Dark Angel - Darkness Descends - November 17, 1986

Albums like Dark Angel's Darkness Descends are few and far between. The third of the 'unholy trinity' of brutal thrash albums from 1986, Darkness Descends is easily the best one. While Reign in Blood thrashed just as brutally as this, it didn't have the song development and variety to make it a genre-definer. Pleasure to Kill on the other hand featured some great songwriting, but didn't have the same emphasis on RIFFS that its American counterparts did, and it was just too sloppy overall. Darkness Descends succeeds because it combines the best parts of the other two. Great riffs are shoved in everywhere, Gene Hoglan's drumwork is exemplary and Don Doty's strangled vocals strike a perfect balance between melody and aggression. 

The one problem with Darkness Descends is that the pummeling the listener endures is so constant, it's hard to pick out standout tracks -- there's really little room to breathe. Outside of the intro to "Merciless Death" and the slower parts of "Black Prophecies", the brutality comes at the listener in waves, so much so that it can be an almost painful listen at times. Regardless of that, Darkness Descends takes thrash to a logical extreme without stepping into territories reserved for death or black metal as bands like Possessed or Sepultura did before. No, this is thrash in one of its purest forms. Unadulturated violence, pummeling riffage, expert drumwork, frenzied barking vocals -- a true classic.

1. Darkness Descends
2. The Burning of Sodom
3. Hunger of the Undead
4. Merciless Death
5. Death is Certain (Life is Not)
6. Black Prophecies
7. Perish in Flames

Score: 9/10

Dark Angel - We Have Arrived - November 5, 1984

Some bands who attain greatness at some point in their career have rather mediocre debuts. Dark Angel is one of those bands. We Have Arrived is neither good nor bad -- it's just kind of there. There are flashes of brilliance to be sure, hell "Merciless Death" is one of the best songs they've ever written but it sounds a hell of a lot better on Darkness Descends. "No Tomorrow" has some good moments too, as does the title track but the over all feel just isn't the vicious, riffdiculous Dark Angel we would all come to love.

1. We Have Arrived

2. Merciless Death

3. Falling From the Sky

4. Welcome to the Slaughter House

5. No Tomorrow

6. Hell's on its Knees

7. Vendetta

Score: 5/10