The Early 1990s, The Rise of Grunge and Changing Tastes in Metal

In past blog posts, I have briefly mentioned how heavy metal’s popularity declined once grunge was introduced in the early 1990s. In this post, we are going to examine that era of heavy metal a little more closely.

In the early 1990s, the tastes of the American public began to change. In 1991, four very important albums were released. Metallica released The Black Album, which totally changed the mindset of thrash metal bands around the world. The Black Album took a more mainstream approach to Metallica’s music, incorporating elements of hard rock. The album was such an immediate success that record labels started pressuring other thrash metal groups to follow in Metallica’s example.

Certain bands managed to adapt and become more mainstream, but many bands could not keep up and were either tossed from the mainstream to the underground world of heavy metal, or were forced to break up. The success of The Black Album coincided succinctly with the rise of grunge. The American public was more interested in dark rock music than ever before. They wanted albums by bands that weren’t flashy with their music or image. Henceforth, thrash metal quickly lost popularity and no longer became supported by mainstream record labels.  

The disappearance of thrash metal left a void in the heavy metal mainstream. That void was kind of filled by groove metal bands such as Pantera, Machine Head and Lamb of God, but groove metal still struggled to maintain popularity, and only Pantera was really successful at first. Pantera was seen as an anomaly for the most part. The difference between Pantera and other groove metal groups is that Pantera's attitude was similar to those of grunge acts. Their angsty vibe was appealing to both fans of grunge and thrash metal alike. That was what made Pantera such an instant success in the eyes of the public.

Alternative metal took the place of thrash metal more fully. The genre became popular because of its similarities to grunge. Alternative metal artists (just like grunge artists) were down to earth and never tried to look flashy or play over-the-top music. The genre was mixed in terms of what was musically acceptable, but for the most part, the music was darker and filled with more angst. Alternative metal musicians were the first metal musicians to really not dress up or try and “look metal.” Most of them looked like average members of the American youth, but just so happened to harbor musical talents. This resonated with the audience in the 1990s and led to the fast paced growing of the genre. 

Alternative metal’s rise came very shortly after the release of Nirvana’s Nevermind, Soundgarden’s Badmotorfinger and Pearl Jam’s Ten in 1991 (the three other important albums mentioned above). Nevermind, Badmotorfinger and Ten helped launch grunge and alternative rock into the world of mainstream rock music. The public fell in love with these acts that bridged hard rock and heavy metal in a way that had never been done before. 

As grunge rose, glam metal got totally obliterated. The images and music of the bands in these two scenes completely contrasted with one another. Grunge was down to earth, had more relatable lyrics and dark music. Glam metal, on the other hand, was based in a heavy metal wonderland and was a genre that focused on almost unrealistic dreams and desires. One genre definitely had to go, and it ended up being glam metal. 

With changing trends in the taste of the public, heavy metal became completely different within the scope of only a couple of years. The genre of music started to become an underground phenomenon as fans fell in love with grunge, alternative rock and more hard rock-based metal groups. Beneficial changes to the genre came from the grunge scene, and now metal is much more diverse and eclectic than it ever was before.

Selling Out

Back in the 1990s, grunge basically destroyed mainstream heavy metal. Tons of popular thrash metal bands and glam metal groups got thrown to the wayside in favor of this new angst-ridden style of rock music.

While glam metal bands all did fairly different things to survive, thrash metal bands were left with two options: sell out and get less extreme, or go underground and get heavier. Death metal and black metal gained underground followings that were devoted, yet not necessarily very large. A few thrash metal bands, most notably Testament, were able to switch over to a death metal style successfully. But a lot of other groups were left with no other choice but to sell out.

Selling out was seen as treason by metalheads across the world, who wanted their favorite groups to get heavier, not less intense. However, for thrash metal bands in particular, it was a business decision. Bands such as Metallica and Megadeth made the best of changing trends and managed to put out legendary rock records. Other bands didn’t have as flexible of an identity, and ended up forcing out terrible records.

Selling out is the worst form of sin that a metal band can commit. Getting less heavy to make money instead of staying true to one’s roots is seen as a terrible idea. For Metallica and Megadeth, it was more of a musical progression, even though a ton of fans still didn’t see it that way. Those musicians were getting old and they adapted to keep themselves comfortable and to keep their music close to their hearts. 

