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<title>Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</title><link>http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link><description>Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</description><category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category><language>en</language><ttl>720</ttl><pubDate>Thu, 24 Dec 2009 13:03:26 -0800</pubDate><image>
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<title>Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</title>
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<title>Megadeth</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Dec 2009 13:31:04 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[Who knew when Dave Mustaine was booted out of Metallica in 1983, that he'd go on to form one of the biggest Thrash Metal acts of the '80s and '90s? Mustaine's Megadeth torpedoed through the starting gate with albums that corralled bottled up, suburban teen male angst and exploded it onto vinyl. They were nihilistic and numbingly relentless in their twin guitar and rhythm section assault. In 1990, <I>Rust in Peace</I> fulfilled the promise shown on their major label debut <I>Peace Sells...But Who's Buying?</I> -- Thrash Metal <I>with</I> complex musical craftsmanship. Mustaine had always surrounded himself with talented players and certain songs on that album are mind-blowing in their construction and musicianship. However, a band can't live by lightning fast riffs, long instrumental passages, lyrics that play upon the supernatural, and a cynical worldview alone. By the early '90s, Grunge became the rallying cry for repressed youth. While all eyes focused on Seattle, Megadeth began another gradual metamorphosis, streamlining their sound (stirring in pop with their metal and later, even claiming the Beatles as an influence!). They began to surface on near-prime time MTV (not just specialty shows like "Headbanger's Ball") and commercial rock radio. To this day, Megadeth are one of the few metal acts to have maintained a lion's share of their following from their heyday in the late '80s.
- Will Lerner]]></description>
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<title>Pantera</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:45:40 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[If you've ever shaved the sides and back of your head and left the top long, you probably know what Pantera's about. Driven by the Van Halen-influenced wailing and Metallica-like sledgehammer riffs of "Dimebag" Darrell, Pantera forged their own niche in the early '80s, barreling over lighter Metal fare with a fast, heavy, gut-vibrating energy. Philip Anselmo's deep growls and stratospheric screams may have had their roots in the group's original incarnation as a hair metal band, but they perfectly complement Pantera's speed-thrash and moody ballads. Double-bass drumming by Vinnie Paul and an in-your-face Texas attitude complete the formula for one of Metal's ballsiest, most ear-demolishing bands.
- Jessy Terry]]></description>
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<title>All That Remains</title>
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<category>Metalcore</category>
<pubDate>Sun, 20 Dec 2009 09:42:23 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[choruses that aren't afraid to flirt with emo at its poppiest. Shadows Fall vocalist Phil Labonte and guitarist Oli Herbert -- an innovative shredder fond of unusual modes, like the Hungarian minor scale -- formed the band in 1998, and by 2002 they had signed to Metal Blade. After a few lineup changes, including the addition of guitarist Mike Martin, 2004's <I>This Darkened Heart</I> proved the band's breakout album, with production by Killswitch Engage's Adam Dutkiewicz putting just the right degree of polish on their fusion of Swedish black metal stylings and American emo yearning. In 2006 All That Remains followed up with <I>The Fall of Ideals</I> and hit the road with Ozzfest before strutting their stuff on 2007's incendiary <I>All That Remains Live</I>. For all the hardcore swagger on display onstage, 2008's <I>Overcome</I> encountered a backlash from fans none too enamored by the band's radio-ready choruses.
- Philip Sherburne]]></description>
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<title>Apocalyptica</title>
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<category>Progressive Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 28 Nov 2009 09:38:30 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[If there's anything that proves Metallica has become a pop culture institution on par with Led Zeppelin and hula hoops, it's the existence of Finland's Apocalyptica. Coming together in the mid '90s, the cello quartet specialized in the Metallica songbook, including head-banging chestnuts like "Enter Sandman," "Creeping Death" and "Harvester of Sorrow." In 1996, the band released its debut album <i>Plays Metallica by Four Cellos</i>. By its second record, however, Apocalyptica started reworking selections from Faith No More, Sepultura and Pantera. Then something strange happened. What started out as really nothing more than a novelty act (a Trans-Siberian Orchestra for real metal heads) evolved into a bona fide experiment in neo-classical heavy metal (a move which makes sense considering both genres worship symphonic grandeur). In addition to featuring all original compositions, 2003's <i>Reflections</i> saw the group collaborate with Slayer drummer Dave Lambardo. Since then the band has also hosted such guests as HIM's Ville Valo, the Rasmus' Lauri Ylonen and vocalist Till Lindemann of Rammstein. Apocalyptica even employ smoke and fancy light shows when they perform live.
