For those who were around when these albums were released...

...what was your initial reaction?

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
Dark Angel - Darkness Descends
Death - Scream Bloody Gore
Death - Human
Death - Symbolic
Def Leppard - Pyromania
Def Leppard - Hysteria
Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying
Judas Priest - Turbo
Judas Priest - Painkiller
KISS - Lick it Up
Kreator - Extreme Aggression
Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Megadeth - Risk
Metallica - ...And Justice For All
Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
Metallica - Load
Onslaught - In Search of Sanity
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Queensrÿche - Rage for Order
Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime
Savatage - Fight for the Rock
Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King
Slayer - Reign in Blood
Slayer - South of Heaven

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
I had already been an Anthrax fan as they were already popular in my area. I had already purchased the Armed And Dangerous EP, so I knew what to expect from Joey Belladonna and was quite pleased. To this day it ranks among my favorite albums. Killer thrash metal. Saw the band on this tour, once at the L'Amour in NY and once at City Gardens in NJ with Heathen's Rage opening. Great show. Great tour. Great album!


Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
Again, I was already a Sabbath fan when this came out, but to be quite frank, this album blew me away! I thought it the greatest Sabbath album ever when it came out. I still hold it in very high esteem. Dio rules! I was already a Dio fan from Rainbow, but there was just no describing how great he was here.

Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
My college roomate was a huge Celtic Frost fan before this album came out. I was working at a record store in Rochester NY. He came in the day it was released and purchased the album. I couldn't wait to get back to our apartment and check it out myself. When I got off work and arrived at home my roommate told me what total CRAP this new album was. This might have prepared me so that I wasn't so shocked as most metal fans seemed to have been. I actually liked it quite a bit and played it regularly. I made a tape of it and played it in my truck quite a bit. Of course I didn't brag about it at the time. I still like it to this day. Sure it's an attempt at more commercial metal, but it's such a dirty, gritty glam record. Juices Like Wine & Cherry Orchards are great songs.


Dark Angel - Darkness Descends
I was around for this, but I didn't become a fan until Ron joined. I just was unfamiliar with them at this time.

Death - Scream Bloody Gore
I thought this was pure noise! LOL! I loved the cover art, but didn't really get into this band until later years when they refined their sound. My college roomate was really into them and played this album quite a bit. I grew to like it.

Def Leppard - Pyromania
I was already a fan of Def Leppard when this came out and I liked it, but I wasn't bowled over by it either. I think I was moving onto heavier pastures at the time. I can't really remember. I don't hold this album in the same regard as I do High n Dry or On Through the Night. One of my college buddies, however, was big into jazz and really liked this album. He touted the production as some of the best he had ever heard. At that time, he was probably right.

Def Leppard - Hysteria
Ugh! I was disgusted by this album. I went on a boat trip with some friends after moving to New Mexico. The boat owner LOVED this album. It was the only stinkin' tape he brought for the trip. We listened to it over and over and over again. GAK! Not my thing.

Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh
I like this one when it was released, but didn't really become a huge fan until Fabulous Disaster. Not sure why. I love this one now.

Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
Was already a Maiden fan when this was released. I remember we were all peaved that DiAnno was canned. However, Bruce Bruce blew our minds. This record ruled my world in high school. Paul who?

Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
I was a bit disappointed. Didn't have the power of past Maiden. I've since grown to like it.

Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying
I was disappointed with it and still think it's one of their worst.

Judas Priest - Turbo
Oh man, we were utterly heartbroken over this album. We had seen Priest twice on the previous tour, once at the Meadowlands (NJ) and the Spectrum (PA). This was just so disappointing. It still ranks as one of my least favorites from Priest, even though I do like some songs on it.

Judas Priest - Painkiller
I was around for this, BUT, I was in my Christian music only phase and didn't get into it until some years later. I love it now.

KISS - Lick it Up
I was already a huge KISS fan and really felt they had made their come-back with Creatures. I waited for this album with anticipation and was not let down. I watched the MTV unmasking and the new video. I was extremely pleased. Still love this album.

Kreator - Extreme Aggression
Another one that my college roomate turned me onto. I thought it was a bit noisy and disjointed at first, and certainly it is that. However, I love the entire Kreator catalog now. That noisy, disjointed recording has a charisma that is undeniable.

Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Another one I missed due to my "Christian Music Only" period. I love it, but wasn't there for it when it was initially released. One of Dave's best IMO.

Megadeth - Risk
Ugh! I was almost OFFENDED by this one. What a blatent attempt at radio commercialism. I still don't really like this one.

Metallica - ...And Justice For All
Liked it, didn't love it. I think I was still bummed that Cliff was gone.

Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
Came out during my Christian Music Only phase. However, my brother-in-law LOVED it and played it all the time, so I was very familiar with it, even if I didn't buy it myself at the time. To be quite honest, I loved it. I still do.

