90's Jams #40: Megadeth "Holy Wars...The Punishment Due" (1990)

Before Metalocalypse increased the lul-factor of the term "brutal," and before alt-metal, prog-metal and black-metal began consuming the genre's own integrity, thrash was the one metal-era where the best bands were able to contain their self-indulgence to the point where song-structure mattered just as much as chops. Personality-wise, Megadeth may have actually pressed the template for asshole-metal bands.. or maybe that was just Dave Mustaine. Not much is known of guitarist Marty Friedman's personality, other than it helped him persevere and excel in the field of writing some of the sickest guitar solos ever.

Here's the part where we have to make excuses as to why there's only one metal track in this entire list: The swan songs of classic thrash were released in 1990, which were Slayer's "Seasons In The Abyss" and the first two tracks from Megadeth's Rust In Peace LP, "Hanger 18" and "Holy Wars...The Punishment Due." While "Abyss" and "Hanger 18" barely missed out on the 90's Jams, the perfection of "Holy Wars" could not be ignored. It's not the "token metal" track of this list, as much as it's without question the single track that set the bar for metal throughout the entire rest of the decade. (And no, we didn't forget all the alt-metal like Pantera and Tool which still reached outstanding heights, but could never quite match those set by thrash.)

Douchebag Mustaine may have knowingly placed that Arabian riffage 2 minutes into the song just to piss off people looking for something to be annoyed by.. which was totally ripped off by Metallica a year later in the song "Whenever I May Roam." But in "Holy Wars," it doesn't sound out of place, just as amazing as the rest of the song, and it totally prepares the listener for the monster riff heard in the middle section.