- Justin Farrar]]></description>
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<title>Slayer</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:17:02 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[When Slayer first unleashed its violent strain of thrash upon the Hessian public, there was a feeling that perhaps they were too extreme, that perhaps metal had been taken too far. They had created a fearful precedent for hardcore music. The crushing level of distortion and speed Slayer produced was like a dense downpour of razorblades. Their complete immersion in horror, violence and darkness equaled the sonic assault they committed with each track. Though metal eventually became faster, more violent, and more offensive, few can touch the focus and precision of Slayer's extreme velocities and ominous dissonance. Even today, their sound remains largely unchanged, though many of their peers softened their sound for the mainstream. Slayer maintains a dedicated following as the founding fathers of extreme music, from the gore festivities of death metal to the existential/political angst of metalcore to the epic blasphemies of black metal.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
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<title>Trivium</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 20 Oct 2009 10:13:13 -0700</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[Primarily known for their pervasive vocal, percussive and riff-ial similarities to Metallica, Orlando, Fla.'s Trivium have made every attempt to distance themselves from such comparisons. Part of the problem has been that guitarist/singer Matt Heafy bears a deep sonic resemblance to James Hetfield, and the band is adept at constructing maze-like near-classic thrash metal (albeit with modern touches such as scream-vocal sections and accurately aimed, radio-ready choruses). Since their inception in 2000, they've moved in an increasingly distinctive direction through four albums (and counting) for Roadrunner. Despite any perceived critical dis for sounding too much like their heroes, the band's songs are as strong as its many, many riffs and ultimately, Trivium fit right in on Ozzfest stages.
- Mike McGuirk]]></description>
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<title>Anthrax</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Dec 2009 10:24:17 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[With their origins in the 1980s and their original fan base made up of skate punks and peripheral fans of NYHC (pronounced "Noo Yawk Hahd Koa"), Anthrax were among the pioneers of Thrash bringing it from the streets to jean-jacketed, hesher kids in Suburbia, U.S.A. Through the years, they've continued to evolve their original underground sound, dabble with rap (their joint "Bring the Noise" with Public Enemy) and venture beyond the hard, mainstream leanings of the early '90s (the latter years with singer Joey Belladonna).]]></description>
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<title>Machine Head</title>
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<category>Alt Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 19 Dec 2009 10:51:11 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[Machine Head have made a name for themselves as being one of the most brutal-sounding bands of the '90s. When they came on the scene in the early to mid-1990s, their rhythms were of near-Industrial intensity, and their guitars were as explosive as if they were blasting for mineral resources. As the '90s progressed, so did their sound, as they became no less intense, but focused their energy toward more complex song structures. Machine Head could hardly be called Prog, but their aggressive stance evolved as they incorporated groove-oriented sounds and a more percussive, rap style of vocals, maintaining their positions at the crest of Metal's latest stylistic wave.]]></description>
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<title>Metallica</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sun, 20 Dec 2009 09:42:24 -0800</pubDate>
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<description><![CDATA[In the '80s &#8212; when big hair and small ideas dominated heavy metal &#8212; Metallica's dense blend of brains and brawn gave the genre a much-needed charge. By 1991, fans had responded to Metallica's message in droves, buying 6 million copies of the group's fifth full-length album, <i>Metallica</i>, and elevating their previous LPs to platinum. In the process, grim-faced guitarist-singer James Hetfield became not only a hero for the nation's largest fraternity of misfits &#8212; suburban metalheads &#8212; but also a critically respected songwriter and bandleader. Metallica ended the decade as the biggest-selling rock act of the '90s.
<br><br>
Hetfield and Lars Ulrich came from different worlds to form Metallica in the L.A. suburbs in 1981. Hetfield, whose father was owner of a trucking company and mother a light-opera singer, was raised in a strict Christian Science home; Ulrich, a recently transplanted Dane, had intended to become a professional tennis player like his father, Torben Ulrich. What the two teenagers shared was an interest in the gritty music of U.K. hard rockers Mot&#246;rhead. Adding guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist Ron McGovney, the band started writing songs and recording demo tapes. Metallica's lineup solidified after Clifford Lee Burton replaced McGovney in 1982, and the Bay Area guitarist Kirk Hammett replaced Mustaine the following year. Mustaine, who was booted out for excessive substance abuse, went on to form Megadeth.
<br><br>
After gaining a solid cult following among fans who could not identify with contemporary pretty-boy pop-metal combos such as Van Halen and Bon Jovi, Metallica became known for their sophisticated, often complex song structures and serious lyrics that reflected teen obsessions with anger, despair, fear and death. In sharp contrast to those of other death-obsessed metal bands, Metallica's lyrics pose deeper questions about justice and retribution, drug addiction, mental illness and political violence. The group's debut album, <i>Kill 'Em All</i>, is an anarchic catharsis of gloom, with songs like "No Remorse" decrying the insanity of war and "Seek and Destroy" looking at mindless street violence. (Rereleased in 1986, the album went to Number 155.) On subsequent albums, the subject matter alternated between the political (<i>...And Justice for All</i>) and the personal (<i>Metallica</i>).
