Death Metal (split album)

{{Short description|1984 split album by Helloween, Hellhammer, Running Wild, and Dark Avenger}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2024}}

{{Infobox album

| name = Death Metal

| type = compilation

| artist = Helloween, Hellhammer, Running Wild, {{nowrap|and Dark Avenger}}

| cover = DeathMetalSplitAlbum.jpg

| alt =

| released = May 1984

| recorded = February–March 1984 at Caet Studio, Berlin

| venue =

| studio =

| genre = {{flatlist|

• Heavy metal
• speed metal
• thrash metal
• power metal
• black metal

}}

| length = 32:29

| label = Noise

| producer =

| prev_title =

| prev_year =

| next_title =

| next_year =

}}{{Album ratings

|rev1 = Rock Hard

|rev1score = 7.5/10{{Cite web |last=Stratmann |first=Holger |title=Review – Death Metal |url=http://www.rockhard.de/megazine/reviewarchiv/review-anzeigen/5680-death-metal.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171226021405/http://www.rockhard.de/megazine/reviewarchiv/review-anzeigen/5680-death-metal.html |archive-date=26 December 2017|website=Rock Hard}}

}}

Death Metal is a 1984 split album by the heavy metal bands Helloween, Hellhammer, Running Wild, and Dark Avenger. It contains the only recorded material by the German group Dark Avenger besides their 1985 demo tape.{{Cite web |title=Dark Avenger (2) |url=https://www.discogs.com/artist/330234-Dark-Avenger-2 |access-date=22 April 2023 |website=Discogs}} Despite its name, the musical style is not actually death metal.{{Cite web |date=6 June 2022 |title=Demo-Review: Helloween – Death Metal |url=https://dark-art.com/demo-review-helloween-death-metal/ |access-date=9 February 2024 |website=Dark-Art |language=de}}

The album offers a snapshot of the Central European metal scene during the end of the early 1980s. At that time, Running Wild were still in their "satanic" lyrical phase and had yet to develop their "pirate metal" focus.{{Cite web |title=Yes, Pirate Metal Is a Real Thing and Here Are 5 of the Best Bands |url=https://www.iheart.com/content/2017-09-19-yes-pirate-metal-is-a-real-thing-and-here-are-5-of-the-best-bands/ |access-date=22 April 2023 |website=iHeart}} Helloween had more of a thrash or speed metal sound compared to the more melodic power metal style they would soon develop. Hellhammer were the darkest and heaviest band of the foursome and would later evolve into the group Celtic Frost.{{Cite magazine |last=Grow |first=Kory |date=15 August 2019 |title=The Triumph of Tom G. Warrior |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/tom-g-warrior-celtic-frost-hellhammer-interview-848041/ |access-date=22 April 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone}}

Running Wild's songs appear as Japanese bonus tracks on their 1995 album, Masquerade;{{Citation |title=Running Wild – Masquerade Album Reviews, Songs & More {{!}} AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/masquerade-mw0000597488 |access-date=22 April 2023}} Helloween's tracks appear on the second disc of the 2006 remastered and expanded edition of their 1985 album, Walls of Jericho;{{Citation |title=Helloween – Walls of Jericho |url=https://www.discogs.com/release/8463275-Helloween-Walls-Of-Jericho |access-date=22 April 2023}} and Hellhammer's tracks appear on the 1990 re-issue of their 1984 EP, Apocalyptic Raids.Fischer, Thomas Gabriel (2000). Are You Morbid? Into the Pandemonium of Celtic Frost. London: Sanctuary Publishing Limited. p. 8.