Those frustrated by metal's alleged role in the dumbing-down of popular music should be forced to listen to Toxicity, the superb second album by System of a Down. Raising the bar for an entire generation of metalheads, Toxicity is an album as clever as it is loud. Weaving together influences as diverse as the dark thrash of Slayer, the ranting political frustration of the Dead Kennedys, the melodic alternative metal of Faith No More and the Eastern European music of their heritage (the four band members all have Armenian roots), this is an album unlike any other--with the possible exception of their own debut. Erratic time changes and staccato riffs are complemented by vocalist Serj Tankian's outstanding voice, which can switch from a high-pitched nasal warble to the darkest of metal growls instantly. Even the songs themselves set System of a Down apart from their nu-metal peers, running the gamut from socio-political themes ("Prison", "Deer Dance") to social observations ("Needles") to cocaine-addled groupies ("Psycho"). And, lest all this seriousness get a bit much, SOAD demonstrate their wittier side on "Bounce", while the three-and-a-half-minute epic "Chop Suey!" is the cleverest metal single heard since Faith No More decided to call it quits. Infact, like FNM's rightly regarded classic Angel Dust, Toxicity marks a major step forward not just for a band, but for the entire genre of heavy-metal music. --Robert Burrow

System rule supreme, 27 Jun 2008
Their debut was stunning - there's no denying it. Mixing power, fury and at times comic instrumentation and vocals, it was always going to be a hard album to beat. But System have done it. Toxicity is an amazing album.

For those that dismiss Toxicity as 'too commercial' or 'too mainstream'. To make accessible music that still has the power and strength that nearly all of the tracks on this CD have takes a great deal of skill. How to make music sound not only familiar but also brand apsnking new and still like it has something incredibly important to say is the sign of master songwriters. And Toxicity has all of that in bucketloads.

The melodic pain of singles Chop Suey, Toxicity and Aerials counter the deliciously dark and oddly furious anger of Prison Song, Jet Pilot and Bounce. I can't even begin to describe how an album so angry sounds so melodious. Buy it now.

Greatest Album Ever Made, 16 Jun 2008
Seriously, this is an incredible album and System of a Down are a truly unique band that have become the success that they are through creating music like nothing heard before. "Nu-Metal" is simply a genre label that was created in order to allow other bands with a "unique" sound to belong to. This is something that System of a Down created, they were a band that stripped away that label of being a rock band and essentially created a genre of their own. Serj Tankian the lead vocalist of the band is an incredible talent of massive proportion, he's not only a songwriter but he's a poet, a visionary and a political critic. He picks out parts of the System that are corrupt and downright criminal and gives us his no holds barred approach to the system. Along with being an utter genius at what he does, I think we can all agree that listening to how some of SOAD's songs are constructed Serj Tankian is possibly a little bit insane (The good kind, not the OJ Simpson kind.)

This album is considered by many to be the Systems best album to date and from turning on track 1. Prison Song you come to realise how inventive, talented and intelligent this band really is. This first song simply points out the hypocrisy of the legal system when it comes to drugs, it points out the convenience of drugs being on our streets and less money being spent on treatment and more on prisons when research does show that treatment should receive the most money from the government. It's a brilliant song that shows quite clearly the intelligence and political mind of the band. This is something that should be brought to the mainstream more often and it's a shame that even now bands like this are looked down upon simply because of their sound.

Honestly this is an amazing album and for those fans of music in general, who keep an open mind and are quite experimental in their tastes, then I promise you will be pleasantly surprised.

My Top 5 Are

Prison Song
Chop Suey
X
Deer Dance
Needles

S.O.A.D, 04 Sep 2007
the best system of a down album (not as heavy as the first one but still the best)

Melodic, heavy and never boring, 02 Sep 2007
This is the first SOAD ablum I ever heard and the intensity of it can blow you away. It has political rantings all over it but can also make you laugh with tracks like bounce.

1. Prison song 9/10. A great opener which explains how bad the prison system is and has the guitarist saying 'I grab my, smack my b**** right here in hollywood'.

2. Needles 10/10. Very heavy and they appear to be singing about a tapeworm to begin with. Then it goes calm and they sing about some tomb of some old man and then go heavy again. Powerful.

3. Deer Dance 9/10. The verses are very melodic political rantings, which is odd because the choruses are thrash metal heavy. The contrast will work for some and not for others it all depends on what you're into.

4. Jet 10/10. I like this song. The topic is stupid but is so full of energy that I'm not bothered about the horse or the shackled old man mentioned in the lyrics.

5. XY 8/10. Okay but a bit samey to the other tracks above. And we do need to multiply.

6. Chop Suey 9/10. The most well known song off the album. About suicide it starts off heavy and then goes into an emotional outbreak in the chorus.

7. Bounce 9/10. Makes me laugh. Whoever thought there would be a song about pogo sticks? Serj also makes random croaking sounds near the end.

8. Forest 10/10. Sounds powerful and intense the entire time and the chorus is pretty good too.

9. ATWA 8/10. Starts off calm and gets loud in the chorus. Okay I guess.

10. Science 7/10. This song does feel a bit samey to the other tracks. Fast and constant.

11. Shimmy 9/10. The guitars are heavy and Serj talks very fast. Nothing new BUT the chorus works very well with the song.

12. Toxicity 9/10. The first SOAD song I ever heard and this will always sound great. Serj sings/screams his heart out.

13. Psycho 8/10. Sounds drug influenced, and I swear I can hear children singing in the background...

14. Aerials 9/10. A nice melodic end and is one of the best songs. Perfect ending.

If you like metal you won't be disapointed. If you like music you should still buy this for the melodic parts and if you don't like music why do you read reviews?

Simply Brilliant, 23 Jul 2006
It's hard to decide whether Toxicity or Steal This album are the better of SOAD albums, but I have to ere on the side of Toxicity. It is short and punchy, has some great riffs and some very intelligent lyrics. It is safe to say that every song kicks ass, and I'm always feeling left slightly disappointed when the album finishes! A great album and should be part of any metal/rock collection.

System rule supreme, 27 Jun 2008
Their debut was stunning - there's no denying it. Mixing power, fury and at times comic instrumentation and vocals, it was always going to be a hard album to beat. But System have done it. Toxicity is an amazing album.

For those that dismiss Toxicity as 'too commercial' or 'too mainstream'. To make accessible music that still has the power and strength that nearly all of the tracks on this CD have takes a great deal of skill. How to make music sound not only familiar but also brand apsnking new and still like it has something incredibly important to say is the sign of master songwriters. And Toxicity has all of that in bucketloads.

The melodic pain of singles Chop Suey, Toxicity and Aerials counter the deliciously dark and oddly furious anger of Prison Song, Jet Pilot and Bounce. I can't even begin to describe how an album so angry sounds so melodious. Buy it now.

Greatest Album Ever Made, 16 Jun 2008
Seriously, this is an incredible album and System of a Down are a truly unique band that have become the success that they are through creating music like nothing heard before. "Nu-Metal" is simply a genre label that was created in order to allow other bands with a "unique" sound to belong to. This is something that System of a Down created, they were a band that stripped away that label of being a rock band and essentially created a genre of their own. Serj Tankian the lead vocalist of the band is an incredible talent of massive proportion, he's not only a songwriter but he's a poet, a visionary and a political critic. He picks out parts of the System that are corrupt and downright criminal and gives us his no holds barred approach to the system. Along with being an utter genius at what he does, I think we can all agree that listening to how some of SOAD's songs are constructed Serj Tankian is possibly a little bit insane (The good kind, not the OJ Simpson kind.)

This album is considered by many to be the Systems best album to date and from turning on track 1. Prison Song you come to realise how inventive, talented and intelligent this band really is. This first song simply points out the hypocrisy of the legal system when it comes to drugs, it points out the convenience of drugs being on our streets and less money being spent on treatment and more on prisons when research does show that treatment should receive the most money from the government. It's a brilliant song that shows quite clearly the intelligence and political mind of the band. This is something that should be brought to the mainstream more often and it's a shame that even now bands like this are looked down upon simply because of their sound.

Honestly this is an amazing album and for those fans of music in general, who keep an open mind and are quite experimental in their tastes, then I promise you will be pleasantly surprised.

My Top 5 Are

Prison Song
Chop Suey
X
Deer Dance
Needles

S.O.A.D, 04 Sep 2007
the best system of a down album (not as heavy as the first one but still the best)

Melodic, heavy and never boring, 02 Sep 2007
This is the first SOAD ablum I ever heard and the intensity of it can blow you away. It has political rantings all over it but can also make you laugh with tracks like bounce.

1. Prison song 9/10. A great opener which explains how bad the prison system is and has the guitarist saying 'I grab my, smack my b**** right here in hollywood'.

2. Needles 10/10. Very heavy and they appear to be singing about a tapeworm to begin with. Then it goes calm and they sing about some tomb of some old man and then go heavy again. Powerful.

3. Deer Dance 9/10. The verses are very melodic political rantings, which is odd because the choruses are thrash metal heavy. The contrast will work for some and not for others it all depends on what you're into.

4. Jet 10/10. I like this song. The topic is stupid but is so full of energy that I'm not bothered about the horse or the shackled old man mentioned in the lyrics.

5. XY 8/10. Okay but a bit samey to the other tracks above. And we do need to multiply.

6. Chop Suey 9/10. The most well known song off the album. About suicide it starts off heavy and then goes into an emotional outbreak in the chorus.

7. Bounce 9/10. Makes me laugh. Whoever thought there would be a song about pogo sticks? Serj also makes random croaking sounds near the end.

8. Forest 10/10. Sounds powerful and intense the entire time and the chorus is pretty good too.

9. ATWA 8/10. Starts off calm and gets loud in the chorus. Okay I guess.

10. Science 7/10. This song does feel a bit samey to the other tracks. Fast and constant.

11. Shimmy 9/10. The guitars are heavy and Serj talks very fast. Nothing new BUT the chorus works very well with the song.

12. Toxicity 9/10. The first SOAD song I ever heard and this will always sound great. Serj sings/screams his heart out.

13. Psycho 8/10. Sounds drug influenced, and I swear I can hear children singing in the background...

14. Aerials 9/10. A nice melodic end and is one of the best songs. Perfect ending.

If you like metal you won't be disapointed. If you like music you should still buy this for the melodic parts and if you don't like music why do you read reviews?

