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OVERKILL
East coast thrashers Overkill are just that,
and they get better with age. We all are
overkill at one point right? Maybe, but I
doubt you could live up to the expectations
of Overkills fans. The original wrecking
crew for metal, Overkill has stayed so true
to their sound and yet never gets old or
sounds repetitive whatsoever. Not many bands
have dared this. Even with the line-up
changes, Overkill has remained the same.
I have been a fan for 21 years. My first
taste was “Taking Over”. D.D. Verni’s bass
is the most important factor. If I won the
lottery for someone to teach me the bass
guitar, I would choose D.D. Verni over Steve
Harris. Oh, the Maiden fans want to crush me
now, but that is exactly what D.D.’s bass
does! It crushes your senses like a tank
falling off a building! Listen to the song
“Skull Crusher” and you’ll get the point.
Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth is the next best
thing you get from this band. Between the
two, you get this very balanced sound.
Ellsworth can belt with the best of them. He
has great range and a sound of his own. He
has a side project The Cursed that is said
to be good, but I have not dared yet.
I will be honest I took a break from
Overkill and most metal for about 5 years.
It doesn’t matter why, but metal fell away
from me for a while. I did not really listen
to anything. I just went to sleep for 5
years. Then I was in a store saw Overkill’s
Killbox 13. I grabbed it. Brought it home
and
played it for the first time in front of my
wife, who can handle some Hard Rock but
really is a radio lover. Her face was
priceless! This album just took me by the
balls and held on. For me, it is a near
perfect album for Overkill despite some
other reviews.
I really envy this band. I want my lifestyle
to be like their music, but then I would
probably be divorced and in prison. I really
appreciate Overkill for throwing themselves
out there with the attitude of “We don’t
care what you say! Fuck you!” We all want to
believe we are that guy, but truth is, most
of us hold back. Overkill, unlike some of the
sellouts has not held back for 30 years.
How long can you stay in the gutter?
Tim Lynch -
HeavyMetalReview.com
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Overkill History From Overkill's
Site -
http://www.wreckingcrew.com
-Although everybody seems to have a
different account of who came first
in the world of New York/New Jersey
area thrash metal, it seems certain
that New Jersey’s Overkill have
stayed around the longest, and have
never let their fans down by
remaining musically consistent and
true to their roots for over 20
years and an unprecedented 14 full
length albums. Through much hard
work and a slew of infamous live
performances at New York area clubs
like L’Amours, Overkill established
a reputation as a blue-collar,
working man’s metal band. After the
band released a self-financed EP in
1984, Overkill broke onto the scene
in 1985 with Feel The Fire, a
crushing thrash assault on Megaforce
Records, the label to beat when it
came to 80’s thrash. The
self-proclaimed “Wrecking Crew” -
originally consisting of vocalist
Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth, bassist D.D.
Verni, guitarist Bobby Gustafson,
and drummer Rat Skates - were on a
tear, borrowing heavily from punk
rock roots while adding a venomous
metal crunch that allowed them to
compete favorably with peers like
Testament, Anthrax, and Megadeth.
- By 1987’s Taking Over, the band
had worked their way up to a deal
with Atlantic Records. This
relationship would last another 7
years based on the strength and
consistency of Overkill’s music.
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- 1988’s Under The Influence and 1989’s The
Years Of Decay represent Overkill in their
prime. Sid Falck would replace Rat Skates on
drums to bring his own brutal percussive
assault to Verni’s already powerful rhythm
section. The band had already established a
rabid fan base with songs like “Rotten To
The Core” and “Hammerhead” (as well as their
infamous cover of D.O.A.’s “Fuck You”), and
new songs like “Evil Never Dies” and “Hello
From The Gutter” would become Overkill
mainstays as well. A video for “Hello From
The Gutter” was garnering much fan response
when it received play on MTV’s “Headbangers
Ball”.
- 1991’s Horrorscope would bring great
changes for Overkill. Gustafson left the
band to pursue other interests. In his
place, the band recruited two guitarists,
Rob Cannevino and Merritt Gant (ex Faith Or
Fear), making them a 5-piece engine of
destruction. Rather than letting Gustafson’s
exit, and the resulting backlash from fans,
bring them down, Overkill shifted into an
even higher, more brutal gear.
- 1993’s I Hear Black saw the departure of
Sid Falck, and the arrival of Tim Mallare,
who would continue on with the band for over
10 years, and still calls Overkill home
today. 1994’s W.F.O. would be Overkill’s
final album with Atlantic, as they would
release their first official full-length
live assault, Wrecking Your Neck on CMC in
1995.
- 1996-1999 would see Overkill release 3
more full length albums (Killing Kind, From
The Underground and Below, and Necroshine)
as well as a collection of live tracks and
fan favorites (Fuck You! And Then Some) and
an album of cover tunes (Coverkill) with the
addition of Joe Comeau (ex-Liege Lord) and
Sebastion Marino (ex-Anvil) on guitars.
- In 2000, Overkill released Bloodletting on
Metal-Is, adding guitarist Dave Linsk to the
fray. The current Overkill lineup would be
completed with the release of the live album
Wrecking Everything and the addition of
second guitarist Derek Tailer in 2002.
- Finally, Overkill would release one of
their most well-received albums to date
Killbox 13 on Spitfire Records in 2003. As
fans rabidly await the imminent release of
their latest contribution on Spitfire,
ReliXIV, it seems obvious that Overkill are,
and always have been, a band that knows who
their fans are, knows what true metal fans
expect, and will settle for nothing but the
best from themselves. An entirely
self-produced album, ReliXIV is a
continuation of the Overkill legacy.
- Now with Bodog Music, the band is set to
rejoin forces with Jonny and Marsha Zazula,
previous owners of Megaforce Records, who
are now part of the Bodog Team in the United
States. Overkill will unleash its 15th
studio album, Immortalis, on October
9, 2007. The upcoming album features
Overkill's latest lineup, which, along with
founders Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and D.D.
Verni, includes guitarists Derek "The Skull"
Tailer and Dave Linsk, as well as the newest
member to join the band, drummer Ron
Lipnicki.
- There are few names as well respected as
Overkill, and with the resurgence of metal
in the music world, this band is poised to
return to the top. Overkill are ready to
show mature metal heads they still have it
and are geared up to teach the new schoolers
exactly how it's done.-
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