Thrash

The article “Thrashing All Around” by Glen Pillsbury talks about the origins of thrash metal, specifically the start of Metallica.  Pillsbury argues that the start of thrash metal came in 1983 with the release of Metallica’s first album, Kill ‘Em All.  The sound on this album had never been heard before.  This is clear with the vocals of lead singer James Hetfield.  “Hetfield’s short opening shriek that coincides with the introduction of the bull band texture is also crucial for making the fast tempo sound aggressive: his short, high-pitched, distorted vocalization coming across as a blast of transgressive energy” (Pillsbury).  This in-your-face attitude was soon to be one of the main characteristics of thrash metal. 

After Metallica’s success on Kill ‘Em All, they decided to sign a deal with a major record company.  This decision was not based on the music, rather it was a purely business decision.  They were going to be able to get more money, publicity, and better recordings than before when they were on an independent label.  However, they were not selling out like many thought as Elektra did not force Metallica to change its habits and let them do as they pleased and as a result, their sound did not change.  Most of the time when a band signs to a major record label, their sound becomes much more produced and the band loses their identity.  It seemed like the best option for Metallica to sign with Elektra, and it is something that I would have done as well.

With the success of Metallica, other bands started to change their sound in order to keep up.  Bands such as Slayer and Dark Angel were left in the dust and had to change their sound in order to be successful.  “The energy was there, the talent really wasn’t for all the bands involved; like Slayer was a crazy cover band called Dragon Slayer, and Dark Angel was really bad at the time too.  All of a sudden something got cohesive.  Metallica got good and everybody said, ‘look we gotta step our act up’” (Get Thrashed).  So because of Metallica, thrash metal would not be where it was today.

One thing that was common throughout all of metal was that it was purely about the music.  Most of the bands enjoyed underground success, but there was no money involved.  It wasn’t about making millions; it was just about the metal sound.  Because of this, the sound progressed and new sounds were created.  I think that this has slowly been taken away from metal in recent years.  One of the things that helped Metallica gain such success is the fact that kids were making copies of their tapes and giving it to their friends.  This is exactly what was happening with the rise of the Internet and illegal downloading.  Kids were downloading tracks for free and Metallica’s drummer, Lars Ulrich, lost sight of this and filed lawsuits against violators.  In my opinion his is rich enough, and needs to start making better music.