Metal was doing fine in 1989! While the opposing dimensions of glam and thrash continued to dominate arenas and MTV alike, the decade went out with a bang in the form of a full blown death metal explosion. What was once used as a tag to describe the extreme end of thrash (i.e. Slayer, Kreator, etc.) had now become its own sound and scene, with bands who spent the better part of the decade ruling the underground with demos reaching the full length stage. Many of these bands appear on this list, alongside a few mainstream mainstays reaching their creative peak, and a band of oddballs who foreshadowed the polar shift of the 90s. We explore all that and more in our Top 10 Metal Albums of 1989!
10. W.A.S.P. – The Headless Children
Many metal historians point to Skid Row’s Slave to the Grind (1991) as the album that caused the mostly lighthearted hair bands to go “serious” (Warrant’s Dog Eat Dog, Winger’s Pull, Mötley Crüe’s self titled, etc.) And while there’s likely truth to this assessment (after all, Slave to the Grind topped the charts and went double platinum), there was a band who beat Skid Row to the punch in this respect. While Sebastian Bach and the gang were singing about doing the “Rattlesnake Shake”, W.A.S.P. did one of the biggest 180s in metal history with their fourth album, The Headless Children. After three albums venerating all things sex, drugs, and rock n’ roll, Blackie Lawless shifted his lyrical focus towards the evils of mankind and society as a whole, as well as introspective observations. This, coupled with musicianship bordering on progressive (“The Heretic (The Lost Child)”, “Thunderhead”), made The Headless Children a creative triumph of not just the year, but the decade. It also set the tone for W.A.S.P.’s career from that point forward.
9. Faith No More – The Real Thing
Having spent the better part of the 80s as a post-punk obscurity, Faith No More shot into the stratosphere with the release of their third album, The Real Thing. Just the name of the album alone signaled a rebirth, as if to say, “Forget those other albums we did. Here’s The Real Thing.” Was it metal? Was it prog? Was it alternative rock? It was all of the above and more, resulting in a crossover nobody could’ve imagined. The album’s lead single, “Epic”, was heavy enough to be played on Headbanger’s Ball, yet weird enough to be played on 120 Minutes. Subsequently, it was played on both…a lot. It even made waves among the pop audience, cracking #9 on the Top 40. Sure there were other bands fusing metal and alternative rock at this time (Jane’s Addiction, Ministry, Soundgarden, etc.), but none foreshadowed the Lollapalooza revolution of the early 90s like Faith No More did.
8. Tesla – The Great Radio Controversy
The late 80s saw 70s hard rock titans Aerosmith achieve even greater levels of fame and fortune than in their heyday, thanks to their newfound sobriety and a series of ghost written singles so downright wimpy that Air Supply would shudder (“Angel”, “What It Takes”, “Dude (Looks Like a Lady)”). Someone had to carry the sleazy, drugged out debauchery torch and that someone was Tesla. Having already made a name for themselves with their 1986 debut, Mechanical Resonance, Tesla returned with a vengeance in 1989. Their second album, The Great Radio Controversy, saw them reach new heights as both musicians and songwriters. Cuts like “Hang Tough” and “Heaven’s Trail (No Way Out)” channeled the bluesy grit of the one time Boston bad boys, while the acoustically tinged “Love Song” and “The Way It Is” helped the album sell upwards of 2 million copies. Hell, there’s even nods to the NWOBHM in “Yesterdaze Gone” and “Flight to Nowhere”, repurposed through an 80s mainstream metal filter of course. The Great Radio Controversy remains a masterpiece of its respective genre to this day.
7. Obituary – Slowly We Rot
And here’s where things get gory. Obituary wasn’t just an early forerunner of the death metal sound. They may very well be thee death metal band. Every song is about death, the process of dying, carrying out an act leading to death, or some combination of the three. This, alongside the indecipherable gutturals of John Tardy and Celtic Frost inspired riffs of Trevor Peres, made the band’s debut album, Slowly We Rot, a game changer. Over the course of a little over 35 minutes, the band proves to be equally lethal playing both mind numbing thrashing speed (“Godly Beings”, “Words of Evil”, “Gates to Hell”) and painfully punishing doom (“Slowly We Rot”, “Deadly Intentions”). All of this, mind you, while immersed in a layer of filth and gore. It was at this moment when Obituary knew the rest of their lives were devoted to death.
6. Repulsion – Horrified
The first and only album from the second best band to come out of Flint, Michigan cracks this list at #6 on a bit of a technicality. Repulsion’s Horrified was originally released in 1986 as a demo entitled Slaughter of the Innocent. Although it didn’t receive widespread distribution, it did find its way across the Atlantic, inspiring the likes of Napalm Death and Carcass to ditch their crust punk ways in the process. In fact, Carcass took such a liking to the demo that frontman Jeff Walker insisted he release the album properly via his Necrosis Records. This official release inspired Repulsion to regroup, and while no new albums have come since, they’ve spent the better part of 30 years ruling the deathfest circuit, headlining alongside bands who owe their existence to this album. Could you imagine if Horrified was released widespread in 1986? Reign in Blood would come off as elevator music by comparison!
