Transport yourself to the gritty landscape of Essen, Germany, where in a small, dimly lit rehearsal space on Stauderstraße, the pounding heart of thrash metal beats with ferocious intensity.
It's 1982, and amidst the industrial decay, Sodom emerges as the embodiment of thrash rebellion, shattering eardrums with the raw anthem 'Witching Metal'.
Their sound isn't about technical precision; it's a fist in the air against conformity, a brash soundtrack to the discontent of youth clad in leather and spikes, scorned by the guardians of the status quo.
Sodom's frontman, Tom Angelripper, reminisces over these defiant beginnings, a time when metal was not just music but an identity that set you apart. In vocational college corridors, where the mainstream tides swept in sounds of New Wave, he stood as a solitary metal sentinel. Sodom's new track '1982' is not just a nod to this past but a revival of the spirit that fueled their first raucous riffs.
Today, that same unyielding spirit is etched into vinyl, resurrecting classics like 'Witching Metal', 'Victims Of The Death', 'Let's Fight In The Darkness Of Hell', and 'Equinox'—re-recorded, yet undiminished in their potent thrash essence. Sodom's legacy is a testament to thrash metal's enduring power, influencing countless bands and maintaining an unbreakable bond with fans worldwide.
As one of the German thrash scene's founding fathers, Sodom has consistently delivered a barrage of intense, unrelenting metal. From their early days contributing to the genesis of black metal to their transition towards a quintessential thrash sound, they've never lost their edge. With an evolving lineup centered around Angelripper's steadfast vision, albums like "Persecution Mania" and "Agent Orange" stand as monuments in metal history.
Sodom has endured as a beacon for raw, uncompromising thrash, continually reinvigorating their sound while influencing a new generation of metal. Their presence in the genre is as indomitable as ever, a continuous rebellion against the ephemeral trends in music, reminding us that thrash metal, like the spirit of '82, will never die.