Metallica - Load
I was disappointed. Metal seemed to be at an all time low. People were talking about how the new Metallica would resurrect metal to the masses. GAK! Alternica disappointed. However, I must confess, I listened to it and grew to like it over time. However, it wasn't what I was hoping for or expecting.

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
another one I missed during my Christian Only years. Now, it's really the only Pantera album I listen to with any frequency.

Queensrÿche - Rage for Order
LOVED IT! Still love it to this day. Many of my metalhead friends thought it was too lite, too artsy, and didn't like it. I guess I never cared that much what others thought. I played this album to death! Still ranks as one of my favorites.

Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime
Didn't see what all the hype was about. It didn't touch the greatness of the first three albums. My brother in law loved it and played it CONSTANTLY. He became a QR fanatic at this point. I don't hate this CD, but it's not a favorite of mine.

Savatage - Fight for the Rock
I thought it was a pathetic sell-out and that's exactly what it is. This was clueless record executives pushing a band to be more accessible and it just didn't work. Then they released Hall of the Mountain King and BAM!

Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King
Oh yes, Loved it when it came out. Loved the video for it too. It was funny, but cool at the same time.


Slayer - Reign in Blood
I'm gonna change this one to "Show No Mercy", as it was my first introduction to Slayer. I bought this record 'cause I though the cover was cool and the guy at the store said it was great thrash metal like Kill Em All. Well, that sold me. Indeed, this album blew me away. I was responsible for turning on a group of metal fans in NJ to this record. In contrast, I thought Reign in Blood was overrated and still don't hold it in the same high esteem that most metal fans do. It's a short album, barely an EP. The songs are short and I just didn't think the band had the same charisma as on Show No Mercy. I've grown to appreciate it over the years.

Slayer - South of Heaven
Wasn't a big fan of this one. Grew tired of the "Slaytanic" imagery, probably due to the fact that I had become a Christian only a few months earlier. I hadn't given up on 'secular music' yet, but this one just didn't appeal to me because of the imagery.

Death - Scream Bloody Gore
I remember it being out, but I am not sure if I heard it back then.

Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh
A big letdown, as I was a huge fan of Bonded By Blood and waited forever for them to release their second album.

Metallica - ...And Justice For All
My biggest impression was how different it was from their past stuff. I wasn't too thrilled.

Slayer - Reign in Blood
Loved it

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
Loved this album when it first came out, still love it to this day. Joey Belladonna's finest hour with Thrax.

Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
Was never a huge C.F. fan before this disc, and seeing the video for "Cherry Orchards" from this album on Headbanger's Ball certainly didn't help their case any. :)

Def Leppard - Pyromania
I played this cassette to death when I first got it when I was twelve years old!! My brother and I used to watch MTV for hours on end waiting for the video for "Photograph" or "Rock Of Ages" to turn up.

Def Leppard - Hysteria
Disappointment. "I waited four years for this?"

Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
First Iron Maiden album I bought (on cassette)... I know a lot of people hate this album but I dug it then, and I still dig it now

Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying
Another disappointment. I remember thinking that Maiden were really phoning it in by this point

Judas Priest - Turbo
I kinda went "Well, THAT's different." I enjoyed the album at the time but two years later when RAM IT DOWN came out I kinda went "whew!" because it didn't continue with the TURBO direction

Judas Priest - Painkiller
All it took was that first long-ass scream at the beginning of the title track for me to go "YYYYYYYYYES!" I remember my college roommate and I stage-diving off of our dorm furniture while cranking this one!!

KISS - Lick it Up
I hadn't heard anything from KISS for a few years before this album came out; a friend of mine bought it and I was shocked at how good it was. It rekindled my interest in KISS which had been dormant for quite some time.

Metallica - ...And Justice For All
One of the first albums where I made sure I went to the record store on the day of release to pick up my copy. I finally replaced my old cassette with a CD copy about a year ago because it had been played to death.

Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
I bought this one on the first day of release as well, at a record store in NYC. I put it in my walkman right away for my walk to the subway, fully expecting to be blown away just like I had been by all of the band's previous output. However, by about the third track my disappointment began to seep through and I was heard to comment "WTF is this crap?"

Metallica - Load
Let's just say that this one made the Black Album sound a lot better in retrospect.

Slayer - Reign in Blood
I remember thinking that it was the most insanely fast thing I'd ever heard... and Tom Araya's screeeech at the beginning of "Angel Of Death" sent a shiver up my spine! (still does!)

