Metal is such a frenetic genre. It’s also frequently brutal, angular, angry and most of all noisy. Every now and again, purveyors of the true faith settle down, break out the bong and forget all about all that ADHD nonsense. I don’t mean slapping your balls on the table and wailing lyrical about the power of love. Sometimes you just gotta sloooow dooown dude.

Stoner legends Kyuss managed to capture this laid-so-far-back-you’re-looking-out-from-between-your-legs mood in a musical cloud of herbal smelling smoke with Space Cadet.

Nestling among various slabs of fuzzy, bass laden sludge on their stoner masterwork Welcome to Sky Valley, this unplugged anthem doesn’t hurry, it oozes. It sounds like it emerged from a weed fueled jam, congealing from the waxy, tar stained air, emanating from a basement; suppressed angst – a cleansing by music and sedatives.

The young Josh Homme delivers an acoustic solo that sounds like it burst from the base of his spine. When inhibitions are smudged away; when the fleshy barrier between self and instrument dissolves, such things can emanate.

Space Cadet made itself – a projection of man and miasma – and it is beautiful.

I stand alone on the cliffs of the world
No-one ever tends to me
Sitting alone covered in breeze
Some things are so my mind can breathe
Waiting is hard, fuckin’ takes so long
Draped in sun, hands in sand
Earth acid cleanses me, it cleanses me clean
But the world it never comes, it never comes
It never comes

Who knew that writing a concept album around Herman Melville’s turgid aquatic masterwork Moby-Dick could be cool? It was a little weak willed of Mastodon not to include tracks that mirror the extended chapters of cetalogical musings on whale species – that would be impressive.

Leviathan is as murky and unsettling as its literary counterpart, this doom-laden epic is intricate and perfectly conceived. Hearts Alive is its 13 minute epic culmination and centre-piece. Slow-building and creepy, it finally explodes into a stunning instrumental crescendo as monomaniac Captain Ahab finally takes battle with his quarry – the white whale.

Whereas most of the guitar solos mentioned thus far stray further into the “technically impressive” category, this falls squarely in the “Exactly exactly where it should be doing precisely what it should” category. Seemingly bubbling from the depths in an arpeggio maelstrom, this majestic piece of stringsmithery smashes through the tension built through the album making for an exhilarating conclusion to the saga.

Funked off

It’s easy to discount Extreme with their almost infinite deficit of cool. Extreme were forsaken after the cringe inducing indulgence of III Sides To Every Story. Their über ballad More Than Words being covered by Irish boyband pansies Westlife was the final insult.

It’s sad, because Extreme were responsible for some original and technically brilliant songs. Get the Funk Out, from the trans-genre masterpiece Pornograffitti may be a lightweight gesture at aggression, but it actually packs a real punch. A storming funk-metal bass line and deceptively complex set of riffs build up to this majestic guitar funk-out. Nuno Bettencourt, one of the greatest rhythm/lead guitarists there is, delivers a centre-piece that is a left field evolution of the two handed tapping technique which defies belief. Behold.

Struggling to keep up with Metallica‘s creative frenzy – 3 devastatingly original and critically lauded albums – and failing to live up to former glories of the genre defining Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying?, in 1990 Dave Mustaine finally managed to assemble the dream team and record the album of their career, and the first great metal album of the 90′s.

Thrash Metal - serious business

Rust in Peace is a pounding epic of fiercely technical speed metal displaying some of the best musical prowess seen in the genre. As guitar solos go, there’s many to choose from. Mustaine enlisted solo guitar prodigy Marty Friedman to great effect sparring from one guitar duel to the next. The guitar is king here – indeed, track 2, Hangar 18, is practically all guitar solo.

It is Friedman who has the finest moment on the exhilarating Tornado of Souls. Unlike many metal solos, which  often trade-in melody for technical trickery or brute force, there is beauty and subtlety here, and it is the very heart of the song. Often cited as one Friedman’s best solos, it’s probably one of the best ever recorded.

Jeff Waters is one of the unsung heros of the Thrash era. This may be because of his silly fringe, or that despite Annihilator being responsible for some of the most technical and exhilarating music of the movement, they are also responsible for some real toss, including some very ill-advised balladry. That aside, Jeff’s guitar wizardry makes Kirk Hammett’s skills seem pedestrian and unimaginative, and Dave Mustaine’s sloppy.

Fun Palace is my favourite Annihilator song, which, un-coincidentally, contains one of my favourite guitar solos.  About 3 and quarter minutes in (just past the bit with the King Diamond style helium vocals) the song tumbles into the exhilarating build up from which the frenzied yet controlled solo bursts forth. This is more than just widdles, but a brutal and assured demonstration of pure skill and technical mastery. The fact that he can play it note perfect live is just plain irritating – Jeff you need to try harder at sucking.

Welcome to the fun palace? Bow down and worship the king!