5. Blue Murder – Blue Murder
Perhaps it’s my bias that’s allowing me to rank Blue Murder’s self titled debut over such historically important albums as Slowly We Rot and Horrified…or perhaps John Sykes really did have the greatest album for album streak in 80s metal. The truth lies somewhere in between. Amazingly, Sykes was able to go from Tygers of Pan Tang to Thin Lizzy to Whitesnake without getting lost in the shuffle. In fact, it was quite the opposite. Sykes used each outing with these mega acts to further establish himself as the premiere singer/songwriter/guitarist of his era. So when it came time to assemble a mega act of his own, Blue Murder, veteran musicians were chomping at the bit to join him. Equipped with a rhythm section of former Firm bassist Tony Franklin and Cactus drummer Carmine Appice, Sykes released one last hurrah in Blue Murder. Shockingly, the album tanked in the States, which made zero sense as it was essentially the follow up to the behemoth that was Whitesnake ’87. If for some reason you haven’t heard this album yet, turn it up and prepare yourself for a feast of sultry hard rock hooks, sharp metallic riffs, and gargantuan production.
4. Morbid Angel – Altars of Madness
Many metal bands resorted to dark imagery and lyrics in an effort to push album sales and generate controversy. Not Morbid Angel. This band of heathens took a page straight out of the Necronomicon (literally) with their debut album, Altars of Madness. Musically, the band expanded upon the groundwork laid down by Slayer on Hell Awaits (1985). There’s no denying the riffs and solos of founding guitarist Trey Azagthoth drew heavily from those of Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, but with an extra fire and brimstone. Lest we forget the diabolical lyricism and otherworldly drumming throughout, the latter courtesy of Pete Sandoval. Altars of Madness proved largely influential to the darker side of death metal, and although Euronymous would deny it, second wave black metal as well. One can’t deny the intensity of cuts like “Immortal Rites” and “Chapel of Ghouls”!
3. Sepultura – Beneath the Remains
In the span of a few short years, Sepultura went from unintentional pioneers of the Brazilian black metal scene to the cutting edge of death/thrash with their third full length album, Beneath the Remains. This album is where it all came together for the brothers Cavalera and guitarist Andreas Kisser. It also managed to leave damn near every other album released that year in the dust (well, all except two). From the breakneck velocity of the title track to the frantic post-apocalyptic cries of “Primitive Future”, Beneath the Remains goes full throttle from beginning to end. The unrelenting speed comprises the “death”, the moshy breakdowns comprise the “thrash”, and the technical musicianship connect the two in maniacal fashion. 30+ years later and Beneath the Remains is still Sepultura’s undisputed masterpiece.
2. Autopsy – Severed Survival
If Slowly We Rot is death metal for the cemetery, and Altars of Madness is death metal for the coven, then Autopsy’s Severed Survival is death metal for the human slaughterhouse. At 20 years old, founding drummer and vocalist Chris Reifert was already a death metal god. It was his drumming that kept the rapid beat of Death’s debut album, Scream Bloody Gore. But as Reifert and Death main man Chuck Schuldiner went their separate ways not long after the album’s release, Reifert was hungry for something even heavier and deadlier. Enter Autopsy. The band’s debut album, Severed Survival, is perhaps the grisliest, goriest, and spectacularly blood splattering death metal album of all time. The riffs are spectacularly sloppy in the tradition of classic hardcore and thrash, but played with a demented ferocity that was at that time unheard of. Cuts like “Charred Remains”, “Ridden with Disease”, and “Critical Madness” continue to make metalheads cringe in disgust and approval to this day.
- Overkill – The Years of Decay
Overkill closed out the 1980s with a bang. Growing both creatively and commercially with each subsequent release, the band’s finest hour arrived in the form of The Years of Decay. Why this album didn’t propel Overkill to arena headliner status the way South of Heaven (1988) did for Slayer and Rust in Peace (1990) did for Megadeth is beyond me. It’s essentially flat out thrash metal with the hooks, catchiness, and charisma of AC/DC. How on earth could you not simultaneously mosh and scream along to “Time to Kill”, “I Hate”, and the unexpected hit single, “Elimination”? Hell, even the album’s curveballs (the doom groove monolith “Playing with Spiders / Skullkrusher” and epic ballad title track respectively) pack a powerful punch. Song for song, I’m willing to argue the only thrash album better is Exodus’s Bonded by Blood (1985). While we’ll save that debate for another day and another Top 10, when it comes to this here list, Overkill comes out at #1. Don’t like it? Too bad. THAT’S the New Jersey attitude my friends. (Originally published in Top 10: Megaforce Records Releases)
Honorable Mentions
- Badlands – Badlands
- Pestilence – Consuming Impulse
- Savatage – Gutter Ballet
- Sodom – Agent Orange
- Terrorizer – World Downfall
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