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease GREAT ALBUM
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell GREAT ALBUM
Celtic Frost - Cold Lake I DIDNT CARE OTHERS DIDNT LIKE IT
Dark Angel - Darkness Descends GREAT ALBUM
Death - Scream Bloody Gore GREAT ALBUM, MY FAVE
Death - Human GREAT ALBUM
Death - Symbolic I DIDNT CARE ABOUT THIS ONE
Def Leppard - Pyromania GREAT!!!!
Def Leppard - Hysteria NOT SO GREAT, BUT NOT BAD!!!
Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh DISAPOINTMENT
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast GREAT
Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time GREAT
Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying NOT SO GREAT
Judas Priest - Turbo GREAT
Judas Priest - Painkiller GREAT
KISS - Lick it Up GREAT
Kreator - Extreme Aggression GREAT
Megadeth - Rust in Peace GREAT
Megadeth - Risk SUCKED
Metallica - ...And Justice For All GREAT
Metallica - s/t (The Black Album) GOOD
Metallica - Load smurf poo
Onslaught - In Search of Sanity DISAPOINTMENT
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell smurf poo
Queensrÿche - Rage for Order GOOD
Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime NO TO GOOD
Savatage - Fight for the Rock GOOD
Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King GOOD
Slayer - Reign in Blood GOOD
Slayer - South of Heaven GOOD
I didnt bought all this albums when they came out, i am to young for that lol but this were my thoughts when i listen to them for the first time after buying them.

OK, I'll go similar as Krokus, I'm of course too young, but my thoughts about this albums:



Anthrax - Spreading the Disease

One of the first Anthrax albums that I've heard, but didn't really
care about it until I was sucked into "Among the Living" and "State of
Euphoria". My third favorite Anthrax!



Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell

The first Sabbath album that I've heard and my favorite one!! Sure,
I love the stuff like Iron Man, Changes, etc., but this one is miles
away! I never really got into Mob Rules, though ...



Celtic Frost - Cold Lake

Ahhh ... Is there anything funnier than Tom Warrior, who would
enter the world's top ten list of ugliest people anytime, any place,
with make up and opened pants in the band picture? I think not The
music mostly sucked, too.



Dark Angel - Darkness Descends

I'm not one of those who praise this album above anything else. I
thought that it was decent at first, but I like more now. The city is
guilty, the crime is life, the sentence is death ... dd!



Death - Scream Bloody Gore

Solid. Never been a huge Death fan, though! Zombie Ritual has one of the most memorable riffs ever written.



Death - Human

It's not even fair for me to write anything about this, as I gave it way too few spins.



Death - Symbolic

Same here.


Def Leppard - Pyromania

Def Leppard - Hysteria

Haven't heard it and I'm not planing it either.



Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh

It's great, but solid to Bonded by Blood.



Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast

I guess that I was just another 10 year old kid, who saw the cover
art for this recorded and was blown away! However, that was in the late
90s and I was getting into metal - with heavier stuff, like Metallica
and Slayer, so I was disappointed by the softness here. haha! Virtual
XI was actually my first Maiden album, but I didn't like that eiher.
But I've really grown to TNOTB, I guess I was searching just for really
headbanging stuff then .



Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time

Solid, as everything Maiden did.



Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying

Again, solid. I never understood why people said that this one is crap.



Judas Priest - Turbo

I actually haven't heard the whole album yet, I know a couple of songs and I like 'em!



Judas Priest - Painkiller

Excellent! I like it more now, than I used to in the past!



KISS - Lick it Up

Not a Kiss fan.



Kreator - Extreme Aggression

My favorite from the early (till Reneweal) Kreator era. I was
introduced to the band with flawless Violent Revolution (still my
favorite Kreator album), so I was somehow surprised by the band's old
sound.



Megadeth - Rust in Peace

My favorite Megadeth - but I wasn't very pleased as I first heard it - I guess that it was too technical for me then!



Megadeth - Risk

I actually haven't heard the whole thing yet.



Metallica - ...And Justice For All

Great memories - my first original CD!!! I remember being
disappointed by "One" (I've read of it as the band's best songs and it
was just ... soft - well, as I said, those were the times when I was
searching just for the heavy ripping stuff). I must have spinned this
CD 1000 of times! One of my top 3 albums of all time (with Master of
Puppets and Twisted into Form)!



Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)

Well, Metallica meant the world to me back in the day, and I really
liked the first two songs. I have bought and sold this album twice till
now so I guess I was never too happy with it Still, a very solid
album, but far from first four's greatness.



Metallica - Load

I guess that I have listened to it once, maybe twice. Just never cared for it.



Onslaught - In Search of Sanity

Haven't heard it yet.



Pantera - Cowboys From Hell

Another old favorite of mine - Cowboys from Hell and Medicine Man
were among favorites at 12 years old!! Still my favorite Pantera CD!



Queensrÿche - Rage for Order

Not a big Queensryche fan, but I have this one on CD - a bit too wimpy for my taste.



Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime

The only Queensryche album that I really dig - although I was told
that Queensryche play progressive metal so this was a big surprise (my first Queensryche as well).



Savatage - Fight for the Rock

Never heard it.



Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King

Cool album, but I'm not a big Savatage fan.



Slayer - Reign in Blood

Another one that takes me cca. decade in the past - my first studio
Slayer album (the first one was Decade of Aggression). Excellent over
the top album, can't find the words to describe it ...


