Hexenhaus - The Edge of Eternity (1990)

Starting off with Beethoven's piano piece, commonly known as the Moonlight Sonata, and then gradually escaping its clutches of being too restrictive with some loose anxiety put in. At times seeming as a whole song will evolve, but actually just creating a stalking sensation. That's how I see the marvellous intro named simply as Prelude, which doesn't really set sail towards a decided theme but rather keeps you at a distance of what's to come.
Compared to their previous and first album A Tribute to Insanity, Eternity is far more progressive. The grimness has been lost or better said replaced by a dynamical and mystical approach, that still holds the beloved cyclical riffs and haunting leads. I can't and probably shouldn't beat around which album is better. In strict objective circles both hold all of the required ingredients, the difference is only in the presentation in which Hexenhaus are very good at. Insanity was probably a more intense and exhaustive experience while this one stacks layers upon layers of musical creativity while also keeping the thrash spirit alive.
The solo acts are by default awesome. There is a piece of ear candy hidden in almost every track, especially in the second half of the album. I was mostly impressed by The House of Lies and The Eternal Nightmare - Act One. Both composed on a very high degree with leads that are complex but surprisingly still catchy and enjoyable (a headbanger's dream). Between those two songs, there's a short instrumental, that's a bit different from all the rest and with an epicness knob turned way above expectations. A Temple for the Soul. I even had the thing set as my alarm clock tune at one time. Certainly a nice way to start a day. There's just one more song awaiting you before the tape runs out and it's of the same name as the album. I'm also fairly sure that I see something resembling a Borg Cube in the album cover, which counts up to the room left for interpretation in the last piece. It's a bit lengthy and comprised of multiple themes, giving a feeling of sensation like exploring the vastness of space in an uncharted adventure. This adventure is evidently from the lyrics, considered infinite. It is the afterlife that awaits and is in contrast with (cited) eternal life: obsession of man.

Hexenhaus - A Tribute to Insanity (1988)

Meow. One of only a few bands that got me hooked upon first encounter. A Tribute to Insanity was a very pleasant experience and I consider myself lucky just to be aware of the band's existence.
The culprit was probably their guitarist Mike Wead, who was also representing both Mercyful Fate and King Diamond, and by knowing that Hexenhaus was one of his first bands, I was tempted to give them a go. Now, the thing about checking up certain "fairly unknown" artist's beginnings is that you'll either stumble upon complete utter garbage with cover songs being their only worthy artistic output, or something awesomely fantastic with a force so strong, subduing to no-one.
My impression was the latter, maybe with some esoteric bits here and there ... still, the overall experience is overwhelming. I already feel the need to mention the median song: As Darkness Falls. I think anxiety is the leading role here, as the rhythm guitar tends to behave very nonconformistic and constantly raises the tension whilst the dry and penetrative drum beats keep the constant drive. Suddenly, we have a breakdown and you really don't know what to expect after that ... It all kind of settles after the amazing solo bits, which is a fine way of disclosure for the upcoming songs. You will be able to find similarities in all songs, it's just that the referred one embodies the entire idea the most and the best.
So, it's not in the fields of energetic and compulsive creations, I'd say it's more of a haunting but groovy experience. For me at least. But then again, it does surprise with a few skull-crashing parts, just to throw you off-track, like for example Memento Moris - The Dead Are Restless.
Compliments to extraordinary musicianship and evident effort that bypassed the poor production quality.
And also for featuring Jean Delville's masterpiece for the cover art, which a few years later also found its place on the cover of Morbid Angel's - Blessed Are the Sick.

Sieges Even - Life Cycle (1988)

I'll never judge an album by its cover again, but how couldn't I, it's ... hah.
My expectations were not even close to what was to come when I first gave it a go. I was expecting something similar to what was written somewhere in the depths of the web; them being one of those Watchtower clones or whatever. Now, I can't really give a good comment on this, although there are some pretty obvious similarities. Fuck it, they had to get their influences somewhere right? Just not in the means of copy/paste claims that I've seen roaming around, they indeed have their own unique style and no one is going to convince me otherwise.
Their debut album is nothing like their later prog creations. It has a certain ungraspable energy that they either weren't able to reproduce in the future or just voluntary abandoned it. Some of the cleaner and unsaturated parts of Apocalyptic Disposition and Repression And Resistance are fine examples. If Ron Jarzombek was more down to earth and had a stronger compassion for thrash, he'd probably end up making something like this. The overall experience is quite satisfactory, with some smudges here and there that might discourage you from finishing or even going through the first few minutes. You might even like the vocals (if I can be so frank), they can be annoying at times and you might wonder whether it would be better to keep the whole thing as an instrumental. Listen to Straggler From Atlantis and make up your mind, i encourage you.

Dark Angel - Leave Scars (1989)

What a brave move this was. It did take them almost 3 full years to release yet another album and in that time they probably realised that thrash couldn't get any heavier before becoming a part of the increasingly popular death metal movement. Most people probably expected something similar to Darkness Descends, but when compared to the raw predecessor, this one is far more eventful and interesting. Lasting about 50 minutes, starting with the "deflorator" The Death of Innocence and then followed by two anthem-like songs (their choruses at least) Never to Rise Again and No One Answers.
The lyrical quantity is unnecessarily large, even larger than on the previous album, and therefore demanding a high compression of everything Gene Hoglan wrote. Amazingly, you can make out more parts, despite the sloppy but slightly better production.
Now, if there's anything worth emphasising it's the brute presentation, which already was Dark Angel's trademark, accompanied by an increased technicality without even the slightest loss in epicness. The addressment is best suitable for The Promise of Agony and, if you already thought that that was the best they can do, in Cauterization - one of the heaviest instrumentals thrash has to offer. Period.
Those two are are my top two picks on the disc for sure.
Oh and for the topping, they've also covered Immigrant Song from Led Zeppelin.

Dark Angel - Darkness Descends (1986)

Whoa. The descent of darkness really made Dark Angel what they are today with their 1986 release. Loud, fast and simply outrageous from start to finish and I didn't exaggerate one bit. Slayer for example, at least had the common decency to start of with an established intro, making it easier to indulge into what's to come. These guys just took a shortcut and went for the full frontal attack without having to stop for supplies. Although generally regarded as one of the benchmarking thrash creations of its time, alongside with the already established thrash gods, I do have some faults to point out ...
Intentional or not, the production is shit. Dark Angel does not care too much about diverse composing nor dynamic song structures, as it is fairly evident right from the start. It's raw thrash with a premade basis for demolition. Now before I get exiled from Earth, I have to explain that I meant that in a moderately good way and that I do enjoy listening to it from time to time. What I dislike is the formulaic composition that makes the songs indistinct from each other and thus resulting as just one song throughout the whole thing. Black Prophecies is a fine example as you would never imagine the song to be over 8 minutes long. All tracks seem to pick up where the last one ended causing one to lose attention while listening - In my opinion at least.
Alright fine. Forget what I just said and fucking enjoy one of the most intense half-hour riffing the business has to offer.

Dark Angel - We Have Arrived (1985)

Indeed they have, but I wouldn't stress the importance of their arrival that much. This album does not have much to offer when compared to their future releases. It might be due to the fact that it was released in the age of Metallica/Slayer impersonators but that is a debate I don't ever want to take part again. The overall experience is kind of dull, although having some pretty darn awesome moments, which saved We Have Arrived from becoming just another thrash release. Certainly one of those moments or even better - the whole song is Merciless Death, as it is still regarded as one of the most recognised tunes in the band's repertoire. It might sound a bit self absorbent, as does most of the album, but it did make an everlasting impression. They even reissued the tune in their following album Darkness Descends, where it finally got the recognition it deserves, with more experienced musicianship, a darker ambient (as the album title clearly implies) and a far better recording quality compared to the dry and discrete ambiance of the concerning album. To sum up their thrash anthem as "The song that kills posers" is the right thing to do. Other than that one song I couldn't omit, there is nothing that really stands out on the recording. It's a mediocre attempt in comparison to the benchmarking releases of the time and not yet the Dark Angel in its full strength, that we all love and cherish today.

Defiance - Product of Society (1989)

Not to be confused with the punk band of the same name. This is Defiance's debut album released in early 1989 which set a high standard for their upcoming creations ...
The guitar parts are quite memorable and very dynamic, which is most noticeable in the song Insomnia. Galloping away and then switching to muted riffing and at all times accompanied by very subtle drumming. Well, until the mad parts start at least. There's some noodling present but not as much to deter you from listening to this album.
Featured are also two instrumental tracks, one after another; Aftermath, a catchy classical piece, probably intended as an intro to the following instrumental Tribulation, which stands out from the rest due to constant switching between the lead and the rhythm guitar.
Your ears won't be bored, that's for sure.