To me, selling out is when a band loses its identity and tries to force out records to make more money. Sure, Metallica and Megadeth wanted to make tons of cash, but they didn’t force anything out. It all came naturally, and that was fine. 

Nowadays, the term “selling out” isn’t really used anymore. It’s just not really necessary. With the invention of the Internet, music has become much more niche-based. Because of this, records don’t sell well and becoming popular is much more difficult. Furthermore, heavier and heavier bands keep gaining more mainstream exposure due to constantly growing Internet-based followings. For example, The Dillinger Escape Plan and Gojira are two bands that are signed to some of the best heavy metal labels and are headlining major tours, yet they are both extremely heavy groups. 

Mainstream metal has just changed. The tolerance of music lovers for less accessible styles is increasing. Furthermore, touring metal bands (even legendary ones) aren’t doing as well as they used to. Concerts aren’t selling quite like they once did. The economy is tight and people don’t have the money to throw away going to huge concerts anymore.

Does this mean heavy metal music is dying? Of course not, but there is no money in it anymore. At least, there isn't a large sum of money like there used to be. Bands have no need to sell out because it does nothing for them. By making one’s music more accessible, it just simultaneously isolates and welcomes in different listeners. It’s a pretty even trade off. 

So can the term “selling out” be used at all anymore? I think so. I think the term is changing meaning, though. Now getting less heavy is more of an artistic decision than it is a business one. Therefore, I don’t think the term can be applied in that context anymore. 

I think selling out is now when a band takes too much influence from other bands and starts adapting its signature style in order to sound like someone else.  For example, last year Avenged Sevenfold and Trivium both sold out in my eyes. Avenged Sevenfold’s newest record took influence from just a ton of different classic metal artists, which is fine to an extent. However, Hail to the King really didn’t sound that much like an Avenged Sevenfold record to me, and that’s how I think the line was crossed. Meanwhile, Trivium’s newest record sounds like a Disturbed album. The band didn’t mean for it to come out that way, but after hiring Disturbed’s lead singer to produce, the band should have been more self-conscious. 

So yeah, that is how I think the term “selling out” is starting to change. What do you think, metalheads? Is the term “selling out” changing its meaning? It’s all up for debate, but I think it’s a pertinent topic in metal to discuss. I urge you all to go to your favorite metal forum and discuss the topic because it’s an interesting one and something that is very relevant now in the heavy metal community.

The Year to Come in Heavy Metal: 2014

Since this is the last post until 2014, I thought it would be a good opportunity to talk about the year to come in heavy metal. There are plenty of exciting events, album releases and tours coming up next year that have already been announced. Plus, I have a few predictions of my own as to what will happen to certain bands next year. Take a look!

Album Releases

There are quite a few exciting albums that should be coming out next year. First, let’s talk about some of the big ones. Metallica, Slayer and Slipknot are the three big bands that are working on highly anticipated albums.

The next Slayer album will be the first one without Jeff Hanneman, but chances are we will hear some of the material he wrote before his death on the new record. It will also be the first Slayer record with Paul Bostaph back on drums and will more than likely feature guitar playing from Gary Holt. Holt’s presence on the record is particularly exciting, and hopefully he can make some substantial contributions to the album. 

The next Slipknot record will be the first without Paul Gray, and is rumored to be a mix between Iowa and Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses). Interestingly, Jim Root is taking some time off touring with Stone Sour to focus on writing for Slipknot’s upcoming release. Plus, Joey Jordison and Shawn Crahan have both been hyping up many of the tunes they have written. Slipknot hasn’t put out an album since 2008, so hopefully their gestating ideas can all combine to form a masterful new album.

Metallica has been teasing fans with the idea of a new album for a while now, and the band's new one should be pretty cool. My guess is that they will put out an album similar to The Black Album. However, who knows what the band will do to follow Death Magnetic. Metallica has been known to surprise its fans in unsettling ways, but hopefully the band’s next record won’t be too disappointing. 

Beyond Slayer, Slipknot and Metallica, there are a lot of other exciting albums coming out this year. Confirmed releases early in the year are set for Iced Earth, Adrenaline Mob, Alcest, Transatlantic, Behemoth, Within Temptation, Cynic, Triptykon and Overkill. Behemoth’s new record is particularly anticipated, as it will be the band’s first album since Nergal recovered from cancer. 