Simply Brilliant, 23 Jul 2006
It's hard to decide whether Toxicity or Steal This album are the better of SOAD albums, but I have to ere on the side of Toxicity. It is short and punchy, has some great riffs and some very intelligent lyrics. It is safe to say that every song kicks ass, and I'm always feeling left slightly disappointed when the album finishes! A great album and should be part of any metal/rock collection.

Classic Thrash Metal. Ignore C. Greig Megadeth Rock, 14 Jun 2008
If you are looking to buy your first megadeth album then look no further the album has killer written all over it. Megadeth second album and it's a huge step up from Killing Is My Business. The vocals, solos, riffs, dumming everything has improved so much. No best they all rock and i dont see why people dont like I aint superstitious sure it doesnt go with the album but it still rocks. This is a must have in every thrash metal/Metal fans collection. Ignore any negative comment and buy without hesitation. Dave Mustaine You rock.

rubbish, 23 May 2008
ignore MrMetalheadO'Hagan "TRUE METAL".i am entitled to my opinion so dry your eyes and don't bring my name up if u can't handle my review. this is a rubbish album.megadeth have never made a good song in their life and dave mustaine is a junkie loser who is a cry baby because he got ditched by those sell outs metallica.AWW has this upset all you wee lassies who complain when u read a bad review.
not heavy enough and not got the 80' thrash sound . megadeth r over rated and dave mustaine is a joke.

Megadeth's finest hour??, 10 May 2008
PSBWB is the album where Megadeth truly began to hit the global metal scene, and they do it in style. From opening song Wake Up Dead to closure, My Last Words this is a pure-blooded thrash classic with both simply hooks and sing-along choruses(Peace Sells), or pure technical bombast (Good Mourning/Black Friday). Dave Mustaine once again proves that he is the definition of a guitar-techs worst nightmare and a thrash-kids wet dream.

My only problem with this reissue is that the extra tracks included (the Randy Burns mixe) are rather useless, they actually dont do the band any justice. My only reason for their inclusion would be that it makes the "real" versions of the songs sound even better by comparison


Priceless Peace, 09 Mar 2008
`Peace Sells...' is without doubt one of the defining albums of the whole thrash scene, in fact one of the best metal albums of the 80's...no wait simply one of the finest metal albums of all time, simply put; life affirming. After the good but scrappy debut `Killing is My Business...And Business is Good' Megadeth really raised the bar and in my mind made the best record of 1986.

Rather than Metallica who were focusing on increasingly progressive songs and Slayer who went for just straight ahead stripped down brutality, Megadeth provided a sort of best of both worlds, being more musically proficient than any of their contemporaries as well as having tight and concise songs which could also rip your bleeding head off. No matter how technically brilliant Megadeth were, no one did angry better than Megadeth to be blunt Dave Muistane had issues. Megadeth was a band formed with the intent of revenge and they sounded like it.

`Peace Sells...' is Megadeth's finest album most of the songs here have now transcended into the realms of true heavy metal classics. In fact all the bands actual own compositions are fantastic only the ill advised cover of `I Ain't Superstitious' lets the side down, this song is an old blues standard but I think Megadeth based their version on the Jeff Beck Group's. Now Chris Poland can nail Beck's licks but Muistane sure as hell can't sing like Rod Stewart, so on the whole it just comes across as a bit of a novelty. But aside from that minor blunder this is all stellar speed metal. `Wake Up Dead' kicks things off in excellent fashion, it's a lovely piece of vitriolic metal with some of the best instrumental sections ever. It's like one verse then about two minutes of killer riffage and Muistane's solos that simply cut through everything and some more refined touches from Poland. Easily one of Megadeth's best numbers. `The Conjuring' displays a clear Mercyful Fate influence lyrically as its one of the bands few Satanic numbers. It's a spiralling concoction of riffs and tempo changes featuring Muistane's own (then) unique approach to two handed tapping. Again fantastic. Then the title track, which is without doubt one of the most seminal metal songs ever, a triumph of rage and spite...in a politically righteous kind of way, without ever being preachy (take that Rage Against the Machine!). The bass, the riffs, the lyrics, those driving rhythms and even Chris Poland's jazzy solos it's all phenomenally catchy and its one of those songs even casual metal fans love. Erm more standouts? All of it...well aside from the aforementioned cover. `Devils Island' once more is immensely catchy and so head banging friendly even though the chorus sounds more like Neville's island. However the best is saved for last with the distinctly more old school feeling (meaning I dunno pre-1984) `My Last Words' which starts with one of those classic clean thrash intros, then total head banging mania with what could well be Muistane's finest riff. As a song it feels really epic even though its under 5 minutes in length. It's got a certain energy to it that is so lacking in Megadeth's recent work it really makes the hairs on your neck (which is soar by the end of the album) stand on end. A monumental end to a staggering album, and that solo...ace!

Musically Megadeth could school any of their contemporaries at this time, but rather than relying on shredfest's the band retain a sense of melodic sensibility making `Peace Sells...' very much easy listening (in a heavy metal sense of course). Anyway, many consider the `Rust in Peace' line up to be the bands finest, but to me it seems this one has the best chemistry and ultimately brought on the best in Muistane's song writing. But it almost goes without saying that all this band are absolutely phenomenal musicians. The guitars really stand out on this album, this being Muistane's finest performance his riffs heavy and memorable and his leads just seem to shred through everything. Although he lacks some of Poland's finest as a guitarist I still prefer his lead style to any of his guitar partners. Poland as previously mentioned has a jazzy feel that was pretty groundbreaking in metal in the 80's and although a clearly accomplished guitarist his solos are often concise and never lose meaning. Ellefson proves himself as the consummate metal bassist (yes better than Cliff `silly bass wah' Burton...take that you sacred cow!) his tone is quite trebly and as such stands out in the mix which is good as he's actually doing some interesting things whilst never compromising what the song requires. Gar Samuelson is my favourite Megadeth drummer simply put I like his tone and feel, his and Chris' jazz background certainly makes for an interesting listen.

Oh now to have some fun, a Metallica comparison! `Master of Puppets' although good in places is simply no match for `Peace Sells...' Mop is plodding and overlong, lacking both the instant and appeal as well as the depth of PSBWB. Hetfield's riffs sound like forced picking exercises in comparison to Muistane's more nimble and frankly far more exciting compositions. Which rather than dense and dull which can be seen as James interpreting Iommi rather badly at times, Muistane's riffs have a more energetic feel and life to them, which can also be seen as the result of him actually keeping mid range to his guitar tone, as the triple tracked scooped mid sound of MOP may be dense but it's ultimately lifeless. I won't even bother going into how inferior Lars, Cliff and Kirk are to their Megadeth contemporaries. Yeah, this may be a slightly unrelated tangent but I feel this is a perfect way to give my opinion on age old metal disputes.

`Peace Sells...' represents Megadeth at their hateful and vengeful best, never losing focus of songs whilst always giving exciting and precise performances. This is an absolute winner of a metal album...every home should have at least one copy. Even at the very least you can dig the iconic yet dated cover with Vic Rattlehead in a post nuclear apocalyptic landscape...now that's thrash!

This Is Great!, 18 Jul 2007
Megadeth is the best band in the world! And this was their break-through! All the songs are great! Especially "Wake up Dead", "Peace Sells", and "The Conjuring". If you like metal, you should have this CD!

System rule supreme, 27 Jun 2008
Their debut was stunning - there's no denying it. Mixing power, fury and at times comic instrumentation and vocals, it was always going to be a hard album to beat. But System have done it. Toxicity is an amazing album.

For those that dismiss Toxicity as 'too commercial' or 'too mainstream'. To make accessible music that still has the power and strength that nearly all of the tracks on this CD have takes a great deal of skill. How to make music sound not only familiar but also brand apsnking new and still like it has something incredibly important to say is the sign of master songwriters. And Toxicity has all of that in bucketloads.

The melodic pain of singles Chop Suey, Toxicity and Aerials counter the deliciously dark and oddly furious anger of Prison Song, Jet Pilot and Bounce. I can't even begin to describe how an album so angry sounds so melodious. Buy it now.

Greatest Album Ever Made, 16 Jun 2008
Seriously, this is an incredible album and System of a Down are a truly unique band that have become the success that they are through creating music like nothing heard before. "Nu-Metal" is simply a genre label that was created in order to allow other bands with a "unique" sound to belong to. This is something that System of a Down created, they were a band that stripped away that label of being a rock band and essentially created a genre of their own. Serj Tankian the lead vocalist of the band is an incredible talent of massive proportion, he's not only a songwriter but he's a poet, a visionary and a political critic. He picks out parts of the System that are corrupt and downright criminal and gives us his no holds barred approach to the system. Along with being an utter genius at what he does, I think we can all agree that listening to how some of SOAD's songs are constructed Serj Tankian is possibly a little bit insane (The good kind, not the OJ Simpson kind.)

This album is considered by many to be the Systems best album to date and from turning on track 1. Prison Song you come to realise how inventive, talented and intelligent this band really is. This first song simply points out the hypocrisy of the legal system when it comes to drugs, it points out the convenience of drugs being on our streets and less money being spent on treatment and more on prisons when research does show that treatment should receive the most money from the government. It's a brilliant song that shows quite clearly the intelligence and political mind of the band. This is something that should be brought to the mainstream more often and it's a shame that even now bands like this are looked down upon simply because of their sound.

Honestly this is an amazing album and for those fans of music in general, who keep an open mind and are quite experimental in their tastes, then I promise you will be pleasantly surprised.

My Top 5 Are

Prison Song
Chop Suey
X
Deer Dance
Needles

S.O.A.D, 04 Sep 2007
the best system of a down album (not as heavy as the first one but still the best)

Melodic, heavy and never boring, 02 Sep 2007
This is the first SOAD ablum I ever heard and the intensity of it can blow you away. It has political rantings all over it but can also make you laugh with tracks like bounce.

1. Prison song 9/10. A great opener which explains how bad the prison system is and has the guitarist saying 'I grab my, smack my b**** right here in hollywood'.

2. Needles 10/10. Very heavy and they appear to be singing about a tapeworm to begin with. Then it goes calm and they sing about some tomb of some old man and then go heavy again. Powerful.

3. Deer Dance 9/10. The verses are very melodic political rantings, which is odd because the choruses are thrash metal heavy. The contrast will work for some and not for others it all depends on what you're into.

4. Jet 10/10. I like this song. The topic is stupid but is so full of energy that I'm not bothered about the horse or the shackled old man mentioned in the lyrics.

