March Thrash Madness: Night Three

With the NCAA tournament’s 1st round finished and full of exciting upsets, the March Thrash Madness tournament also seems to be heating up. There is only one day left of first round matchups and then the real fun begins. With the tournament one day away from the Elite Eight, please leave a comment stating who your Final Four picks are from the remaining candidates.

Round 1, Match 5

 

 

 

 

 

Megadeth – Rust In Peace

VS

Nuclear Assault – Game Over

 

 

 

 

In this matchup between Megadeth and Nuclear Assault, both of these bands are pretty evenly matched on paper. Megadeth plays a pretty straightforward thrash attack with occasional progressive flourishes and an absurd amount of soloing, and Nuclear Assault play very straightforward thrash with occasional flashes of punk and hardcore, with a break for ice cream in the middle. Both bands feature incredibly talented bassists and guitarist/vocalists with Megadeth featuring Dave Mustaine and Dave Ellefson, and Nuclear Assault having John Connelly and Danny Lilker. When you get past the matchups on paper between these two, however, the comparisons get a little thin. Nuclear Assault’s first album “Game Over” wasn’t as commercially successful as “Survive” and “Handle With Care” which were both on the billboard charts, but with songs like “Brain Death”, “Betrayal”, and “Stranded In Hell”, this album is definitely their best in my opinion. Megadeth’s entry into this tournament could have also been albums like “Peace Sells”, or “Countdown To Extinction”, but honestly, “Rust In Peace” is my favorite Megadeth album and it’s an absolute landmark for the genre, not to mention, it has my favorite album cover of all time. When trying to decide the winner of this matchup, all it took was hearing songs from “Rust In Peace” like “5 Magics”, “Take No Prisoners”, and “Tornado Of Souls” to determine which one would immerge victorious. Even though Nuclear Assault scored plenty of points with a fantastic effort, Megadeth are just on another level altogether and, unlike the Duke Blue Devils,they pulled this one off quite easily.

Final Score: Megadeth: 140 – Nuclear Assault: 99

 

Round 1, Match 6

 

 

 

 

 

Testament – The New Order

VS

Suicidal Tendencies – Lights…Camera…Revolution!

 

 

 

 

This is by far, one of the best matchups of the first round in my opinion, as it features two of the first thrash albums I ever fell in love with that weren’t by a band that rhymes with shmushmallica. Both of these albums are absolute bruisers, but the best part about this pairing is that, like yesterdays matchups, both of these bands have two distinctly different and awesome styles. L,C,R! is Suicidal Tendencies’ fourth album and, unlike their previous albums, it’s predominantly a thrash album through and through, and not as hardcore punk influenced. L,C,R! also features the classic Suicidal lineup featuring Rob Trujillo(currently in Metallica though you can’t tell), Mike Muir, and Rocky George. Suicidal aren’t the only one in this with a lineup full of thrash legends however, Testament has their fair share of legends on “The New Order” with Chuck Billy and legendary guitarists Alex Skolnick, and Eric Peterson. “The New Order” saw Testament quickly rise towards the top of the bay area thrash bands, and it features some of their greatest songs, notably “Disciples Of The Watch”, “Trial By Fire”, and “Into the Pit”. Suicidal’s best songs on L,C,R! include the legendary “You Can’t Bring Me Down”, as well as “Send Me Your Money”, and “Get Whacked”(giggity). If you were to compare the two albums to actual baskeball teams, Suicidal would be the fast, flashy team that thrives on scoring in transition, while Testament are more methodic, and focus more on scoring in the paint and gobbling up rebounds and blocking shots. When trying to decide a winner between these two, it was pretty much impossible, however, the decision was pretty much made for me, due to Mike Muir headbutting a ref in the third overtime with a tied score, and the game being handed to Testament by forfeit.

Final Score: Testament: 115 – Suicidal Tendencies: 115(forfeited)

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