Top Ten Best Technical Thrash Metal Bands
Coroner is a Swiss thrash metal band from Zürich, formed in the early 80s. They have been called "the Rush of thrash metal" for their increasingly complex style of progressive rock-infused thrash. They garnered relatively little attention outside Europe . No Guitarist is better than Tommy Baron.
Vektor is an American progressive thrash metal band from Tempe, Arizona. The band was formed under the name Locrian around June 2003, but changed their name to Vektor in 2004. Their new album is mint
Annihilator is a Canadian thrash metal band founded in 1984 by vocalist, guitarist, bassist, songwriter, engineer, producer, mixer and mastering engineer Jeff Waters and former vocalist John Bates. I love this list and agree with you on the bands order.
Technical Thrash is probably my #1 metal subgenre.
Annihilator is a great band. Jeff Waters is a guitar virtuoso but also a genius songwriter. His songs are technical, fast and intricate, yet melodic. He knows how to put the right doses of these components.
Annihilator hands down. The speed and complexity alone sell it, but the fact that everything is played so clean and precisely, make annihilator a cut above the rest.
Voivod is a Canadian heavy metal band from Jonquière, Québec. Their musical style has changed several times since the band's origin in the early 1980s. The band's current line-up consists of Denis "Snake" Bélanger, Daniel "Chewy" Mongrain, Dominique "Rocky" Laroche and Michel "Away" Langevin.
Megadeth is an American thrash metal band from Los Angeles, California. Megadeth was formed in 1983 by guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist David Ellefson, shortly after Mustaine was fired from Metallica. They have released 15 studio albums to date, and have gone through many lineup changes, with Dave Mustaine being the sole constant member.They released their debut album “Killing Is My Business...And Business Is Good!” in 1985, but became successful after the release of “Peace Sells...But Who’s Buying?” in 1986. ...read more.
Megadeth has a serious technical edge. Listen to Endgame, Dystopia, Peace Sells, and obviously Rust in Peace.
Dead Brain Cells are a Canadian thrash metal band from the late 1980s. Called DBC for short, the band started in 1985 in Montreal as a small project named Final Chapter by guitar players Eddie Shahini and Gerry Ouellette, who put an ad in a magazine looking for a drummer. The prog side of their sound was influenced by Pink Floyd.
My favorite song is Root Of All Evil, but these are also very cool:
The Genesis Explosion, Negative Reinforcement, Terrorist Mind, Estuary, Monument, Exit The Giants, Waste Not Want More.
Watchtower is an American progressive metal band based in Austin, Texas. The band was influenced by late 1970s progressive rock acts, such as Rush and U.K., as well as the burgeoning new wave of British heavy metal scene. Their first album was pretty technical, but had poor production. I know that normally with thrash, that's a plus, but with prog stuff you really need a clean production. They got that on their second album, which was leaps and bound better than their first. Their new "Concepts of Math" has some elements that sound like late 80's Voivod and Vektor, but also blending that with some of their classic Watchtower sound. Overall, despite the small output compared with Voivod, Watchtower is better. After all, Voivod never did anything mind - blowing after '89.
Heavily influenced by Rush
Blind Illusion is an American progressive thrash metal band from Richmond, California. Formed in 1978 by lead guitarist and main songwriter Marc Biedermann, the band had an extremely unstable lineup and went through several stylistic changes during their time. Great job on this list Ryan. Nice to see a very obscure band that released only one album - The Sane Asylum (1988).
Their sound was influenced by Yes (for the prog side).
Guitar solos anywhere possible. Cool bass by Les Claypool - the future PRIMUS bassist.
Mekong Delta is a German technical thrash metal band, formed in 1985. All of the band members used pseudonyms until 1990. Especially with albums like Dances of Death and Kaleidoscope, this band is too unkown for what they released
Black Fast was an American technical thrash metal band founded in St. Louis, Missouri in 2010. Their music features fast tempos, intricate guitar work, and aggressive vocals, drawing inspiration from classic thrash metal bands of the '80s. Lyrically, they often touch upon themes of existentialism and social critique. Although they disbanded in 2019, Black Fast left a lasting impact on the modern thrash metal scene. You must listen to Terms of surrender!
Invocator are a Danish technical thrash metal band featuring Esbjerg-based guitarist/singer Jacob Hansen, founder of the band.
Artillery is a Danish thrash metal band. They participated in the early development of the genre, and their highly energetic, riff-centric and often fast-paced music is similar in style to that of Voivod, Coroner, Megadeth and Sabbat from the same era. Artillery owns a top 5 spot by inheritance, if you get me.
Dark Angel is an American thrash metal band from Los Angeles, California formed in 1981. Their over-the-top style (extremely fast, heavy and lengthy songs with lots of tempo changes, lyrics and extended instrumental parts) earned them the nickname "the L.A. Caffeine Machine". Although Dark Angel had never achieved a mainstream breakthrough in their initial career, their 1986 album Darkness Descends is widely regarded as a landmark in the thrash metal genre. They where among the first in develop thrash, speed and the now loved technical, just lend a ear to merciless death, black prophecies or the death of innocence; underrated and forgotten... they should be in top 5!
Sadus is an American thrash metal trio from Antioch, California known for the unique, borderline death/black metal growling of vocalist Darren Travis, and speeding up thrash metal to levels previously unheard of with the help of bassist Steve DiGiorgio whose bass lines truly pushed the limits of the genre. Sadus started with a death/thrash sound on DTP and Illusions. Thy started to include some technical elements on Swallowed in Black, whoch is their best album, and ramped up the technicality on Vision of Misery and Elements of Anger.
Sadus is one of the first bands to have blast beats in thrash/ death metal.
Flotsam and Jetsam is a thrash metal band that formed in Phoenix, Arizona in 1981. The band currently consists of vocalist Eric A.
Toxik is an American thrash metal band originally from Peekskill, New York. Initially active from 1985 to 1992, in 2013 it was announced that Toxik would reform again and start work on its third album.
"Intruder" is an American thrash metal band from Nashville, Tennessee. Formerly known as "Transgresser", the group began as a four-piece cover band.Their album "Endless War" is a masterpiece
Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. They have gone through many line-up changes, with singer Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and bassist D.D. They are not exactly technical thrash metal, but you can really hear the prog/tech influence on certain albums like "The Years Of Decay" and "Horrorscope".
Arsis is an American extreme metal band from Virginia Beach, Virginia, formed in 2000. The band is currently signed to Nuclear Blast.
Havok is an American thrash metal band from Denver, Colorado. Formed in 2004, their members currently consist of David Sanchez, Nick Schendzielos, Pete Webber, and Reece Scruggs.