Slayer - South of Heaven

I had this one on cassette since forever as well - and I love it!

I remember my guitar teacher talking about Load.

"I remember when Load first came out. I couldn't wait to hear it. I had actually liked the Black Album, even though I prefer their 80s output to it, and awaited its followup. I had been setting up a sound system in the basement all morning, to give the album an even better sound. My friend came to my house around lunchtime, and after lunch, we put the album on. We were both ecstatic. Then we put the album on...and we were both like...WHAT?! We couldn't believe it. It didn't sound anything like we were expecting at all. I thought it was going to sound like The Black Album. What it sounded like was a bad Aerosmith, AC/DC, Guns N' Roses hybrid. Then we looked through the album booklet. It didn't even look like Metallica. Lars Ulrich was even wearing eyeliner and nail polish. I was like...'WHAT?!'"

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease (I was fairly indifferent to this...)

Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell (LOVED IT! Hated Ozzy, so when I heard they had a new singer, I was stoked!)

Celtic Frost - Cold Lake (liked it...)

Dark Angel - Darkness Descends (didn't find out about it until later)

Death - Scream Bloody Gore (bought it for the name alone. Wasn't my thing...)

Death - Human (see above)

Death - Symbolic (see above)

Def Leppard - Pyromania (LOVED IT! Had to have it after seeing the Rock Of Ages video!)

Def Leppard - Hysteria (Ditto, Pyromania!)

Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh (got into Exodus very late...)

Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast (took me YEARS to get into Maiden)

Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time (The first Maiden disc I can say I truly enjoyed...)

Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying (thought it was really good, but hasn't held up that well for me....)

Judas Priest - Turbo (I remember recording this off the radio, as we had a local station that played full, uninterrupted albums. Hasn't held up well...)

Judas Priest - Painkiller (Instant classic for me...)

KISS - Lick it Up (Loved it instantly, though I prefer the non-singles for the most part...)

Kreator - Extreme Aggression (Found Kreator pretty late in the game)

Megadeth - Rust in Peace (loved it. Played the crap out of it on college radio!)

Megadeth - Risk (Didn't, and still don't really like this...)

Metallica - ...And Justice For All (Frustrated me at first, but fell in love with it later...)

Metallica - s/t (The Black Album) (Thought it was okay, but wondered where the Master of Puppets band had gone...)

Metallica - Load (Other than a couple of songs, I thought it was terrible)

Onslaught - In Search of Sanity (got into this late...)

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell (Loved it from the first listen. As with Rust In Peace, I played this a TON on college radio!)

Queensrÿche - Rage for Order (First album I owned by 'Ryche, and still in my Top 3)

Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime (Had to have it and loved it instantly!)

Savatage - Fight for the Rock (Never got around to buying this until about 5 years or so ago...)

Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King (bought it because of the s/t video. Liked it but wondered if there was more to this band...)

Slayer - Reign in Blood (Won't do Slayer at all...never owned it, never will.)

Slayer - South of Heaven (See Reign in Blood)




Arttie

Black Sabbath- Heaven and Hell.
I liked it, because I was already a huge Rainbow and Sabbath fan; but at first I wasn't sure Sabbath fans would buy anyone but Ozzy. I was really pleased that it went over well. However I felt exactly the same way about The Eternal Idol (Tony Martin) whom many Sabbath fans never accepted.

Celtic Frost- Cold Lake
I've always loved this album, but I never really took the Frosties all that seriously, so I was able to enjoy the goofiness of the thing. One of my favorite albums ever.

Queensryche-Rage For Order
I loved it at the time, and still think of it as a template for prog-metal, but it's a historical piece for me at this time. I haven't listened to it for many years. I've come to prefer Fates Warning, who seemed to keep the meat on their bones a little longer.

Ah we laughted, we cried, we rocked, this thread was a awesome blast from the past!-TJ

Metallica - ...And Justice For All

One of the great things about music in general is how it connects to specific events and moments in time. I clearly remember picking this up on day of release. Right after school, the boys loaded up in my 1980 silver Pontiac T1000 and headed to Waxie Maxies (The record store chain in the Washington DC area). I debated between the CD and tape and ended up getting the tape so I could listen to it in the car.

I loved that album from beginning to end.

[quote="Required Fields"]...what was your initial reaction?

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease

Loved it - listened to it over and over (A I R!!! IT'S A MADHOUSE!!!) I was in high school when it came out - I think it was the summer between Jr and Sr year


Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell

I didn't hear it when it first came out, heard it later when I borrowed it and mob rules from a friend - I remember liking mob rules better

Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
Never picked it up - I didn't like hell hammer, so I never bought any celtic frost


Def Leppard - Pyromania
LOVED IT! my first Def Lep album (had it on Vinyl) - this is when I started to get into metal - I was in 8th grade at the time. I wore the groves out of it - picked up the DL back catalogue afterwards, listened to them constantly - still love it. I had my wife beater british flag smurf poo and black parachute pants - thought I was cool at the time (LOL!) - I'm glad no photos exist of that!

