Believe it or not, thrash metal does not inhabit a flat earth, where ocean waters cascade off a cliff into infinity, just beyond view of familiar 'Big 4 oceans' dominated by Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax and Megadeth.

No, in actual fact, the thrash metal map would be quite incomplete without the crucial contributions of numerous bands and the seminal LPs with which they helped fill in this popular heavy metal sub-genre’s more nebulous reaches.

We wanted to give some of the lesser-heralded thrash legends their fair shake. Titans such as Testament, Exodus, Overkill, Nuclear Assault and many more have unleashed albums that can hold their own among the best Big 4 records.

Join us as we round out (pun intended) the geography of global thrash metal with the Top 10 Thrash Albums NOT Released by the Big 4.

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