Bands such as Machine Head, Cannibal Corpse, Anthrax, Judas Priest, Arch Enemy, The Haunted, HammerFall, In Flames, Black Label Society, Exodus, Sanctuary and Fear Factory have also been confirmed to be working on albums. The records from these bands probably won’t be released early in the year, but should happen at some point in 2014.

Tours

Not that many major tours have been announced yet for 2014. Of course, The Rockstar Mayhem Festival and Summer Slaughter will return with surely stellar line-ups in the summer. Early in the year, the big talk is going to revolve around the recently announced Decibel Magazine Tour featuring Carcass, The Black Dahlia Murder, Gorguts and Noisem. All four of those bands had highly talked about releases in 2013, and they all put on great live shows. This is going to be one of the most talked about tours of 2014, so don’t miss it!

Predictions

I have limited myself to five predictions for the upcoming year. I wonder if they will come true.

1        Slayer will announce Gary Holt as a permanent guitarist. I mean, who else could they possibly get to replace Hanneman? I think Exodus will find a way to co-exist, but I don’t think Exodus will be able to put out an album in 2014. I hope I’m wrong about this, though, because I’d much rather have Holt focus solely on Exodus. 

2        System of a Down is going to announce a new record, and might even put one out in 2014. Serj Tankian is running out of excuses to stop the band from recording. I think 2014 is going to be the year for the return of System. Let’s hope I’m right!

3        Iron Maiden is going to put out a new record. It has been almost four years since the last one, and even though the band is in no rush to put out more music, I think it’s going to happen. I expect a late release for the record if it happens at all.

4       Disturbed announces its return. Device didn’t do well, and Fight or Flight did even worse. I have to hope that the members of Disturbed will have enough common sense to reform the band. 

5        Black Sabbath won’t exist by the end of 2014. I would be surprised if the band made it through the year. Iommi is still recovering from cancer and Ozzy seems ready to go back to his solo career. I hope this prediction is incorrect, but I’d be surprised if it wasn’t correct.

Gateway Bands

Heavy metal is a difficult genre of music to get into. Subgenres such as death metal and black metal may seem repulsive to music listeners who aren’t used to the harsh nature of the music. Sometimes music that sounds foreign can just be hard to comprehend.

Therefore, it is important that people find metal groups known as gateway bands. A gateway band is a band that helps one ease into a genre (or subgenre) of music. Once listeners start to enjoy a gateway band, it often becomes easier for them to explore the genre of music that initially seemed unlikable.  

A lot of metalheads really understand the importance of gateway bands. Very few metalheads have ever just been able to start listening to an extreme subgenre without having been eased into it through other bands. Furthermore, a lot of metalheads may have been turned off by heavy metal entirely, until that one special band came along to convince them otherwise. 

Personally, it took me years to start enjoying certain heavy metal subgenres. In fact, I was repulsed by just the idea of listening to heavy metal for a long time. But when I turned 15, I started listening to Metallica and everything began to change.

In my opinion, Metallica is probably the best gateway band into heavy metal. There’s a reason why they are the most popular metal band of all time. It is because they have such a strong universal appeal. The Black Album has sold 30 million copies worldwide, and has helped millions of people become interested in heavy metal. I was blown away the first time I heard “Enter Sandman,” and it really encouraged me to check out the rest of Metallica’s discography.

Pretty soon, I had become completely infatuated with the band’s early thrash metal albums. To this day, Master of Puppets remains my favorite heavy metal album ever. The first track off the album, “Battery,” encouraged me to check out more thrash metal bands besides Metallica, in search of other songs like it. Pretty soon, I found myself on a journey of musical discovery, and by trying to find bands that sounded like others I liked, I began to delve deeper and deeper into the heavy metal genre.

Metallica was my gateway band, but they’re not a good gateway band for everybody. Many metalheads who are encouraging their friends to start listening to metal will tell them to start at the very beginning with Black Sabbath. Black Sabbath is an admittedly great gateway metal band. It’s not hard to convince fans of hard rock, psychedelic rock and the blues that Black Sabbath is a phenomenal band. After exploring Black Sabbath, many people may be further encouraged to check out other doom metal bands, and may even decide to listen to stoner metal and sludge metal as well. 

Black Sabbath and Metallica are probably the stereotypical gateway bands of heavy metal. Other common older metal gateway bands include Deep Purple, Motörhead, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Megadeth and Anthrax. Collectively, these are the bands that most metalheads of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s will say got them into heavy metal. However, we’re in the 2000s now, and a lot of people are looking for more newer, more modern gateway bands into heavy metal.