<br><br>
In 1986 Metallica's tour bus skidded off an icy road in Sweden, killing bassist Burton. The surviving members took some time off before regrouping with ex–Flotsam and Jetsam bassist Jason Newsted. Newsted's more solid playing style brought a thicker, tighter sound, which contributed to the group's massive success in the late '80s and early '90s. On August 8th, 1992, the band experienced another near-tragedy when their pyrotechnics went awry during an ill-fated performance with Guns n' Roses (it was the same night of G n' R's notorious riot show) at Montreal's Olympic Stadium; Hetfield wound up walking into a wall of flames and suffering serious burns, but recovered fully.
<br><br>
Metallica had developed their following without the benefit of radio play, so it came as a bit of a surprise when <i>Master of Puppets</i> reached Number 29 in 1986. The follow-up EP, <i>Garage Days Re-Revisited</i>, a collection of covers of songs by various punk and metal bands including Killing Joke and the Misfits, made it to Number 28. Metallica's first Top 10 album was <i>...And Justice for All</i>, which reached Number Six in 1988 with its single "One," breaking in to the Top 40 at Number 35. Its striking video included clips from the 1971 antiwar film adaptation of Dalton Trumbo's <i>Johnny Got His Gun</i>, the tale of a faceless quadruple-amputee World War I veteran. After a three-year hiatus, the much-anticipated <i>Metallica</i> (a.k.a. the Black Album) entered the charts at Number One. The album contained a string of hits, including "Enter Sandman" (Number 16), "The Unforgiven" (Number 35) and "Nothing Else Matters" (Number 34). Metallica's first official live album, <i>Live Shit</i> (Number 26, 1993), was recorded in 1993 over five shows in Mexico City.
<br><br>
In 1994 Metallica sued their longtime label, Elektra, seeking escape from a contract that locked the band in to a modest 14 percent royalty rate. The suit was settled out of court, and the band re-signed with the label. By then, Metallica recognized the changes on the rock landscape epitomized by Nirvana, and in 1996 the band fully stepped away from its early lyrics of blood and guts and explored some nonmetal influences for an updated, almost alternative-leaning sound on <i>Load</i> (Number One). The album continued the band's string of hits with "Until It Sleeps" (Number 10), "Hero of the Day" (Number 60) and "King Nothing" (Number 90). Metallica also sought to change their image: Band members cut their hair, and the abstract album cover by controversial photographer Andres Serrano (famous for his work Piss Christ) depicted a mixture of blood and semen. Not all fans were pleased.
<br><br>
More confusion followed when Metallica headlined the alternative rock-themed Lollapalooza Tour in 1996. That year, the band also made a surprise stop at the Whisky-a-Go-Go in Hollywood for the 50th birthday party of Lemmy of Mot&#246;rhead, appearing at the club all dressed like the metal veteran and performing a full set of Mot&#246;rhead songs. In 1997 Metallica finished songs left over from the <i>Load</i> sessions for the heavier <i>ReLoad</i> (Number One), which included vocals by Marianne Faithfull on "The Memory Remains" (Number 28). The album also contained "The Unforgiven II" (Number 59). The next year, Metallica combined the original <i>Garage Days Revisited</i> EP with 11 new covers and various B sides for the two-disc set <i>Garage Inc.</i> (Number Two). A live collaboration with the San Francisco Symphony (arranged and conducted by Michael Kamen) was recorded for 1999's <i>S&M</i>.
<br><br>
In 2000 Metallica led a battle over the rights of recording artists against Napster, a popular music file-sharing Website where fans could download music (including Metallica's) for free. Metallica not only responded with copyright-infringement suits against Napster but demanded that the estimated 335,000 Napster users who had ever downloaded a Metallica track be permanently barred from the service. To critics it was a confounding strategy that inevitably targeted some of the band's most rabid followers. Despite a fan backlash, the controversy failed to derail that year's successful stadium tour with Korn and Kid Rock.
<br><br>
In 2001, Newsted left the band, citing his tension with Hetfield. That same year, directors Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky (<i>Paradise Lost</i>) began filming the band for a documentary, which would later be released in 2004 as <i>Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster</i>. The movie chronicled a turbulent two-year period in Metallica's history, during which Hetfield went to rehab, the group's management hired a motivational coach and the three remaining members struggled to record <i>St. Anger</i> (Number One, 2003). Produced with Bob Rock (who also played bass), <i>Anger</i> was a belligerent and sometimes tinny-sounding effort that put off some longtime fans. The title track was a moderate success, winning the band a Grammy.
<br><br>
With new bassist Robert Trujillo (Suicidal Tendencies), Metallica embarked on a two-year tour; upon returning, they entered the studio with Rick Rubin for their ninth album. Their only notable release in the interim was cover of Ennio Morricone's "The Ecstasy of Gold," the original recording of which has opened nearly every Metallica concert for decades, for the 2007 tribute album <i>We All Love Ennio Morricone</i>.
<br><br>
Metallica returned in 2008 with <i>Death Magnetic,</i> an album seen as a return to form after the divisive <i>St. Anger</i>. It went to Number One on the album charts during an abbreviated week (it was released on a Friday), and the band embarked on another world tour.
