20 Years of Nuclear Blast Records

Nuclear Blast Records is a label specializing in METAL, not "metal", the stuff that some people refer to stuff like Def Leppard or whoever, but true bone crushing shit.....some of this is absolutley tremendous, honestly, some, maybe not so much (personally not a huge fan of some of the death-metal stuff and there is a TON of it here), but there is no question, this is annoy the neighbors/wake the dead shit, I know some of you likely will freak over it, some, I am sure, will take a pass on it......my old buddy Spider (a metal-head if ever there was one) gave me this, if I'd have acquired it on my I own likely would and could have pared it down to a single disc, but no matter, I expect this to a fairly polarizing, love-it or hate-it post and that's why Baskin Robbins has 31.

OK......as for what is here....wow, if you are a lover of REAL brain bashing, skull splitting pure METAL loudness, you are in the right place.....I will try to touch on a highlight or two so you tend to get the idea, I spot-listened this this afternoon and LORD, that is some hardcore shit for sure.

OK, the first disc.....lots of stuff that will be WELL KNOWN to lovers of this stuff (which i really am NOT, I am more of a dabbler), such as Pungent Stench, Death Angel, and Malevolent Creation, the names alone ought to give you an idea of what is in store for you if you are a novice. This is difficult stuff to digest if you, say wanted to listen to all four discs on a long road trip or something, much better absorbed in smaller doses, this stuff does have its charms, I just wish that sometimes those (what I consider) awful vocals were, well, "different".......

The second disc contains a couple of better-known acts, without mellowing out even a tiny bit....Mehsuggah
is here, whom I have featured on this blog before, as is Clawfinger, likewise, and In Flames as well. Other than that, there are brain stompers from Agnostic Front and Bleed the Sky, to name just a couple.....by now you know if you are going to love this, or if you are going to take a total pass, both situations are understandable.

The third disc includes Cathedral, whom I believe I have featured here, as well a couple of really good ones from Candlemass and Blind Guardian.....this (again) is NOT for the novice, you need to REALLY love this stuff to fully deal with it, but if you try it and DON'T like it, at least you can annoy your neighbors to no end (trust me).

OK, the final disc, to be honest, features, at least to me, what are the most unknown acts of the bunch (I will have to ask Spider if I am wrong, next time he wakes up from his pain-pill induced coma)....bands like  Subway to Sally and Creamatory have cool names and are no doubt worth a listen, this is, as I have said a FEW times here, stuff you are going to love or hate, PERIOD.

I was not familiar with this set, really, until Spider turned me on to it.....he's not exactly a "contributor" to the blog like some of the other friends (mostly because he doesn't have a computer and if he did wouldn't be able to operate it), but he acquires the CD's from SOMEWHERE (none of MY buisness) and his contributions are as valuable as those of my online friends (he just lives a couple blocks away, so he can get to be a bit of a pain in the ass, unlike my "online friends of the blog", I could shut them off if need be).

Anyways, thanks, Spider (although I know you will never read this), always looking for contributions and
you do often come through for me........I live and die by contributions here, lately more than ever, and I LIKE going in that direction.....offers up more variety than my mere 20,000+-odd CD collection (trust me my wife just LOVES them all over the house).

****************************************NOTE************************

DISC 4, TRACK 2 (Tapping the Vein) is defective, I am looking for a replacement version, sorry!

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DISC 1-01 DIMMU BORGIR-Progenies of the Great Apocalypse/02 IMMORTAL-One By one/03 HYPOCRISY-Scrutinized/04 GOREFEST-The Glorious Dead/05 KATAKLYSM-Manipulator of Souls/06 BENEDEICTION- I Bow To None/07 PUNGENT STENCH-Shrunken and Mumified Bitch/08 BELPHEGOR-Sanctus Perversum/09 NILE-The Language of Shadows/10 DEATH-Scavenger of Human Sorrow/11 MALEVOLENT CREATION-Assassin Squad/12 DESTRUCTION-The Butcher Strikes Back/13 DEW-SCENTED-Cities of the Dead/14 GRAVEWORM-Legions Unleashed/15 EXODUS-Riot Act/16 DEATH ANGEL-The Devil Incarnate/17 I-Warriors

DISC 2-01 SONIC SYNDICATE-Psychic Suicide/02 CLAWFINGER-The Price We Pay/03 IN FLAMES-Only For the Weak/04 MESHUGGAH-Future Breed Machine/05 SOILWORK-Exile/06 THE DESTINY PROGRAM-Project Hoax/07 SCAR SYMMETRY-The Illusionist/08 THREAT SIGNAL-Counterbalance/09 MNEMIC-Ghost/10 EKTOMORF-Destroy/11 AGNOSTIC FRONT-Warriors/12 ALL SHALL PERISH-Eradication/13 BLEED THE SKY-God in the Frame/14 DARKANE-Solitary Confinement/15 THE DUSKFALL-Trust Is Overrated/16 ONE MAN ARMY & THE UNDEAD QUARTET-So Grim, So True, So Real/17 CHILDREN OF BODOM-Hate Me/18 WINTERSUN-Winter Madness

DISC 3-01 HAMMERFALL-Hammerfall/02 RIDE THE SKY-New Protection/03 EDGUY-King of
Fools/04 BLIND GUARDIAN-The New Order/05 SONATA ARCTICA-Caleb/06 GOTTHARD-Master of Illusion/07 RAGE-Full Moon/08 GRAVE DIGGER-Valhalla/09 HELLOWEEN-Immortal/10 STRATOVARIUS-Why Are We Here/11 TAROT-Before the Sky Comes Down/12 THUNDERSTONE-Face In the Mirror/13 COMMUNIC-Conspiracy In Mind/14 THRESHOLD-Slipstream/15 CANDLEMASS-Of Smoke and Stars/16 CATHEDRAL-Corpsecycle

DISC 4-10 AFTER FOREVER-Transitory/02 TAPPING THE VEIN-Complicate It/03 EPICA-Never Enough/04 ECHOES OF ETERNITY-Voices In a Dream/05 SIRENIA-The Other Side/06 DEATHSTARS-Greatest Fight on Earth/07 SAMAEL-Valkyrie's New Ride/08 THE KOVENANT-In The Name of the Future/09 AMORPHIS-The White Swan/10 THERION-Der Mitternachtslowe/11 CREMATORY-Revolution/12 FARMER BOYS-For the World To Sing/13 PYOGENESIS-Addiction Pole/14 LIQUIDO-Ordinary Life/15 CHROME DIVISION-Serial Killer/16 DIE APOKALYPTISCHEN REITER-Riders on the Storm/17 SUBWAY TO SALLY-Meine Seele Brennt/18 KNORKATOR-Wir Werden Alle Sterben/19 SUCH A SURGE-Mission Erfullt

OK, if you DARE, what do ya think of this......hoping my favorite niece, AKMETALCHICK comes across
it (Hi AW!!!), and if course thanks to Spider for contributing this (assuming he is still living as you read this, you NEVER know about THAT guy)......anyways, this stuff serves a purpose, it's dark, it's menacing, there's some of that non-English language stuff that I love so much (I don't know why, I just do), and no question it is ROCK N ROLL......please sample and leave comments accordingly.....what tracks did you discover and especially enjoy? I can feature probably most of these bands if there were a demand (Spider has a HUGE collection of stuff like this)........as always, please comment, isn't it the least a can do?