When I learned of Metal Blades plans to re-release "Doomsday For The Deceiver" to mark its 20th anniversary I couldn't quite believe it had been 20 years since Flotsam And Jetsam exploded onto the the scene as part of the second wave of thrash (along with the likes of Testament and Death Angel). Its difficult to explain to anyone who wasn't about at the time how much excitement there had been in the run up to this albums initial release, as reports coming through from stateside were proclaiming that they were going to be the next big thing.

With this package Metal Blade have done the boys proud, for your money you get the album in its original form with a couple of tracks from the "Iron Tears" demo, you get a second disc that has the album nicely remastered and remixed with another couple of bonus tracks and also a DVD that contains all manner of extras, all brought together in a slip case adorned with the original artwork.

How does the music stand up? I hear you ask, well, its fair to say that not all of it has stood the test of time particularly well, displaying a very 80's attitude to some of the lyrics ("Hammerhead" and "Iron Tears" are especially cringe-worthy with their clumsy sexist overtones and "Der Fuhrer" is just plain silly) but in the main, with the bands accomplished composition and technique, you can see what all the fuss was about back in the day.

The best of the tracks here are the most ambitious, the nine minute epic title track and "Metal Shock" are both outstanding examples of the multi-part thrash that Metallica made such an impact with on "Ride The Lightning" (both of these tracks do borrow heavily from the likes of "Call Of Ktulu" and "Fight Fire With Fire" however) and still sound fresh today, especially on the remastered versions as the updated mix gives the music more power and clarity.

The bonus material on the DVD is interesting from a historical point of view as, in the interview segments especially, you can see what a driving force Jason Newsted was to this band (and it explains, to an extent, why the band struggled when he left to join Metallica) and the quality of the footage for the live show is surprisingly good given the fact it was clearly an amateur, single handheld camera effort.

Definitely a release that will appeal to your old school thrasher (like me) but fans of newer bands such as Trivium or Shadows Fall will also find a lot to enjoy here as well given that those two bands especially are taking a lot of their inspiration from classic thrash and "Doomsday For The Deceiver" definitely qualifies as a classic, recommended!!

Let us know your views on 'Doomsday For The Deceiver'

Track List

Disc 1
Hammerhead
Iron Tears
Desecrator
Fade To Black
Doomsday For The Deceiver
Metalshock
She Took An Axe
USLW
Der Fuhrer
Flotzilla
Iron Tears Demo
Iron Tears
I Live You Die

Disc 2
as Disc 1 but remixed and remastered
plus from 1985's Metal Shock:-
Hammerhead
The Evil Sheik
I Live You Die
The Beast Within

Bonus DVD
The Early Years - Interviews + Odd Live appearances from 1983-1985
Photo Gallery
Live At Bootleggers 1985-Set List
Iron Tears
Fade To Black
Metal Shock
She Took An Axe
Children Of The Night - unreleased track
The Executioner - unreleased track
Those Who Defy - unreleased track
On The Attack - unreleased track
I Live You Die
Hammerhead
The Beast Within

Line Up

Eric A.K. - Vocals
Michael Gilbert - Guitar
Jason Newsted - Bass
Edward Carlson - Guitar
Kelly David-Smith - Drums