5. XY 8/10. Okay but a bit samey to the other tracks above. And we do need to multiply.

6. Chop Suey 9/10. The most well known song off the album. About suicide it starts off heavy and then goes into an emotional outbreak in the chorus.

7. Bounce 9/10. Makes me laugh. Whoever thought there would be a song about pogo sticks? Serj also makes random croaking sounds near the end.

8. Forest 10/10. Sounds powerful and intense the entire time and the chorus is pretty good too.

9. ATWA 8/10. Starts off calm and gets loud in the chorus. Okay I guess.

10. Science 7/10. This song does feel a bit samey to the other tracks. Fast and constant.

11. Shimmy 9/10. The guitars are heavy and Serj talks very fast. Nothing new BUT the chorus works very well with the song.

12. Toxicity 9/10. The first SOAD song I ever heard and this will always sound great. Serj sings/screams his heart out.

13. Psycho 8/10. Sounds drug influenced, and I swear I can hear children singing in the background...

14. Aerials 9/10. A nice melodic end and is one of the best songs. Perfect ending.

If you like metal you won't be disapointed. If you like music you should still buy this for the melodic parts and if you don't like music why do you read reviews?

Simply Brilliant, 23 Jul 2006
It's hard to decide whether Toxicity or Steal This album are the better of SOAD albums, but I have to ere on the side of Toxicity. It is short and punchy, has some great riffs and some very intelligent lyrics. It is safe to say that every song kicks ass, and I'm always feeling left slightly disappointed when the album finishes! A great album and should be part of any metal/rock collection.

Classic Thrash Metal. Ignore C. Greig Megadeth Rock, 14 Jun 2008
If you are looking to buy your first megadeth album then look no further the album has killer written all over it. Megadeth second album and it's a huge step up from Killing Is My Business. The vocals, solos, riffs, dumming everything has improved so much. No best they all rock and i dont see why people dont like I aint superstitious sure it doesnt go with the album but it still rocks. This is a must have in every thrash metal/Metal fans collection. Ignore any negative comment and buy without hesitation. Dave Mustaine You rock.

rubbish, 23 May 2008
ignore MrMetalheadO'Hagan "TRUE METAL".i am entitled to my opinion so dry your eyes and don't bring my name up if u can't handle my review. this is a rubbish album.megadeth have never made a good song in their life and dave mustaine is a junkie loser who is a cry baby because he got ditched by those sell outs metallica.AWW has this upset all you wee lassies who complain when u read a bad review.
not heavy enough and not got the 80' thrash sound . megadeth r over rated and dave mustaine is a joke.

Megadeth's finest hour??, 10 May 2008
PSBWB is the album where Megadeth truly began to hit the global metal scene, and they do it in style. From opening song Wake Up Dead to closure, My Last Words this is a pure-blooded thrash classic with both simply hooks and sing-along choruses(Peace Sells), or pure technical bombast (Good Mourning/Black Friday). Dave Mustaine once again proves that he is the definition of a guitar-techs worst nightmare and a thrash-kids wet dream.

My only problem with this reissue is that the extra tracks included (the Randy Burns mixe) are rather useless, they actually dont do the band any justice. My only reason for their inclusion would be that it makes the "real" versions of the songs sound even better by comparison


Priceless Peace, 09 Mar 2008
`Peace Sells...' is without doubt one of the defining albums of the whole thrash scene, in fact one of the best metal albums of the 80's...no wait simply one of the finest metal albums of all time, simply put; life affirming. After the good but scrappy debut `Killing is My Business...And Business is Good' Megadeth really raised the bar and in my mind made the best record of 1986.

Rather than Metallica who were focusing on increasingly progressive songs and Slayer who went for just straight ahead stripped down brutality, Megadeth provided a sort of best of both worlds, being more musically proficient than any of their contemporaries as well as having tight and concise songs which could also rip your bleeding head off. No matter how technically brilliant Megadeth were, no one did angry better than Megadeth to be blunt Dave Muistane had issues. Megadeth was a band formed with the intent of revenge and they sounded like it.

`Peace Sells...' is Megadeth's finest album most of the songs here have now transcended into the realms of true heavy metal classics. In fact all the bands actual own compositions are fantastic only the ill advised cover of `I Ain't Superstitious' lets the side down, this song is an old blues standard but I think Megadeth based their version on the Jeff Beck Group's. Now Chris Poland can nail Beck's licks but Muistane sure as hell can't sing like Rod Stewart, so on the whole it just comes across as a bit of a novelty. But aside from that minor blunder this is all stellar speed metal. `Wake Up Dead' kicks things off in excellent fashion, it's a lovely piece of vitriolic metal with some of the best instrumental sections ever. It's like one verse then about two minutes of killer riffage and Muistane's solos that simply cut through everything and some more refined touches from Poland. Easily one of Megadeth's best numbers. `The Conjuring' displays a clear Mercyful Fate influence lyrically as its one of the bands few Satanic numbers. It's a spiralling concoction of riffs and tempo changes featuring Muistane's own (then) unique approach to two handed tapping. Again fantastic. Then the title track, which is without doubt one of the most seminal metal songs ever, a triumph of rage and spite...in a politically righteous kind of way, without ever being preachy (take that Rage Against the Machine!). The bass, the riffs, the lyrics, those driving rhythms and even Chris Poland's jazzy solos it's all phenomenally catchy and its one of those songs even casual metal fans love. Erm more standouts? All of it...well aside from the aforementioned cover. `Devils Island' once more is immensely catchy and so head banging friendly even though the chorus sounds more like Neville's island. However the best is saved for last with the distinctly more old school feeling (meaning I dunno pre-1984) `My Last Words' which starts with one of those classic clean thrash intros, then total head banging mania with what could well be Muistane's finest riff. As a song it feels really epic even though its under 5 minutes in length. It's got a certain energy to it that is so lacking in Megadeth's recent work it really makes the hairs on your neck (which is soar by the end of the album) stand on end. A monumental end to a staggering album, and that solo...ace!

Musically Megadeth could school any of their contemporaries at this time, but rather than relying on shredfest's the band retain a sense of melodic sensibility making `Peace Sells...' very much easy listening (in a heavy metal sense of course). Anyway, many consider the `Rust in Peace' line up to be the bands finest, but to me it seems this one has the best chemistry and ultimately brought on the best in Muistane's song writing. But it almost goes without saying that all this band are absolutely phenomenal musicians. The guitars really stand out on this album, this being Muistane's finest performance his riffs heavy and memorable and his leads just seem to shred through everything. Although he lacks some of Poland's finest as a guitarist I still prefer his lead style to any of his guitar partners. Poland as previously mentioned has a jazzy feel that was pretty groundbreaking in metal in the 80's and although a clearly accomplished guitarist his solos are often concise and never lose meaning. Ellefson proves himself as the consummate metal bassist (yes better than Cliff `silly bass wah' Burton...take that you sacred cow!) his tone is quite trebly and as such stands out in the mix which is good as he's actually doing some interesting things whilst never compromising what the song requires. Gar Samuelson is my favourite Megadeth drummer simply put I like his tone and feel, his and Chris' jazz background certainly makes for an interesting listen.

Oh now to have some fun, a Metallica comparison! `Master of Puppets' although good in places is simply no match for `Peace Sells...' Mop is plodding and overlong, lacking both the instant and appeal as well as the depth of PSBWB. Hetfield's riffs sound like forced picking exercises in comparison to Muistane's more nimble and frankly far more exciting compositions. Which rather than dense and dull which can be seen as James interpreting Iommi rather badly at times, Muistane's riffs have a more energetic feel and life to them, which can also be seen as the result of him actually keeping mid range to his guitar tone, as the triple tracked scooped mid sound of MOP may be dense but it's ultimately lifeless. I won't even bother going into how inferior Lars, Cliff and Kirk are to their Megadeth contemporaries. Yeah, this may be a slightly unrelated tangent but I feel this is a perfect way to give my opinion on age old metal disputes.

`Peace Sells...' represents Megadeth at their hateful and vengeful best, never losing focus of songs whilst always giving exciting and precise performances. This is an absolute winner of a metal album...every home should have at least one copy. Even at the very least you can dig the iconic yet dated cover with Vic Rattlehead in a post nuclear apocalyptic landscape...now that's thrash!

This Is Great!, 18 Jul 2007
Megadeth is the best band in the world! And this was their break-through! All the songs are great! Especially "Wake up Dead", "Peace Sells", and "The Conjuring". If you like metal, you should have this CD!

Killing for Religion Is just something i dont understand., 15 Jun 2008
Well megadeth are one of my favourite bands though i wouldnt say this is their best cause i prefer Peace Sells and Youthanasia but it is a masterpiece the best songs are the classic Holy Wars, Hanger 18, Take No Prisoner, Tornado Of Souls & Rust In peace. The music is so technical the riffs are brilliant the solos are amazing the lyrics are great daves vocals may not be at his best but still awesome. If you're starting to get into megadeth buy this with Peace Sells But Whos Buying. Their both thrash metal Masterpieces

Megadeths' magnum opus, 03 Jan 2008
This is Megadeth's most progressive album, not in the sense that they use keyboards or synths (as they do not), but in the sense that this is their most embellished and most ellaborate work.

Few of their other albums come close to the complexity displayed in this album. From start to finish this album is a classic, no doubt a must for any thrash/speed metal fan let alone Megadeth fan. It's that good.

All of the tracks are brilliant, even the demo ones do, which sound slightly faster and have Chris Poland playing what would later be Marty Friedman's parts (in my opinion Poland sounds better).
However, I only ever skip Dawn Patrol as it's like an abrupt pause in the middle of a really energetic string of songs which really does sound out of place if you've heard the album, though this is really minor criticism considering the rest of the album is so good.

Also to note, some of the vocal tracks had to be redone during the remaster (Take No Prisoners, Five Magics and Lucretia) , as I havn't heard the original album, I can't compare but this version is excellent anyway.

My three favourite tracks are Tornado of Souls, Five Magics and Hangar 18.

For the people who complained about the Remaster..., 02 Nov 2007
In 2002, Mustaine remastered the debut Megadeth album, Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!, including three extra bonus tracks and a new album cover completely different from the original. Inspired by the positive outcome of the re-release, he worked to remaster all of the subsequent Megadeth albums which had been recorded with Capitol Records (up to 1999's Risk).

