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Back when we were busy worshipping Metallica (who?), some speed/thrash bands were in the shadow releasing great records. Sodom is one such band that never got the fame it deserved, and "Agent Orange" is hailed by many as their best album.

Fast, angry and thunderous riffs are the highlight of this album, couple with with Thrash-style vocals that fit the music perfectly. I guess a good description of Sodom's sound would be the clean sound of Ride The Lightning-era Metallica with the angriness of pre-1991 Megadeth. That's simply recipe for greatness. Other than the fact that I'd like it to be longer, I don't really have anything negative to say about this metal masterpiece, so I'll highlight some of the best stuff. The riff/solo combination in the second track "Tired and Red" has got to be one of the best out there - catchy yet devastating, total headbanging material! I could play this song over and over. The next song, "Incest" does not disappoint either, very fast and aggressive. My second favorite comes fourth, "Remember The Fallen", this one a bit slower than the others but leaving a little more space to the vocals for a great effect that goes very well with the song's subject. The alternation between mid and fast-paced passages is handled in an great progressive way.

The sixth song, "Exhibition Bout" is another one with a very catchy riff. "Ausgebombt" is next and maintains a fast-paced beat for the whole duration of the song and the repeated use of the word "Ausgebombt" during the song is an attention-catcher. The last song "Don't Walk Away" stands out by being totally different from the rest of the album - it has kind of a "party" feeling to it, rather than the angry feeling of the first 8 songs. You definitely wonder if you're still listening to the same album when it gets to this song. The song is a bit weak compared to the rest of the material.

This is one of the albums I've played the most this year and I can't seem to get tired of it. Excellent album and a must-have for any serious metalhead, and even more for Thrash fans. And yes, those Germans are still around and are still releasing devastating stuff.