Def Leppard - Hysteria
I love it, I was in my "christian only" music phase at the time and this was the album the brought me out of it. My brother bought it on tape. The first time I heard it, I thought it was OK, and was disappointed that it wasn't pyromania pt 2. After a few listens, I loved it. I played it over and over and over - Freshman in college when it came out. One of the first CD's I bought.


Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
I had heard the songs RTTH and TNOTB - LOVED the songs, would have picked it up first, but Piece Of Mind came out a few weeks later and I picked it up first. Picked it up next (on vinyl). Loved it, great album, still think Piece Of Mind is Maiden's best, but a great, classic album.


Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
WASTED YEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Loved it!!!! One of the classics - the processed sound didn't bug me at all. Loved the cover - so much going on in the pic

Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying - disappointed, thought it was an OK album, had some good songs, but the production really bugged me, it wasn't up to normal Maiden standards


Judas Priest - Turbo
Liked it, wasn't the best thing they ever did, but still liked it, first reaction was "not as good as Defenders"

Judas Priest - Painkiller
My inital reaction was "HOLY COW!!!!! - PRIEST IS BACK!!!!!!!!" as soon as I heard the song "pain killer" I had heard ram it down and didn't like that one at all, this restored my faith in priest - what a great CD, classic priest

KISS - Lick it Up
Always a HUGE KISS fan, I though it was a great album, but not as good as Creatures. Still a great album.


Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Loved it!!!!! This one is my favorite Megadeth disc. I thought it was the best thing they have done at the time. still love it.

Megadeth - Risk
My inital thoughts - Is this a Megadeth CD or did Giant get back together, Dan Huff lost his voice and they asked Dave Mustaine to sing?

Metallica - ...And Justice For All
LOVED IT!!!! Still love it - bummed the Cliff was dead, but loved it - I like it as much as Master of Puppets at the time, but probably because I had listened to Master so many times I was tired of hearing it. Still ranks right up there with Ride/Master, with Master being my favorite


Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
Loved it, still love it. I remember picking it up, hoping in the car of a firend from church how had it on and cranking it. It wasn't like the Metallica of old, but a great disc

Metallica - Load
First thoughts - what happened???? only liked 1/2 the songs at first. Not a frequent player

Queensrÿche - Rage for Order
I almost didn't buy it because I had seen the "gonna get close to you" video first. A worked at the local record shop (who was a metal head) told me to give it a shot, that was the worst song on the album and not representitive of who disc. So, I bought it and listened to it over and over and over (and so on) - still love it.

Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime
First thoughts - wow! what a great album. This is another one that I have listened to so many times, loved the story, love the songs. When I found out they were playing it live on the Empire tour, I couldn't wait to see it live - still one of my concert highlights. Every song is great.


Savatage - Fight for the Rock
I picked this one up whne a friend said I should check out Savatage, of couse he was talking about Sirens and Dungeons are calling, I didn't know any better. This one kept me anyway from Savatage

Slayer - Reign in Blood
A friend had it, I thought it was good, but the lyrics bugged me so I didn't buy it

Slayer - South of Heaven
Same feeling as Reign In Blood

[quote="kethdredd"]Metallica - ...And Justice For All

Waxie Maxies (The record store chain in the Washington DC area). quote]

I remember Waxie Maxies - I mostly shopped at Kemp Mill Records because they seemed to sell albums for the lowest prices (4.99 and 5.99 for new vinyl) and Pengiun Feather (although my parents didn't want me shoping there because of the head shop in the back room) because of the import section

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease - This was a great album for what it was. Still listen to it once in a blue moon.

Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell - Very cool. It was real evil to me at the time haha.

Celtic Frost - Cold Lake - Total suckage! hated this so much and still hate it! It wasn't Celtic Frost any longer to me.

Dark Angel - Darkness Descends - When this album was released, this was one of my favorites. It was so fast and crazy. Still their best album!!

Death - Human - I was blown away at the musicianship but had a hard time liking it overall because it was Death. I couldn't understand how they had changed.

Death - Symbolic - This album was great! Still really technical and I liked that, but was still apprehensive because it was Death.

Def Leppard - Pyromania - Total crap! I could not stand this band at the time.

Def Leppard - Hysteria - I grew to like them on this album, but it was very commercial.

Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh - I was blown away by this one as well. I was already a mega-thrasher so this was cream of the crop!

Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast - This was my introduction to Maiden and I liked it!

Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time - I was a huge fan by this album and thought it was amazing! Still think it ranks up there in the top 5 albums for me!

Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying - YUCK!!! This was a huge disappointment. Felt that they were going through the motions with it. I liked one song "Mother Russia" but could not stand the other songs. I gave it many tries.

Judas Priest - Turbo - Lots didn't like this one, but I did. It was interesting hearing it. Very good songs to me.

