Deathwish "At The Edge Of Damnation" CD

I came across this album in a second hand shop and bought it due to liking the cover (it looked very old school metal). I played it not expecting much for my £4 outlay but was totally blown away! The production is a bit rough but not with out it's charm, the musicanship is not the most technical but pretty competent. The main thing about this record is THE RIFFS, they are MASSIVE! The songwriting is also far too good for an almost unknown band. Each of the tracks have their own character are quite distinctive from one another.
The album kicks off with 'In the Name Of God' which to my ears sounds like Motorhead crossed with Manowar! 'Demonic Attack' starts of with a medium paced chug and then thrashes like a bastard. The title track is medium paced, has a fantastic, heavy sliding riff sounding like something of 'Kill Em All' (only better). 'Exorcist' is a medium paced song bristling with evil intent. 'Leaving Your Life Behind' is a good honest thrasher but still a slight drop in quality and again sounding a bit like 'Kill Em All Metallica'. Speaking of Metallica, Dance of the Dead is a medium paced killer and sounds EXACTLY like a track off 'The Black Album' (can't remember which one) but as this came out in 87 did Metallica rip THEM off? (I know that Lars is a scholar of obscure metal albums). 'For Evil Done' is a pretty good riff fest but a slight slip in quality (as it lacks the killer chorus contained in some of the other tracks). 'Sword of Justice' (a song about vigilantes!) sounds like Manowar crossed with Metallica but rocks harder that both bands combined! The final track 'Forces of Darkness' starts of with a worringly clean riff but then rocks out with some demonicly head crushing riffing for a full nine minuets!
Why wasn't this band massive? I expect had they been American they would have been, but to contridict myself the album sounds so totally British they could have only ever come from over here. So in conclusion, if you want a break from the bloated (and often overated) American thrash bands give this lost classic a listen you wont be dissapointed! Right I'm off to track down the bands second release 'Demon Preacher'!

Sample: https://www.youtube.com/watch?...