Ghost is the gateway band that everyone seems to be talking about right now. Their gimmicky costumes alongside their rather tame music are universally likeable. Ghost’s dark vibe and embrace of the occult will naturally attract fans that are unfamiliar with heavy metal. They’re a great gateway band and they put on a hell of a live show.

Alternative metal and nu metal bands are good gateway bands for younger teenage listeners who are looking for a bit of kick to the usual rock music. I know a ton of people who have used Slipknot, Disturbed, System of a Down, Limp Bizkit, Papa Roach and Marilyn Manson as gateway bands into heavy metal. Personally, I think Disturbed is a really great gateway metal band that is good for easing people into the genre.

Metalcore also seems to be a subgenre that is a good gateway into heavy metal. Melodic metalcore bands such as Every Time I Die, Avenged Sevenfold, Killswitch Engage, Bullet for My Valentine and Trivium are great gateway metal bands with catchy songs. These are good bands for fans of punk music, and for those who just like simplistic, likeable songs. 

Lastly, for those who like complex music with a lot of intricacies, I recommend exploring progressive metal. Dream Theater, Fates Warning, Symphony X, Animals as Leaders, Devin Townsend Band and Cynic are an eclectic group of progressive metal bands that will surely appeal to listeners of more musically sophisticated and complex genres. 

I actually further recommend Cynic, particularly their newer material, to fans of indie rock. It’s sort of a stretch, but I think Cynic’s music might be a good gateway for them as well. Fans of indie rock and alternative rock might also appreciate groups such as Alcest, Agalloch and Amesoeurs. These are gateway bands that reflect a combination of metal and softer genres of music.

When beginning to listen to heavy metal, it’s all about finding the right gateway band. There are infinite possibilities, and all it takes is one band for someone to get completely hooked on heavy metal. Heavy metal is such a diverse genre of music that is really worth deeply exploring. Finding the right gateway band can lead to an exciting musical journey that can really open up one’s musical palette for the better.

The Dismal Current State of Mainstream Heavy Metal

Is there anyone we can rely on to put out a good mainstream heavy metal album anymore? I’m serious. Mainstream heavy metal is in some major trouble and in desperate need of new blood. Let’s take a quick look at some of the genre’s most popular bands, and see what the hell is going on with them.

 

Metallica: The most popular metal band to have ever existed just put out a 3D movie no one asked for. Metalheads can’t even rely on Metallica to put out a good record anymore. Just when the band had finally slightly redeemed itself with Death Magnetic, they put out Lulu. Now all hopes and expectations are out the window.

Megadeth: Really guys? Super Collider? That record speaks for itself. It’s a piece of trash. I want United Abominations and Endgame Megadeth back.

Slayer: Fans probably would have accepted the band with Gary Holt just permanently replacing Hanneman, but getting rid of Dave Lombardo was too much of a slap in the face for Slayer fans. Lombardo is essential to the band, and without him and Hanneman, what hope does Slayer have of putting out a decent record?

Black Sabbath: Without Bill Ward the band just feels incomplete. The newest record is still good, but something is missing, and I think many other metalheads will agree with me on that point.

Sepultura: REUNITE WITH THE CAVALERA BROTHERS ALREADY! This is getting ridiculous. 

Slipknot: The world could really use Slipknot, but Corey Taylor is holding his crew back from putting out the comeback record that fans are all dying to listen to. The motivation for the record is there for everyone but him, and it’s driving listeners insane. System of a Down is experiencing something very similar with Serj Tankian’s lack of desire to fully recommit to the band, despite the excitement of the rest of his bandmates. 

And those are just examples of what’s wrong with some of the active bands. Iron Maiden and Judas Priest are taking a really long time to release new stuff. 

 

Meanwhile, you have heavy metal icons such as Phil Anselmo, Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie trying to get back in the game, but still coming short of reclaiming past glory.

Taking a look at newer popular heavy metal groups, Avenged Sevenfold basically just released a covers album, Device sounds exactly like Disturbed, Hellyeah has never released an original record, and really Stone Sour? That’s your attempt at rejuvenating heavy metal? Your last double album was good, but not nearly as exciting as promised. 

