Here is a fantastic first press metal collection a guy brought in two weeks ago.
And here is a great punk rock vinyl collection I picked up this weekend.
Featured Punk / Metal Vinyl
Here are some of the gold nuggets from the videos above.
Black Flag – Nervous Breakdown EP 1980 SST SST 001 – This is the third pressing of “Nervous Breakdown” by Black Flag. There have been over 20 years of pressings of this EP. The actual first pressing is one of the most expensive punk rock albums out there that can go for over $1000 easily.
Ramones – Ramones LP 1976 Sire – SASD-7520 – First pressings of this debut Ramones LP average between $143 – $432, according to Discogs, and keep going up.
Possessed – Seven Churches LP 1985 Combat – MX 8024 – One of the most influential extreme metal albums of all time, and some argue the first death metal album, early pressings of ” Seven Churches ” by Possessed are a holy grail of vinyl collectors. The camouflage label is technically a second press, even though it came out the same year. Unlike many vintage metal albums, the first-press CD is worth more than the album and is among the most expensive metal CDs.
Slayer – Show No Mercy LP 1983 Metal Blade Records – MBR 1013 – Slayer’s debut album is now the most expensive and hard to find in their catalog. This copy is technically a repress, but it still sells for north of 300 dollars.
Have Albums Like This You Want To Sell?
If you have a collection like this you are looking to sell, I am always buying. Use the info below to get hold of me.
I have the following very rare punk and metal unofficial (or semi-official) available for purchase. These titles cause problems when listed on eBay or are not allowed on Discogs.
Samhain – November-Coming-Fire LP 2014 Plan 9 – PL9-07 Sealed Color Unknown $60
Slayer – The Songbook Of The Antichrist Part 2 LP 2008 – HTWDD-IC-0801-2 VG+/EX – $60 **SOLD**
Misfits – Descent Into Evil LP 2017 Plan 9 – PL9-12 SEALED $40
The Subhumans – Incorrect Thoughts LP 1985 CD Presents, Ltd. – CD036 VG+/EX – $85
Eye Of The Thrashguerilla LP 1999 – 大隊 Records – 002 GERMANY EX/EX – $50
Misfits – Walk Among You (Live @ Michigan Union Ballroom, Detroit, 1983 WCBN FM Radio Broadcast) LP 2015 Bad Joker – BOSS 5-1987 SEALED NETHERLANDS $50
Slayer – Show No Mercy LP 2013 Roadrunner Records – RR 9868 EX/EX $100
Toronto’s Sacrifice is definitely on my list of metal bands that should have been bigger. 1985’s “Torment in Fire” is the first wave black metal classic, and 1987’s “Forward To Termination” is a thrash metal classic that is easily on par or better than many of their peers from the Golden Age Of Metal. Despite playing the right kind of music at precisely the right time and quite well, mainstream success was in the cards for Sacrifice.
The band released a few more albums in the early 90s, then broke up and reformed in 2008, and is still active today.
Sacrifice in 2009
Newly released on Blessed Curse Recordings is an excellent treat for a fan of this band. “Sacrifice – Live At The Starwood Club Toronto Nov 23, 1985” documents the band (as the title would suggest) — Sacrifice playing a live set very early in their career between the release of “Torment in Fire” and “Forward To Termination“.
New Live Album 2022
All of the songs are selections from “Torment In Fire” and are as follows:
POSSESSION
SACRIFICE
INFERNAL VISIONS
TURN IN YOUR GRAVE
BURNED AT THE STAKE
HOMICIDAL BREATH
NECRONOMICON
DECAPITATION
BEYOND DEATH
Listen On Youtube
The recordings are rough and raw but are far from terrible. Unfortunately, there are only 500 copies of this album available, and they are hand-numbered, so grab one while you can.
The original owner was a younger guy, but the entire collection consisted of 20% from the Golden Age Of Thrash Metal and 80% from the 90s peak of death metal. 95% of these albums are reissues, but a few first are pressings that include “Slowly We Rot” and “Cause Of Death” from Obituary.
