Poll: Calling all metal-heads...

[Colour Scientist]

I'm not huge into metal but Metallica are the only band on that list that I ever listen to.

Actually, it's fun to listen to at the gym. If you put on St. Anger while running on the treadmill and imagine James Hetfield standing in front of you, it really motivates you because you want to punch him in the face so much.

 

[ChadSexington]

Really tough call between Metallica and Slayer. I don't like Megadeth at all, I think Mustaine is a great guitarist but awful lyricist/song writer and Anthrax... Let's be honest, they're kind of a joke. Testament should replace the last two and we'd have the big three instead.

 

[David_G]

I'm a more brutal type of metal-head, so I really like Slayer the best, at least from Show No Mercy to Seasons in the Abyss. I also like the other three, especially Metallica but Slayer are just one of my favorite bands of all time.

 

[TwiZtah]

The big 4, for those who do not know, refers to 4 thrash metal bands:

Metallica:
Megadeth:
Slayer:
and Anthrax:

These 4 metal bands are basically the biggest names in thrash. No other bands really come close; hence the title "The Big 4". I have always wondered which one the Escapist community prefers.

So, I pose the question to y'all: which of the big 4 is your favorite, and why?

I don't like the old metal stuff,pretty much none of it. But then, I listen to mostly In Flames, Dark Tranquillity to Suicide Silence.

 

[xplosive59]

Anthrax gets my vote. They in my oppinion have had more consistently good albums with only 2-3 being weak, also their last album Worship Music was excellent.

Metallica: Only like their first three albums, parts of ...And Justice For All as well as Garage Inc, the rest ranges from mediocre to terrible.

Megadeth: Not a big fan of anything after countdown to extinction.

Slayer: Great stuff in the 80's but anything after Seasons in the Abyss have sucked, saying that though, Disciple off of God Hates Us All is one of the best Slayer tracks.

 

[Jovip]

To me, it's Megadeth and Slayer. Then Anthrax, then Metallica.
The big four are together because they together formed what we call thrash metal today.
So to me, they are incredibly important.

 

[IrateDonnie]

Megadeth, oh God, Megadeth. Amazing guitar skills, the song writing is good and I think Dave is much more versatile for creating riffs than anyone else from the big 4.

He's a good guitarist but his voice is horrible in my opinion.
I pick none of the above since Pantera isn't on the poll.

 

[The White Hunter]

Metal heads are too busy killing everything to think about such things.

Excellent, I was just playing Jak 3 xD

OT: Metallica all the way, one of my absolute favourite bands. Though I do like a big of Megadeth I prefer the deeper tones of Metallica and I find their music a lot more consistent in terms of quality. Anthrax have a few good songs, but I just abide Slayer; they seem to be all show to me and I can't take them seriously.

(That said Manowar I like and god knows I can't take them that seriously, hail from Britain btw)

 

[The White Hunter]

Megadeth, oh God, Megadeth. Amazing guitar skills, the song writing is good and I think Dave is much more versatile for creating riffs than anyone else from the big 4.

He's a good guitarist but his voice is horrible in my opinion.
I pick none of the above since Pantera isn't on the poll.

Gotta say I agree on the voice part, Dave Mustaine doesn't have a good voice compared to Hetfield, in my opinion.

Pantera are pretty great too.

 

[Hookman]

It used to be Metallica but the combination of Lulu (Along with all the dick moves they've been pulling lately) and Anthrax's amazing Worship Music has meant that Anthrax have jumped from 4th place to 1st. It now stands:
1. Anthrax
2. Megadeth
3. Metallica
4. Slayer

 

[halfeclipse]

Metallica if you ignore everything after And Justice for All. Megadeath otherwise.

Neither of them have anything on black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Dio and so on however.

 

[AnarchistFish]

Don't particularly love any of them, but Metallica is probably my favourite.

I don't even listen to that much metal these days, lol. If I do listen to something heavy it's usually hardcore of some sort, or metalcore.

 

[Sangreal Gothcraft]

Bah.....None of them really in there current Incarnation. Way better Thrash Metal bands out there that came out around the same era, but aren't that big... Celtic Frost, HellHammer, Venom Bathory

 

[tacotrainwreck]

Anthrax. Old Anthrax. I tried listening to their newest album with Belladonna back, but modern production and filters just don't work with thrash metal... it sounds like crap. Give me "I Am the Law" any day.

More currently, my favorite thrash bands overall have been Death Angel and Exodus for a loooong time.

 

[Suicidejim]

I'm not a huge lover of the Big Four as a whole, although I do like Metallica and Megadeth a fair bit, so I suppose it is a draw between the two. I've never really listened to much Anthrax, and I find myself physically incapable of enjoying Slayer, for some reason.

 

[Ignatz_Zwakh]

Megadeth are decent. Thrash ain't really my scene though.

 

[OmniscientOstrich]

Sepultura (specifically up to and including Arise I mean).


I know that's not an option, but really I think they did more to earn a place among the big 4 than Anthrax and had a much bigger impact on the development of the Death and Black Metal (even in spite of Morbid Visions being rather patchy and incompetent, but hey, not everything has to be great to leave an impact) genres and I think Schizophrenia, Beneath the Remains and Arise really tend to get overlooked when it comes to great Thrash albums. Anyway, out of the big four I'm not particularly fussed about Anthrax or Slayer and I haven't really listened to enough of Megadeth (yeah, I know, that's kinda shameful >.>) to make much of a judgement so I'll go with Metallica, who for as much shit as they get have still made 6 good albums out of 9 in my mind, though I suppose nothing they've made post Master of Puppets has really come close to emulating it. =/

 

[kenadian]

Needs more Sabbath, Godfathers of Metal > "Big Four".

 

[Zeriah]

Megadeth by a large margin for me. I love Slayer and early Metallica as well but Megadeth is close to the top of my favorite metal bands of all time. Dave is an excellent musician mixing influences and styles brilliantly.

Anthrax has always been "meh" to me though and I enjoy a number of other thrash acts more than them e.g Testament, Dark Angel, Exodus and of course the amazing Pantera. Scott Ian is a pretty cool guy though I guess.

Testament would be my second favorite Thrash band if anyone cares, always wish they would get more credit outside of the underground metal community like Megadeth/Metallica/Slayer did. Such an awesome band.

 

[Silent Anima]

I'm leaning more towards Metallica, seeing as they were kinda my first thrash band. Tbh thrash isn't even my favorite genre. Although one of my favorite bands is Gojira, so I neglect all oher answers and chose them! They do have thrash elements in their music.

Now if anyone needs me I'm gonna be chilling out to Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky