In the Sign of Evil is the debut release from the German band Sodom, an EP that came out in 1984. It arrived on the independent label Devil's Game and is often counted among the first wave of black metal, even though Sodom are usually filed under thrash metal. That blend of genres is a good part of its appeal.
It sits at the very start of Sodom's story, two years before their first studio album, Obsessed by Cruelty, appeared in 1986. The band later returned to the material, re-recording its tracks for The Final Sign of Evil in 2007. For anyone curious about where extreme metal began to take shape, the original EP is the place to start.
In the Sign of Evil: tracklist and credits
8 tracks · 19:07Tracklist
- 1Intro (In the Sign of Evil)0:14
- 2Outbreak of EvilAngelripper, Violator, Witchhunter, Giant4:33
- 3Sepulchral VoiceAngelripper, Violator, Witchhunter4:30
- 4BlasphemerAngelripper, Violator, Witchhunter3:02
- 5Witching MetalAngelripper, Violator, Witchhunter3:12
- 6Intro0:38
- 7Burst Command Til WarAngelripper, Violator, Witchhunter2:43
- 8Outro0:16
- Produced by
- Wolfgang Eichholz
- Recorded at
- Caet Studio, Berlin
- Recorded
- October 1984
- Engineered by
- Horst Müller
- Label
- Devil's Game
- Length
- 19:07
Line-up
- Tom Angelripper · bass guitar, lead vocals
- Grave Violator · guitar
- Chris Witchhunter · drums (drum set)
From Wikipedia and MusicBrainz. Only what the sources record is shown.
More from Sodom
Full discography →
The best of 1984
All of 1984 →
How we know the release date sources disagree on the year (1984, 1985)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 1984 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | January 1985 | |
| Wikidata | 1984 |
5 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | DE | — | original | |
| 1985 | DE | Devil's Game | other | |
| 1985 | US | Metal Blade Records | other | |
| 1988 | US | Steamhammer | 032751400426 | other |
| 1988 | DE | Steamhammer | 4001617753323 | other |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · cropped: cropped from 2906x2856 to 2856x2856
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 2906×2856 | cropped: cropped from 2906x2856 to 2856x2856 |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |