heavy-metal-darkness: D.A.M. |Inside The Wreckage |Dissonance Productions

Wednesday, January 28, 2026

D.A.M. |Inside The Wreckage |Dissonance Productions

Release Date January 30^th, 2026
Format 2CD Deluxe Edition
Genre Thrash Metal
Country United Kingdom

D.A.M. (Destruction And Mayhem) roared out of Morecambe in the mid-80s, eventually catching the eye of Noise Records. Managed by the legendary Paul Loasby and sent to Hannover to record with Harris Johns, they had the pedigree to lead the UK thrash charge alongside Sabbat and Xentrix. They even shared stages with Candlemass and Dark Angel at the Hammersmith Odeon, leaving behind a legacy that ended far too soon when the global metal climate shifted in the early 90s. This "Inside The Wreckage" collection pulls their two studio albums into one package for anyone who misses when the UK scene actually had teeth.

"Human Wreckage" is a nasty, high-speed assault that shows why these guys were hyped. Songs like "Death Warmed Up" and "Total Destruction" are pure neck-snapping material. Harris Johns gave them a production that sounds like a rusted blade, fitting for a band that didn't care about being pretty. It is fast, aggressive, and captures that specific 1989 energy where the riffs were designed to cause as much chaos as possible in a small club.

The second disc, "Inside Out", shows a band that actually learned how to write songs without losing their edge. It is more technical and "Man Of Violence" or "Thought For The Day" prove they were getting better at their craft. They traded some of the raw speed for better structures and a darker atmosphere. It is a shame the industry moved on, because "Inside Out" had enough quality to compete with the big American imports of that era.

If you want a history lesson in British thrash that actually kicks ass, this is it. You get the debut, the more refined follow-up, and some bonus tracks like "Aliens" to round it out. The liner notes and photos from Mark Freebase add the right kind of context for a band that should have been massive. D.A.M. was a ferocious outfit, and having both albums in one place is a win for anyone who still wears a denim vest.

Score: 8.3