Oh, and I haven’t forgotten Five Finger Death Punch, who hasn’t released a memorable record since the debut, yet is still managing to get major headlining gigs. Then there’s Trivium, who wrote a tribute record to Metallica a while back and now seems to be doing so for Disturbed, further tarnishing their good reputation.

At least mainstream heavy metal has Anthrax, though, right? The band's last album was pretty great. Hopefully Rob Caggiano wasn’t the only one keeping them in check. 

Look, I’m not trying to just shamelessly bash popular heavy metal groups. What I’m trying to point out is that a lot of metal’s most beloved bands are lowering their standards and not thinking out their records. It’s easy to have fun and put out a metal album. It’s hard to put out a record that is of high quality, and it’s even harder to put out one that sounds original. 

I think with fame a lot of bands have become lazier and/or less inspired. Megadeth’s new album is a good example of both of those characteristics. Super Collider sounds like an album made by a band going through the motions, and that’s just not alright. I have a lot of respect for bands such as Rage Against the Machine and Tool, who are bands that collectively took a step back when they didn’t feel motivated. Taking a break to explore other musical outlets can sometimes be exactly what a band needs in order to sound fresh again. 

Deftones is a great example of a band that is just always out to impress their fans, no matter how famous they get. They threw out an entire album because they felt they had a bigger statement to make. They followed their artistic vision and look at how that turned out. Diamond Eyes was incredible, and worthy of the praise it received. 

Some of these famous bands, such as Avenged Sevenfold and Trivium, just have no idea where to go. They lack direction, and a directionless band can never and will never be able to put out a memorable record. These groups either need some fresh blood, a producer to give them direction (who isn’t David Draiman) or maybe just a break.

It’s also not alright to keep rehashing the same album. The only metal band who can do that and still be accepted by both critics and their fans is Mötorhead, but they've earned that right.

I think what heavy metal really needs is some new blood. There are a lot of exciting new things happening in the heavy metal underground, but nothing is happening in the heavy metal mainstream. There hasn’t been a new hugely successful metal band since Avenged Sevenfold. To clarify, I’m not talking about the Lamb of God and Machine Head level of success. I’m not even talking about super cool, "scene" Asking Alexandria success. I’m talking about rock star success. The kind of success that allows people to include “Synyster Gates” and “Slash” in the same sentence. 

I think the world needs a new figurative Slipknot. When Slipknot came onto the scene, people freaked out. The group had nine members, chaotic live shows unlike anything else and had music that balanced aggression with exciting creativity. In other words, people need mainstream metal that sounds fresh and hasn’t been done before. 

Kudos to Ghost for trying, but the over-the-top-Satanic band just doesn’t have the exciting music to coincide with the cool gimmick. They will never be as big as they could be because of that, even if it is nice to hear Blue Oyster Cult-influenced metal suddenly get a little bit more popular again. 

Heavy metal needs a band that can get the masses freaking out again. A new boundary needs to be broken. A new anger needs to be unleashed. A new group needs to step up, and just take the world by storm. 

The question now is, how much longer will it take for this new band to appear? With the music industry constantly evolving and heavy metal becoming more and more multi-dimensional, one can only hope that the next big thing in heavy metal is only a couple of years away. Until then, the wait might be difficult with releases like this:

Speed Metal and Thrash Metal

Over the past couple of weeks, “Into the Pit: A Metal Blog” has covered the earliest subgenres of heavy metal music. These subgenres were the early beginnings of this heavier style of rock music, and they helped lay the foundation for what was to come in the 1980s.

During the 1980s, heavy metal music started to get faster and more aggressive than ever. New metal bands of the time were all trying to be more vicious than the next. That resulted in the rise of speed metal and thrash metal.

We have already briefly mentioned speed metal in the past few weeks when discussing bands such as Motörhead, Accept and Venom. Speed metal was developed during the 1970s, and it eventually evolved into thrash metal music.

There is some debate amongst heavy metal listeners as to whether speed metal is a legitimate subgenre. The people who argue that it is tend to say that speed metal is generally cleaner and more intricate than thrash metal music, which relies more heavily on long, wrenching rhythmic breaks. Personally, I do consider speed metal to be a legitimate subgenre of heavy metal music, though I believe it soon became indistinguishable from thrash.

Thrash metal is generally characterized by its fast tempos, double bass drumming, low-register vocals, intricate guitar riffs, and high register guitar solos. Thrash metal also usually consists of melodic singing or shouting vocals. The genre is heavily influenced by the NWOBHM and speed metal bands of the 1970s.

There were many “proto-thrash” songs of the 1970s, such as Diamond Head’s “Am I Evil?,” Judas Priest’s “Rapid Fire,” and even Queen’s “Stone Cold Crazy,” but the first real thrash metal bands were formed in the early 1980s. The most notable thrash metal bands in the US were known as “The Big Four” bands of thrash metal, and they consisted of Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax. These bands were the initial pioneers of thrash, and they are four of the most popular and prominent metal bands of all time.

Metallica was the first of the four bands to be formed, and are without a doubt the most popular metal band in the world today. Their first album, Kill ‘Em All, was released in 1983 and was one of the first real thrash metal albums.



One of Metallica’s most legendary albums was its third release, Master of Puppets, which has been hailed by some critics as the best metal album of all time.



The band really became a worldwide phenomenon, though, when they released their fifth album, titled The Black Album (also known as their self-titled release). It has been certified 15 times platinum in the US and is one of the most successful rock albums of all time. Since the album’s release, Metallica’s popularity has just kept growing, and today they are considered to be the most commercially successful metal band of all time.



It’s easy to spend three blog posts just talking about the significance of Metallica, but there are many other important thrash metal bands that deserve to be addressed here.

Megadeth, the second out of the “Big Four,” was formed by ex-Metallica guitarist, Dave Mustaine. Megadeth is the second most successful band of "The Big Four,” releasing landmark metal albums such as Peace Sells…But Who's Buying?, Rust in Peace, and Countdown to Extinction.



The last two bands of “The Big Four” are Slayer and Anthrax.

Slayer is the most inaccessible out of the four bands because of their controversial lyrical topics, intense speed and their vocalist’s harsh shouting vocals. Slayer has strongly influenced the development of death metal, and other underground metal subgenres. The band is most well known for their highly successful album, Reign in Blood; however, they have several other very highly acclaimed albums, such as Hell Awaits, South of Heaven, and Seasons in the Abyss.



Anthrax is the least successful of “The Big Four” but they still have a solid and devoted fanbase. They are the most musically consistent out of the four bands, and are known for their more melodic vocals. Anthrax’s most famous albums are Spreading the Disease, Among the Living and Sound of White Noise.



In the US during the 1980s, the San Francisco Bay Area was a very popular region for up and coming thrash metal bands. Several very popular thrash metal bands from this area include Testament, Exodus, Vio-lence, Forbidden and Death Angel. This blog is actually named after Testament’s song “Into the Pit.” Similarly, on the east coast there was also a strong thrash metal scene that led to the formation of Overkill, Whiplash, and Storm Troopers of Death.



Thrash metal also became popular worldwide. Germany was notable for their Teutonic thrash metal scene that sprouted many very popular thrash metal bands. The “three kings” of Teutonic thrash metal are Kreator, Sodom, and Destruction, as they were the most well known bands to come out of this scene. These bands heavily influenced the pioneering of death metal that was to come later in the decade.



One final thrash metal band that is extremely necessary to mention is Sepultura, who is from the Brazilian thrash metal scene. Led by the Cavalera brothers, Sepultura became one of the most popular thrash metal bands around the world for their albums, Beneath the Remains, Arise, Chaos A.D. and Roots.

Similarly to Slayer and the “three kings” of Teutonic thrash, Sepultura heavily influenced the development of death metal. The Cavalera brothers eventually left Sepultura during the 1990s, and now the band is led by long time guitarist Andreas Kisser, and longtime bassist Paolo Jr.



In the mid-1990s, grunge started to take over, and thrash metal became an exhausted genre of music. Many famous thrash metal bands changed their sound or experienced radical line-up changes. In particular, Metallica has been accused of having sold out around this time, as their style transformed into commercial hard rock.

Since then, thrash metal has seen a slight resurgence in popularity, which was fueled by newly-created thrash metal acts such as Municipal Waste, Warbringer, Lazarus A.D, Evile, and Skeletonwitch. Many famous thrash metal bands have also seen line-up reunions, and have reverted to their old musical habits of the 1980s. Recently, “The Big Four” played together for the first time ever, and have since done several subsequent shows together.

Thrash metal has been revived for now, and will hopefully stay popular during times to come.