Void Terra Firma

If you aren't a fan of the Bay Area thrash scene, stop reading at once. For someone who's into the music, like me, this release may be on the top of the list, but for the unexplored it's nothing special. Maybe it's a good introduction to Defiance, but not to thrash metal. In that case, you should get "Forbidden Evil" or "Bonded by Blood" instead.

My opinion: The songs are really good (especially "Void Terra Firma", "Deception of Faith", "Skitz-Illusions" and "Slayground") but they can barely survive in a poor production like this. The drums sound great, but the guitars drown in each other (way to much Middle, and way to little Treble), and the vocals sound like a drunk Chuck Billy recording demo tapes. The solos are phenomenal, but only if you are a guitar player yourself or smart enough to understand what the hell's going on.

Even if there are many things that could have been made better, this is as I said earlier a good complement to your thrash collection. Not only because this band is considered one of the better from its era, but because the entirety always turns out great when it comes to Defiance. That is also the simple reason why I gave the high rating. The sound may be poor, but it's metal thrashing mad anyway!