20. Angel Dust Into the Dark Past 1986 (Disaster)
Thrash Metal
Muscular and pumping angelic thrash archers.
The Lowdown
Most genres of metal are exportable products but that’s not to say that when its exported, that its new purveyors can do a particularly good job with their new gleaming product. Metal outside its principal American and British playground was always a hit and miss affair throughout the 1970s and first half of the 1980s, and it was often a case of venturing into the unknown. Outside its principal playing area, Germany was the country that provided metal with the most tested metal bands and as the 1980s wore on Germany would spread its wings and spread quality metal to its neighbours. German metal would undergo something of a revolution itself in the mid 1980s, as its mainstream and speed metal bands would give way to greater diversity in power metal and the brutal American product thrash metal. Germany particularly embraced thrash and its bands took the thrash blueprint often into even harsher or muscular sounding territory and a band like Kreator were the perfect example of that harsher sound, but a number of other bands including Angel Dust would give a demonstration on how muscular thrash could sound. The album starts with an instrumental piano intro and the expected speed metal of this type of band is quickly beefed up (or porked up as they’re German) with a coating of powerful thrash. Some of the stronger tracks on this album include the cutting “Legions of Destruction” the amusing “Gambler” thanks to some exaggerated vocals. Then there are the energetic riffs of “Atomic Roar” backed up with some heavy drum beats and the killer closer "Marching for Revenge". There are a couple of clangers on the album and these come in the shape of "Victims of Madness" but they are few and far between. The resulting album on face value sounds like a simple thrash assault, but in reality and musically the album’s tracks are complex by thrash standards in general (excepting bands like Metallica of course) and the band’s sound also hints at the future power metal direction that they would move into as well. There are some complaints about the album’s production but I think it’s solid enough due to the quality of its compositions and musically the album hints in the direction of the Metallica brand of thrash metal a la
Ride the Lightning. There are also several differing opinions of vocalist Romme Keymer from being dominant to not being voluminous enough and I personally think he falls somewhere in between and gets the job done well enough, despite some rather comical vocal turns in places. The kitschy album cover again hints at the band’s future power metal direction and might be seen as disappointing by thrash metal advocates. Today
Into the Dark Past is something of a cult classic that is not too well known outside of thrash and it’s worth a listen to, as here is a thrash band much like Metal Church that were vying the line between thrash and power metal at this time.
Into the Dark Past can easily beat albums by bands such as Poison, Cinderella, Great White, Ratt and even reputable albums from thrash based bands like Flotsam and Jetsam and Watchtower to claim a place in this year’s top 20.
Romme Keymer - Guitars, Vocals
Andreas Lohrum - Guitars
Dirk Assmuth - Drums
Frank Banx – Bass
Production- N/A