]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Shadows Fall</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.17381&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Dec 2009 10:43:50 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.17381&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Most striking about this band is their vocal delivery, a whips-and-satin style that combines harsh growls and limpid, clean singing. There's a touch of In Flames and At the Gates in Shadows Fall's counterbalancing of down-tuned guitars and high-flying vocals, but their playing is more progressive, allowing each player to fan their talents across the table like a winning hand.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Testament</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1707&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:17:10 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1707&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[As is often the case with Metal bands, Testament's best selling album was its worst. 1992's <I>The Ritual</I> can still offer some relief to listeners suffering the wasting effects of Metallica's post-<I>Metallica</I> output, but any fan will tell you the band's first three albums -- recorded in '80s -- simply destroy this sorry piece of studio milquetoast. The odd thing is, in live performances they remained a rippingly good unit of shredders, doling out big, bold, bloody chops like butchers on a bender. Lead guitarist Alex Skolnick was one of an elite few capable of holding his own against Metallica's Kirk Hammett and Slayer's Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman. <I>The Ritual</I> made it apparent, however, that Skolnick valued virtuosity over ferocity, so they replaced him and never looked back. After adding Death Metal legend James Murphy, Testament started making the heaviest records of their career. <I>Demonic</I> and <I>The Gathering</I> are no mere crust-after-pie recordings; they're absolutely ferocious. More than a decade in, Testament will never warm another bench for Metallica, now that they've again taken the field with straight-up sluggers like Slayer and Sepultura.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Protest The Hero</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9525953&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Progressive Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:42:52 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[Canadian prog metal upstarts Protest the Hero -- Rody Walker (lead vocals), Tim Millar (guitar, backup vocals), Luke Hoskin (lead guitar, piano, backup vocals), Morgan "Moe" Carlson (drums) and Arif Mirabdolbaghi (bass guitar, backup screaming) -- are critically commended for their remarkable talent in song arrangement, guitar virtuosity and vocal prowess. After forming in high school in 1999 as a hardcore/punk outfit called Happy Go Lucky, P.T.H. experimented with a heavier sound and mathematical time signatures post-graduation. They put out an EP that sounded somewhere in between in 2003, ultimately landing them at grindcore with their 2006 debut album, <i>Kezia</i>. From there they landed a deal with Vagrant in the U.S. and garnered acclaim as one of the next big things in extreme music. With 2008's prog-inspired <i>Fortress</i> landing at No. 1 on the Canadian charts and No. 95 on the American charts, P.T.H. are almost there.
- Jen Guyre]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Sepultura</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.36442&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Dec 2009 10:24:22 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.36442&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Rising out of Brazil during the heyday of thrash, Sepultura unleashed a raw, beastial sound that tore open ears with vicious canine riffs at a desperate velocity. As they progressed as a band, they brought a more urgent political edge to their death-dwelling imagery and lyrics while their sound became tighter, more produced and, if such a thing were possible, heavier. Their low-end swelled open like a gate to the abyss. They also began to incorporate "tribal" images and rhythms, adding hand percussion and drawn-out, hypnotic low-end rhythms. Throughout their career, Sepultura have managed to be among the most aggressive and brutal bands of their era.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Corrosion of Conformity</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3065&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Alt Metal</category>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:55:15 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[C.O.C. started off as one of the best politico-punk acts the States had to offer. <I>Eye for an Eye</I> is indispensable to the history of American hardcore, as songs "Indifferent" and "Positive Outlook" largely determined how it was to be played -- rapid-fire vocals leaning into sudden squalls of mosh pit ferocity. The band's transformation from Punk progenitors to Metal innovators was already underfoot by the time they unleashed <I>Animosity</I> in 1984. After undergoing a radical line-up change, they re-emerged in 1991 with <I>Blind</I>, a record many of their punk followers couldn't hang with for being formally produced Metal. Poor them. <I>Blind</I> is a great album, and the single "Vote with a Bullet" is an explosive convergence of hard Sabbath riffs and politics. If anything, C.O.C.'s commitment to shaking up the status quo has only grown more intense and more intelligent despite their shift from Hardcore blitz to focused heavy metal.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
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<title>Suicidal Tendencies</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.163&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Metalcore</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 13:21:21 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[Suicidal Tendencies emerged from Venice, Calif., in 1983, successfully melding thrash metal with the speedcore of punk. Embracing the "heavy" portion of metal without the tongue-in-cheek antics, the punk kids took notice of Suicidal Tendencies and no longer had to hide their metal collections from their friends. The band was cross-cultural and street smart, often incorporating aspects of gang culture with their skate punk roots. The group's self-titled first release was a frenetic one, super-charged by lead singer Mike Muir's political observations and offbeat humor. That album's single, "Institutionalized" -- with its fierce chorus and eminently quotable lyrics "All I wanted was a Pepsi / Just one Pepsi" -- had limited commercial success. Riding their wave of early success, Muir and a group of rotating band members continued a release schedule with results that we uneven at best. <i>Join the Army</i> (Caroline), was released in '87, a full four years after their debut, and equally embraced Motorhead and speedcore. <i>Lights...Camera....Action</i>, their first for Epic in '90, was a ferociously loud album with Muir once again conveying his political and social ideas, while '92s <i>The Art of Rebellion</i> was more mainstream and filled with standard rock cliches. <i>Suicidal for Life</i> found the band embracing some of its earlier ferocity in '94, not so much with the music as with the use of obscenities. Muir and band returned to the world of indies in '98, releasing <i>Six the Hard Way</i> on their own Suicidal Records.]