Artillery - Terror Squad [1987]

After establishing themselves in the metal underground with their stellar debut album “Fear of Tomorrow,” Artillery definitely needed to hit their sophomore record out of the park to even match the preceding record’s success. “Terror Squad” is that second album and despite its godawful album art it accomplishes a few new things for the band, and unfortunately fails to accomplish others, which ended up making the album a notch below the debut. Luckily, this 8-song collection is still strong and saw Artillery treading some new ground and adding some more “weapons” to their musical arsenal. 

One noticeable addition to the sound that was established on “Fear of Tomorrow” was the added variety in riffs. Not a single riff on “Terror Squad” sounds alike, as the structures aren’t just a mix of fast or midpaced riffs and some very well placed power chords. Stutzer’s fingers are flying all around the fretboard for these songs and it’s noticeable on tracks like “The Challenge” and “Hunger and Greed,” both of which feature riffs that could rival acts like Forbidden and Coroner. Of course these Danes could still thrash like maniacs, most noticeably on songs like “Terror Squad” and “At War With Science,” which are violent enough to incite a riot, while the latter also showed some technicality that would later become even more significant in the band's sound. 

Another highlight on this album is the awesome performance by Flemming Ronsdorf, who once again took the entire band to the next level. His gift for hitting incredible highs, vicious growls and beautiful, clean notes is unparalleled in the thrash subgenre. Morten Stutzer also shined with his bass playing, delivering fill after fill, and even being heavier than the riffs at points. The drumming wasn’t amazing, but it was solid and the drummer got what needed to be done to make these songs thrash.  I don't see anyone who enjoyed "Fear of Tomorrow" not liking this album. Artillery definitely made an awesome sophomore record with “Terror Squad,” and while not quite good as the predecessor, it’s still very memorable in its own right.

Highlights

“Terror Squad”

“At War With Science”

“Decapitation of Deviants”

Final Rating

Awesome [8.4/10]

Artillery - Fear of Tomorrow [1985]

If you take a look at the year of release for this record, then you understand that the thrash subgenre had not even yet entered its prime, so when some relatively unknown act (globally speaking) coming from Denmark hit the scene with their debut full-length “Fear of Tomorrow,” I’m sure not many people expected to hear something this terrific. Sure, this record isn’t usually referred to when people talk about their favorite Artillery album and it's never a common one thrown around in thrash circles when talking about "greatest thrash albums ever," but that does not take away just how well this album came out and how it is looked at now. This band is typically revered by fans around the world because of their masterful ability to weave in technical excellence with a thrashing energy and mentality, but on this album, it’s pretty much non-stop thrash mayhem. 

Before Artillery was making a name for themselves with the Stutzer brothers’ incredible fret work, they were smashing skulls with upbeat and fast riffs that were more akin to the bay area bands than the Germanic beasts in Europe. The opening track “Time Has Come” starts with an acoustic piece before it escalates to a track full of fury and shredding solos. “Out of the Sky” and “Fear of Tomorrow” are two of Artillery’s most thrashing onslaughts, with fast riffs that rip past the listener as well as stomping and crushing midpaced ones, battering drums, and Flemming Ronsdorf’s unique vocal delivery. Ronsdorf’s vocals are definitely reminiscent of vocalists from the USPM scene, where over the top vocals are commonplace, but unlike a majority of the power metal frontmen, Ronsdorf also possessed a real gruff edge to his voice that reminds me of Paul Baloff or Bobby “Blitz” during this time period. 

In addition to some catchy riffs and charismatic vocals, Artillery also provided a good deal of variety that other thrash acts at the time didn’t have. Germany had bestial thrashers in Kreator and Sodom, but songs like “King, Thy Name Is Slayer” and “Deeds of Darkness” provided plenty of head banging moments while also captivating listeners with top-notch solos and fantastic songwriting. One of the band’s most classic songs also makes this album a must listen, as “The Eternal War” has more than enough spectacular qualities than many a thrash band’s albums do, including some incredible riffs, bass lines and brilliant vocal passages. “Fear of Tomorrow” is an absolute classic, yet Artillery would still go on to top themselves and permanently stamp their name on the thrash genre. 

Highlights

“Out of the Sky”

“The Eternal War”

“Fear of Tomorrow”

Final Rating

Awesome [8.9/10]

Artillery - By Inheritance [1990]

Technical music has never been my favorite cup of tea. Anytime there is a technical (or progressive as both are pretty interchangeable) tag added to a type of music it automatically turns me off from checking out the music, but there are quite a few bands out there who have done it right. Coroner, Demilich, Deathrow, Gorguts, Heathen and few other notable names are ones that I've come to love because of their ability to create memorable music that isn't just a bunch of guitar tech-wankery, but none of those bands created the kind of sound that Artillery did on "By Inheritance." In fact, no other band could hold a candle to the Danish masters' gift of blending technical magnificence with melody, thrashing riffs, insane vocals, clean and acoustic guitar passages and everything else that makes this record the flawless masterpiece that it is. 

The main reason for the absolute brilliance of "By Inheritance" stems from the impeccable guitar duo of the Stutzer brothers. Saying that every song on here has great riffs would be a massive understatement, because there are riffs on every track that are to die for. The intro riff to "Khomaniac" is fucking legendary and highly memorable, plus the riffs later on in the song are just as tremendous (one of the reasons why this is one of my favorite thrash tunes of all time). "Beneath the Clay (RIP)" features stellar riffs that rival those created by the man himself, Megadave, as the guitars' rhythms blaze by with a rapid fury of ever-changing notes and frets. But it isn't just the thrashing riffs, it's also the Stutzers' ability to weave clean guitar melodies and passages in and out of the thrashing mayhem effortlessly, creating an opera of incredible metal music that seemingly never ceases. The title track is the perfect example of Artillery's signature sound and the remarkable chorus is an essential for any metalhead. "Don't Believe" is another track that captures the beauty of the acoustic sections and the frenzy of the distorted guitars nicely for another classic, though that shouldn't surprise anyone by now. 

Seriously, this record could have been an instant classic due to the riffs and other guitar parts alone, but Flemming Ronsdorf and the rest of the band stepped their game up just as much. The drumming isn't amazing in every song, but the intro to "Beneath the Clay (RIP)" is unforgettable and the fills on "Life in Bondage" are worthy of some praise as well. Thorslund's performance on the bass isn't mindblowing like the Stutzers', but there aren't any negatives to his playing either. Ronsdorf's vocals are almost as much of a highlight reel as the guitars, as he can do it all. He was found clean singing (and quite well) on "Don't Believe," hitting high falsettos on "Beneath the Clay (RIP)" and shouting his fucking lungs out on "Bombfood," which is one of the key reasons as to why that song has arguably one of the catchiest choruses ever heard. "By Inheritance" is basically the answer to the question "What more do I need in life?" Because you're not really living until you've heard this record. 

Highlights

"Khomaniac"

"By Inheritance"

"Bomb Food"

Final Rating

Legendary and Beyond [10/10]