounds pretty damn good here too and puts in quite a lung-bursting performance. Solid.

DEPECHE MODE - Music for the Masses (1987)

MMMMM

A stupendous album which has a plethora of great songs, hell even the remixes on the CD reissue are great! This is without a doubt the best Depeche Mode album even though I guess it's fair to say it might be their equivalent of Metallica's 'Black' album. Make no mistake, 'Music for the Masses' lived up to it's name and propelled DM to the very top of the popular music tree, selling millions, and for once justifiably so. For me the track which stands out the most is 'Sacred', if only because it was covered by the band 'Moonspell' on their '2econd Skin' e.p. in 1998).

KREATOR - Terrible Certainty (1987)

MMM

A tough one to score this, it's either a very high three or a low four depending on my mood. A much cleaner sound than 'Pleasure to Kill' and some dodgy soloing from new guitarist 'Tritze' can't disguise the fact that this should have been better. The 'Flag of Hate' e.p. promised an album perhaps the equal if not greater than 'PTK' but this is not that album. What went wrong? It's no turkey, but it should have been better.

M.O.D. - U.S.A For M.O.D. (1987)

MMM

Billy Milano's post S.O.D. release fails to really ignite and suffers from the inevitable comparisons with 'Speak English Or Die'. Partly this is due to the production (think 'Hell Awaits' to S.O.D.'s 'Reign in Blood') but also because the spite has gone, and Billy's lyrics are delivered with a kind of 'yeah it's offensive but we don't really mean it' kind attitude, and that's just it, they don't mean it. Still some good tunes though.

NASTY SAVAGE - Indulgence (1987)

MMMM

Knocking on the door of a 5M review but not quite making the cut, this is Nasty Savage's finest hour. The pummeling bass drums of Curtis Beeson are perhaps the most noticeable feature of this album, but alongside that it has some great guitar playing and some brilliant songs. The vocals of Nasty Ronnie might not be to everyone's taste, but if not then you're probably a poser anyway!

ARTILLERY - Terror Squad (1987)

MMMM

A dreadful album cover masks an aggressive thrash classic from this Danish crew. Bursting with energy and with a guitar sound that could cut steel, this really is a great record. The production is raw as fuck and the vocals might not be to everyone's taste, but for quality thrashing you can't go far wrong here.