Judas Priest - Painkiller - This was a huge kick in the ass!!! Judas Priest just let everything out with this for me and it still amazes me!

KISS - Lick it Up - This was a really kick ass album!! The solo's were great and it had an aggressive feel.

Kreator - Extreme Aggression - This was the best thrash album ever made to me when this came out!

Megadeth - Rust in Peace - Total garbage! I hated it and still do. Don't know why.

Megadeth - Risk - This was the funniest album ever made to me. It was another Metallica move to me and I broke it!

Metallica - ...And Justice For All - I was never a huge Metallica fan but this was dumb. The beginning of their major decline.

Metallica - s/t (The Black Album) - I got this when I was stationed in Japan during my military days and thought this was the worst metal album I had ever heard. I played every song for about 2 minutes and flung it out my window like a frisbee from the 6th floor. It flew better than the songs for sure!

Metallica - Load - Complete garbage. Glad I never bought it!

Onslaught - In Search of Sanity - Since I was a huge Grim Reaper fan I knew this was gonna kick ass before I even bought it! It was killer indeed!!!

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell - I was horrified. Never had heard them previous to this, but it was way too commercial for my tastes.

Queensrÿche - Rage for Order - Liked it all except 1 song.

Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime - This was the 2nd best album of the year for me!

Savatage - Fight for the Rock - Never heard it.

Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King - It was good. Nothing superb. The title track was/is a monstrous slab of metal greatness though!

Slayer - Reign in Blood - Blew me away!!!!!!!!

Slayer - South of Heaven - This one blew me away as well!! This was also the last album I ever liked by Slayer.

i didn't get into metal until 88, so my reaction when most of these albums were originally released would be null. i'll just list the ones i remember coming out...

Celtic Frost - Cold Lake: loved the music, but the pictures scared me so.

Death - Human: shocked at the progressive leanings, but eventually accepted it.

Death - Symbolic: loved it at first listen. was expecting more progression

Iron Maiden - No Prayer For The Dying: it sounded like they didn't even try.

Judas Priest - Painkiller: F*ck Yeah!!!!!

Kreator - Extreme Aggression: at first listen i thought to myself what a perfect companion to Slayers Reign In Blood. i used to crack both one after the other relentlessly.

Megadeth - Rust In Peace: if this isn't one of the greatest thrash albums ever made & a certified masterpiece, then f*ck me.

Megadeth - Risk: oh how the once mighty have fallen.

Metallica - And Justice For All: not as fast as i was expecting. also has a tinny drum sound, but really good songs. i grew to like it alot.

Metallica - s/t: a very commercial piece of hard rock. i was sad to see them venture into this direction. but i didn't hate it.

Metallica - Load: sounded more like latter day C.O.C. to me than Metallica. i wasn't really screaming "sellout" though. just disappointment.

Onslaught - In Search Of Sanity: not sure who they were trying to mimick with this album, but they failed miserably. Steve was a great singer... he just didn't belong with this band. neither did this music.

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell: couldn't see what all the fuss was about. Anselmo had a nice voice when he chose to use it though.

Queensryche - Operation Mindcrime: way to bland for me.

Slayer - South Of Heaven: total evil. alot slower than i expected though. killer Priest cover.

ok i was not around for many of these (i was one when cowboys from hell was released) but here are my initial reactions

anthrax - spreading the disease - ordered this from the shop and left an english exam to pick it up before the bus. i loved it but the production seemed weak as i know thrash was at the time. however today many ea;y thrash albums have been remastered but this one had not

black sab - heaven and hell - when i first heard the title track i was blown away and the same goes for the album

pantera - coyboys from hell - i heard vdop first and got this after. at first i did not like it as much as vdop but grew to like it and listened to it a lot. still prefer vdop as it introduced me to pantera

iron maiden - number of the beast - i never thought it was as good as the other maiden albums i got before this one. i would not rank it as my favourite

somwhere in time - liked but took a while to get in too. now i love it and i rank it as probably my favourite bruce album

no prayer for the dying - kinda indifferent - bring ya daughter was the best song

megadeth - rust in peace - loved it from the first time i listened to it. best meg album ever

megadeth - risk - bought cheap so not bothered that it was crap

metallica - ajfa - loved it
s/t - loved it
load - err yeah i liked it

queensryche - op mc - everyone raved about it so i bought it amd the first three or four songs are good but then it bogs down

slayer - south of heaven - loved the cover and the riffs
reign in blood - loved it still kicks ass today

out of those i listened to spreading the disease today and heaven and hell this morning while i got dressed

Quote :

I remember Waxie Maxies - I mostly shopped at
Kemp Mill Records because they seemed to sell albums for the lowest
prices (4.99 and 5.99 for new vinyl) and Pengiun Feather (although my
parents didn't want me shoping there because of the head shop in the
back room) because of the import section

HA! I remember when penguin feather got raided for that stuff, they closed shortly thereafter. I imagine most of their profits didn't come from music...

