Metallica 1992

Metallica formed in 1981 by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich. The duo first met through an ad in a Los Angeles-based music newspaper. At the time, Ulrich had little musical experience and no band but managed to secure a slot on an upcoming compilation record called “Metal Massacre”. Metallica’s contribution, “Hit The Lights”, featured Hetfield, Ulrich and lead guitarist Lloyd Grant…

Once the kings of the Bay Area metal scene – the birthplace of thrash – Exodus were unceremoniously demoted from their post with the arrival of Los Angeles' Metallica in 1982. And while they proceeded to eke out a hit-and-miss career of their own over the next few decades, all the while influencing at least two separate generations of younger thrash bands, Exodus were ultimately fated to be the ultimate also-rans of the genre they helped spawn…

Megadeth guns for arena thrash success and gets it on Countdown to Extinction. Following the lead of 1991's Metallica, Megadeth trades in their lengthy, progressive compositions for streamlined, tightly written and played songs more conducive to radio and MTV airplay. Cries of "sellout" seem pointless when the results are artistically (as well as commercially) successful; songs like the mega-hit "Symphony of Destruction," "Skin O' My Teeth," "Foreclosure of a Dream," and "Sweating Bullets" are among the band's best. Megadeth guns for arena thrash success and gets it on Countdown to Extinction. Following the lead of 1991's Metallica, Megadeth trades in their lengthy, progressive compositions for streamlined, tightly written and played songs more conducive to radio and MTV airplay.

Along with Front 242, the German group Die Krupps stands as one of the innovators of the subgenre of Euro-rock dubbed body music, a sound characterized by its dense electronic makeup as well as its harsh, visceral execution. Die Krupps came together in 1981 as a duo comprised of vocalist, guitarist, keyboardist, and mouthpiece Jurgen Engler, formerly of the German punk outfit Male, and ex-Propaganda member Ralf Dorper…

Exodus is an American thrash metal band formed in 1979 in Richmond, California. The band has gone through numerous lineup changes, two extended hiatuses, and the deaths of two former band members. Their current lineup consists of guitarists Gary Holt and Lee Altus, bassist Jack Gibson, drummer Tom Hunting, and lead vocalist Steve "Zetro" Souza. Hunting is one of the original members, and departed from Exodus twice, in 1989 and 2004, but rejoined in 2007…

As you might know the first two Warrant albums were a rather standard party rock (or, to be more specific, glam metal). The band followed all the necessary requirements and did gain some popularity – whether it was deserved or not is up to each person to decide. Although it should be noted: on Cherry Pie there were some anomalies that allegedly hinted at the desire of the band’s main idea man Jani Lane to go beyond the glam metal framework. Obviously, it is just an assumption. Nevertheless if you decide to listen to their third album Dog Eat Dog, this assumption would seem to be quite probable…

Seven years after they've released their last industrial/EBM album of the 1980's, they released I, which featured a different direction than their previous albums- as metal influenced were introduced to the band's sound alongside the typical EBM, and it provides the turning point of the band from an EBM band into an industrial metal one…

While Helloween can hardly be called a true "singles" band, this hefty box spread across seven discs stands as proof positive that they belong in the conversation of great European metal bands. The band combined the structures of Iron Maiden with the propulsion of Motorhead, stopping just short of thrash or speed metal; compared to contemporaries like Metallica and Slayer they could almost be considered traditionalists. This set covers every era from their 1980s heyday through shifting line-ups and comebacks in the '00s. As this box set is designed with completists in mind, the casual enthusiast might want to start with something more bite-sized.