Music : Metal Massacre, Vol. 2

Rating: - No huge names, but a lot of great metal debuts
The second Metal Massacre compilation didn't introduce a legendary band like Metallica (Metal Massacre, Vol. 1) or Slayer (Metal Massacre, Vol. 3), but it still unleashed a wave of impressive artists from the developing California metal scene.

The biggest names featured on Metal Massacre II are Armored Saint and Overkill, both of which are (more or less) active to this day. The compilation also introduced cult metal favorites Obsession, Savage Grace and Warlord. The rest of the artists featured here either had one-album careers (3rd Stage Alert, Trauma, Hyksos) or never released an album at all (Surgical Steel, Dietrich, Molten Leather, Aloha). Trauma, of course, was Cliff Burton's pre-Metallica band and Aloha (later Hawaii) featured Marty Friedman, pre-Megadeth.

It's not the game changer that Metal Massacre I was, but Metal Massacre II is still an important release in metal history. Between the bands that made it, and those that were never heard from again, Metal Massacre II is a great snapshot of the early 80's power and thrash metal scene that Metal Blade played such a large role in establishing.