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SODOM
40 Years At War - The Greatest Hell of SODOM
Steamhammer/SPV

Hailing from the city of Gelsenkirchen is one of Germany’s ‘Big 4’, aka The Teutonic 4 of Thrash Metal. The legends known as SODOM have decimated decade after decade after decade since 1981. Their full-length debut in 1986, Obsessed By Cruelty is the epitome of raw thrash metal in its infancy. To celebrate a milestone of 40 years, sole original member Bassist/Vocalist Tom Angelripper decided to release a re-envisioned best-of collection reflecting SODOM’s outstanding career. Titled as 40 Years At War - The Greatest Hell of SODOM, it consists of re-recordings of 17 tracks from nearly every release in their discography, plus a new track "1982".

Joining Angelripper on this unique recording is Guitarist Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik who was a member during the Persecution Mania (1987) and Agent Orange (1989) days, and who returned in 2018 but not before putting in some time with another well recognized name in The Teutonic Four, KREATOR where he would contribute on 3 albums. Along with Frankie Blackfire and Angleripper is Yorck Segatz on rhythm guitar and Toni Merkel on drums. Rather than rearrange the songs like some bands often had, Angelripper decided it was best to keep them as is. As Tom states, ”We cover the songs unaltered…the arrangements of the songs were deliberately kept unchanged.”

When you hear classic tunes re-recorded with today’s technology, instead of taking advantage of it in a negative sense just like the many way over-produced modern bands, the deliberate rawness of classic tracks that is part of the nostalgia that had enticed us to begin with - SODOM still kept that raw sound in these new versions. The track selection is killer too. "Body Parts" from 1992’s Tapping The Vein, "Electrocution" from 1987’s Persecution Mania, "Baptism Of Fire" from the great album Agent Orange from 1989, "Book Burning" off the 1999 album Code Red, up to 2020’s Genesis XIX with the cut "Euthaniasia" - and numerous others fill this 18 track release. The bonus track "1982" expresses their loyalty to their roots, what has driven Angelripper and SODOM to be who they are, how they would never conform and that they are bound to the end, to their grave to their legacy they have built. There have been at least a dozen members that have made up SODOM over the years, including quite a few that have unfortunately perished, such as drummer Christian “Witchhunter” Dudek who was on the first 7 releases then returned years later on 2007’s The Final Sign Of Evil before passing away a year later. With the return of Blackfire and this new release, it gives way for a new age of SODOM who will soon hit the road in celebration of 40 years.

With their debut in 1986, SODOM had no clue what was in store for them and how they’d become a force NOT to be reckoned with in Thrash Metal. “At first, we just wanted to be a band…We were against everything and everyone… the more people hated us, the more motivated we got” exclaims Angelripper. As one-forth of the German Big Four and one of the heaviest of the 4, Angelripper and SODOM have sustained their name in contention with many up and coming Thrash bands yet still are a step ahead above the rest. This Best-Of is testament to their dedication and is a dedication in itself to their fans, both new and old.

4.5 Out Of 5.0