About Overkill
Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. They have gone through many lineup changes, leaving bassist D.D. Verni and lead vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth as the only remaining original members. The band's current lineup includes Verni, Ellsworth, Dave Linsk on lead guitar, Derek Tailer on rhythm guitar, and Jeramie Kling as a touring drummer. Along with Nuclear Assault and Anthrax, the latter of whom would feature one-time Overkill lead guitarist Dan Spitz, the band is one of the most successful East Coast thrash metal bands, and they are often called "the Motörhead of thrash metal", based on their unique playing style, which was influenced by punk rock and the new wave of British heavy metal . The band has a notable mascot named "Chaly" who has appeared on many of their album covers.
Overkill has released twenty studio albums, an album of cover songs, two EPs, one demo tape and three live albums. They were one of the first thrash metal bands to be signed to a major label , and rose to popularity as part of the genre's movement of the mid-to-late 1980s, along with the "Big Four" as well as Exodus and Testament. Overkill achieved their first mainstream success with its second studio album and Atlantic debut, Taking Over , which peaked at number 191 on the Billboard 200. The band's next five studio albums—Under the Influence , The Years of Decay , Horrorscope , I Hear Black and W.F.O. —were also successful on the Billboard charts, with the latter two cracking the top ten on the Top Heatseekers chart. Following their split from Atlantic in 1995, Overkill went through some label changes, but continued to enjoy moderate underground success, particularly in Europe and Japan. The band experienced a resurgence of popularity in the U.S. during the 2010s, with three of their studio albums released that decade—The Electric Age , White Devil Armory and The Grinding Wheel —reaching the top 100 on the charts. Overkill has sold over 16 million records worldwide; they are also estimated to have sold more than 625,000 records in the U.S. since the beginning of the SoundScan era.
Overkill was formed in 1980 by members of the punk band the Lubricunts, which featured bassist D.D. Verni and drummer Rat Skates. Verni and Skates placed an ad looking for a guitarist and lead singer, which was answered by guitarist Robert Pisarek and singer Bobby Ellsworth, and the first incarnation of Overkill was formed. After rejecting several names, including Virgin Killer, the band finally settled on Overkill, named after Motörhead's second album.
Early covers, especially those done under the Virgin Killer name, were punk songs by the Ramones, the Dead Boys and others. By late 1980, the band's setlist was made up of songs by bands such as Motörhead , Judas Priest , and Riot. Along with the new influx of heavy metal covers, the band still played a smattering of punk covers, with extra distortion, intensity, and speed. In 1981, the band went through a succession of guitarists after Robert Pisarek left, first being replaced by Dan Spitz and Anthony Ammendola, then Rich Conte and Mike Sherry, before settling with Bobby Gustafson in late 1982/early 1983. It was around this time that the band started writing original songs, including "Grave Robbers" , "Overkill", and "Unleash the Beast ". More songs would follow, such as "Death Rider" and "Rotten to the Core" . As the band continued to write songs, they became a staple at New York and New Jersey clubs, such as L'Amour.
In 1983, the lineup of Verni, Skates, Ellsworth, and Gustafson released the Power in Black demo, a recording that made as much impact in the underground tape trading circuit as demos by then-up-and-coming Bay Area thrash metal bands such as Exodus and Testament. Power in Black gained the band two compilation appearances: "Feel the Fire" was included on New York Metal '84 while "Death Rider" appeared on the fifth volume of Metal Blade Records' Metal Massacre series. The success of Power in Black also enabled the band to secure a small recording deal with Azra/Metal Storm Records that resulted in the 1985 four-track EP Overkill, which quickly sold out, instantly pushing the band to the forefront of the fledgling thrash metal movement. Long out of print, the vinyl-only EP is now considered a rare collector's item and all the songs appeared eleven years later on the compilation album !!!Fuck You!!! and Then Some.
Though it is said that the band never saw any money from the release, the Overkill EP garnered the band massive underground interest, and the attention of Jon Zazula, owner of Megaforce Records, one of the most prominent independent heavy metal record labels at the time. Megaforce signed Overkill to a multi-album record contract and released their full-length debut album Feel the Fire in 1985. Hailed by many critics and fans as a thrash metal masterpiece, the album cemented the band's position as one of the driving forces of the East Coast thrash metal movement. The band spent the better part of 1985 and 1986 touring in support of Feel the Fire, touring Europe with Anthrax and Agent Steel, and supporting Slayer on their Reign in Blood tour in North America. Overkill's grueling tour schedule and the growing buzz for Feel the Fire resulted in the band being courted by several major labels; they were eventually signed to Atlantic Records, making Overkill one of the early thrash metal bands to sign to a major label.
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