One of the first seminal thrash-metal bands to rise from the San Francisco Bay Area scene. The original guitarist was Kirk Hammett, who of course got snatched up by Metallica long before the band recorded any albums. Recently, the original members came down with D.N.R.S. (Dreaded Nostalgic Reunion Syndrome), and put out a live album called Another Lesson in Violence, which I'll probably get soon...

It was a real shock when singer Paul Baloff suddenly died of a stroke in January 2002, just a month after Death founder Chuck Schuldiner died of cancer...man, you know you're getting old when all your contemporaries start dying from NATURAL CAUSES!!! Plus, Testament singer Chuck Billy is currently undergoing treatment for cancer...something tells me he'll be the next to go...

"Bonded by Blood" (original Combat release!!)

1. "Bonded by Blood" (3:49)
2. "Exodus" (4:02)
3. "And Then There Were None" (4:36)
4. "A Lesson in Violence" (3:46)
5. "Metal Command" (4:10)
6. "Piranha" (3:42)
7. "No Love" (5:04)
8. "Deliver Us to Evil" (7:02)
9. "Strike of the Beast" (3:54)

The debut album from a band that spearheaded the San Francisco thrash-metal scene in the mid-80s. The main drawback was lead singer Paul Baloff, who screeches the vocals in a horrible, annoying voice that makes people's skin crawl. They booted him out before the next album. Oh yeah, nice cover art eh? I lucked out and found it used many years ago. Pretty damn rare now. (The reissue does have 2 bonus live tracks, but WHO CARES...)

"Pleasures of the Flesh"

1. "Deranged" (3:45)
2. "'Til Death Do Us Part" (4:49)
3. "Parasite" (4:54)
4. "Brain Dead" (4:15)
5. "Faster Than You'll Ever Live to Be" (4:25)
6. "Pleasures of the Flesh" (7:35)
7. "30 Seconds"--instrumental (0:39)
8. "Seeds of Hate" (4:58)
9. "Chemi-Kill" (5:45)
10. "Choose Your Weapon" (4:52)

This was the first Exodus album I ever listened to. The band finally booted their awful lead singer and replaced him with Steve Sousa, stolen from fellow Bay Area thrashers Legacy (who later changed their name to Testament.) "Brain Dead" and "Choose Your Weapon" have monster riffs that you can't help but mosh to!

1. "The Last Act of Defiance" (4:40)
2. "Fabulous Disaster" (4:53)
3. "The Toxic Waltz" (4:48)
4. "Low Rider" (2:43)
5. "Cajun Hell" (6:03)
6. "Like Father, Like Son" (8:35)
7. "Corruption" (5:43)
8. "Verbal Razors" (4:04)
9. "Open Season" (3:51)
10. "Overdose" (3:51)

Another thrash masterpiece from these Bay Area dudes, with themes ranging from prison riots to child abuse to the hazards of mosh-pitting. "Low Rider" is a MINDBLOWING cover of the War song, and "Overdose" was originally by AC/DC.

1. "Fabulous Disaster" (5:45)
2. "Chemi-Kill" (6:08)
3. "'Til Death Do Us Part" (5:06)
4. "Toxic Waltz" (4:39)
5. "Cajun Hell" (5:55)
6. "Corruption" (5:37)
7. "Brain Dead" (4:31)
8. "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" (4:42)

A live album performed somewhere on their Fabulous Disaster tour. The quality isn't that great but worth it for the AC/DC cover song. (Guess which one?)

"Impact is Imminent"

1. "Impact is Imminent" (4:20)
2. "A.W.O.L." (5:43)
3. "The Lunatic Parade" (4:12)
4. "Within the Walls of Chaos" (7:44)
5. "Objection Overruled" (4:34)
6. "Only Death Decides" (6:05)
7. "Heads They Win (Tails You Lose)" (7:41)
8. "Changing of the Guard" (6:48)
9. "Thrash Under Pressure" (2:41)

The band's major label debut, and the start of their decline. There are still a couple thrash classics here ("Changing of the Guard", which is about the public stoning of Romania's dictator, and "Only Death Decides"), but the rest, dare I say it, is only second-rate.

"The Lunatic Parade" (promo single, no sleeve)

1. "The Lunatic Parade" (4:12)
2. "Good Morning" (3:21)

Huh?? Thought I had all this band's music...guess I was wrong. Found this promo single w/ the unreleased "Good Morning" on some guy's sell list for a mere five bucks! Nice score, God only knows what it's really worth (not that I'm interested in selling, mind you!) I haven't even seen this listed on the few Exodus fan pages out there, I wonder if anyone else even knows about it??

"Force of Habit"

1. "Thorn in My Side" (4:04)
2. "Me, Myself & I" (5:02)
3. "Force of Habit" (4:17)
4. "Bitch" (2:45)
5. "Fuel for the Fire" (6:02)
6. "One Foot in the Grave" (5:12)
7. "Count Your Blessings" (7:28)
8. "Climb Before the Fall" (5:36)
9. "Architect of Pain" (10:58)
10. "When it Rains it Pours" (4:18)
11. "Good Day to Die" (4:46)
12. "Pump it Up" (3:08)
13. "Feeding Time at the Zoo" (4:32)

The band really hit rock-bottom with this album. Despite a few good licks and cover songs by The Rolling Stones ("Bitch") and Elvis Costello ("Pump it Up"), they've simply run out of steam here. They broke up not long afterwards.

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