Despite what many may choose to believe, thrash metal is, has been, and always will be my absolute favorite genre of music. And when it comes to the technical, progressive side of the genre, few gems have gone as overlooked throughout the years as Realm's sophomore effort, "Suiciety". In addition to boasting one of the best album titles ever, it's also a killer record that's chock full of flamboyant riffing, ridiculous leads, more than ample complexity, and the kind of generally over the top approach that has made so many of these albums stand the test of time—much like their contemporaries in the slightly better received Toxik (who I'll undoubtedly honor here at some point in the future). I don't know much about Realm, though. Their seemingly brief run yielded only two records ("Endless War" in '88, this one in '90—both on the almighty Roadracer division of Roadrunner Records), but beyond that... who knows? I'm not even sure I care, because despite an oddball recording in which the bass is almost louder than the guitars (which is sort of cool since the bassist is a fucking madman), this is simply a classic record—far better than their debut, I don't care what anyone says. And that's all I need to know! "The Brainchild" is simply among the best progressive thrash metal songs ever. Period. And look at that classic logo, that obviously-this-is-thrash cover art... you simply can't go wrong. Sadly, both of Realm's CD's are way the fuck out of print, so you can't really find them for fair prices. I overpaid for both of 'em because I'm a nerd and once I set my sights on something, mine it shall be. Although, if you prefer vinyl, chances are you can scour eBay for cheaper copies of the LP's from time to time. Happy hunting.
Realm "The Brainchild"
Realm "Cain Rose Up (Scream Bloody Murder)"
Comments
This is a good song. I haven’t listened to a lot of the stuff you post because I was pretty young and oblivious to such music when it was new (I’m 22 now), but at least I’m getting to be a little more well-rounded. Good stuff. :)
4.19.2005 | By Anonymous
Fuck that, it’s never too late to discover stuff from “before your time” that you missed out on. Shit, I was only 13 when this particular record came out, so I didn’t catch onto it until years after the fact either. In 1990 it was all Anthrax and Metallica and the other biggies for me, you know? A lot of my favorite bands to this day are bands that I was too young to really appreciate in their primes. Good music is good music, regardless of whether or not you were around for it at the time. Glad you liked it…
4.19.2005 | By Andrew Aversionline
good stuff! Check out 3 Inches of Blood, similar sound.
4.20.2005 | By Anonymous
I’d love to see you cover more thrash. I’ve recently been re-discovering it. Not just the big bands though. Desaster, Overkill, Possessed. Its such an underrated genre that I wish a lot more band would play in this style.
4.23.2005 | By Anonymous
3 Inches of Blood don’t sound much like Realm.
Check out my band Temple of Blood instead. Some people have told us we remind them a bit of Realm or Toxik:
http://www.templeofblood.net
http://www.myspace.com/templeofblood
9.5.2006 | By Anonymous