"Wake up Dead" - Megadeth

"Subjugator" - Anthrax

More thrash pioneering from Bayside, Queens' very own, Anthrax!

"Burning in Hell" - Possessed

1985 saw "Seven Churches" by Possessed, one of the earliest death metal albums. Around this time is when we saw death metal really start to come to fruition as a solid style. This band happens to have featured Larry LaLonde, who would later go on to join Primus.

"Anesthesia/Pulling Teeth" - Metallica

Cliff Burton's famous bass solo from Metallica's "Kill 'Em All" album, an album which was to be originally titled "Metal Up Your Ass".



Followed on the album byyyyy:



Some really notable riffs in "Phantom Lord", "No Remorse", "Jump in the Fire" and hell, the whole album was quite a thrash-ter-piece...yeah, that is the first and only time in my entire life I will ever use that phrase...

"Black Magic" - Slayer

Notice how these songs get progressively more evil? 1983's "Show No Mercy" put Slayer on the map as a staple of the thrash community. Tom Araya's vocals feature screaming pretty much exclusively, as opposed to singing. Locrian/phrygian modes become a prominent feature here.

"Killers" - Iron Maiden

1981 NWOBHM pioneers!

"The Four Horsemen"/"Mechanix" - Metallica/Megadeth

These are two songs with an identical main riff. As you probably know, Dave Mustaine of Megadeth was the original lead guitar player for Metallica. After he was relieved of his duties in Metallica, he brought this song over to Megadeth with him, changed the lyrics and did some re-writes on the music.