Sodom Albums (18)
'Final Sign of Evil'
Release Date 1/1/2007
Tracks 12
Label Steamhammer
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
When metal bands devote new albums to their older songs, it often becomes an exercise in contrasts -- what older material sounds like with the current lineup versus the lineup of 20 or 25 years ago, how older songs sound with today's studio technology compared to the studio technology of the past, how they sound after being influenced by grunge versus how they sounded before being influenced by grunge. But on The Final Sign of Evil, Sodom revisits early material without trying to update it either technologically or stylistically. This 2007 recording finds Sodom's 1984 lineup -- Tom Angelripper on lead vocals and bass, Josef Dominic (aka Grave Violator), on guitar, and Chris Dudek (aka Witchhunter) on drums -- re-recording all five of the songs from their 1984 EP In the Sign of Evil and adding seven bonus tracks, all of which were also written during that period. Recorded 23 years after In the Sign of Evil, this 49-minute CD envisions what that EP would have sounded like as a full-length album back in 1984 (when Sodom's budget only allowed for an EP). The production on The Final Sign of Evil has a muddy, demo-ish quality, which is by design; The Final Sign of Evil faithfully re-creates the raw, garage-like, punk-drenched spirit of In the Sign of Evil, but with 12 songs instead of five. Some of the tunes are excellent, while others are merely decent. But regardless of the fact that The Final Sign of Evil is mildly uneven, this is an important release for metal historians. Sodom was one of Europe's early thrash metal bands (although Motörhead and Venom preceded them), and their willingness to bring ultra-dark subject matter to a metal/punk hybrid helped pave the way for death metal and black metal. Serious thrash collectors will welcome the release of The Final Sign of Evil, imperfections and all. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Not many bands manage to endure for over 20 years -- least of all a band whose name would normally draw perfectly blank (and possibly mildly offended) expressions from your average human being, as might Germany's Sodom. But, believe it or not, this eponymous effort from 2006 is something like the 12th studio album released by the ubiquitous Tom "Angelripper" Such and his latest interchangeable henchmen. Sodom's music, too, is a matter of curious interest, since, from the group's very inception, it has represented a rare intersection of styles that experts would normally separate into thrash, speed, death, and black metal (and, depending on how rarely they get laid, even more subdivisions). One listen to Sodom is enough to ascertain that little has changed; most of its songs tend toward the frenetic, dirt-encrusted ends of the extreme metal spectrum, their lyrics wavering between sociopolitical observations ("Wanted Dead," "Axis of Evil," etc.) and anti-establishment diatribes ("Bibles and Guns," "Lords of Depravity," etc.). At the same time, look beyond its uncompromising delivery and "Buried in the Justice Ground" could very well be a pretty accessible hard rock tune (much as many Motörhead tunes might be). Likewise, additional retro-thrashing highlights such as the aforementioned "Axis of Evil" and "No Captures" display an uncommon immediacy that latter-day extreme metal bands would not dare touch for fear of coming across soft. It's their loss, since Sodom have parlayed this unselfconscious strategy into a distinguishing strength from day one, and it's why this effort provides a welcome extension of the band's 20-plus-year legacy for tried and true fans to enjoy -- even if modern listeners fail to get the point. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
'Code Red/ich Glaub Nicht An Den...'
Release Date 5/1/2006
Tracks 29
Label Drakkar
See Album Tracklist and Review
'One Night in Bangkok'
Release Date 8/12/2003
Tracks 25
Label Steamhammer/SPV
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
The world needs another Sodom live album like it needs a proverbial hole in the head -- and one bearing the tongue-in-cheek title of One Night in Bangkok is almost too much to bear. Especially when its contents generally comprise far from top-notch material culled from the band's forgettable late-'90s and early 2000's releases. Yes, it features two whole discs and was recorded in Thailand, but that's about as exotic as the band's visibly tired, post-thrash metal outbursts get these days. For Sodom completists only. . .(are you out there?) ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Code Red is something of an attempt to recapture the frenzied chaos of Sodom's earlier work, and it partially succeeds. Partially, because the band's technique has improved substantially since the mid-'80s, which has made their work more accessible yet tamed a bit of the unbridled fury (some called it sloppiness) that polarized listeners into love-'em-or-hate-'em camps early on. The 1999 version of Sodom sounds strangely out of time, somewhere in between godfathers of contemporary death metal and throwbacks to underground '80s thrash. This means that Code Red isn't a stunning new statement or re-imagining of the band's sound, but it is a solid example of that sound, and at this point, that's probably all that's necessary. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Come 1994's rather dreadful Get what you Deserve album, Germany's Sodom weren't just treading creative water, they seemed to be taking the piss! Seriously, or are we to take clever ditties like "Jabba the Hutt and "Tribute to Moby Dick" with anything but an industrial-sized, proverbial grain of salt? Except for the mildly interesting title track and the almost convincing "Silence is Consent," it was abundantly clear that lone remaining founding member Tom Angelripper was running through the motions on this L.P. Making matters worse, any leftover pretense of selling Sodom as a true �band," had been rendered moot by the faceless yabbos that surrounded him, this anonymous pair owning about as much on-stage charisma (never mind contributing songwriting talent) as a pack of cliff-bound lemmings. The bottom line is that Sodom had ceased having anything worth saying in the extreme metal universe at least a half a decade prior, making this particular release the sort of stuff for blind idolaters and soft-hearted thrash metal martyrs. ~ Ed Rivadavia, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Taking into account Sodom's dwindling career prospects at the time of its release (among other problems, longtime guitar slinger Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik had only recently defected to superior competitors Kreator), Better Off Dead was a title so un-ironic, so deliciously apropos, that it left one wondering just who was in on the joke...or, what exactly was the joke...oh, never mind. Who's to say what was going through bassist/singer Tom Angelripper's mind just then, but there's no question that, when they cobbled together this LP, Sodom were swimming against a powerful current, inexorably pushing them toward terminal obscurity. And it shows, since, on the one hand, reliable thrashers like "An Eye for an Eye," "Bloodtrails," and the quite good "Shellfire Defense" stayed true to (even though falling short of) old glories; while on the other, abnormally melodic experiments like "Turn Your Head Around" and the absolutely painful "Resurrection" invaded unprecedented realms of standard rock & roll and very questionable pop-metal, respectively. (One could also question the validity of Sodom performing a surprisingly accurate cover of Thin Lizzy's "Cold Sweat," but hey, ain't nothing wrong with a little Lizzy now and then!) Amid this head-spinning mélange (and for old-school fans, even such cautious diversity smelled pretty fishy), confused purists looking for signs of their old friends Sodom gladly dug their teeth into the far more familiar moshing mania of "Tarred & Feathered," or the solid, mid-paced head-banger "The Saw Is the Law." All combine to make Better Off Dead a decidedly patchy, but far from terrible outing for the Germans -- far worse was yet to come.... ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
'In the Sign of Evil/Obsessed by Cruelty'
Release Date 6/30/1998
Tracks 19
Label SPV
See Album Tracklist and Review