Even some of the reissues can be shockingly expensive due to the 7-12 month delays in vinyl production that is now plaguing the music industry.
I have cataloged the inventory from this purchase below. If you are looking to buy any of the entries listed can do so at ThrashMetalIQ on eBay.
I searched my inventory and pulled everything in my collection with a value above $ 200 — hence the strange number of 14 items on this list. In the video in this post, you can see the walk-thru of my top picks. In addition, I included a list below with pictures, comments on each record, and approximate values.
Most of the 14 vinyl that made this list are either metal or punk; however, there were a few oddballs from different genres.
The Truth About Discogs Median Value
I did not look at the Discog’s median value and accept it as gospel. Discogs indeed is one of the seven wonders of the internet; however, just going on median value is very deceptive, and here’s why:
Discogs calculates value based on the album’s limited sales on Discogs. If an album is ordinarily worth $100 and somebody sells a fair copy with no cover for $5, this sale is factored in and drags the price down. Conversely, if someone sells an album sealed or autographed copy for far more, it will skew the median up. However, copies are often sold in poor condition, so the value will typically skew lower.
Much of the Discogs data is old. Discogs is a big market for vinyl, but it is nowhere near the size of eBay. Therefore, much of the information used to calculate an album’s value can be up to 21 years old and is based on only a limited number of sales. As we all know, album appreciation, inflation, and the vinyl market are real. None of this is factored into the Discogs median value.
Most Discogs sellers are not in the United States. Since the site’s algorithm is not very sophisticated, it is easy to game the rankings by inflating shipping costs. If you are in the US, try to buy an album for even close to the median value listed—99% of the time, you can’t!
List of Our 14 Most Expensive Punk and Metal Vinyl LPS
Here is the list of the 14 punk/metal vinyl albums from the video at the top of this post. I included the price and a couple of random notes about each.
1. She Wants Revenge – She Wants Revenge LP 2006 Flawless Records B000614801
I’m not exactly sure why this one is worth so much. Even copies in crappy condition seem to be going for $600. Copies of this album in excellent condition go for $1000 and sometimes higher. If anyone knows why this one is so pricey, please leave some info in the comments because I can’t figure it out.
Value: $1000
2. Descendents – Cool To Be You LP 2004 Fat Wreck Chords FAT672-1 Blue Vinyl
This usually isn’t a super expensive album, but the limited first pressing on blue vinyl is worth a pretty penny.
This album usually sells for around $300. This copy was owned personally by Glenn Danzig and is factory-sealed.
VALUE $600
4. Rich Kids On LSD – Rock N Roll Nightmare LP 1987 Alchemy VM104
I usually don’t include autographed albums because it is such a subjective value. Even unsigned, this album is $300-$400 if the comic book is included and in good condition. However, I included this one with the autographs because everyone in this band is dead.
VALUE $500
5. Pantera – Power Metal LP 1988 Metal Magic Records – MMR-1988
According to the band, this album is completely out of print and will never be repressed or reissued, making original copies worth a ton. Despite the corny hair metal image, “Power Metal” is a solid album that rivals some of the band’s later output.
VALUE $400
6. Verbal Abuse – Just An American Band LP 1984 Fowl Records – #5
Punk/hardcore done to perfection. You know you are doing something right if Slayer does a cover album (Undisputed Attitude) featuring six songs from this alum. This album has many bootlegs and represses. First pressing like this are extremely rare.
VALUE $400
7. Queens Of The Stone Age – Queens Of The Stone Age LP 2010 Rekords Rekords
This is another one that caught me off guard because this pressing is a 2010 reissue of the 1998 debut with a different cover. Original presses cost over a thousand dollars, and the represses are not cheap either.
VALUE $300
8. Samhain – November-Coming-Fire LP 1986 Plan 9 – PL9-07
It’s probably my favorite album Danzig ever recorded and one of the many featuring his vocals to make this list.
