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Happy 20th birthday, Agent Orange. Evidently, it is the best-selling German thrash record ever. In Germany alone, it shifted over 100,000 copies. 99% of metal albums now don’t put up those kinds of numbers worldwide! Agent Orange’s secret weapon was guitarist Frank Blackfire. He made it and its predecessor Persecution Mania unstoppable thrashing machines. (In this interview, he says he wrote most of the music.) For Sodom, everyone rates In the Sign of Evil, but I prefer Blackfire’s machine gun of a picking hand. (He then contributed its attack to Kreator’s Coma of Souls.) Plus, Agent Orange has bad-ass artwork by Andreas Marschall with Knarrenheinz, my favorite metal mascot next to Motörhead’s Snaggletooth. Harris Johns’ production is also killer. The record’s anti-war sentiment is still too relevant: “This album is dedicated to all people – soldiers and civilians – who died by senseless aggressions of wars all over the world.” Long live Agent Orange, rest in peace Chris Witchhunter.
Twenty years old and it’s still in my regular rotation! This is a great album, though if I prefer the slightly more raw Persecution Mania. I’m amazed no other German thrash album sold more copies, especially once Kreator went major label with Extreme Aggression.
Great record. Perfect played back to back with “Terrible Certainty”
Twenty years of a classic album. I do have to agree with Tim that Persecution Mania suits me better but still… Sodom will always be close to my black, thrashing heart!
A classic album; I do agree with most that “Persecution Mania” is better, as is the “Expurse of Sodomy” EP. On the other hand, “Agent Orange” was the last truly great Sodom album.
I bought this CD back in high school. Great stuff…growing up in a small town, listening to this made me feel like a bad ass! haha…Good times.
They're reissuing this album on both CD and vinyl:
http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID;=131815