Thrash metal

History and character

Thrash metal was born in the early 1980s in the San Francisco Bay Area and in New York/New Jersey, combining the technique of the NWOBHM (Motörhead, Diamond Head, Iron Maiden) with the energy and speed of hardcore punk. The “Big Four” are Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax; alongside them Exodus, Testament, Overkill, Death Angel, and in Germany Kreator, Sodom and Destruction, in Brazil Sepultura.

1986 is the landmark year: Master of Puppets (Metallica, recorded at Sweet Silence Studios in Copenhagen between September and December 1985 with Flemming Rasmussen, with Hetfield's guitars run through a modified Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ used as a preamp, at tempos up to about 212–220 BPM), Reign in Blood (Slayer, produced by Rick Rubin, a decisive influence on death metal), Peace Sells (Megadeth). Then came Among the Living (Anthrax), ...And Justice for All, South of Heaven, Rust in Peace (1990), and in the 1990s thrash evolved into groove metal (Pantera, Sepultura's Chaos A.D.) and into Metallica's Black Album (1991), slower and produced by Bob Rock.

The sound: fast alternate-picked and downpicked riffs (Hetfield), sixteenth-note palm mutes, chromaticism and tritones over an E pedal, sudden tempo changes, heavy half-time passages, the skank/thrash beat (kick on the beats and snare on the offbeats, called the “Slayer beat” in the United States), chaotic solos with whammy bar (Kerry King, Jeff Hanneman) or melodic ones (Kirk Hammett, Marty Friedman), aggressive, shouted vocals, and political, social or horror lyrics. The thrash guitar tone has scooped mids and tight compression.

Scales and keys

Phrygian

• Formula: 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 (semitones 1-2-2-2-1-2-2).
• Example in E: E F G A B C D.
• Characteristic note: b2 (F) above the open E string.
• Chords: i Em, bII F, bIII G, iv Am, v° Bdim, bVI C, bvii Dm.
• Use: pedal-point riffs (E E F E E G E E F), F–E cadences.
• Real example: Metallica — Battery (riff in E with the minor second); Slayer — Angel of Death.
• Common mistakes: losing the open-string pedal, which is the “engine” of the riff.

Locrian

• Formula: 1 b2 b3 4 b5 b6 b7. In E: E F G A Bb C D.
• Characteristic note: b5 (Bb).
• Chords: i° Edim, bII F, biii Gm, iv Am, bV Bb, bVI C, bvii Dm.
• Use: riffs with E–F–Bb (tritone and minor second together): the most “evil” sound in thrash.
• Real example: Slayer — Raining Blood (chromatic and tritone riffs; transcriptions place it in D minor/Locrian depending on the passage).

Chromaticism and the tritone

• Chromatic: all 12 notes; thrash builds riffs on chromatic ascents and descents of power chords and single notes.
• Tritone: E–Bb (6 semitones), used as a leap in the riff.
• Real example: Metallica — Master of Puppets (main riff with chromaticism over an E pedal and bars in irregular meter: every fourth bar shortened in the opening section).

Aeolian (melodic parts)

• Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7. In E: E F# G A B C D.
• Use: melodic interludes, guitar harmonies, lyrical solos (Master of Puppets has a clean, melodic middle section).

Harmonic minor and diminished (solos)

• Harmonic minor: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7 (in E: E F# G A B C D#). Diminished (whole-half): 1 2 b3 4 b5 b6 6 7 (in E: E F# G A Bb C C# D#).
• Use: fast solos (Marty Friedman, Alex Skolnick), diminished arpeggios over the V.

Minor pentatonic and blues

• Formula: 1 b3 4 5 b7 / + b5. In E: E G A B D.
• Use: Hammett's solos (pentatonic with wah), groove metal.

How to choose

• Aggressive riff: Phrygian over a pedal. Evil riff: Locrian/tritone/chromaticism. Melodic interlude: Aeolian. Fast solo: harmonic minor, diminished or pentatonic.

Harmony

Function

Very few “real” progressions: the harmony is in the notes of the riff. Chromatic riffs over an open-string pedal on E (or D in lower tunings), with tritone and minor-second leaps. bII–i cadences. The melodic parts use Aeolian progressions (i–VI–VII, i–VII–VI–V).

Tunings

• Standard (1980s Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax), Eb (Slayer), drop D or lower on some songs (The Thing That Should Not Be is downtuned) and in groove metal.