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Meshuggah</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1855&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:42:50 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1855&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Imagine if scientists were to hybridize the DNA of late-1980s Metallica and <I>Chaos A.D.</I>-era Sepultura, splice it into the genome of a superhuman cyborg, then send it on a mission to destroy all weak Metal bands in its path. That cyborg would be Meshuggah. Building their stuttering jackhammer riffs atop constantly shifting odd-time rhythms, they execute with frightening, machine-like precision and cement-crushing heaviness. Vocalist Jens Kidman barks out sci-fi-damaged lyrics in an unyielding roar; guitarist Fredrik Thordendal chimes in now and then with Fusion-derived solos that would probably sound horrible on a jazz record, but fit right in with what Meshuggah does. The biggest criticism here would be a lack of outward variation -- the fast tempos, melody-free vocals and densely packed guitars lend a similar surface to each song. Within that limited framework, though, the variations are fast-paced and seemingly endless.
- Will York]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Arch Enemy</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.848&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:17:05 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[New, dark and heavy sound with brutal vocals references Progressive and Power Metal. Thrashing guitars and rhythm.]]></description>
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<title>Helloween</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3383&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sun, 15 Nov 2009 11:03:40 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[Second-tier European Metal band ranks just below Judas Priest and Iron Maiden. The prolific Helloween never earned a large following beyond the continent, except in Japan. It wasn't for lack of licks, though, nor for a plethora of releases containing challenging, fantasy-influenced material that ventured into Prog terrain. Though their "long live rock" bombast gets old quick, the band is still capable of hashing out a winning grind.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Midnight Sun</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.720&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Mon, 30 Nov 2009 10:01:07 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[Wailing electric guitar folk melodies and hoarse screaming vocals follow heavy power riffs. Raw Finnish melodic metal.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
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<title>Overkill</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Wed, 23 Dec 2009 13:31:00 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<description><![CDATA[Surly, brutal Thrash from these well established spinal-chord demolishers. They're fast and heavy, with consistently impressive musicianship that knocks the wind out of you while shredding your eardrums.
- Jessy Terry]]></description>
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<title>Blood for Blood</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6581&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 10 Apr 2009 16:04:15 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6581&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Blood for Blood carry on the proud Beantown tradition of no-compromises, in-your-face Hardcore. They're musically catchy, with guitars turned up loud, creating a huge platform for the biting, barking vocals to rip you to shreds.
- Mark Murrmann]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Venom</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1097&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Black Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 22 Dec 2009 10:24:22 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Venom</rhap:artist>
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<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1097&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1097&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[All hail Venom! The godfathers of Black Metal, this NWOBHM band formed in 1979, releasing three classic albums before they'd given a single live performance. By the time the veiled-in-mystery band toured, the buzz about them was enormous. Cronos' dread-inspiring vocals seemed delivered not from the voice box, but from an inner Pandora's box. Drummer Abaddon and guitarist Mantas kicked up maelstroms of their own. No power trio before them had created such a fray of propulsive beats and godly riffage. Venom distilled all of Metal's clichÃ©s -- the obsessions with war, sex, fantasy, the occult -- and took them to extremes bordering on parody. Chanting along to the wicked camp of "In League with Satan" and "Live Like an Angel (Die Like a Devil)" are guilty pleasures. Amoral? Perhaps, but no less so than indulging in the rank sexism of "Red Light Fever" and "Teacher's Pet." Some followers (e.g., the Scandinavian Black Metal scene) took their satanic posturing literally, but for Venom the "metal" in heavy metal was always pure irony.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>King Diamond</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1730&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Black Metal</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 5 Nov 2009 16:49:16 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">King Diamond</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.1730</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1730&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1730&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Former Mercyful Fate vocalist gone solo, King Diamond's unmistakable voice exhibits absolutely inhuman range, jumping easily from low rumbles to vibrato-laden falsettos. A master of the concept album, Diamond takes the gothic theatricality of his former band to an even greater extreme, tackling fantastical themes of Wagnerian scope with utter sincerity. Amazingly, his live performances manage to live up to the epic challenge laid forth on record, often incorporating actors to portray his tragic characters. Black Metal at its best.
