Kreator are a band that I’m aware of, but I’ve never really listened to. I mentioned the compilation to my brother, and he replied very succinctly that, ‘I’ve got their early albums, but I’ve never listened to them much - but Extreme Aggression is one of the best thrash tracks you’ll ever hear.’ So, listening to these tracks ‘blind’, as it were, one thing that struck me was how the compilation charted a path of development that many thrash bands seemed to experience. Namely, moving from raw beginnings to more accomplished thrash metal, and then opening out into a more mature, accessible sound. This model essentially works for all of the ‘big four’: Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax. Each started off with rough, primitive albums, before honing their works into classic examples of thrash metal, and then releasing more ‘cultivated’ albums that saw the bands achieve greater appeal. (Slayer’s path from Show No Mercy, to South Of Heaven, to Seasons In The Abyss, for example.) I chose Slayer, here, because that’s the band Kreator are most reminiscent of. The first tracks on Love Us Or Hate Us, taken from their debut Endless Pain, are raw and savage, like a young Slayer - and indeed, contemporary ears might just assume it was a recent black metal band. Stripped, crude, and bludgeoning, these early pieces are a rush of speed and venom. The next tracks, from Pleasure To Kill, strangely left me cold. This is doubly curious, since the booklet notes make a case for it being a landmark in thrash metal. However, there’s something ‘wonky’ about some of them, as though they’re attempting something just beyond their reach - that’s the best I can describe it. Certainly, there is a somewhat aimless section of soloing on Under The Guillotine, which feels a bit lost. Terrible Certainty, the album covered next, sounds like a powerful, capable band from the off. Immediately the production is noticeably improved, and the playing, composition, and dynamics more solid and confident. Toxic Trace even contains a section that approaches the colour of labelmates Voivod.

The second disc begins with a confirmation that my brother has good taste: Extreme Aggression (from the album of the same name) is indeed a face-ripper. As savage and merciless as the track is, it points to a ‘comfortable’ boldness within the band, the surety of a group that’s hit its stride. Extreme Aggression also gives us the track that names the compilation: Love Us Or Hate Us. This appears to be a pro-metal, anti-poser song, possibly also anti-pop/dance music - no metal home should be without one. The tracks from Coma of Souls show an more mature and polished Kreator, with the band not afraid to explore melodic passages a million miles from Endless Pain. However, When The Sun Burns Red shows they have lost none of their frenzied power. The first track from Renewal (also called Renewal) pushes the band even further, with strident verses, a near-anthemic chorus, and a vocal that has lost most of its metal snarl - in much the same way that Metallica’s James Hetfield was transformed on the Metallica album. Here, we see Kreator following through on the development path I suggested above, with a much more accessible, open, ‘modern’ sound. Depression Unrest even manages to utilise both industrial junk percussion, and a chorus with an ‘indie-shuffle’ beat. However, as with Coma Of Souls, the Kreator of old is never far away, and Europe After The Rain is a breakneck charge of metallic hardcore - one of the hardest tracks on the compilation.

This a great overview of a great band - I’ll definitely be looking into Kreator more. The earliest tracks, from Endless Pain, are surprisingly vital and engaging, whilst Terrible Certainty and Extreme Aggression are both fierce and grinding (in their tracks here). Coma of Souls and Renewal see the band broadening and maturing, whilst maintaining their initial savagery. As I said above, its interesting to chart the bands development, with the song-writing strengthening, and productions notably improving and changing. There’s also the changes to the vocals, akin to Hetfield - or indeed Tom Araya ‘singing’ on Slayer’s Seasons In The Abyss. It’s also interesting to see how the guitar sounds for solos change through the recordings, with the band presumably having access to increasingly nicer gear.

So, all in all, a great compilation. However, there are two annoyances with the release, one minor, one frankly outrageous. The minor one is that no attempt is made to mark the tracks as belonging to distinct albums. Obviously in this day and age, it only requires a few minutes on the internet, but some space in the booklet to clearly delineate these things would have been welcome. (The album covers themselves aren’t even properly depicted.) This is, as said, a minor issue. The second annoyance is more bizarre, shoddy, and downright disrespectful. The last track on disc one, and Renewal on the second, are both cut short, clipped. So Behind The Mirror ends abruptly with an electronic noise, whilst Renewal plays a few seconds of the opening riff from the track originally following it. Absolutely bizarre. This doesn’t feel like Darkthrone-esque production crudity, it feels more like very sloppy work from someone. Regardless, this is an excellent collection.