Rust in Peace was re-released in 2004 with a new sound and four new bonus tracks. During the audio mixing process, Mustaine found that the original lead vocal tracks for "Take No Prisoners", "Five Magics" and "Lucretia" were missing - he had no choice but to re-record the vocals on "Take No Prisoners" and use alternate takes for "Lucretia" and "Five Magics".



MEGADETHS FINEST HOUR!!!!!, 08 Oct 2007
HUZZAH!

Rust in peace is the thrash masterpeice of the 90's,BAR NONE! It goes at breakneck speed and is an essential metalhead album.
The tracks are as follows:

1.HOLY WARS:One of the best openers to any album!Pure thrash from start to finish.Great lyrics:"killing for religon,something i dont understand!"
Exiting guitar,good drums and a breathtaking finish! 10/10

2.HANGAR 18:OMG! WHAT A BELTER! Stupendous guitar solos, great lyrics and THE BEST INTRO AND OUTRO EVER! Never takes its foot of the pedal. 100/10

3.TAKE NO PRISONERS:Fast,Fast,Fast! A good song with a catchy chant, some good lyrics and great guitar work. 9.5/10

4.FIVE MAGICS:Another really good song. A great start and a great finish with some good work inbetween. 8.5/10

5.POISON WAS THE CURE:Another great intro! one of the fastest with some great vocals and amazin' drums! crimanally ignored! But WAY too short. 9/10.

6.LUCRETIA:Some Killer riffs here! A fast song, but not too fast.nice drums and some good work.good vocals. 9/10

7.TORNADO OF SOULS: KILLER! good drums, amazing lyrics,great riffs and a killer chorus!

8.DAWN PATROL:TOO SHORT so i didn't really listen to it.NO COMMENT. ?/10

9.RUST IN PEACE...POLARIS:YES YES YES! A fantastic drum intro,Killer solos,nice riffs and THE BEST LYRICS!"HIGH PRIEST OF HOLOCAUST,FIRE FROM THE SEA,NUCLEAR WINTER SPREADING DISEASE,THE FINAL CONFLICT ALL PAY THE PRICE,THE 3RD WORLD WAR RAPES PEACE,TAKES LIFE BACK TO THE START..." 100/10!!!!!!!!

***SPECIAL TRACK***
10.MY CREATION: too short but still a very good song guitarwise.7/10

The only bad bit is that the demos are easily skippable. :-(

Go buy it. at THIS price its a bargin! :->





Their Masterpiece, 03 Sep 2007
Thanks to the fantastic remix, this really does shine as th ejewel in Megadeth's crown. A groundbreaking album featuring their best tunes and best ever line up. Highlights are 'Holy Wars.........The Punishment Due' and the gobsmacking 'Hangar 18' . If you need an intro to Megadeth, this is it.

Waaaargh! East-European death-metal in the area! System Of A Down, a collection of Los Angeles-based ex-pat Armenians with a serious fetish for beefing up the black-humoured urgency of the Dead Kennedys into a breed of music so heavy that it attracts small planets as satellites, rather elude the grace of a subtle introduction. Fortunate, then, that an introduction to them is all that you need; System Of A Down is a near-perfect example of late-1990s metal at its most ridiculous, and of course, heavy metal has always thrived on being the most absurd of all art-forms. "Suggestions", for example, encapsulates many great metal moments; bowel-emptying, mountain-sized riffage twinned with lyrics that crossbreed J.R.R. Tolkein with Karl Marx, sung in a mixture of graveyard-friendly goth baritone and genitals-in-a-vice falsetto. Elsewhere, "Suite-Pee" and "War?" (answer in the affirmative, of course) provide some ass-kicking highlights. Truly, this is a killer album. --Louis Pattison

System rule supreme, 27 Jun 2008
Their debut was stunning - there's no denying it. Mixing power, fury and at times comic instrumentation and vocals, it was always going to be a hard album to beat. But System have done it. Toxicity is an amazing album.

For those that dismiss Toxicity as 'too commercial' or 'too mainstream'. To make accessible music that still has the power and strength that nearly all of the tracks on this CD have takes a great deal of skill. How to make music sound not only familiar but also brand apsnking new and still like it has something incredibly important to say is the sign of master songwriters. And Toxicity has all of that in bucketloads.

The melodic pain of singles Chop Suey, Toxicity and Aerials counter the deliciously dark and oddly furious anger of Prison Song, Jet Pilot and Bounce. I can't even begin to describe how an album so angry sounds so melodious. Buy it now.

Greatest Album Ever Made, 16 Jun 2008
Seriously, this is an incredible album and System of a Down are a truly unique band that have become the success that they are through creating music like nothing heard before. "Nu-Metal" is simply a genre label that was created in order to allow other bands with a "unique" sound to belong to. This is something that System of a Down created, they were a band that stripped away that label of being a rock band and essentially created a genre of their own. Serj Tankian the lead vocalist of the band is an incredible talent of massive proportion, he's not only a songwriter but he's a poet, a visionary and a political critic. He picks out parts of the System that are corrupt and downright criminal and gives us his no holds barred approach to the system. Along with being an utter genius at what he does, I think we can all agree that listening to how some of SOAD's songs are constructed Serj Tankian is possibly a little bit insane (The good kind, not the OJ Simpson kind.)

This album is considered by many to be the Systems best album to date and from turning on track 1. Prison Song you come to realise how inventive, talented and intelligent this band really is. This first song simply points out the hypocrisy of the legal system when it comes to drugs, it points out the convenience of drugs being on our streets and less money being spent on treatment and more on prisons when research does show that treatment should receive the most money from the government. It's a brilliant song that shows quite clearly the intelligence and political mind of the band. This is something that should be brought to the mainstream more often and it's a shame that even now bands like this are looked down upon simply because of their sound.

Honestly this is an amazing album and for those fans of music in general, who keep an open mind and are quite experimental in their tastes, then I promise you will be pleasantly surprised.

My Top 5 Are

Prison Song
Chop Suey
X
Deer Dance
Needles

S.O.A.D, 04 Sep 2007
the best system of a down album (not as heavy as the first one but still the best)

Melodic, heavy and never boring, 02 Sep 2007
This is the first SOAD ablum I ever heard and the intensity of it can blow you away. It has political rantings all over it but can also make you laugh with tracks like bounce.

1. Prison song 9/10. A great opener which explains how bad the prison system is and has the guitarist saying 'I grab my, smack my b**** right here in hollywood'.

2. Needles 10/10. Very heavy and they appear to be singing about a tapeworm to begin with. Then it goes calm and they sing about some tomb of some old man and then go heavy again. Powerful.

3. Deer Dance 9/10. The verses are very melodic political rantings, which is odd because the choruses are thrash metal heavy. The contrast will work for some and not for others it all depends on what you're into.

4. Jet 10/10. I like this song. The topic is stupid but is so full of energy that I'm not bothered about the horse or the shackled old man mentioned in the lyrics.

5. XY 8/10. Okay but a bit samey to the other tracks above. And we do need to multiply.

6. Chop Suey 9/10. The most well known song off the album. About suicide it starts off heavy and then goes into an emotional outbreak in the chorus.

7. Bounce 9/10. Makes me laugh. Whoever thought there would be a song about pogo sticks? Serj also makes random croaking sounds near the end.

8. Forest 10/10. Sounds powerful and intense the entire time and the chorus is pretty good too.

9. ATWA 8/10. Starts off calm and gets loud in the chorus. Okay I guess.

10. Science 7/10. This song does feel a bit samey to the other tracks. Fast and constant.

11. Shimmy 9/10. The guitars are heavy and Serj talks very fast. Nothing new BUT the chorus works very well with the song.

12. Toxicity 9/10. The first SOAD song I ever heard and this will always sound great. Serj sings/screams his heart out.

13. Psycho 8/10. Sounds drug influenced, and I swear I can hear children singing in the background...

14. Aerials 9/10. A nice melodic end and is one of the best songs. Perfect ending.

If you like metal you won't be disapointed. If you like music you should still buy this for the melodic parts and if you don't like music why do you read reviews?

Simply Brilliant, 23 Jul 2006
It's hard to decide whether Toxicity or Steal This album are the better of SOAD albums, but I have to ere on the side of Toxicity. It is short and punchy, has some great riffs and some very intelligent lyrics. It is safe to say that every song kicks ass, and I'm always feeling left slightly disappointed when the album finishes! A great album and should be part of any metal/rock collection.

Classic Thrash Metal. Ignore C. Greig Megadeth Rock, 14 Jun 2008
If you are looking to buy your first megadeth album then look no further the album has killer written all over it. Megadeth second album and it's a huge step up from Killing Is My Business. The vocals, solos, riffs, dumming everything has improved so much. No best they all rock and i dont see why people dont like I aint superstitious sure it doesnt go with the album but it still rocks. This is a must have in every thrash metal/Metal fans collection. Ignore any negative comment and buy without hesitation. Dave Mustaine You rock.

rubbish, 23 May 2008
ignore MrMetalheadO'Hagan "TRUE METAL".i am entitled to my opinion so dry your eyes and don't bring my name up if u can't handle my review. this is a rubbish album.megadeth have never made a good song in their life and dave mustaine is a junkie loser who is a cry baby because he got ditched by those sell outs metallica.AWW has this upset all you wee lassies who complain when u read a bad review.
not heavy enough and not got the 80' thrash sound . megadeth r over rated and dave mustaine is a joke.

Megadeth's finest hour??, 10 May 2008
PSBWB is the album where Megadeth truly began to hit the global metal scene, and they do it in style. From opening song Wake Up Dead to closure, My Last Words this is a pure-blooded thrash classic with both simply hooks and sing-along choruses(Peace Sells), or pure technical bombast (Good Mourning/Black Friday). Dave Mustaine once again proves that he is the definition of a guitar-techs worst nightmare and a thrash-kids wet dream.

My only problem with this reissue is that the extra tracks included (the Randy Burns mixe) are rather useless, they actually dont do the band any justice. My only reason for their inclusion would be that it makes the "real" versions of the songs sound even better by comparison


Priceless Peace, 09 Mar 2008
`Peace Sells...' is without doubt one of the defining albums of the whole thrash scene, in fact one of the best metal albums of the 80's...no wait simply one of the finest metal albums of all time, simply put; life affirming. After the good but scrappy debut `Killing is My Business...And Business is Good' Megadeth really raised the bar and in my mind made the best record of 1986.

Rather than Metallica who were focusing on increasingly progressive songs and Slayer who went for just straight ahead stripped down brutality, Megadeth provided a sort of best of both worlds, being more musically proficient than any of their contemporaries as well as having tight and concise songs which could also rip your bleeding head off. No matter how technically brilliant Megadeth were, no one did angry better than Megadeth to be blunt Dave Muistane had issues. Megadeth was a band formed with the intent of revenge and they sounded like it.

`Peace Sells...' is Megadeth's finest album most of the songs here have now transcended into the realms of true heavy metal classics. In fact all the bands actual own compositions are fantastic only the ill advised cover of `I Ain't Superstitious' lets the side down, this song is an old blues standard but I think Megadeth based their version on the Jeff Beck Group's. Now Chris Poland can nail Beck's licks but Muistane sure as hell can't sing like Rod Stewart, so on the whole it just comes across as a bit of a novelty. But aside from that minor blunder this is all stellar speed metal. `Wake Up Dead' kicks things off in excellent fashion, it's a lovely piece of vitriolic metal with some of the best instrumental sections ever. It's like one verse then about two minutes of killer riffage and Muistane's solos that simply cut through everything and some more refined touches from Poland. Easily one of Megadeth's best numbers. `The Conjuring' displays a clear Mercyful Fate influence lyrically as its one of the bands few Satanic numbers. It's a spiralling concoction of riffs and tempo changes featuring Muistane's own (then) unique approach to two handed tapping. Again fantastic. Then the title track, which is without doubt one of the most seminal metal songs ever, a triumph of rage and spite...in a politically righteous kind of way, without ever being preachy (take that Rage Against the Machine!). The bass, the riffs, the lyrics, those driving rhythms and even Chris Poland's jazzy solos it's all phenomenally catchy and its one of those songs even casual metal fans love. Erm more standouts? All of it...well aside from the aforementioned cover. `Devils Island' once more is immensely catchy and so head banging friendly even though the chorus sounds more like Neville's island. However the best is saved for last with the distinctly more old school feeling (meaning I dunno pre-1984) `My Last Words' which starts with one of those classic clean thrash intros, then total head banging mania with what could well be Muistane's finest riff. As a song it feels really epic even though its under 5 minutes in length. It's got a certain energy to it that is so lacking in Megadeth's recent work it really makes the hairs on your neck (which is soar by the end of the album) stand on end. A monumental end to a staggering album, and that solo...ace!

Musically Megadeth could school any of their contemporaries at this time, but rather than relying on shredfest's the band retain a sense of melodic sensibility making `Peace Sells...' very much easy listening (in a heavy metal sense of course). Anyway, many consider the `Rust in Peace' line up to be the bands finest, but to me it seems this one has the best chemistry and ultimately brought on the best in Muistane's song writing. But it almost goes without saying that all this band are absolutely phenomenal musicians. The guitars really stand out on this album, this being Muistane's finest performance his riffs heavy and memorable and his leads just seem to shred through everything. Although he lacks some of Poland's finest as a guitarist I still prefer his lead style to any of his guitar partners. Poland as previously mentioned has a jazzy feel that was pretty groundbreaking in metal in the 80's and although a clearly accomplished guitarist his solos are often concise and never lose meaning. Ellefson proves himself as the consummate metal bassist (yes better than Cliff `silly bass wah' Burton...take that you sacred cow!) his tone is quite trebly and as such stands out in the mix which is good as he's actually doing some interesting things whilst never compromising what the song requires. Gar Samuelson is my favourite Megadeth drummer simply put I like his tone and feel, his and Chris' jazz background certainly makes for an interesting listen.

Oh now to have some fun, a Metallica comparison! `Master of Puppets' although good in places is simply no match for `Peace Sells...' Mop is plodding and overlong, lacking both the instant and appeal as well as the depth of PSBWB. Hetfield's riffs sound like forced picking exercises in comparison to Muistane's more nimble and frankly far more exciting compositions. Which rather than dense and dull which can be seen as James interpreting Iommi rather badly at times, Muistane's riffs have a more energetic feel and life to them, which can also be seen as the result of him actually keeping mid range to his guitar tone, as the triple tracked scooped mid sound of MOP may be dense but it's ultimately lifeless. I won't even bother going into how inferior Lars, Cliff and Kirk are to their Megadeth contemporaries. Yeah, this may be a slightly unrelated tangent but I feel this is a perfect way to give my opinion on age old metal disputes.

`Peace Sells...' represents Megadeth at their hateful and vengeful best, never losing focus of songs whilst always giving exciting and precise performances. This is an absolute winner of a metal album...every home should have at least one copy. Even at the very least you can dig the iconic yet dated cover with Vic Rattlehead in a post nuclear apocalyptic landscape...now that's thrash!

This Is Great!, 18 Jul 2007
Megadeth is the best band in the world! And this was their break-through! All the songs are great! Especially "Wake up Dead", "Peace Sells", and "The Conjuring". If you like metal, you should have this CD!

Killing for Religion Is just something i dont understand., 15 Jun 2008
Well megadeth are one of my favourite bands though i wouldnt say this is their best cause i prefer Peace Sells and Youthanasia but it is a masterpiece the best songs are the classic Holy Wars, Hanger 18, Take No Prisoner, Tornado Of Souls & Rust In peace. The music is so technical the riffs are brilliant the solos are amazing the lyrics are great daves vocals may not be at his best but still awesome. If you're starting to get into megadeth buy this with Peace Sells But Whos Buying. Their both thrash metal Masterpieces

Megadeths' magnum opus, 03 Jan 2008
This is Megadeth's most progressive album, not in the sense that they use keyboards or synths (as they do not), but in the sense that this is their most embellished and most ellaborate work.

Few of their other albums come close to the complexity displayed in this album. From start to finish this album is a classic, no doubt a must for any thrash/speed metal fan let alone Megadeth fan. It's that good.

All of the tracks are brilliant, even the demo ones do, which sound slightly faster and have Chris Poland playing what would later be Marty Friedman's parts (in my opinion Poland sounds better).
However, I only ever skip Dawn Patrol as it's like an abrupt pause in the middle of a really energetic string of songs which really does sound out of place if you've heard the album, though this is really minor criticism considering the rest of the album is so good.

Also to note, some of the vocal tracks had to be redone during the remaster (Take No Prisoners, Five Magics and Lucretia) , as I havn't heard the original album, I can't compare but this version is excellent anyway.

My three favourite tracks are Tornado of Souls, Five Magics and Hangar 18.

For the people who complained about the Remaster..., 02 Nov 2007
In 2002, Mustaine remastered the debut Megadeth album, Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!, including three extra bonus tracks and a new album cover completely different from the original. Inspired by the positive outcome of the re-release, he worked to remaster all of the subsequent Megadeth albums which had been recorded with Capitol Records (up to 1999's Risk).

Rust in Peace was re-released in 2004 with a new sound and four new bonus tracks. During the audio mixing process, Mustaine found that the original lead vocal tracks for "Take No Prisoners", "Five Magics" and "Lucretia" were missing - he had no choice but to re-record the vocals on "Take No Prisoners" and use alternate takes for "Lucretia" and "Five Magics".



MEGADETHS FINEST HOUR!!!!!, 08 Oct 2007
HUZZAH!

Rust in peace is the thrash masterpeice of the 90's,BAR NONE! It goes at breakneck speed and is an essential metalhead album.
The tracks are as follows:

1.HOLY WARS:One of the best openers to any album!Pure thrash from start to finish.Great lyrics:"killing for religon,something i dont understand!"
Exiting guitar,good drums and a breathtaking finish! 10/10

2.HANGAR 18:OMG! WHAT A BELTER! Stupendous guitar solos, great lyrics and THE BEST INTRO AND OUTRO EVER! Never takes its foot of the pedal. 100/10

3.TAKE NO PRISONERS:Fast,Fast,Fast! A good song with a catchy chant, some good lyrics and great guitar work. 9.5/10

4.FIVE MAGICS:Another really good song. A great start and a great finish with some good work inbetween. 8.5/10

5.POISON WAS THE CURE:Another great intro! one of the fastest with some great vocals and amazin' drums! crimanally ignored! But WAY too short. 9/10.

6.LUCRETIA:Some Killer riffs here! A fast song, but not too fast.nice drums and some good work.good vocals. 9/10

7.TORNADO OF SOULS: KILLER! good drums, amazing lyrics,great riffs and a killer chorus!

8.DAWN PATROL:TOO SHORT so i didn't really listen to it.NO COMMENT. ?/10

9.RUST IN PEACE...POLARIS:YES YES YES! A fantastic drum intro,Killer solos,nice riffs and THE BEST LYRICS!"HIGH PRIEST OF HOLOCAUST,FIRE FROM THE SEA,NUCLEAR WINTER SPREADING DISEASE,THE FINAL CONFLICT ALL PAY THE PRICE,THE 3RD WORLD WAR RAPES PEACE,TAKES LIFE BACK TO THE START..." 100/10!!!!!!!!

***SPECIAL TRACK***
10.MY CREATION: too short but still a very good song guitarwise.7/10

The only bad bit is that the demos are easily skippable. :-(

Go buy it. at THIS price its a bargin! :->





Their Masterpiece, 03 Sep 2007
Thanks to the fantastic remix, this really does shine as th ejewel in Megadeth's crown. A groundbreaking album featuring their best tunes and best ever line up. Highlights are 'Holy Wars.........The Punishment Due' and the gobsmacking 'Hangar 18' . If you need an intro to Megadeth, this is it.

Finally!, 21 Apr 2008
When everyone (including myself) got caught up in the sheer excellence of S.O.A.D's album Toxicity.. I saw this in a shop and bought it. I immediately decided that this was superior to Toxicity, but nobody else seemed to have given it a listen and/or thought that Toxicity was there first album!
But now everyone seems to have discovered this genius album and to this day i still see this as their best!

Raw, 01 Nov 2007
...system of a down, at their rawest and most unpredictable state (i.e. before all the calming down and melodic stuff - hypnotize/mezmerize). There is NO way you can pigeonhole system of a down into a chategory. they are metal/nu-metal/alt-metal/thrash metal...whatever. its funny and good music; none of that ultra serious political messages here; sure there are political messages; but all handled in an offhand joking style. Standout songs are Suite Pee, Know, War? and Sugar. For people new to system of a down (and for people who dont like raw-ish not-so-melodious-yet-melodious sounds), you probably shouldnt go for this. Buy Toxicity or Mezmerize; then as you get into system of a down, buy the rest.