- Doug Russell]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Celtic Frost</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3347&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 21 Aug 2009 10:04:56 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Celtic Frost</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.3347</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3347&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3347&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[In the minds of many, Celtic Frost's Death Metal opuses <I>To Mega Therion</I> and <I>Into the Pandemonium</I> are two of the greatest Metal albums of all time. They're certainly impressive work for a three piece, even if they sound a touch overdramatic today. The weird operatic falsettos, cavernous percussion and sci-fi prog-isms of these records haven't aged gracefully, but in terms of influence they easily rank with the Possessed's <I>Seven Churches</I> and Slayer's <I>Reign in Blood</I>. Much to the horror of fans, the band strayed into the flowery fields of Pop Metal during the late '80s. <I>Cold Lake</I> has the feel of a simple makeover that went terribly wrong, inadvertently gelding the band. The mom-approved Metal of "Cherry Orchards" was only a long, curly hair better than the Wonder Bread rock of Whitesnake. Fortunately, subsequent efforts saw the band reasserting their claim to the blackened Death Metal throne, giving the story a happy ending after all. A mismatched platypus of a record, <i>Parched With Thirst Am I and Dying: 1984-1992</I> captures the band in all its topsy-turvy glory.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Death Angel</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2562&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 27 Jun 2009 13:29:47 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Death Angel</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.2562</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2562&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2562&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>Gojira</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.11088945&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Death Metal</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 2 Oct 2009 11:02:56 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.11088945</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Gojira</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.11088945</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.11088945&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.11088945&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Formed in 1996 in Bayonne, France, this progressive death/doom metal band didn't make its U.S. debut until 2006 when Prosthetic Records released the acclaimed third full-length <i>From Mars To Sirius</i>. Originally called Godzilla, vocalist/guitarist Joe Duplantier, guitarist Christian Andreu, bassist Jean-Michel Labadie and drummer Mario Duplantier were legally forced to change their name due to copyright infringement. They decided on Gojira, the Latin translation of the Japanese title for <i>Godzilla</i>. Rooted in death metal, the band also utilizes sludge and doom metal undertones for a progressive, technically advanced sound that lyrically tackles socio-political issues like global warming and spiritual theories like Impermanence.
- Jen Guyre]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Metal Church</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.12255&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 28 Jul 2009 10:24:03 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.12255</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Metal Church</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.12255</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.12255&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.12255&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Metal Church's craggy vocals are sounding more and more like AC/DC's Brian Johnson. Over the course of their two-decade career, they have established themselves as one of Metal's most powerful oligarchs. Having mastered the vocabularies of Thrash and melodic Prog, this well-oiled machine maneuvers through a maze of tempo shifts to keep heavy metal Minotaurs lost in reverie.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>D.R.I.</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2789&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 13:19:31 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">D.R.I.</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.2789</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2789&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.2789&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[During the mid-'80s, the big guns in the American Punk scene began turning their sights more and more towards metal in their desire to stretch their legs musically. One can see this transition at work in D.R.I.'s releases from '82 to '88. The seminal <I>Dirty Rotten</I> LP from 1983 was the gust of innovation that blew many a Punk band in the direction of Thrash, while later releases such as <I>Four of a Kind</I> found the band slowing things down a bit and working with longer, more complex song structures. From the get-go, their irreverent and wickedly funny songwriting earned them a wide following in the skatepunk scene. Since then, they have managed to expand their following to include dyed-in-the-wool metal-heads and a whole new generation of punks via their appearance on the "Social Chaos Tour" of 1999.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Madball</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6014&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Hardcore</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 9 Jun 2009 15:02:08 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.6014</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Madball</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.6014</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6014&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.6014&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[NYC Hardcore stalwarts demand that all submit to their churning rhythms, searing guitars and shredded vocal chords. All those years of experience have paid off -- these songs are thunderous, tight, and slick.
- Kelly Bauman]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Damageplan</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5015425&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Alt Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:17:05 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.5015425</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Damageplan</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.5015425</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5015425&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5015425&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>At the Gates</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4571&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Death Metal</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:54:28 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.4571</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">At the Gates</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.4571</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4571&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4571&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Is At the Gates' <I>Slaughter of the Soul</I> the perfect dark Metal album? There aren't many recordings that can throw your entire world off its axis and leave you spinning lopsided with the weight of doom, but this record will. Every song pounds with its own black heart and abides by its own bleak logic. Most so-called "technical metal" acts truck in cheap, penny-ante riffs that line up head to tail like so many well-heeled sheep. At the Gates move fluidly through a menagerie of complex, unpredictable measures -- each phrase gliding imperceptibly into the next -- without ever sounding showy. Lyrically, this band brilliantly defies the pomposities of Black Metal, writing songs that writhe with real agonies. Everything At the Gates touched is worth hearing, but <I>Slaughter...</I> represents them in their finest hour. It's an album with flesh between its teeth, blood under its nails, and the cloud of horrible visions in its eye.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Municipal Waste</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9209772&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Wed, 5 Aug 2009 11:18:56 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Municipal Waste</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.9209772</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9209772&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.9209772&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>Life of Agony</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40194&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Alt Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 16 Jun 2009 05:22:20 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
<guid isPermaLink="false">art.40194</guid>
<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.40194</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Life of Agony</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.40194</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40194&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.40194&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Life of Agony suffers from a wee bit of schizophrenia: they nonchalantly skip from Grunge-inspired noisy rock riffs; make stops at more abrasive, more intelligent Alternative Metal; then skid down the merry path to land in a murky stew of Thrash. Whichever of the heavy, menacing genres they tackle, they manage to do so with an impressive amount of skill and passion to spare.
- Will Lerner]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>G.B.H.</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44009&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Old School Punk</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 4 Dec 2009 13:20:36 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.44009</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">G.B.H.</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.44009</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44009&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.44009&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[G.B.H. are back on the Punk track after getting lost in the mid-'80s in an attempt to cross over into Metal territory. These spiky-haired U.K. Punk legends have returned to their guitar-led, biting, sneering, kicking, fighting early '80s sound that justified punks around the world painting the G.B.H. logo on their leather jackets.
- Mark Murrmann]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Cavalera Conspiracy</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.18932446&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Death Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 18 Jul 2009 11:11:20 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Cavalera Conspiracy</rhap:artist>
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<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.18932446&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.18932446&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>Exodus</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.38319&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 24 Oct 2009 12:06:24 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Exodus</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.38319</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.38319&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.38319&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Since their 1985 debut album, Exodus have exerted an immeasurable influence on Thrash/Speed Metal with their hacking riffs and confrontational style. Using motor-driven beats and shredding guitar chops, these seasoned metallurgists latch onto you with lockjaw tenacity and never let up.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>S.O.D.</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5069&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Hardcore</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:43:21 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">S.O.D.</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.5069</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5069&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.5069&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>Tourniquet</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.877&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Christian Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 21 Feb 2009 14:15:51 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
<guid isPermaLink="false">art.877</guid>
<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.877</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Tourniquet</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.877</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.877&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.877&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Fast, elaborate metal erected as a pulpit for Christian teachings. Harsh, crunchy guitars play off of involved soloing and religious discussion.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Lazarus A.D.</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.25737172&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 6 Aug 2009 10:39:42 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.25737172</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Lazarus A.D.</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.25737172</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.25737172&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.25737172&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Kenosha, Wisc.'s thrash quartet formed in 2005, and in the space between then and their 2009 Metal Blade debut <i>The Onslaught</i>, Lazarus A.D. have proved that they're not your average resurgence band. Dan Gapen (guitars/vocals), Jeff Paulick (bass/lead vocals), Alex Lackner (guitars) and Ryan Shutler (drums) have managed to leave in all the standard ingredients of thrash -- punk speed, ripping solos, chugging verses and bad-ass breakdowns -- but make it their own with a modern metal feel. Having played with Anthrax and Testament, there's no denying where their fealty lies, but these guys straddle the line between homage and reinvention.
- Jen Guyre]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Sanctuary</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.844&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 12 Dec 2009 11:16:48 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Sanctuary</rhap:artist>
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<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.844&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.844&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Active in the Seattle area in the late 1980s, Sanctuary were a thrash/speed metal band that, at their best, sounded like a cross between Iron Maiden and Megadeth. In fact, Dave Mustaine produced their first record, <I>Refuge Denied</i>, which came out on Epic in 1988. After breaking up in 1990, members of the band went on to form Nevermore.