Unlike the Samhain album listed at #8, this is from my least favorite techno/electronic period ofGlenn Danzig’scareer. Even so, these limited-edition picture discs are worth a pretty penny, and people seem to buy them.
Probably one of my favorite metal albums of all time – Carnivore’s “Retaliation” still stands up to this day, yet could have never come out in today’s politically correct “woke” climate. But, like virtually everything after the death of Peter Steele in 2010, the value has increased dramatically.
A 2016 reissue of Sodom’s first LP from their wave black metal period, Obsessed By Cruelty, is surprisingly pricey and simultaneously loved and hated by metal fans.
VALUE $250
12. Misfits – Earth A.D. / Wolfsblood LP 1984 Aggressive Rockproduktionen – AG 0024
Original German press with inner sleeve and order form.
VALUE $240
13. Exhorder – Slaughter In The Vatican LP 1990 Roadracer RO 9363-1
This absolutely brutal thrash metal album came out late in 1990 but still holds up to this day. After taking 30 years off, Exhorder returned in 2019 and is still touring.
VALUE $230
14. Death – Scream Bloody Gore LP 1987 Under One Flag – FLAG 12
“Scream Bloody Gore,” along with “Leprosy” and “Spiritual Healing,” are my three favorite albums from Death’s caveman-style death metal period before they went in a more technical direction.
VALUE $200
Do You Have Albums Like This You Want to Sell?
I am always looking to buy new heavy metal and punk rock records, vinyl, and CD collections and I pay top. Dollar for great collections like this. If you have metal or punk vinyl like this to sell, contact me using the info listed below.
The self-titled Bathory LP (Bathory – Bathory LP 1984 Black Mark Production – BMLP 666-1) with the “yellow goat” album cover is considered one of the “holy grail” scores for heavy and black metal record collectors the globe over. But, unfortunately, it is also one of the most counterfeited records out there because of its value. So let’s find out how not to get fooled into buying a fake, or if you don’t have thousands to spend — what a replica is worth.
Why Is This Album So Valuable?
The first album from Bathory is a landmark album from the metal genre. While it sounds recorded in a garage, it became the template for countless black metal bands afterward. The first thousand copies were pressed independently on Quarthon’s Black Mark Productions with a gold-colored goat on the front cover before being picked up by Combat and Under One Flag for broader distribution. The first press with a yellow goat can fetch $5,000 or some for an authentic copy.
FUN FACT: The original goat was supposed to be gold, but due do budget issues, the fledgling Black Mark Productionslabel had to settle for yellow.
How To Spot A Fake Bathory Album
The iconic artwork for this album is very simple. Therefore there are some very convincing knockoffs available in various markets. Listed below are the main things to be looking for:
Examine the dead wax or the “runout matrix” on the album. It is the engraving in the vinyl after the playing surface. The engraving in a real copy should read as follows on Side A (“Darkness”): 840905GP with BMLP 666 1 A PD-CR Pentagram image] [666 image in pyramid shape] and then on Side B will have this etching 840905GP BMLP 666 1 B PD-CR [Cross image]
The most prolific bootlegs came out in Europe in the mid-1990s. The most common runouts are 666-1, or you may see some copies with nothing in the dead wax at all.
Most of the original pressings came with a printed inner sleeve. However, these can also be faked. Also, some authentic copies may be short an inner sleeve if the original owner lost it.
If the album looks “too new” you should look more carefully. Remember that this album came out in 1984 and is 37 years old at this point. You should expect to see some wear.
If the color looks “wrong”, it is likely a fake. This is a common problem among cheap bootlegs.
Marketplace Safety
Despite how rare this album is and eBay’s policy to not allow the sale of counterfeit albums, there always seem to be 2-3 copies available for $2200-$2500 at any given time. Most likely, they are not authentic, but here is how you stay safe if you want to spend big money.
Contact the seller and inquire about the runoutmatrix. If they don’t respond or refuse to provide it, you should hard pass. You can also request they provide pictures, though they can be difficult to see.
Whether on Discogs or eBay, look for a reputable seller that has many reviews and a lot of items for sale — not someone who could pack up and disappear overnight.
If the seller does not accept returns, you should not buy from them.
Album Artwork
As I said, this iconic album artwork is quite basic. Here are some pictures from one of the common European bootleg pressings. Notice how tough it is to tell if it is fake or authentic.
How Much Is A Yellow Goat Bootleg Worth?
If you want to have a yellow goat Bathory, but don’t feel like forking out two grand, it is totally understandable. If you can get past the moral dilemma of not paying the Quarthon estate, you can get replica copies for 50 bucks, sometimes less.
The video below is just a portion of a rare metal and punk vinyl collection I valued at approximately $120,000. I recently bought it from a private collector here in Los Angeles.
This epic record collection consisted of around 3500 12″ LPs and 1000 7″ singles. Since the start of COVID, most of the records I have been buying have all been internationally, but this collection I found locally in Los Angeles. After some negotiation with the seller, I picked up this purchase, which was by far my largest, for $67,000.
The Anatomy Of A Deal
In the weeks leading up to the purchase, the seller allowed me to appraise the albums one by one (which took me over a week to do). I entered them all in notebooks. You can see an example of my appraisal below.
Albums are hot right now. Unfortunately, some collectors have an unrealistic idea of what they are worth, but as a buyer, you need to spend a lot of money to buy good collections of rare metal and punk albums. Therefore, I tailor my offers to be at least 50% of the total value as a rule of thumb. I am negotiable up to roughly 60%, but it can be higher under rare circumstances. Above 70% of the total value, the seller would make the same amount of money selling them on eBay individually.
Also, remember that even if the seller were selling it to another party that wasn’t a reseller, the buyer wouldn’t pay the total price for every album; there would be some discount.
Here are some photos from the gem vinyl in the video above. The first video is less than 20% of the collection. I will update this post or create a new one to showcase some of the records. Unfortueny, I can’t make a complete list as I did here of all of them, but feel free to contact me if you are looking for something specific.
Collection Highlights
Some of the my favorite pieces in this collection are as follows. I have timestamped some of the links to take you to exactly the spot in the video where these metal and punk LP appear.
I decided to wait a bit to update this blog with some of my latest thrash metal finds. The collector I have been buying these from in England has been sending them to me in Los Angeles, 20 records at a time via DHL. Every deal I make is a bit different when I am buying heavy metal LP, CD, and cassette collections. Especially since the start of the pandemic, I have been doing all of my deals without even meeting the seller—they have generally been purchased via email. Payments are made to sellers via wire, cash, Venmo, or PayPal, and I buy from all 50 states and countries all over the world.
Enough with the shop talk, let’s get on to these albums, and there are some great ones. This post is split into 3 videoswith a list of LPs below. There are links to pages and blogs on this site that have more information about the artists and releases.
UK Thrash Metal LPs Video #1
These are the albums listed in the video above and came in the first box the collector in the UK sent me.
Testament – Practise What You Preach G/VG 782 009-1
Voivod – Killing Technology VG/VG N 0058
Voivod – Dimension Hatross G/VG N 0106-1
Voivod – Nothing Face VG/VG MCG 6070
Photo Gallery Of This Collection
Have Some Heavy Metal Albums Like This To Sell?
I am the number one buyer in the world for heavy metal albums, have a large budget, and am professional and easy to deal with. If you have a collection like this you would like to sell, contact me here because I am always looking to buy.
Have A Thrash Metal Collection Like This You’d Like To Sell?
The collector has a large collection, but only wants to part with it a little at a time, which is fine by me other than having to pay all of the additional shipping. I buy a heavy metal CD and vinyl collections all over the world. If you have a collection like this to sell get hold of me here…
Have A Heavy Metal Collection Like This You’d Like To Sell?
If you have a collection like this I am always looking to buy them. I am located in Los Angeles buy I buy collections all over the United States and all over the world – hit me up if you have one like this – here is my contact information.
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