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Metal Monday vol. 18 

Sodom are OLD dudes. I don’t really know how they’ve been at it for like 25-ish years making German style thrash metal, or why, but every couple years they drop another album on some Euro label. Their first E.P. “In The Sign Of Evil”has a complicated history of remixing, re-recording, etc. But here’s the original version of it on Devil’s Game records which I think is just some imprint of SPV anyway. Sodom historically were kind of influential to the image of what later became black metal (you know… that stupid collection of overpriced tapes your friend refuses to stop accumulating…) as they were an early example of a metal band taking “evil” aliases like Angel Ripper and Grave Violator, something that’s now a time honored tradition. I think they might have predated Hellhammer on this practice by a little bit, although maybe not. Truthfully this probably qualifies at most as “Black-Thrash” and isn’t anywhere close to the pure Black Metal sound Bathory was busy pioneering at the time. Regardless, it’s well rated by genre purists because of the general “savage” rasping style vocals, and the low level of technical prowess displayed on the instruments. Basically, they play like total shit, and can’t keep in time with eachother, which is both the reason for all subsequent re-recordings/remixings, and the reason why this is the only version anyone wants. Sodom eventually got decent enough at their music, to seem competent, and with Destruction and Kreator flanking them, put Germany on the map for brutal thrash metal in the 80’s. I’ve always been more of a Kreator man, but this is an entertaining listen. I prefer Sodom a tad later in their career, but they’re die-hards, and I can respect anything they do. They’ve aged better than most (Venom, etc.).