Monthly Archives: November 2008

44. Isis – Celestial (the Tower) (Intro Riff) We’ve reached the inevitable Isis pick. I love Isis, but the power of their music lies its ability to build slowly, gaining power, and gradually getting heavier. In otherwords, their music is … Continue reading →

45. Exodus – Bonded By Blood (0:27 to 0:54) Exodus is a pretty obvious choice for a list of the best riffs.  As thrash pioneers, their entire sound is predicated on fast, intricately catchy riffs.   As the author points out, … Continue reading →

46. Rotting Christ – Fgmenth, Thy Gift (2:08 to 2:49) This is kind of a weird pick, since the riff that is selected is pedestrian.  To this point, all of the riffs were at least memorable, but this one is … Continue reading →

47. Torche – Rockit (Entire Song) I do not really like Torche, mostly because they are too indebted to hard rock. When a band does not consider itself metal, it is hard to understand why they would be on a … Continue reading →

48. Danzig – Twist of Cain (Intro/verse riff) Here is the first completely unjustifiable pick on the list. This implies that Danzig is “extreme metal,” which is a pretty tenuous claim, since they have never been anything more than bluesy … Continue reading →

49. Pig Destroyer – Trojan Whore (0:41 to 1:25) You knew that Scott Hull and Pig Destroyer would be on this list somewhere. Hull consistently proves to be one of the best riff writers, with drummer Brian Harvey, playing absolutely … Continue reading →

50. Sepultura – Dead Embryonic Cells (3:34 to 4:10) Listening to Sepultura requires a good of detachment form the present. Their music does not hold up as particularly compelling and, following Max Cavallera’s departure to make nu-metal in Soulfly, they … Continue reading →

In honor of its 50th issue, Decibel decided to make a list of “The Top 50 Riffs in Extreme Metal.”  Just trying to compile an all-time top list of anything is tenuous and doing it for something as horribly personal-taste … Continue reading →