Customer Reviews

Speak English or Die [Vinyl]

5 star:		(51)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Something happened to thrash/speed metal lately. Metallica cut their hair and thought they were Soundgarden. Megadeth kept its lineup intact and (surprise!) lost their edge. Slayer stayed true to its roots but retreated to the underground. It seemed as if the glorious history spawned by so many of these bands faded in the face of today's homogenous, politically correct fodder of neo-alterna/white-bread pop. Loose bands of rivetheads have kept the faith in defiance. Their numbers are few, but they can take comfort in knowing there exists an album that defines thrash/speed metal and has become the fuse between the genre it helped create and the punk rock that preceded it. It is a timeless collection that flips one big, collective bird at everyone and everything ever since these four at-the-time relative unknowns put (banged?) their heads together to create one of the harshest but silliest slabs of metal ever to grace the wax (plastic). Ladies and gentleman, S.O.D., "Stormtroopers of Death."

Do you like your thrash metal heavy, dark and fast? Do you believe all those hair bands (heavy tinsel, bubble metal, whatever) destroyed the art of metal? Good. Then sit down, shut up and hang on for dear life because this thirty-minute ride into the bowels of thrash is one heck of a trip you won't soon forget!

Formed in the mid-eighties by Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante and rhythm guitarist Scott Ian, former Anthrax/Nuclear Assault bassist Dan Lilker and rotund, punk-metal nobody (at the time) Billy Milano, S.O.D. began as a side project./joke for old friends but soon became a cult classic. It would become the bible for every metalhead the world over. The sound is dark. The guitars are heavy, but clean. Benante, a fast and furious double-bass thrasher, pounds out S.O.D.'s punk rhythms on what sounds like a three-piece kit. Milano is a growling and shouting beast of fury that will offend you, make you laugh and make you mosh. The lyrics - if you can understand them (the CD booklet has the lyrics - better use a magnifying glass) - are funny, and poignant. S.O.D. takes pot shots at almost everything: the down and depressed, immigrants, women and the men that love them, hair bands and terrorists. Everything else ranges from some pretty intense instrumental interludes ("March of the S.O.D." and "Chromatic Death" - both used as themes to MTV's "Headbangers Ball") to bits and pieces of wild abandon.

No "Heal the World". No "Let Love Rule." Just mosh. So if you think rock 'n' roll should be a vehicle for change in this world, it's best you walk. If smug, arrogant, pompous, P.C.-rock posers like Sting, Bono and Eddie Vedder touch your very soul, then you better run. S.O.D. "Speak English or Die" is a knee-jerk response to all that is wrong with heavy metal, music in general and, in a humorous way, much of what is wrong with the world, but these guys aren't here to preach. They're here to mosh. They're here to make you laugh. They're here to make you blush. Now give it up for the Stormtroopers of Death. Buy it today and experience metal history!

This album is a true trash metal masterpiece. It started all in 1985 as a side project by Scott Ian, guitarist of Anthrax. Recorded in three days it came out to be something like nothing else before: furious, mean, funny and heavy as hell. I still listen to it now in 2004 after almost 20 years from its birth!!
It's unbelievable how well it aged through time. I heard that it caused a lot of controversy because of the lyrics but I dindn't care 15 years ago when I dindn't even get a word of english (i'm italian) and I don't care now as I read the cd booklet. Besides the lyrics were never intended to be that serious. Anyways if you like trash metal bands like suicidal tendencies or anthrax you will love sod "speak english or die"!

"He'll make you wish that you dindn't exist,
Cause Sargent "D" is coming and you're on his list!"

Speak English or Die is brutal, fast, and angry. It is also rude, intelligent, and surprisingly funny (check out "What's that noise?" and "Milk").

Anyone who can handle the intensity of, say Slayer, Nuclear Assault, MOD, etc, will dig this album.

If you are a Winger fan, it will probably make you cry.

I remember the day "Speak English or Die" hit the scene when I was in high school. There was a real division beginning between punkers and metal heads where I was at and part of it was because of the violence from nazi skinheads beating up metal heads for having long hair. Since regular skinheads were kind of considered punkers and hard to tell apart from nazis, alot of metal heads were getting pissed at punks in general.
Some of my better friends were head bangers and we were all bummed about the whole affair. Well, when we heard "United Forces" come ripping from the vinyl in a vocal and chord crunching assault testifying that "...it doesn't matter how you wear your hair, it's what's inside your head..." we were stoked.
Here was this band, 2500 miles from where we were at, talking about the same problem tellin' everybody to lighten up.
I listened to this album exclusively for almost a half a year, and there was a lot of killer music then. As far as I'm concerned, these guys are the god fathers of speedcore and if you don't own it, at least hear it once. These guys were a major influence on metal to come!!

If you didn't know this was the intro / outtro music of the hold headbangers' ball with Adam Curry. This licks are heavy and rock, the lyrics are outrageous and a riot. Read into the lyrics what you want ... no big deal. It is a silly album sung in character, and expresses feelings all have sometimes. It is just a fun, crazy thrash fest. get it!!

Anthrax on their day off put Stormtroopers of Death on the musical map, and "Speak English Or Die" is a musical salute to all things silly about metal. I'm a techno fan, but this album has a permanent place of honor in my collection. People who find this album offensive can't deal with life, either. This album is FUNNY, people. Get a grip, and buy it now.

I have to take issue with what one other reviewer noted: "Dont let the name fool you, "Speak English of [sic] Die" is not an any way antagonizing non-americans, its just pointing out the flaws in the American immigration system." Did the ditty "F**k the Middle East" escape your critical scope ("we'll kill 'em all / and have a ball / and end the f**kin' crisis")? Reviewer jabs aside, this is one of the essential building blocks of your speed metal/skate punk collection. milano is in top 80s form on this disc. S.O.D. display wit, not just speed chops. "Anti-Procrastination Song" and "Diamonds and Rust" could teach a few singer-songwriters a thing or two about getting to the point. Almost every track on this album burns like wd-40 sprayed through a tall BiC lighter flame.

This album is considered a cult classic by many, probably because the "band" never really toured (just a few shows). SOD was really composed of 2 current Anthrax members (Scott Ian, Charlie Benante), one former (bassist Dan Lilker), and a fat guy (Billy Milano). The album itself was pretty much a quickie quasi-joke album, but became an instant favorite among metal fans.

It also became controversial, and 20/20 (or was it 60 Minutes?) tried to do an expose' on what nefarious music our nation's youths were listening to. SOD was easy pickins for obvious reasons (see the song titles for starters).

Despite the informal nature of the album, it really is a powerful piece of music and a must-have if you like the really heavy stuff.

3 of the guys in this band are Jewish so the Hitler comments are funny. It was a joke album, as funny now as it was when I was in high school

if you are the type of person that is offended easily, this album is not for you. then again, if you're that kind of person, maybe you need to be offended, so f*ck you. this album is heavy as sh*t. its Charlie & Scott from Anthrax, Billy milano from M.O.D. and Dan Lilker who the original bassist from Anthrax (before Frank Bello), and he went on to form Nuclear Assault, and then Brutal Truth. the songs are short, mean, brutal, vulgar, and funny. this album was originally intended just to be a side project for Charlie & Scott to fill some down time after recording Anthrax' "Spreading The Disease" album in 1985. the re-issue is remastered and includes a some bonus studio tracks, and some live tracks from a show they did in Tokyo, Japan in 1999 right before they did their Bigger Than The Devil comeback album. for people who like their hardcore punk raw and mean with a metal edge and with a dark sense of humor.