Randy Burns is the producer/engineer I trust when metal has to hit hard without turning into mush. I clocked him in 1986 at Music Grinder, co-producing and engineering Megadeth's "Peace Sells... but Who's Buying?" with Mustaine: snare like a fist, bass tight, guitars sharp enough to shave with. He makes chaos readable, no fake gloss. His 80s run is a straight line of troublemaking: Suicidal Tendencies (engineer, 1983), Possessed "Seven Churches" (producer, 1985), Dark Angel "Darkness Descends" (producer/engineer, 1986), Death "Scream Bloody Gore" (producer, 1987), Nuclear Assault "Survive" (1988) and "Handle with Care" (1989), then Kreator "Coma of Souls" (1990).