Pedal riffs

• Palm mute on the open string in sixteenth notes with power chords or single notes above: E E E F E E E G E E E F#…

Dyads and power chords

• Two-string power chords (root + fifth), fourth and tritone dyads, octaves.

Harmonic rhythm

• Fast: changes every eighth note in the riffs; the slow parts (half-time) change every bar.

Typical progressions

Rhythm and groove

Fast 4/4 (160–220) with the skank/thrash beat as the foundation, sixteenth-note palm mutes, downpicking in fast eighth notes (Hetfield) or alternate picking in sixteenth notes, sudden tempo changes (heavy half-time sections and restarts), occasional irregular meters (Master of Puppets: shortened bars; Welcome Home alternates 4/4 and 6/4). Fast gallops (Disposable Heroes), 3/4 sections. Extreme rhythmic precision between the rhythm guitar and the drums.

Drums

Role

Fast and precise drums: the skank beat is the engine, while the double kick and half-time passages add weight. Models: Dave Lombardo (Slayer: speed, double kick, a forerunner of the blast), Lars Ulrich (Metallica), Gene Hoglan, Charlie Benante (Anthrax, among the first to use blasts in thrash), Igor Cavalera.

Kick

• Skank beat: kick on the eighth-note beats (steps 1, 5, 9, 13 on a 16-step grid with snare on steps 3, 7, 11, 15 if counted in eighth notes; at “double” time they are alternating kick/snare eighth notes).
• Double kick in sixteenth notes in the gallop passages and under palm-muted riffs.
• Sound with click to define the fast notes.

Snare

• On the offbeat in the skank beat; on 2 and 4 in half-time passages; on 3 in slow half-time. High, bright.

Cymbals

• Crash or ride on quarter notes in the skank beat (in unison with the kick), china on the accents, open hi-hat in midtempo grooves.

Interaction

• The kick follows the rhythm guitar's palm mute; unison stops (cymbal chokes).

Sections

• Intro (often acoustic or an arpeggio, as in Battery or Fight Fire with Fire) → fast riff with skank → verse → chorus with half-time or double kick → middle section with tempo changes → solos → return.

Fills

• Fast snare and tom fills in sixteenth notes, double-kick fills; “Lombardo” fills with cascading toms.

Sounds

• Acoustic kit, kick with attack, high snare (on Master of Puppets Lars Ulrich used a rare Ludwig Black Beauty lent by Rick Allen of Def Leppard), present rooms but drier than rock.

Typical mistakes

• Skank beat too “punk” (it should be heavier); kick without click; lack of dynamics between the skank and the half-time passages.

Bass

Sound

Bass played with a pick, bright and slightly distorted so it can be heard among the guitars (Cliff Burton with distorted Aria Pro II and Rickenbacker basses and wah, Frank Bello, David Ellefson); note the case of ...And Justice for All, famous for its nearly inaudible bass.

Role

• Exact doubling of the riff in sixteenth notes; in half-time passages, long notes on the root and the b2.
• Solo moments (Burton: (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth, the intro of Orion with the bass processed to sound like an orchestra).

Relationship with the kick

Unison with the kick and guitar; the bass provides body at 100–200 Hz.

Examples

• Metallica — Orion; Megadeth — Peace Sells (bass intro); Anthrax — Caught in a Mosh.

Harmonic instruments

Guitars

• Two high-gain guitars (Hetfield: Jackson King V, ESP; Hammett: Gibson Flying V, Jackson Randy Rhoads; King/Hanneman: B.C. Rich, ESP, Jackson), Mesa/Boogie Mark IIC+ amps, Marshall JCM800, later Rectifier.
• Tone with scooped mids and tight compression (according to Wikipedia the thrash tone is “scooped mids and tight compression”), but not too scooped: the mids are needed for definition.
• Layering: rhythm guitar doubled or quadrupled (Hetfield personally recorded almost all the rhythm parts, in many stacked tracks), L100/R100; solos in the center or on the guitarist's side; third harmonies L/R.
• Techniques: eighth-note downpicking, alternate picking, palm mute, pick slide, whammy bar (dive bomb), artificial harmonics.
• Acoustic or clean intros (Battery, Fade to Black, Welcome Home: clean arpeggios).

Voicing

• Two-string power chords, dyads, single notes over a pedal, octaves.

Melody and vocals

Vocals

• Aggressive vocals: shouted and rhythmic (Tom Araya), rough and powerful (James Hetfield), nasal and sarcastic (Dave Mustaine), more melodic (Joey Belladonna), shouted and high-pitched (Mille Petrozza).
• Rhythmic melodies that follow the riff in the verses; shouted choruses with gang vocals.