Required Fields wrote:

...what was your initial reaction?

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
Dark Angel - Darkness Descends
Death - Scream Bloody Gore
Death - Human
Death - Symbolic
Def Leppard - Pyromania
Def Leppard - Hysteria
Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying
Judas Priest - Turbo
Judas Priest - Painkiller
KISS - Lick it Up
Kreator - Extreme Aggression
Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Megadeth - Risk
Metallica - ...And Justice For All
Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
Metallica - Load
Onslaught - In Search of Sanity
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Queensrÿche - Rage for Order
Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime
Savatage - Fight for the Rock
Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King
Slayer - Reign in Blood
Slayer - South of Heaven

Spreading The Disease: The second album I heard by them, the first being the E.P before it. I loved it and it helped push me further into thrash back in 1985.

Heaven and Hell: I lost my virginity to this album back in 1980. classic metal, one of the best albums from that year.

Celtic Frost: never really got into them at all, I thought they were boring and talentless.

Darkness Descends: awesome thrash from 1986(?) I loved the speed and Hoglan's drums.

SBG: I absolutely loved this back in the day. not the greatest talent or production but brutal and fast!

Human: only heard it a couple times, then I stopped listening to this type of music back in 1993 when I bacame a christian.

Symbolic: never heard it.

Pyromania: I taped this album from an LP a week after it came out and heard it in Hawaii for two weeks by myself while on vacation back in 1983. I loved it but I could tell it would be very popular and everybody's little sister would love it as well. I was right.

Hysteria: Hated it for about 4 years but it kinda grew on me around 1992 or so, I didnt hate it anymore(it was kinda forced on me by my rock friends, I was pretty much exclusively thrash from about 1985-1992). to this day however, Ive never owned it.

Pleasures of the flesh: loved it, had to wait a couple years after BBB and it was worth it, I missed Baloff for maybe 2 weeks and then grew to prefer Souza more.

# of the beast: legendary! as with the Exodus post above, it took me a bit to get used to Dickinson but grew to love his arena style alot more. some of IM's best songs ever are on this album.

Somewhere in time: the synth-sound threw me temporarily but this album soon became impossible to get off my turntable (soon to be replaced by a $200 cd player). remember when cd players were that much? crazy.....

No prayer for the dying: I liked it alot but I never really loved it to death. havent heard it in maybe 15 years.

Turbo: the old Priest fans hated it(me as well) but the Bon Jovi-Def Lep fans liked it more than the old Priest. it grew on me a bit but I never really loved it.

Painkiller: comeback album of the decade(80's). I saw Priest on the Turbo tour and Rob H. was dancin' around and not really headbangin'/fist-pumpin' and when I saw them again in 1990, they were re-energized and 10X more awesome!!

Lick it up: wasnt a big fan of Kiss at the time, not since the 70's and it was kinda a dissapointment from the Creatures album. I never owned it but looking back, its pretty much classic compared to anything in the last 20+ years.

Required Fields wrote:

...what was your initial reaction?

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
Celtic Frost - Cold Lake
Dark Angel - Darkness Descends
Death - Scream Bloody Gore
Death - Human
Death - Symbolic
Def Leppard - Pyromania
Def Leppard - Hysteria
Exodus - Pleasures of the Flesh
Iron Maiden - The Number of the Beast
Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying
Judas Priest - Turbo
Judas Priest - Painkiller
KISS - Lick it Up
Kreator - Extreme Aggression
Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Megadeth - Risk
Metallica - ...And Justice For All
Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
Metallica - Load
Onslaught - In Search of Sanity
Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Queensrÿche - Rage for Order
Queensrÿche - Operation: Mindcrime
Savatage - Fight for the Rock
Savatage - Hall of the Mountain King
Slayer - Reign in Blood
Slayer - South of Heaven

Extreme aGRESSION: I loved Kreator. IMO every album they put out was better than the last and how many bands can say that?

Rust In Peace: a huge improvement over So Far...IMO, ever aspect of the bands was better. most metalheads call this thrash, Im not so sure but I suppose out of default(no other genre fits the description of this album) I guess thrash will do.

Risk: never heard it.

Justice for all: I loved everything Metallica put out back then(and no I wasnt a johnny come lately fan of them, I was a fan since 1983). it was slightly more polished and not as heavy as MoP and I didnt love the drm sound on it but it is still classic Metallica IMO.

Black Album: most M fans hated it but I didnt, it just took a while to grow on me. I loved the songs and the songwriting on it but I really missed the speed/thrash aspect alot.

Load: next please.....

In Search Of Sanity: I loved their first 2 albums, this one was kinda of dissapointing from a thrash/death metal perspective. but it grew on me and I really thought the musicianship and production was better than previous albums. I couldve definately went for a few more albums from them sounding somewhere between this album and the second album.

