Abrasive. Loud. Extremely fast yet still precise, with impeccable sense of timing. If judging by these words alone, it may sound like I’m describing a Dutch olympian – a speed skater or a cyclist, perhaps. But we’re talking music, aren’t we? I’m talking Thrash Metal, of course, which means I’m talking yet another extreme subgenre of Heavy Metal.

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Of course, Thrash Metal has its own aesthetics, too. Generally speaking, Thrash logos tend to have straight, sharp edges that reflect the tightness and controlled nature of the music’s rhythms.⁴ (You know, tight and controlled … like a murderer carving their name in a victim’s chest.⁵ Don’t give me that look. How else is one supposed to purify Metal from commercialism?) Indeed, some exceptions aside, there is no softness to be found in them whatsoever – there is only hardness.

US Thrash

It can be difficult to differentiate between a US Thrash band and a German one; perhaps the only clue is that US Thrash logos are more likely to have hints or elements of symmetry (because Americans love symmetry in all things except the balance of power) and interconnectedness to them. Come to think of it, they may also have more likelihood of having an outline or “halo” surrounding the letters.

Some US Thrash bands to check out:

• Megadeth
  • Band information
  • Spotify
• Metallica
  • Band information
  • Spotify
• Slayer
  • Band information
  • Spotify

Related (sub)genres:

Reference(s):

[1] M.A. Mengerink. Hitler, the Holocaust, and Heavy Metal Music: Holocaust Memory and Representation in the Heavy Metal Subculture, 1980-Present. In S.T. Horsfall, J.-M. Meij, and M. Probtsfield, ed. Music Sociology: Examining the Role of Music in Social Life, pp. 178-179, 2013.

[2] D. Konow. LA Weekly: Drummer Gene Hohlan Was Just 18 When He Recorded an ’80s Thrash Classic. https://www.laweekly.com/drummer-gene-hoglan-was-just-18-when-he-recorded-an-80s-thrash-classic/, 2017.

[3] Mengerink. 2013.

[4] L. Stinson. Wired: The Beauty and Total Illegibility of Extreme Metal Logos. https://www.wired.com/2015/10/the-beauty-and-total-illegibility-of-extreme-metal-logos, 2015.

[5] D. Lombardo. Loudwire: Dave Lombardo - Wikipedia: Fact or Fiction? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKppPspVNDs, 2015.

Take me back to the sample overview.