Product of Imagination

After listening to this album, I am surprised that I have not heard of Paradox sooner. While they can sound quite generic today, they honestly made quite a significant contribution to the world of thrash metal, especially with this album being released in 1987. At this time, thrash was already being reformed by the release of albums like “Master of Puppets” and “Reign in Blood”. “Product of Imagination” reflects another, more classic approach to thrash that forged a different sound from thrash’s frontrunners of the time. It demonstrates a wonderful blend of old school thrash with hints of power metal and traditional metal mixed in, and it can truly transport you back to the peak of old school thrash metal.

The composition in this album is very reminiscent of the time period, with the typical E standard thrash style riffing. However, it is surprisingly solid and mature for being Paradox’s first LP. There are good harmonies interspersed in the title track, “Mystery”, and “Pray to the Godz of Wrath”. Time signatures remain relatively stagnant, but such is to be expected for an old school thrash band. Of course, there are plenty of fast sections for the thrashers out there, but there are actually some middle pace sections that create solid variety. As for the album structure, the beginning does a good job of slowly introducing the listener to the album before blasting off with the second track, which is a proper speedy thrash song. I appreciate the inclusion of “Continuation of Invasion” in the middle of the album. This free tempo shred section gives the listener a break from the relentless speed before the second half. On the first listen, it simply felt like generic thrash, but after hearing it a few more times, there are some sections that have a bit of power metal and traditional metal influence. These additions give hints of Helloween, Judas Priest, and Iron Maiden that differentiate Paradox from other old school thrash bands. Overall, the writing is very reminiscent of the time period but still very well executed.

The sound and production on this album is fantastic. The guitars sound relatively clean with a small hint of Helloween influence, the bass cuts through the mix super well, and the drums and vocals are clear and intelligible. The vocals largely resemble the Nuclear Assault and Testament style, having more edge than a traditional metal vocalist, while still maintaining a more traditional approach than someone like Tom Araya or early James Hetfield. I would appreciate some more personality or grit in the voice like Steve Souza or Tom Angelripper, but the more clean approach does fit the rest of the band well. The mixing and mastering is nearly flawless. I particularly like the touch of reverb added to the mix. Many thrash albums after “Master of Puppets” opted for less reverb, but Paradox keeps the slight reverb that the classics had. The addition gives the album a more grandiose, theatrical feel rather than a gritty, down-to-Earth feel.

Similar albums include Testament’s first two albums, Nuclear Assault’s “Survive”, and Death Angel’s “The Ultraviolence”. Although, they do lack the power metal influence that Paradox has, so this album still has a touch that makes it unique. My favorite song has got to be the title track, with “Mystery” coming in second place. It has a nice clean intro, brief fast sections, and it showcases their power metal influence with the main riff.

In summary, “Product of Imagination” is better than the average thrash album due to the hints of other styles and mature writing and sound, but it does not bring much new material to the table. It is also worth noting that I tend to be more of a death metal fan, so for thrash fans, this album is probably going to be a lot more appealing. Honestly, this album stands with early Testament and Nuclear Assault for me, and it was a great start to Paradox’s discography.