- Mike McGuirk]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Strapping Young Lad</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4778&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sun, 10 May 2009 09:06:28 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.4778</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Strapping Young Lad</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.4778</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4778&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4778&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[With drumming and riffing firing faster than your synapses can account, S.Y.L. unleash an absolute assault of speed, aggression and perplexing lyrics. Desperate vocals fire faster than blast beats, evoking the terror of a Cronenberg anti-hero trapped in a Tetsuo dystopia. Fearful waking nightmares.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Bathory</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4415&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Black Metal</category>
<pubDate>Wed, 25 Nov 2009 11:49:38 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Bathory</rhap:artist>
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<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4415&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.4415&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[With their early records recorded on 4-track in teenage guitarist Quorthon's garage, Sweden's Bathory are often cited as the first black metal band. Low-budget production, rampant Satanic imagery, punk-simple guitars and Quorthon's guttural yelps had a major effect on the Norwegian scene that emerged not long after Bathory's first three records: 1984's <i>Bathory</i>, '85's <i>The Return of the Darkness and Evil</i> and '87's <i>Under the Sign of the Black Mark</i>. The first stirrings of what would become Viking metal emerged on 1988's <i>Blood Fire Death</i>. Quorthon slowed tempos, incorporated acoustic guitars, and wrote lyrics more concerned with a noble death on the battlefield than with Satanism. Bathory continued with the Manowar-worthy <i>Hammerheart</i> and their intended final album, 1991's <i>Twilight of the Gods</i>. Instead of breaking up, however, they came back in 1995 with the Bay Area thrash-influenced <i>Requiem</i>. Returning to Viking metal in the '00s, they released <i>Nordland</i> and <i>Nordland 2</i>, the first installments in what was to be a four-album cycle, before the tragic 2004 death of Quorthon (from heart failure) effectively ended the band.]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Samael</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.878&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Black Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sun, 1 Nov 2009 12:39:52 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Samael</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.878</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.878&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.878&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Samael is a mighty anthem to defend against the coming of day. Intense drum programming and synths set this dynamic and aggressive metal band apart from the others.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>The Agony Scene</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.65885&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 31 Oct 2009 11:42:49 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">The Agony Scene</rhap:artist>
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<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.65885&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.65885&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>Kreator</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1615&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:38:21 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.1615</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Kreator</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.1615</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1615&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.1615&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Granted, you've got to be a fan of this stuff to really appreciate it, but if you are, then listening to 1986's <I>Pleasure to Kill</I> or its follow-up, <I>Terrible Certainty</I> will be as painfully pleasurable an experience as losing your baby teeth or picking a scab. Considering the short distance between these releases and Venom's <I>Black Metal</I>, it's impressive that riffs so dense and drumming so exhausting were so quickly realized. '80s Kreator is a delirium inducing experience of snarling vocals, tumultuous time changes and G-pulling guitar solos. Buckle yourself in! Entering the '90s, the band eased off from their "blastbeat here and a blastbeat there" approach to explore thematically more sophisticated terrain than routine gore. If you want to start with this down-ratcheted material and work your way up to the Voivod-esque extremes, <I>Renewal</I> is a good spot to wade in. By this point, the band had the confidence to write actual songs with coherent lyrics and trimmed down solos that still pack the wallop of rebar.
- Chad Driscoll]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Voivod</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.997&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Progressive Metal</category>
<pubDate>Sat, 7 Nov 2009 11:26:28 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Voivod</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.997</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.997&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.997&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[In moderate proximity to '80s Thrash, Montreal's Voivod brought forth a violent, complex sound with roots closer to bands like King Crimson, Alice Cooper and Pink Floyd than any of their contemporaries (note their legendary cover of "Astronomy Domine"). Somewhere between the violent Thrash attacks and the twisting textures of Psychedelia, Piggy's guitar grinds with absurd intricacy. Away's frantic percussion and Blacky's roaring, low-end ferocity generate time signatures that shift like the paranoid strategies of guerrilla warfare. The war is decidedly against a nihilistic future: Snakes' vocals echo with harrowing speculations, investigating the chaotic divisions between technology and humanity with cyberpunk cynicism.
- Marc Kate]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Warbringer</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.15352431&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 14 May 2009 10:49:41 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.15352431</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Warbringer</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.15352431</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.15352431&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.15352431&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description />
</item><item>
<title>Annihilator</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.13951&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Tue, 17 Mar 2009 20:32:35 -0700</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.13951</rhap:rcid>
<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Annihilator</rhap:artist>
<rhap:artist-rcid xmlns:rhap="rhap">art.13951</rhap:artist-rcid>
<rhap:play-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.13951&amp;variant=play&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:play-href>
<rhap:data-href xmlns:rhap="rhap">http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.13951&amp;variant=data&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</rhap:data-href>
<description><![CDATA[Canadian band Annihilator helped bring precision Thrash into the '90s with their fast, tight and aggressive style. No selling out here -- straight-up heavy speed and intense musicianship.
- Jessy Terry]]></description>
</item><item>
<title>Agnostic Front</title>
<link>http://www.rhapsody.com/goto?rcid=art.3790&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss</link>
<category>Hardcore</category>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:55:25 -0700</pubDate>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Agnostic Front</rhap:artist>
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<description><![CDATA[Agnostic Front are among the most revered of American Hardcore bands, mainly because of the integral role they've played in the music's development in general, as well as their contributions to the "New York HC" sound specifically. With a roster of songs that are fast and furious, underscored by vocals that are growled -- not sung -- AF's playing style set the standard for a slew of HC bands who would later emerge from the same New York scene.
- Kali Holloway]]></description>
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<title>Threshold</title>
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<category>Thrash/Speed Metal</category>
<pubDate>Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:55:55 -0800</pubDate>
<source url="http://www.rhapsody.com/charts?cat=artist&amp;category=genre&amp;genreId=134&amp;rws=%2Frock-pop%2Fmetal%2Fthrash-speed-metal%2Fartist-chart.rss">Top Thrash/Speed Metal Artists on Rhapsody Online</source>
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<rhap:artist xmlns:rhap="rhap">Threshold</rhap:artist>
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<description><![CDATA[This is some real New Jersey metal here. The tempo ticks like a time bomb before exploding and releasing heavy guitar shrapnel and an overly aggressive singer who throws out drive-by shoutings.
- Eric Shea]]></description>
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