GODFLESH: PURE

"Pure" (1992) by Godflesh. What a crushing release. This is the band's strongest release in my opinion. They mold a perfect apocalyptic doom landscape. They sound akin to the strongest riffs from Saint Vitus and Black Sabbath...but they meld these riffs with a drum machine and hellish droning feedback, bludgeoning you slowly, slowly, repetitively into claustrophobia, fear, and paranoia. The only musician that comes even close to creating such bleak, alienating, and frightening sounds capes is the god of psych space metal Helios Creed. Through and through, "Pure" is monumental, thundering and dissonant. The perfect soundtrack to the apocalypse. Highly recommended.

SEPULTURA: "BENEATH THE REMAINS" AND "ARISE"

Sepultura's "Beneath the Remains" (1989) and "Arise" (1991). Back in my teen years I was huge fan of thrash and death metal. Two of the bands from this genre that have really stuck with me over the years are Slayer and Sepultura. Sepultura may seem like they shouldn't be metioned in the same sentence with Slayer, but let me tell you they are just as good or better than than Slayer was in their prime. Sepultura on their first two releases "Beneath the Remains" and "Arise" crank out some seriously infectious, blistering, downright evil metal packed with anger, foreboding and apocalyptic lyrics, and plenty of addictive sinister grooves. Both of these albums I had on tape way back in the day. I lost all my tapes in a fire, and Sepultura fell by the way side. For some reason I never repurchased them. That is, until today. I just purchased them this morning. Both of these albums absolutely blew me away when I re-listened to them after almost fifteen years. They are more powerful today that they were back when they were first released, in my opinion.

Around the time my interest in really heavy metal was waining I began to get into Ministry. Their apocalyptic industrial thrash/metal in my opinion could not be beat. Well, let me tell you something. Sepultura's music from these first two releases is just as heavy and intense as anything Ministry has ever put out. Also they heavily draw on Slayer's best two releases "Reign In Blood" and "South of Heaven" without sounding derivative in any way. They crank out the high octane aggression that would make Al Jourgensen jealous and load it with the most evil riffs and grooves this side of hell.

Ok, let's get down to business here. 'Beneath the Remains" is Sepultura's first release from 1989. These guys were really young back then, most in their late teens. Man, is this a heavy album. Loaded with blinding tempos, speed and aggression that borders on hardcore, and always an ear for the apocalyptic, crushing riff. Nothing to complain about here. Vocalist Max Cavalera's Brazilian accent really comes through on here. In my opinion, one of the heaviest and enjoyable thrash/hardcore/death metal releases of all time.

Next there is what I consider to be Sepultura's masterpiece: 1991's "Arise". The perfect metal album. Just as heavy as "Beneath the Remains", but slowed down a little. The all mighty evil riff takes control here, but the aggression never lets up either. The songwriting has improved immensely, with complex texturing and dizzying winding riffs throughout. Everything on this CD flows seamlessly. The lyrics are very prophetic...they sound like something straight from a Ministry album.

If you're into metal, you need to pick up both of these. They are a must have for your collection. Here's "Inner Self" from "Beneath the Reamins" and "Dead Embryonic Cells" from "Arise".

KILLING JOKE: MILLENIUM & THE WAIT

Killing Joke. They have been cranking out heavy, industrial metal metal since 1980. Their output has been plentiful over the years . Apocalyptic metal at it's finest. Here's "Millenium" from their 1994 release "Pandemonium", and "The Wait" from their self-titled 1980 debut album. Enjoy.

SKREW: "BURNING IN WATER, DROWNING IN FLAME"

Skrew were an incredible industrial metal band that formed in 1991 by Adam Grossman and Danny Lohner from the ashes of the art-metal band Angkor Wat. Their best album is their debut, "Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame"(1991). Their sound on this album to me is like a cross between Slayer, Ministry, and Coroner. The guitar sound is very heavy and dissonant with gargantuan thrash metal riffs. There is a plenty of processed drumming and samples, courtesy of Ministry's Al Jourgensen. Adam Grossman's vocals are hellish and tortured, and his lyrics are disturbingly poetic. Grossman's voice combined with horrific and well chosen audio samples and progressive thrash metal guitar work make for a soundtrack to hell, the perfect album for the apocalypse. "Burning in Water, Draowning in Flame" is an album that ,after eighteen years, I have never grown tired of.
Here's the title track, and the evil yet contagious "Poisonous".

Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame - Skrew

Poisonous - Skrew

MINISTRY'S "PSALM 69: THE WAY TO SUCCEED AND THE WAY TO SUCK EGGS"

Let's take a trip back in time to 1992. The time of the first Iraq war, the year I graduated high school. The music scene at the time was pretty good with bands like Soungarden and Nirvana starting to make it big. Anyway, I went to Lollapalooza 2 that summer and saw Ministry play live, just a few months after their devastatingly heavy new album "Psalm 69" was released. I remember Al Jourgensen came out wearing a big George Bush mask as "N. W. O." started playing and the whole crowd went wild. What a show!

"Psalm 69" is a masterpiece of industrial metal. Ministry were in perfect form on this album...at their peak actually. "Psalm 69" is the perfect blend of Ministry's brand of industrial rock and super heavy thrash metal. The production on this CD is so loud and full it is frightening and Al Jourgensen's angry vocal delivery is top notch. On "Psalm 69", Ministry create the perfect soundtrack to the apocalypse driven by an intensity that has never been matched sense. If you haven't heard this album, go out and get it now. It will not disappoint.

Here's "N.W.O" and "Just One Fix". Enjoy!

N.W.O. - Ministry

CORONER'S "NO MORE COLOR"

Coroner are a highly innovative progressive thrash/speed metal band that peaked in the late '80's/early '90's. Their sound is vicious and heavy, with blazing tempos, bizarre chords and tunings, and desperate, lost in a vortex vocals. Their music gives you the feeling of being lost in a cold, mechanical world that is spinning out of control. Their influence is far reaching. It is especially heard in the music of industrial metal bands Ministry and Skrew. Their best album is "No More Color". It is a stark, pleading piece of desperation and hopelessness. From beginning to end it punishes you, with songs such as "No Need to Be Human" and "Tunnel of Pain". You will not walk away from this album in a better mood, but you will want to come back for more again and again.

Coroner was one of those bands that pushed metal outside of it's limits, almost into the realm of art-rock. They were too strange to make it big in the thriving metal scene of their time. They sustained themselves throughout their career on a small but loyal cult following.

Give "No More Color" a try. You won't be disappointed.

Here's "Read My Scars" and "Die By My Hand" from "No More Color".

Read My Scars - Coroner

Die by My Hand - Coroner