Cowboys From Hell: a freind of mine played me this way back in the day but I didnt really love it, I never owned it. these guys IMO helped push the metal industry closer to what it is today, and you can form your own opinion on whether thats a good thing or a bad thing.

Rage For Order: alot of 'Ryche fans didnt love this but I did from day 1. a great flow from start to finish.

OP Mindcrime: great concept album; smart, interesting, plot twists, great sound. You could sense the leaning toward radio rock was getting closer.

both Savatage albums: I wasnt a fan back in the 80's, they werent heavy or fast enough for me. I wish I wouldve been because metal isnt all about speed and blood-n-guts and they were pretty good at what they did back then.

Rieng in blood: I never heard anything like this before and it blew me away!! I had all the opther Slayer albums and other stuff but this was brutal and lethal from the get-go. I couldnt stop playing it for about a year.

South Of Heaven: it was definately different but I loved it, heck it was Slayer!! not as brutal but still killer.

Lurideath, you don't like Rust In Peace?!!?!? ......ok man.

Anyway, I wasn't into metal when most of these came out but I HAVE to say....hearing Risk for the first time I thought...is this Megadeth!? I understand what they were doing, but I know that if ANOTHER modern, alternative rock band had made Risk, then it would've been a much bigger success.

However, being a MEGADETH album.....it's crapness. I love ya Dave, but man....seriously dude. Cryptic Writings should've been the END of the whole, "wanting a number 1 song" phase. I think they've gotten back on track thankfully.

As for ...And Justice For All, the first Metallica song I ever really heard was "One" soo.....I think that's pretty imprtant to me. A lot of people like Ride The Lightning or Master Of Puppets better but I've always liked ...And Justice For All best. After that they went downhill. I still like their self titled cd, but it's nothing compared to the stuff before then.

Hi Guys, My first post here.

A lot of good albums from my youth listed there.

Anthrax - Spreading the Disease

All I remember all the guys in the "madhouse" video. actually had hair. Good Time Good album


Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell

I love Neon Knights..


Celtic Frost - Cold Lake

I was closet "Cherry Orchard" listener


Def Leppard - Hysteria

Remains a great sounding ablbum to this day.


Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time

Bought it on October 16th 1986, I love this album.


Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying

So many hate this one and I dont know why... Love Tailgunner, Public Enema, Hooks in you. I thought it had great melody and great playing.


Judas Priest - Turbo

Great Tunes, I guess this is their "Somewhere in Time"


Judas Priest - Painkiller

Man o Man. Was this a heavy ass kicker.


Metallica - ...And Justice For All

Recording sounds horrible, Amazing how dated it sounds compared to other albums.

~

Swoot wrote:

Iron Maiden - No Prayer for the Dying

So many hate this one and I dont know why... Love Tailgunner, Public Enema, Hooks in you. I thought it had great melody and great playing.

yeah, Tailgunner was a catchy tune

welcome to the forum Swoot!

Def Leppard - Pyromania
Blown away!! Loved the songs from beginning to end!

Def Leppard - Hysteria
Liked it...thoguht it was pretty different from Pyromania, but I loved the songs...the production was probably the slickest I'd heard up to that point.

Iron Maiden - Somewhere in Time
I was in 10th grade & saw the video for 'Wasted Years'. I knew some other Iron Maiden songs from MTV, but this was the first Maiden album I bought. It's still my favorite one...there's not a bad song on it.

Judas Priest - Turbo
I remember not liking the slicked up look...but I loved 'Turbo Lover'. 'Out In The Cold' is still one of my favorite Priest songs.

Judas Priest - Painkiller
I was in Oracle when this was released. It blew my mind!! I had never heard Rob so fired up & Scott's drums were insane!! Played this one to death!

KISS - Lick it Up
Bought the cassette @ Roses for $8. LOVED it!! LOVED the non-make-up look! The songs were among the heaviest KISS had ever done to that point. I remember seeing the video thinking Vinnie was Ace w/ no make up.

Megadeth - Rust in Peace
Liked it immediately. I was already into Friedman & Cacophony so naturally I thought this was the best Megadeth album I had ever heard. This is still one of the only 'Deth albums I'll listen to and it's because the songs overshadow Dave's vocals.

Metallica - ...And Justice For All
'One' blew me away first. Then the whole album nearly killed me. It was one of the most technical albums I had ever heard at the time.

Metallica - s/t (The Black Album)
I liked 'Enter Sandman' at first listen. I was in Oracle at the time and all 5 of us loved this album!! I remember listening to it over and over on the way home from an out-of-state gig.

Pantera - Cowboys From Hell
Knew they were on to something with this album. Such good songs. 'Cemetary Gates' was one of the best Metal songs I had ever heard!! Loved Anselmo's voice at the time...the way he'd go from Thrash voice to singing voice...

Queensrÿche - Rage for Order
Wow!! One of the weirdest albums I had ever heard! So dark & twisted to me...loved the vibe!! Still in my Top 3 'Ryche releases.