Backing vocals

• Gang shouts in the choruses (Anthrax, Exodus, Metallica — Seek & Destroy), vocal doubles.

Effects

• Doubled vocal, short room, little reverb; plate on the slower songs.

Instruments

• Two high-gain electric guitars (standard tuning or Eb), acoustic or clean guitar in the intros.
• Pick-played bass.
• Drums with double kick (or double pedal) and china.
• Vocals.

Drum patterns

Synths and sounds

• Augmented Strings — Strings for intros: Orchestral or dark intros (Megadeth, Testament): low strings in octaves.
• Mellotron V — Choirs and strings: Dark atmospheres for intros and bridges.
• Augmented Voices — Choirs: Mournful choirs in the intros (Slayer — South of Heaven has a similar atmosphere).

Song structure

Form (4:00–8:00)

Mixing and mastering

Sonic goal

Definition and aggression: dry, tight guitars with great clarity in the fast notes (little saturation in the low end), drums with a “clicky” kick and bright snare, bass present in the mids. References: Metallica — Master of Puppets (1986, mixed by Michael Wagener), Slayer — Reign in Blood (1986), Megadeth — Rust in Peace (1990), Testament — The Gathering (1999).

Kick

• EQ: HP 35 Hz; +3 dB at 60–80 Hz; −6 dB at 300–400 Hz; +5 dB at 4–6 kHz (click). Compression 4:1, 4 dB; triggered samples for consistency at high speeds; short tail (gate at 150–250 ms).

Snare

• EQ: +2 dB at 200 Hz; −3 dB at 800 Hz; +4 dB at 5 kHz; air 10 kHz. 1176 compression, 5 dB; room 0.8–1 s.

Cymbals

• Overheads HP 400 Hz; china and crashes controlled at 3–5 kHz.
• Drum bus: 4:1, 3–4 dB.

Bass

• EQ: HP 40 Hz; +2 dB at 80–100 Hz; −2 dB at 300 Hz; +4 dB at 1–2 kHz (pick). Parallel distortion, compression 6–8 dB.
• Don't repeat the mistake of ...And Justice for All: the bass has to be heard.

Guitars

• 2 (or 4) rhythm tracks L100/R100. EQ: HP 90–110 Hz (thrash is “lean” in the low end); −3 dB at 250–400 Hz; a slight scoop at 500–800 Hz (−1/−2 dB) but presence at 1.5–2.5 kHz; −2 dB at 5–6 kHz if it fizzes; LP 10 kHz.
• Tight gate (attack 0.1 ms, release 30–60 ms) for clean stops.
• Solos: center, 1/8 or 1/4 delay, plate; whammy and wah well out front.

Vocals

• Chain: EQ (HP 120 Hz, −3 dB 400 Hz, +3 dB 2–3 kHz) → 1176 (8 dB) → LA-2A (3 dB) → saturation → double (L10/R10 or center).
• Short room (0.6 s) or light plate; delay throw at the end of the phrase.

Gang vocals

• 4–8 takes, wide L/R, heavy compression, room.

FX

• Room, plate, delay; not much else.

Buses and groups

• Guitar bus with dynamic EQ (100–200 Hz) to control the palm mutes.

Sidechain

• Dynamic EQ on guitars/bass triggered by the kick at 60–120 Hz (−2 dB).

Master

• Target: −9/−7 LUFS integrated; true peak −1 dBTP. Avoid the brickwall sound (Death Magnetic as an example not to imitate).

Common mistakes

• Too much gain: the fast notes turn to mush; excessive low end in the guitars covering the kick and bass; a kick that disappears at high speeds.

Reference tracks for the mix

• Metallica — Battery (1986); Slayer — Raining Blood (1986); Megadeth — Holy Wars... The Punishment Due (1990); Anthrax — Caught in a Mosh (1987); Testament — Into the Pit (1988); Kreator — Phantom Antichrist (2012).

Reference listening

• Metallica — Whiplash (1983)
• Slayer — Angel of Death (1986)
• Slayer — Raining Blood (1986)
• Metallica — Master of Puppets (1986)
• Megadeth — Peace Sells (1986)
• Anthrax — Caught in a Mosh (1987)
• Testament — Practice What You Preach (1989)
• Megadeth — Holy Wars... The Punishment Due (1990)
• Pantera — Cowboys from Hell (1990)