Death Metal is a split album by the bands Helloween, Hellhammer, Running Wild and Dark Avenger. It contains the only recorded material of the German band Dark Avenger.
The album offers an interesting snapshot of the ebullience and creativity of the Central European metal scene during the end of the early-1980s. At that time Running Wild had yet to develop their "pirate metal" schtick and considered themselves a black metal band. Helloween were more of a thrashy speed metal act rather than the melodic power metal vehicle into which they would soon develop. Hellhammer were the darker and heavier band of the foursome and would later evolve into the band Celtic Frost and be regarded as pioneers and inspiration for generations of European extreme metallers.
Running Wild's tracks appear as bonus tracks in their 1995 album Masquerade; Helloween's tracks appear in the second disc of the 2006 re-mastered and expanded edition of their 1985 album Walls of Jericho; and Hellhammer's tracks appear on the 1990 re-issue of their 1984 EP Apocalyptic Raids.[1]
Track listing
- Running Wild[2]
- 1. "Iron Heads" – 3:38
- 2. "Bones to Ashes" – 5:07
- Hellhammer[2]
- 3. "Revelations of Doom" – 2:46
- 4. "Messiah" – 4:30
- Dark Avenger[2]
- 5. "Black Fairies" – 3:33
- 6. "Lords of the Night" – 3:47
- Helloween[2]
- 7. "Oernst of Life" – 4:41
- 8. "Metal Invaders" – 4:27
Credits
- Running Wild
- Rock'n'Rolf Kasparek – vocals, guitars
- Gerald "Preacher" Warnecke – guitars
- Stephan Boriss – bass
- Wolfgang "Hasche" Hagemann – drums
- Hellhammer
- Tom "Satanic Slaughter" Warrior – vocals, guitars
- Martin "Slayed Necros" Ain – bass
- Bruce "Denial Fiend" Day – drums
- Dark Avenger
- Siegfried Kohmann – vocals
- Bernd Piontek – guitars
- Claus Johannson – guitars
- Uwe Neff – bass
- Andreas Breindl – drums
- Helloween
- Kai Hansen – vocals, guitars
- Michael Weikath – guitars
- Markus Grosskopf – bass
- Ingo Schwichtenberg – drums