10 Greatest Thrash Metal Albums Of All Time

Gylve ‘Fenriz’ Nagell, drummer of the legendary black metal band Darkthrone, revealed that when the nastier (dare one say, illegal?) activities associated with black metal flare up, he plays Bonded By Blood to stay aggressive in the face of assault. Given the astonishingly brutal nature of Exodus’ debut album, Nagell was probably a complete terror.

Initially founded by Kirk Hammett, the band would only find their edge after he surprisingly ditched them to replace Dave Mustaine in Metallica.

In just 14 days, Exodus recorded an album full of brain-busting anthems such as And Then There Were None, Strike Of The Beast and A Lesson In Violence. Recorded in summer 1984, the album’s release would suffer severe delays due to various budgeting and label-related problems. By the time it finally hit the record stores in April 1985, the likes of Metallica and Slayer had already got their debut records out. Instead of pioneers, Exodus were left looking like the latest act in an already established scene.

While the level of impact an on time release could’ve had for Exodus remains a great what-could’ve-been, the album itself has attained the thrash metal classic status it deserves.