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[For Beginners] Start Here! A Collection of Classic Thrash Metal Songs

In the 1980s, a music genre called “thrash metal,” which emerged primarily in the United States, made a powerful impact on the music scene by fusing the speed of punk and hardcore with aggressive heavy metal.

Over time, various styles of thrash metal have appeared—from those showcasing intricate technical prowess to those incorporating melodic elements—making it a genre with a surprisingly diverse musical palette.

In this article, we’ll introduce some quintessential tracks that define thrash metal.

It’s a lineup of masterpieces we highly recommend to anyone looking to step into the world of thrash metal.

Playlist

[For Beginners] Start Here! A Collection of Classic Thrash Metal Songs
show_chartTitlePlaylistReview
1Angel Of DeathSLAYER
Angel Of DeathSLAYERplay_arrow
Slayer’s signature song “Raining Blood”
2Holy Wars…The Punishment DueMegadeth
Holy Wars...The Punishment DueMegadethplay_arrow
A signature Megadeth song and a masterpiece of thrash metal
3Caught In A MoshANTHRAX
Caught In A MoshANTHRAXplay_arrow
Anthrax’s signature song, a fusion of thrash metal and punk
4Over The WallTestament
Over The WallTestamentplay_arrow
Testament's thrash metal song
5Blind FaithKreator
Blind FaithKreatorplay_arrow
German thrash metal masterpiece
6Kill as OneDEATH ANGEL
Kill as OneDEATH ANGELplay_arrow
Death Angel’s early classic “Kill as One”
7Bonded By BloodExodus
Bonded By BloodExodusplay_arrow
It is a signature song of Exodus.
8Agent OrangeSodom
Agent OrangeSodomplay_arrow
The appeal of Sodom’s signature song, Agent Orange
9Release From AgonyDestruction
Release From AgonyDestructionplay_arrow
Destruction, a representative of German thrash
10Metal MilitiaMetallica
Metal MilitiaMetallicaplay_arrow
A fervent thrash metal track by Metallica
11MilkS.O.D
MilkS.O.Dplay_arrow
S.O.D.'s innovative blast beat
12A Cautionary TaleSabbat
A Cautionary TaleSabbatplay_arrow
Sabbath-themed song about Faust
13HypnotizedHeathen
HypnotizedHeathenplay_arrow
Heesun “Hypnotized,” a masterpiece of technical thrash
14Mass HypnosisSepultura
Mass HypnosisSepulturaplay_arrow
Explaining the appeal of Sepultura’s thrash metal songs
15I Don’t Need SocietyD.R.I.
I Don't Need SocietyD.R.I.play_arrow
A signature song by D.R.I., a high-speed slash unleashed in one minute.
16Critical MassNuclear Assault
Critical MassNuclear Assaultplay_arrow
A metal masterpiece about environmental destruction
17Rotten To The CoreOVERKILL
Rotten To The CoreOVERKILLplay_arrow
Overkill’s socially critical punk
18Death SquadSACRED REICH
Death SquadSACRED REICHplay_arrow
Sacred-like, a metal song with an anti-war message
19Tribal ConvictionsVOIVOD
Tribal ConvictionsVOIVODplay_arrow
Voivod's sci-fi thrash metal
20No CompromiseXentrix
No CompromiseXentrixplay_arrow
Zentrix’s signature song No Compromise
21Master Of PuppetsMetallica
Master Of PuppetsMetallicaplay_arrow
A masterpiece by Metallica. A classic that transcends the boundaries of thrash metal.
22Chalice of BloodForbidden
Chalice of BloodForbiddenplay_arrow
Introduction to representative Bay Area thrash metal bands
23AriseSepultura
AriseSepulturaplay_arrow
Sepultura's masterpiece thrash metal album
24Alison HellAnnihilator
Alison HellAnnihilatorplay_arrow
A pioneering Canadian thrash metal band
25Trash All Over YouLost Society
Trash All Over YouLost Societyplay_arrow
A young Finnish thrash metal band
26RevolutionLazarus A.D.
RevolutionLazarus A.D.play_arrow
Introduction to the masterpiece that expresses the appeal of Lazarus A.D.
27Nuke the CrossToxic Holocaust
Nuke the CrossToxic Holocaustplay_arrow
The runaway sound of thrash metal
28Ultra ThrashCrisix
Ultra ThrashCrisixplay_arrow
A Spanish band points the way to the future of thrash metal
29TerrorscopeGama Bomb
TerrorscopeGama Bombplay_arrow
Northern Irish thrash metal band
30Sadistic MagicianMUNICIPAL WASTE
Sadistic MagicianMUNICIPAL WASTEplay_arrow
A fusion band of punk and metal
31Metal ForcesOnslaught
Metal ForcesOnslaughtplay_arrow
A masterpiece of thrash metal and a signature song by Onslaught
32Blood for BloodMachine Head
Blood for BloodMachine Headplay_arrow
The Allure of Machine Head’s Debut Track
33The ExorcistPossessed
The ExorcistPossessedplay_arrow
Introducing Possessed’s extreme death metal masterpieces
34I Saw Your Mommy…Suicidal Tendencies
I Saw Your Mommy...Suicidal Tendenciesplay_arrow
A representative song of Suicidal Tendencies’ crossover thrash
35Charging the VoidVektor
Charging the VoidVektorplay_arrow
Vector's progressive metal
36SignMELT4
SignMELT4play_arrow
MELT4 is a thrash metal band.