Sodom (and other extreme thrash bands)

An early pic of Sodom.  What's with the hair?

Forming in 1981, SODOM was making waves in the metal underground around the time Venom invented black metal.  Despite now being known as a thrash band, this German band was initially an important part of early black metal.  With the raw production, the screeched vocals, the evil lyrical themes, Sodom's aesthetic definitely fit the description black metal.  Their sound mellowed a bit over the years (but they're still more aggressive and raw than your average thrash band) into a more traditional thrash sound, but in the early years, the affinity with black metal can be heard.  With demos like 1982's Witching Metal and 1984's Victims of Death, as well as early albums like 1984's In the Sign of Evil and 1986's Obsessed by Cruelty, Sodom's back catalog definitely belongs on the must-listen list of any fan of old-school black metal.

"Witching Metal", from the 1982 demo of the same name

Select Discography
Witching Metal (demo) (1982)
Victims of Death (demo) (1984)
In the Sign of Evil EP (1984)
Obsessed by Cruelty (full-length) (1986)
Persecution Mania (full-length) (1987)

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American thrash legends SLAYER may not seem to fit most people's definition of black metal, but it is unmistakeable that their very early stuff (1983's Show No Mercy, 1984's Haunting the Chapel, 1985's Hell Awaits) had a more occultic, sinister vibe to it than the stuff from the mid- to late-1980s.  The themes were more obviously Satanic and evil, the production values very similar in sound to bands like Hellhammer and Bathory, and even the imagery utilized by the band itself seems to fit in with the whole black metal aesthetic.  Slayer has even been cited as an influence by various bands in the black metal scene today.

Off of their first album, this is "Black Magic"

Select Discography

Show No Mercy (full-length) (1983)
Haunting the Chapel EP (1984)
Live Undead (live album) (1985)
Hell Awaits (full-length) 1985)

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Like Sodom, the German band DESTRUCTION made an impact on the early 1980s extreme metal scene.  Their sound was less black metal than Sodom's, but all of the elements were still there.  You could call their 1984 EP Sentence of Death and their 1985 album Eternal Devastation old-school black thrash, but like Slayer their sound eventually became more of a mainstream thrash sound.

Destruction's legendary song, "Total Desaster"

Select Discography
Bestial Invasion of Hell (demo) (1984)
Sentence of Death EP (1984)
Infernal Overkill (full-length) (1985)
Eternal Devastation (full-length) (1986)

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The Brazilian legends SEPULTURA might be a bit of a stretch, but I contend that if you listen to the 1985 EP Bestial Devastation and the 1986 album Morbid Visions, there is a very strong old-school black/death feel to them.  At this early point in their career, Wagner "Antichrist" Lamounier was briefly their vocalist before he went on to form Sarcofago, so I'd say their black metal credentials are pretty solid.  Just go back and listen to these two early releases, and you'll see how it connects to old-school black metal.

From 1985's Bestial Devastation, this is "Antichrist"

Select Discography
Bestial Devastation EP (1985)
Morbid Visions (full-length) (1986)

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There are a slew of other extreme thrash bands that had a hand in influencing the development of black metal back in the days before thrash and black and death metal had all formed into distinct camps.  I would say that Quebec's VOOR, Iceland's FLAMES OF HELL, England's DELIVERANCE, and the Czech band TÖRR all had an extreme thrash sound that is part of the story of old school black metal.

Voor's "Evil Metal," from the 1985 demo of the same name

From Flames of Hell's only album, 1987's Fire and Steel

Deliverance's "Tongues of Lies," from 1989's Evil Friendship

Off of their 1987 demo, Witchhammer

One could probably make the case that other extreme thrash and speed metal bands influenced the development of black metal---like Post Mortem and Impaler---but for the sake of space, I won't go into them all.

Select Discography of additional extreme Thrash Bands:

Deliverance, Devil's Meat (full-length) (1987)
Deliverance, Evil Friendship (full-length) (1989)
Flames of Hell, Fire and Steel (full-length) (1987)
Törr, Demo 1984 (demo) (1984)
Törr, Witchhammer (demo) (1987)
Törr, Gang live (demo) (1989)
Törr, "Kult ohně" (single) (1989)
Voor, Evil Metal (demo) (1985)
Voor, Demo #2 (demo) (1985)



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