There was no true plan going into the record and the result was the sound that would later become known as thrash metal. This allowed them to release their first studio album.įeel the Fire was recorded in the “old school way”: two-inch tape, minimal effects, and big-size equipment. They were eventually discovered by Jon Zazula, owner of independent heavy metal record label Megaforce Records, after relentlessly calling him and ambushing him at Anthrax gigs.
After releasing the EP Overkill in 1984, the band became more prominent. The band released the demo Power in Black in 1984, which was quite popular in the underground tape trading circuit at the time.
Around early 1983, the band had found its ‘classic lineup’, with Bobby Blitz on the vocals, DD Verni on the bass, Rat Skates on the drums and Bobby Gustafson on the guitar. They played mostly covers from punk and metal bands, such as The Ramones, Dead Boys and Judas Priest. They have released 17 studio albums, one album of cover songs, three EPs and three live albums.Īfter going through several names, the band settled on the name Overkill, after the song of the same name by Motörhead. Hailing from New Jersey and formed in 1980, Overkill has always stayed true to their roots, never going away from the thrash metal sound that defined them and continues to tour and release albums to this very day. Several great ones would follow, of course, but Overkill was the first of the great ones, and quite possibly the greatest of all.One of the most popular thrash metal band from the East Coast, with the possible exception of Anthrax, Overkill has definitely established their reputation as one of the most consistent and persistent metal bands of all time. This, in addition to the solid track listing and Miller's production, makes Overkill a perfect Motörhead album. The band's classic lineup - Lemmy (bass and vocals), "Fast" Eddie Clarke (guitar), and "Philthy Animal" Taylor (drums) - is well in place here, and they seem eager to rip loose wildly on every single song. A number of Motörhead standards follow, among them "Stay Clean" and "No Class." Produced by Jimmy Miller, who had helmed a number of classic Rolling Stones albums ( Beggars Banquet, Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers, Exile on Main St., Goats Head Soup), Overkill sounds wonderful, especially on the numerous remastered editions of this album. The band's sound is fully formed here, and it totally explodes right off the bat on the five-minute title track.
Overkill is what followed, recorded in December 1978 and January 1979, and released not long thereafter. Motörhead, the band's self-titled debut from 1977, had been rush-recorded, and its stripped-down, super-raw sound wasn't all that impressive, at least not relative to what would follow. It's a ferocious album, for sure, perfectly showcasing Motörhead's trademark style of no holds barred proto-thrash - a kind of punk-inflected heavy metal style that is sloppy and raw yet forceful and in your face. In fact, some fans consider it their single best, topping even Ace of Spaces. Motörhead's landmark second album, Overkill, marked a major leap forward for the band, and it remains one of their all-time best, without question.