Syranax - Battalion of Death Demo (1985)

From Austin, Texas, these speed metal thrashers were bringing the evil. Syranax formed in 1984 and released this demo the following year. A quick listen will be enough to realize that these guys were something different from the other bands at the time. With a vocalist hitting the ripping screams and the relentless picking technique, this sort of speed metal was standing out from the crowd, Sadly the band only released one more demo, Annihilation of Civilization, in 1987 with another singer and a new bassist before calling it quits.

Read more about the history of Syranax from an interview with bassist Sean Ross

Interview

Track Listing

1. Pedifile

2. Face the Blade

3. Wheels of Hades

4. The Battalion of Death

Band Members

Rick Lane - Guitars, Vocals

Jamie Ovcaric - Guitars (lead)

Sean Ross - Bass

Ricky Colley - Drums

Download

Thanks to Strappado and Thrasher from HeavyMetalRarities.

Hurlant - Demo (1989)

Let's file this under Great Bands That Should Have Been Bigger. From Austin, Hurlant can definitely keep up with the big boys of Texas metal. Playing thrash with a technical proficiency reminiscent of early Dark Angel, this band shows us that good songwriting, a competent singer, and actually being able to play your instrument are a recipe for really good heavy music. Very little information is on the web which is a shame; but do you want to know what is the biggest shame about this band?  Hurlant's whole discography consists of only 5 songs on two demos. Metal fans deserved more and so did the band.

Track Listing

1. Disconnect Society

2. Multiple Contusion Crew

3. What's Your Problem?

Band Members

Art Napoli - Bass, Vocals

Raymond Vasquez - Drums

Amhed Garcia - Guitars

Download

Thanks to Hi50metalmaniac for the rip.