A absolutely breathtaking debut album for system, Full of angsty goodness, 31 Aug 2007
Well im usually weary of metal bands as they usually put me off with their totally illegible and untelligent lyrics, but after listening to system i have completely changed my mind, its quite hard to say what kind of music system can be catogerised by as their musical style never remains the same which is quite impressive for any band i must say.

This is certainly one of their strongest albums, probably their second best behind the sequel toxicity with stronger variety of tunes. If u like metal and rage, system of a down is the perfect companion for you. Recommended.

system of a down - the most influential band in the universe?, 28 Jan 2007
In an age where confusion and dissaray run amok throughout our modern society, the youth need some guidence. The sad truth is that these days the average teenager would rather spend the seventh day of the week in a dingy shopping mall looking at the latest track-suit on sale, and wondering how to save up enough money for sweat-shop produced cotton, emblazoned with a popular logo. How else will the misled masses begin to think in the right way. The answer can be unearthed in the words, screams and insults of this eastern-european alternative-metal band. This radically different group focuses its music in tackling the problems of our world, past, present and future. with some amazing vocals, unbelievable lyrics and mind-blowing subliminal messages. I reserve the belief that anyone over the age of 15 should be given a copy.

too heavy for me., 30 Dec 2006
I listned to 'toxicity', 'steal this album' and the other two newer realeases. This is much heavier than those and suffers a little from lack of melody and eastern influences. The only tracks that have a bit of melody are 'spiders', 'suggestions' and I like the verses of 'Peephole', that sound a bit like 'radio/video', just less polished.
I assume many will not share this opinion and will enjoy the heavier side of system of the down.

System rule supreme, 27 Jun 2008
Their debut was stunning - there's no denying it. Mixing power, fury and at times comic instrumentation and vocals, it was always going to be a hard album to beat. But System have done it. Toxicity is an amazing album.

For those that dismiss Toxicity as 'too commercial' or 'too mainstream'. To make accessible music that still has the power and strength that nearly all of the tracks on this CD have takes a great deal of skill. How to make music sound not only familiar but also brand apsnking new and still like it has something incredibly important to say is the sign of master songwriters. And Toxicity has all of that in bucketloads.

The melodic pain of singles Chop Suey, Toxicity and Aerials counter the deliciously dark and oddly furious anger of Prison Song, Jet Pilot and Bounce. I can't even begin to describe how an album so angry sounds so melodious. Buy it now.

Greatest Album Ever Made, 16 Jun 2008
Seriously, this is an incredible album and System of a Down are a truly unique band that have become the success that they are through creating music like nothing heard before. "Nu-Metal" is simply a genre label that was created in order to allow other bands with a "unique" sound to belong to. This is something that System of a Down created, they were a band that stripped away that label of being a rock band and essentially created a genre of their own. Serj Tankian the lead vocalist of the band is an incredible talent of massive proportion, he's not only a songwriter but he's a poet, a visionary and a political critic. He picks out parts of the System that are corrupt and downright criminal and gives us his no holds barred approach to the system. Along with being an utter genius at what he does, I think we can all agree that listening to how some of SOAD's songs are constructed Serj Tankian is possibly a little bit insane (The good kind, not the OJ Simpson kind.)

This album is considered by many to be the Systems best album to date and from turning on track 1. Prison Song you come to realise how inventive, talented and intelligent this band really is. This first song simply points out the hypocrisy of the legal system when it comes to drugs, it points out the convenience of drugs being on our streets and less money being spent on treatment and more on prisons when research does show that treatment should receive the most money from the government. It's a brilliant song that shows quite clearly the intelligence and political mind of the band. This is something that should be brought to the mainstream more often and it's a shame that even now bands like this are looked down upon simply because of their sound.

Honestly this is an amazing album and for those fans of music in general, who keep an open mind and are quite experimental in their tastes, then I promise you will be pleasantly surprised.

My Top 5 Are

Prison Song
Chop Suey
X
Deer Dance
Needles

S.O.A.D, 04 Sep 2007
the best system of a down album (not as heavy as the first one but still the best)

Melodic, heavy and never boring, 02 Sep 2007
This is the first SOAD ablum I ever heard and the intensity of it can blow you away. It has political rantings all over it but can also make you laugh with tracks like bounce.

1. Prison song 9/10. A great opener which explains how bad the prison system is and has the guitarist saying 'I grab my, smack my b**** right here in hollywood'.

2. Needles 10/10. Very heavy and they appear to be singing about a tapeworm to begin with. Then it goes calm and they sing about some tomb of some old man and then go heavy again. Powerful.

3. Deer Dance 9/10. The verses are very melodic political rantings, which is odd because the choruses are thrash metal heavy. The contrast will work for some and not for others it all depends on what you're into.

4. Jet 10/10. I like this song. The topic is stupid but is so full of energy that I'm not bothered about the horse or the shackled old man mentioned in the lyrics.

5. XY 8/10. Okay but a bit samey to the other tracks above. And we do need to multiply.

6. Chop Suey 9/10. The most well known song off the album. About suicide it starts off heavy and then goes into an emotional outbreak in the chorus.

7. Bounce 9/10. Makes me laugh. Whoever thought there would be a song about pogo sticks? Serj also makes random croaking sounds near the end.

8. Forest 10/10. Sounds powerful and intense the entire time and the chorus is pretty good too.

9. ATWA 8/10. Starts off calm and gets loud in the chorus. Okay I guess.

10. Science 7/10. This song does feel a bit samey to the other tracks. Fast and constant.

11. Shimmy 9/10. The guitars are heavy and Serj talks very fast. Nothing new BUT the chorus works very well with the song.

12. Toxicity 9/10. The first SOAD song I ever heard and this will always sound great. Serj sings/screams his heart out.

13. Psycho 8/10. Sounds drug influenced, and I swear I can hear children singing in the background...

14. Aerials 9/10. A nice melodic end and is one of the best songs. Perfect ending.

If you like metal you won't be disapointed. If you like music you should still buy this for the melodic parts and if you don't like music why do you read reviews?

Simply Brilliant, 23 Jul 2006
It's hard to decide whether Toxicity or Steal This album are the better of SOAD albums, but I have to ere on the side of Toxicity. It is short and punchy, has some great riffs and some very intelligent lyrics. It is safe to say that every song kicks ass, and I'm always feeling left slightly disappointed when the album finishes! A great album and should be part of any metal/rock collection.

Classic Thrash Metal. Ignore C. Greig Megadeth Rock, 14 Jun 2008
If you are looking to buy your first megadeth album then look no further the album has killer written all over it. Megadeth second album and it's a huge step up from Killing Is My Business. The vocals, solos, riffs, dumming everything has improved so much. No best they all rock and i dont see why people dont like I aint superstitious sure it doesnt go with the album but it still rocks. This is a must have in every thrash metal/Metal fans collection. Ignore any negative comment and buy without hesitation. Dave Mustaine You rock.

rubbish, 23 May 2008
ignore MrMetalheadO'Hagan "TRUE METAL".i am entitled to my opinion so dry your eyes and don't bring my name up if u can't handle my review. this is a rubbish album.megadeth have never made a good song in their life and dave mustaine is a junkie loser who is a cry baby because he got ditched by those sell outs metallica.AWW has this upset all you wee lassies who complain when u read a bad review.
not heavy enough and not got the 80' thrash sound . megadeth r over rated and dave mustaine is a joke.

Megadeth's finest hour??, 10 May 2008
PSBWB is the album where Megadeth truly began to hit the global metal scene, and they do it in style. From opening song Wake Up Dead to closure, My Last Words this is a pure-blooded thrash classic with both simply hooks and sing-along choruses(Peace Sells), or pure technical bombast (Good Mourning/Black Friday). Dave Mustaine once again proves that he is the definition of a guitar-techs worst nightmare and a thrash-kids wet dream.

My only problem with this reissue is that the extra tracks included (the Randy Burns mixe) are rather useless, they actually dont do the band any justice. My only reason for their inclusion would be that it makes the "real" versions of the songs sound even better by comparison


Priceless Peace, 09 Mar 2008
`Peace Sells...' is without doubt one of the defining albums of the whole thrash scene, in fact one of the best metal albums of the 80's...no wait simply one of the finest metal albums of all time, simply put; life affirming. After the good but scrappy debut `Killing is My Business...And Business is Good' Megadeth really raised the bar and in my mind made the best record of 1986.

Rather than Metallica who were focusing on increasingly progressive songs and Slayer who went for just straight ahead stripped down brutality, Megadeth provided a sort of best of both worlds, being more musically proficient than any of their contemporaries as well as having tight and concise songs which could also rip your bleeding head off. No matter how technically brilliant Megadeth were, no one did angry better than Megadeth to be blunt Dave Muistane had issues. Megadeth was a band formed with the intent of revenge and they sounded like it.

`Peace Sells...' is Megadeth's finest album most of the songs here have now transcended into the realms of true heavy metal classics. In fact all the bands actual own compositions are fantastic only the ill advised cover of `I Ain't Superstitious' lets the side down, this song is an old blues standard but I think Megadeth based their version on the Jeff Beck Group's. Now Chris Poland can nail Beck's licks but Muistane sure as hell can't sing like Rod Stewart, so on the whole it just comes across as a bit of a novelty. But aside from that minor blunder this is all stellar speed metal. `Wake Up Dead' kicks things off in excellent fashion, it's a lovely piece of vitriolic metal with some of the best instrumental sections ever. It's like one verse then about two minutes of killer riffage and Muistane's solos that simply cut through everything and some more refined touches from Poland. Easily one of Megadeth's best numbers. `The Conjuring' displays a clear Mercyful Fate influence lyrically as its one of the bands few Satanic numbers. It's a spiralling concoction of riffs and tempo changes featuring Muistane's own (then) unique approach to two handed tapping. Again fantastic. Then the title track, which is without doubt one of the most seminal metal songs ever, a triumph of rage and spite...in a politically righteous kind of way, without ever being preachy (take that Rage Against the Machine!). The bass, the riffs, the lyrics, those driving rhythms and even Chris Poland's jazzy solos it's all phenomenally catchy and its one of those songs even casual metal fans love. Erm more standouts? All of it...well aside from the aforementioned cover. `Devils Island' once more is immensely catchy and so head banging friendly even though the chorus sounds more like Neville's island. However the best is saved for last with the distinctly more old school feeling (meaning I dunno pre-1984) `My Last Words' which starts with one of those classic clean thrash intros, then total head banging mania with what could well be Muistane's finest riff. As a song it feels really epic even though its under 5 minutes in length. It's got a certain energy to it that is so lacking in Megadeth's recent work it really makes the hairs on your neck (which is soar by the end of the album) stand on end. A monumental end to a staggering album, and that solo...ace!

Musically Megadeth could school any of their contemporaries at this time, but rather than relying on shredfest's the band retain a sense of melodic sensibility making `Peace Sells...' very much easy listening (in a heavy metal sense of course). Anyway, many consider the `Rust in Peace' line up to be the bands finest, but to me it seems this one has the best chemistry and ultimately brought on the best in Muistane's song writing. But it almost goes without saying that all this band are absolutely phenomenal musicians. The guitars really stand out on this album, this being Muistane's finest performance his riffs heavy and memorable and his leads just seem to shred through everything. Although he lacks some of Poland's finest as a guitarist I still prefer his lead style to any of his guitar partners. Poland as previously mentioned has a jazzy feel that was pretty groundbreaking in metal in the 80's and although a clearly accomplished guitarist his solos are often concise and never lose meaning. Ellefson proves himself as the consummate metal bassist (yes better than Cliff `silly bass wah' Burton...take that you sacred cow!) his tone is quite trebly and as such stands out in the mix which is good as he's actually doing some interesting things whilst never compromising what the song requires. Gar Samuelson is my favourite Megadeth drummer simply put I like his tone and feel, his and Chris' jazz background certainly makes for an interesting listen.

Oh now to have some fun, a Metallica comparison! `Master of Puppets' although good in places is simply no match for `Peace Sells...' Mop is plodding and overlong, lacking both the instant and appeal as well as the depth of PSBWB. Hetfield's riffs sound like forced picking exercises in comparison to Muistane's more nimble and frankly far more exciting compositions. Which rather than dense and dull which can be seen as James interpreting Iommi rather badly at times, Muistane's riffs have a more energetic feel and life to them, which can also be seen as the result of him actually keeping mid range to his guitar tone, as the triple tracked scooped mid sound of MOP may be dense but it's ultimately lifeless. I won't even bother going into how inferior Lars, Cliff and Kirk are to their Megadeth contemporaries. Yeah, this may be a slightly unrelated tangent but I feel this is a perfect way to give my opinion on age old metal disputes.

`Peace Sells...' represents Megadeth at their hateful and vengeful best, never losing focus of songs whilst always giving exciting and precise performances. This is an absolute winner of a metal album...every home should have at least one copy. Even at the very least you can dig the iconic yet dated cover with Vic Rattlehead in a post nuclear apocalyptic landscape...now that's thrash!

This Is Great!, 18 Jul 2007
Megadeth is the best band in the world! And this was their break-through! All the songs are great! Especially "Wake up Dead", "Peace Sells", and "The Conjuring". If you like metal, you should have this CD!

Killing for Religion Is just something i dont understand., 15 Jun 2008
Well megadeth are one of my favourite bands though i wouldnt say this is their best cause i prefer Peace Sells and Youthanasia but it is a masterpiece the best songs are the classic Holy Wars, Hanger 18, Take No Prisoner, Tornado Of Souls & Rust In peace. The music is so technical the riffs are brilliant the solos are amazing the lyrics are great daves vocals may not be at his best but still awesome. If you're starting to get into megadeth buy this with Peace Sells But Whos Buying. Their both thrash metal Masterpieces

Megadeths' magnum opus, 03 Jan 2008
This is Megadeth's most progressive album, not in the sense that they use keyboards or synths (as they do not), but in the sense that this is their most embellished and most ellaborate work.

Few of their other albums come close to the complexity displayed in this album. From start to finish this album is a classic, no doubt a must for any thrash/speed metal fan let alone Megadeth fan. It's that good.

All of the tracks are brilliant, even the demo ones do, which sound slightly faster and have Chris Poland playing what would later be Marty Friedman's parts (in my opinion Poland sounds better).
However, I only ever skip Dawn Patrol as it's like an abrupt pause in the middle of a really energetic string of songs which really does sound out of place if you've heard the album, though this is really minor criticism considering the rest of the album is so good.

Also to note, some of the vocal tracks had to be redone during the remaster (Take No Prisoners, Five Magics and Lucretia) , as I havn't heard the original album, I can't compare but this version is excellent anyway.

My three favourite tracks are Tornado of Souls, Five Magics and Hangar 18.

For the people who complained about the Remaster..., 02 Nov 2007
In 2002, Mustaine remastered the debut Megadeth album, Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!, including three extra bonus tracks and a new album cover completely different from the original. Inspired by the positive outcome of the re-release, he worked to remaster all of the subsequent Megadeth albums which had been recorded with Capitol Records (up to 1999's Risk).

Rust in Peace was re-released in 2004 with a new sound and four new bonus tracks. During the audio mixing process, Mustaine found that the original lead vocal tracks for "Take No Prisoners", "Five Magics" and "Lucretia" were missing - he had no choice but to re-record the vocals on "Take No Prisoners" and use alternate takes for "Lucretia" and "Five Magics".



MEGADETHS FINEST HOUR!!!!!, 08 Oct 2007
HUZZAH!

Rust in peace is the thrash masterpeice of the 90's,BAR NONE! It goes at breakneck speed and is an essential metalhead album.
The tracks are as follows:

1.HOLY WARS:One of the best openers to any album!Pure thrash from start to finish.Great lyrics:"killing for religon,something i dont understand!"
Exiting guitar,good drums and a breathtaking finish! 10/10

2.HANGAR 18:OMG! WHAT A BELTER! Stupendous guitar solos, great lyrics and THE BEST INTRO AND OUTRO EVER! Never takes its foot of the pedal. 100/10

3.TAKE NO PRISONERS:Fast,Fast,Fast! A good song with a catchy chant, some good lyrics and great guitar work. 9.5/10

4.FIVE MAGICS:Another really good song. A great start and a great finish with some good work inbetween. 8.5/10

5.POISON WAS THE CURE:Another great intro! one of the fastest with some great vocals and amazin' drums! crimanally ignored! But WAY too short. 9/10.

6.LUCRETIA:Some Killer riffs here! A fast song, but not too fast.nice drums and some good work.good vocals. 9/10

7.TORNADO OF SOULS: KILLER! good drums, amazing lyrics,great riffs and a killer chorus!

8.DAWN PATROL:TOO SHORT so i didn't really listen to it.NO COMMENT. ?/10

9.RUST IN PEACE...POLARIS:YES YES YES! A fantastic drum intro,Killer solos,nice riffs and THE BEST LYRICS!"HIGH PRIEST OF HOLOCAUST,FIRE FROM THE SEA,NUCLEAR WINTER SPREADING DISEASE,THE FINAL CONFLICT ALL PAY THE PRICE,THE 3RD WORLD WAR RAPES PEACE,TAKES LIFE BACK TO THE START..." 100/10!!!!!!!!

***SPECIAL TRACK***
10.MY CREATION: too short but still a very good song guitarwise.7/10

The only bad bit is that the demos are easily skippable. :-(

Go buy it. at THIS price its a bargin! :->





Their Masterpiece, 03 Sep 2007
Thanks to the fantastic remix, this really does shine as th ejewel in Megadeth's crown. A groundbreaking album featuring their best tunes and best ever line up. Highlights are 'Holy Wars.........The Punishment Due' and the gobsmacking 'Hangar 18' . If you need an intro to Megadeth, this is it.

Finally!, 21 Apr 2008
When everyone (including myself) got caught up in the sheer excellence of S.O.A.D's album Toxicity.. I saw this in a shop and bought it. I immediately decided that this was superior to Toxicity, but nobody else seemed to have given it a listen and/or thought that Toxicity was there first album!
But now everyone seems to have discovered this genius album and to this day i still see this as their best!

Raw, 01 Nov 2007
...system of a down, at their rawest and most unpredictable state (i.e. before all the calming down and melodic stuff - hypnotize/mezmerize). There is NO way you can pigeonhole system of a down into a chategory. they are metal/nu-metal/alt-metal/thrash metal...whatever. its funny and good music; none of that ultra serious political messages here; sure there are political messages; but all handled in an offhand joking style. Standout songs are Suite Pee, Know, War? and Sugar. For people new to system of a down (and for people who dont like raw-ish not-so-melodious-yet-melodious sounds), you probably shouldnt go for this. Buy Toxicity or Mezmerize; then as you get into system of a down, buy the rest.

A absolutely breathtaking debut album for system, Full of angsty goodness, 31 Aug 2007
Well im usually weary of metal bands as they usually put me off with their totally illegible and untelligent lyrics, but after listening to system i have completely changed my mind, its quite hard to say what kind of music system can be catogerised by as their musical style never remains the same which is quite impressive for any band i must say.

This is certainly one of their strongest albums, probably their second best behind the sequel toxicity with stronger variety of tunes. If u like metal and rage, system of a down is the perfect companion for you. Recommended.

system of a down - the most influential band in the universe?, 28 Jan 2007
In an age where confusion and dissaray run amok throughout our modern society, the youth need some guidence. The sad truth is that these days the average teenager would rather spend the seventh day of the week in a dingy shopping mall looking at the latest track-suit on sale, and wondering how to save up enough money for sweat-shop produced cotton, emblazoned with a popular logo. How else will the misled masses begin to think in the right way. The answer can be unearthed in the words, screams and insults of this eastern-european alternative-metal band. This radically different group focuses its music in tackling the problems of our world, past, present and future. with some amazing vocals, unbelievable lyrics and mind-blowing subliminal messages. I reserve the belief that anyone over the age of 15 should be given a copy.

too heavy for me., 30 Dec 2006
I listned to 'toxicity', 'steal this album' and the other two newer realeases. This is much heavier than those and suffers a little from lack of melody and eastern influences. The only tracks that have a bit of melody are 'spiders', 'suggestions' and I like the verses of 'Peephole', that sound a bit like 'radio/video', just less polished.
I assume many will not share this opinion and will enjoy the heavier side of system of the down.

A brutal, uncompromising thrash metal classic, 21 Sep 2003
This is one of the most savage, intense thrash/death metal albums ever recorded. Like a hateful, twisted version of 'Reign in Blood'-era Slayer, this record is also notable for having been a big influence on early Sepultura records like 'Schizophrenia' and 'Beneath the Remains'. The vocals are vicious, feral barks of raw power, the guitars buzz and grate like the fires of hell and the drums are frenetic and thunderous. The production isn't great, but in a funny sort of way this enhances the music, as it makes it more raw and aggressive sounding. Buy this now if you are a fan of Slayer, old-style Sepultura or Morbid Angel, and get headbanging to some vintage ferocious German thrash!!

an essential album of the genre and group, 03 Jan 2002
This album is an example of a band being totally 'in the mode'...compare Master Of Puppets, Reign In Blood, Dimension Hatross, To Mega Therion etc etc. Kreator, in my opinion did not maintain the absolute power and aggression [not to mention the uniqueness] on future releases, save for the Flag Of Hate ep, and it's a shame...this album was just a total visceral attack!

New [conservative] listeners may be put off by Ventor's unusual drumming style and by Harris Johns' production, but must consider the whole amazing picture, and further listens will reward, especially in the department of Mille's excellent guitar.

EVERY track is astounding, but the favourite [arguably] at the time was the massive 'Riot Of Violence'. I'd also recommend the [often neglected and disliked] Persecution Mania by Sodom, and Under The Sign Of The Black Mark by Bathory for a faceful of that classic cold Euro thrash sound.

Hail!

c a r t h a g e

An eighties thrashmetal masterpiece!, 01 Jan 2001
Do you consider your metal collection complete without owning "Pleasure to kill?" I'm afraid it's very much not so...

With not-so-good production, growling vocals, frantic drumming and intense riffing, Kreator had all the trade-marks of the new breed of extreme metal bands of the late eighties. But in spite of technical shortcomings and average musicianship "Pleasure to kill" today ranks as one of my favorite thrash-albums. The reason is of course the quality of the songs. The song structures are traditional, but with frequent riff changes which alternates between staccato and more groovy "melody"-lines. With memorable riffs, horrendously violent lyrics and a young band full of enthusianism, this is a must-buy-product from one of the better german bands ever. Check out songs like "Death is your saviour", "Under the guillotine" and the classic title track!

With a title to strike fear into humble record-shop managers the world over, Steal This Album finds the anti-establishment edge of crazed American-Armenian metal dissidents System of a Down as finely honed as ever.

Although the album consists mainly of offcuts from the quartet's previous album, 2001's Toxicity, it seems that System are categorically incapable of writing sub-standard material: "Innervision" and "Streamline" bristle with death-metal heaviness and thrash virtuosity, while the mighty "Boom!" proves System's doom-laden message lies at the heart of their musical agenda, spoken-word snippets about Third World starvation and nuclear paranoia sticking up like razor-sharp shards between the broiling choruses.

What makes System of a Down truly peerless, however, is their skill at flipping genres in the blink of an eye. "Nuguns" boasts a solo that appears to be played on some archaic Eastern European stringed instrument, while the oddly touching "Roulette" finds vocalist Serj Tankian and guitarist Daron Malakian performing a vocal duet backed by acoustic guitar and keening violin.

Too good to be dismissed as a mere rarities compilation, Steal This Album should be considered a sister record to Toxicity, or at least an excellent stop-gap before the band's next hotly-anticipated instalment --Louis Pattison

System rule supreme, 27 Jun 2008
Their debut was stunning - there's no denying it. Mixing power, fury and at times comic instrumentation and vocals, it was always going to be a hard album to beat. But System have done it. Toxicity is an amazing album.

For those that dismiss Toxicity as 'too commercial' or 'too mainstream'. To make accessible music that still has the power and strength that nearly all of the tracks on this CD have takes a great deal of skill. How to make music sound not only familiar but also brand apsnking new and still like it has something incredibly important to say is the sign of master songwriters. And Toxicity has all of that in bucketloads.

The melodic pain of singles Chop Suey, Toxicity and Aerials counter the deliciously dark and oddly furious anger of Prison Song, Jet Pilot and Bounce. I can't even begin to describe how an album so angry sounds so melodious. Buy it now.

Greatest Album Ever Made, 16 Jun 2008
Seriously, this is an incredible album and System of a Down are a truly unique band that have become the success that they are through creating music like nothing heard before. "Nu-Metal" is simply a genre label that was created in order to allow other bands with a "unique" sound to belong to. This is something that System of a Down created, they were a band that stripped away that label of being a rock band and essentially created a genre of their own. Serj Tankian the lead vocalist of the band is an incredible talent of massive proportion, he's not only a songwriter but he's a poet, a visionary and a political critic. He picks out parts of the System that are corrupt and downright criminal and gives us his no holds barred approach to the system. Along with being an utter genius at what he does, I think we can all agree that listening to how some of SOAD's songs are constructed Serj Tankian is possibly a little bit insane (The good kind, not the OJ Simpson kind.)

This album is considered by many to be the Systems best album to date and from turning on track 1. Prison Song you come to realise how inventive, talented and intelligent this band really is. This first song simply points out the hypocrisy of the legal system when it comes to drugs, it points out the convenience of drugs being on our streets and less money being spent on treatment and more on prisons when research does show that treatment should receive the most money from the government. It's a brilliant song that shows quite clearly the intelligence and political mind of the band. This is something that should be brought to the mainstream more often and it's a shame that even now bands like this are looked down upon simply because of their sound.

Honestly this is an amazing album and for those fans of music in general, who keep an open mind and are quite experimental in their tastes, then I promise you will be pleasantly surprised.

My Top 5 Are

Prison Song
Chop Suey
X
Deer Dance
Needles

S.O.A.D, 04 Sep 2007
the best system of a down album (not as heavy as the first one but still the best)

Melodic, heavy and never boring, 02 Sep 2007
This is the first SOAD ablum I ever heard and the intensity of it can blow you away. It has political rantings all over it but can also make you laugh with tracks like bounce.

1. Prison song 9/10. A great opener which explains how bad the prison system is and has the guitarist saying 'I grab my, smack my b**** right here in hollywood'.

2. Needles 10/10. Very heavy and they appear to be singing about a tapeworm to begin with. Then it goes calm and they sing about some tomb of some old man and then go heavy again. Powerful.

3. Deer Dance 9/10. The verses are very melodic political rantings, which is odd because the choruses are thrash metal heavy. The contrast will work for some and not for others it all depends on what you're into.

4. Jet 10/10. I like this song. The topic is stupid but is so full of energy that I'm not bothered about the horse or the shackled old man mentioned in the lyrics.

5. XY 8/10. Okay but a bit samey to the other tracks above. And we do need to multiply.

6. Chop Suey 9/10. The most well known song off the album. About suicide it starts off heavy and then goes into an emotional outbreak in the chorus.

7. Bounce 9/10. Makes me laugh. Whoever thought there would be a song about pogo sticks? Serj also makes random croaking sounds near the end.

8. Forest 10/10. Sounds powerful and intense the entire time and the chorus is pretty good too.

9. ATWA 8/10. Starts off calm and gets loud in the chorus. Okay I guess.

10. Science 7/10. This song does feel a bit samey to the other tracks. Fast and constant.

11. Shimmy 9/10. The guitars are heavy and Serj talks very fast. Nothing new BUT the chorus works very well with the song.

12. Toxicity 9/10. The first SOAD song I ever heard and this will always sound great. Serj sings/screams his heart out.

13. Psycho 8/10. Sounds drug influenced, and I swear I can hear children singing in the background...

14. Aerials 9/10. A nice melodic end and is one of the best songs. Perfect ending.

If you like metal you won't be disapointed. If you like music you should still buy this for the melodic parts and if you don't like music why do you read reviews?

Simply Brilliant, 23 Jul 2006
It's hard to decide whether Toxicity or Steal This album are the better of SOAD albums, but I have to ere on the side of Toxicity. It is short and punchy, has some great riffs and some very intelligent lyrics. It is safe to say that every song kicks ass, and I'm always feeling left slightly disappointed when the album finishes! A great album and should be part of any metal/rock collection.

Classic Thrash Metal. Ignore C. Greig Megadeth Rock, 14 Jun 2008
If you are looking to buy your first megadeth album then look no further the album has killer written all over it. Megadeth second album and it's a huge step up from Killing Is My Business. The vocals, solos, riffs, dumming everything has improved so much. No best they all rock and i dont see why people dont like I aint superstitious sure it doesnt go with the album but it still rocks. This is a must have in every thrash metal/Metal fans collection. Ignore any negative comment and buy without hesitation. Dave Mustaine You rock.

rubbish, 23 May 2008
ignore MrMetalheadO'Hagan "TRUE METAL".i am entitled to my opinion so dry your eyes and don't bring my name up if u can't handle my review. this is a rubbish album.megadeth have never made a good song in their life and dave mustaine is a junkie loser who is a cry baby because he got ditched by those sell outs metallica.AWW has this upset all you wee lassies who complain when u read a bad review.
not heavy enough and not got the 80' thrash sound . megadeth r over rated and dave mustaine is a joke.

Megadeth's finest hour??, 10 May 2008
PSBWB is the album where Megadeth truly began to hit the global metal scene, and they do it in style. From opening song Wake Up Dead to closure, My Last Words this is a pure-blooded thrash classic with both simply hooks and sing-along choruses(Peace Sells), or pure technical bombast (Good Mourning/Black Friday). Dave Mustaine once again proves that he is the definition of a guitar-techs worst nightmare and a thrash-kids wet dream.

My only problem with this reissue is that the extra tracks included (the Randy Burns mixe) are rather useless, they actually dont do the band any justice. My only reason for their inclusion would be that it makes the "real" versions of the songs sound even better by comparison


Priceless Peace, 09 Mar 2008
`Peace Sells...' is without doubt one of the defining albums of the whole thrash scene, in fact one of the best metal albums of the 80's...no wait simply one of the finest metal albums of all time, simply put; life affirming. After the good but scrappy debut `Killing is My Business...And Business is Good' Megadeth really raised the bar and in my mind made the best record of 1986.

Rather than Metallica who were focusing on increasingly progressive songs and Slayer who went for just straight ahead stripped down brutality, Megadeth provided a sort of best of both worlds, being more musically proficient than any of their contemporaries as well as having tight and concise songs which could also rip your bleeding head off. No matter how technically brilliant Megadeth were, no one did angry better than Megadeth to be blunt Dave Muistane had issues. Megadeth was a band formed with the intent of revenge and they sounded like it.

`Peace Sells...' is Megadeth's finest album most of the songs here have now transcended into the realms of true heavy metal classics. In fact all the bands actual own compositions are fantastic only the ill advised cover of `I Ain't Superstitious' lets the side down, this song is an old blues st