The good folks over at Steamhammer Records / SPV have decided to reissue EVILDEAD’s first two albums “Annihilation Of Civilization” and “The Underworld” on digital, CD and vinyl formats for 2026. These two epic Thrash Metal albums have not been reissued since 2014 under the End Of Light banner and it’s a welcome to anyone new to Thrash or just needing those reissues to avoid overpaying for used copies on various websites. For this review we will be taking a look back at the sophomore album from the group and bring back some good times of an era that many consider a musical shift in the industry. Originally released in June of 1991, “The Underworld” came out two years on the heels of the band’s debut album that received fan praise. Right off the bat you will notice that the band slowed things down compared to their first album, it’s still Thrash but it’s not at the velocity as its predecessor. The heaviness of the guitars in songs like ‘Branded’, ‘The Hood’ and ‘The Underworld’ along with ear piercing guitar solos showcase that the band still came up with decent material for this record. They do a good job in covering SCORPIONS’ ‘He’s A Woman / She’s A Man’. They hit on the Kuwait / Iraq war that was ongoing in 1991 in the track ‘Welcome To Kuwait’, which – if you were around at the time – was constantly on the news, newspapers and a hot topic discussion piece in social circles. EVILDEAD (much like fellow Bay Area Thrashers FORBIDDEN) does not get the credit they deserve for their unrelenting dedication to Thrash Metal. The fact that this album does not get as much praise as it should might be due to a few factors: 1. They did slow down on this record, and 2. 1991 was a monster year for Metal album releases such as METALLICA’s self-titled aka “The Black album”, SEPULTURA’s “Arise”, CORONER’s “Mental Vortex” and DARK ANGEL’s “Time Does Not Heal”, to name a few. The band did tone things down slightly here from their debut album which is not uncommon for a sophomore album especially when the debut album is heavily praised. I think this is a solid release with good songwriting and musicianship as the essential elements of Thrash are there but not to the extent as their debut. www.facebook.com/evildead.official, www.facebook.com/steamhammer