Overkill

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. In fact, some fans consider it their single best, topping even Ace of Spaces. 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…

An integral part of the early 1980s thrash metal movement, New Jersey quartet Overkill were formed in 1980 by vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and guitarist Bobby Gustafson, and also included bassist D.D. Verni and drummer Rat Skates (later replaced by Sid Falck). The band garnered a reputation for brutal, pounding speed and technique, but lacked the musical diversity to compete with heavy hitters like Metallica; still, Overkill built up a strong following in the metal underground with albums like 1985's Taking Over and 1988's Under the Influence…

The band known for rejecting several names, which includes "Virgin Killer", this new band finally settled on "Overkill", naming themselves after a Motörhead album…

Despite releasing albums steadily since 1985, Overkill has never been the subject of a true best-of collection, in which all of their best known studio tracks are neatly compiled. And while the 2002 import double-disc set Hello from the Gutter shows great promise, it ultimately falls short, since quite a few of Overkill's best tracks are included here as live versions. It's not to say that they're not worth hearing, just that when you plunk down the ducats for a compilation, you're expecting the best known renditions to be included…