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"Welcome to the gutter, we've been expecting you! HAHAHA!"
"Hello from the Gutter"

Overkill is a Thrash Metal band from New Jersey. They rose to prominence in the early 80's due to their energetic performances and speedy punk-influenced music. They are usually described as "blue-collar" and "working man's group," for their steady schedule of releasing albums and live-tours.

They released White Devil Armory in July 2014, which makes it their third straight album released bi-annually.


Members:

  • D.D. Verni – bass, backing vocals (1980–present)
  • Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth – lead vocals (1980–present)
  • Dave Linsk - lead guitar, backing vocals (1999–present)
  • Derek Tailer – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2002–present)
  • Jason Bittner – drums (2017–present)

Former Members:

  • Rat Skates – drums (1980–1987)
  • Robert "Riff Thunder" Pisarek – guitars (1980–1981)
  • Anthony Ammendola – guitars (1981)
  • Dan Spitz – guitars (1981)
  • Rich Conte – guitars (1981–1982)
  • Mike Sherry – guitars (1981–1982)
  • Joe – guitars (1982)
  • Bobby Gustafson – guitars (1982–1990)
  • Mark Archibole – drums (1987)
  • Sid Falck – drums (1987–1992)
  • Rob Cannavino – guitars (1990–1995)
  • Merritt Gant – guitars (1990–1995)
  • Andy Jones – drums (1992–1993)
  • Tim Mallare – drums (1993–2005)
  • Joe Comeau – guitars, backing vocals (1995–1999)
  • Sebastian Marino – guitars (1995–1999)
  • Ron Lipnicki – drums (2005–2017)

Discography:

  • Overkill (1984, EP)
  • Feel the Fire (1985)
  • Taking Over (1987)
  • Fuck You (1988, EP)
  • Under the Influence (1988)
  • The Years of Decay (1989)
  • Horrorscope (1991)
  • I Hear Black (1993)
  • W.F.O. (1994)
  • The Killing Kind (1996)
  • From the Underground and Below (1997)
  • Necroshine (1999)
  • Coverkill (1999)
  • Bloodletting (2000)
  • Killbox 13 (2003)
  • ReliXIV (2005)
  • Immortalis (2007)
  • Ironbound (2010)
  • The Electric Age (2012)
  • White Devil Armory (2014)
  • The Grinding Wheel (2017)
  • The Wings of War (2019)
  • Scorched (2023)


This band provides examples of:

  • Absurdly-Spacious Sewer: On the cover of Under the Influence, as seen above.
  • Animated Music Video: Some parts of "Hello from the Gutter."
  • Audience Participation Song: "We don't care what you say! FUCK YOU!" When Bobby says those words, you know those middle fingers are going up.
  • Badass Creed: "In Union We Stand" from Taking Over.
  • Callback: "Overkill III" opens with same acoustic piece which "Overkill II" ended with.
  • Cover Version: They have covered "Sonic Reducer" by Dead Boys, "Fuck You" by The Subhumans (the Canadian one), "Frankenstein" by Edgar Winter, "We Gotta Get Out of This Place" by Animals, "Under the Blade" by Twisted Sister, "Emerald" by Thin Lizzy, and "Man in Black" by Johnny Cash.
  • Epic Rocking: "The Answer", "Overkill II (The Nightmare Continues," "Fatal If Swallowed," "End of the Line," "Playing With Spider/Skullkrusher," "Who Tends the Fire," "Years of Decay," "Gasoline Dream," "Burn You Down/To Ashes."
  • Executive Meddling: A positive example; When they sent one of their demos to Metal Storm it was released as an extended play.
  • Fun with Acronyms: W.F.O. (Wide Fucking Open) and "The SRC" (Subterranean Resistance Cult) from Ironbound
  • Greatest Hits Album: They have two: Hello from the Gutter: The Best of Overkill and Then and Now.
  • Groove Metal: I Hear Black through Immortalis. W.F.O. was something of a compromise between groove and thrash, while Bloodletting is where the thrash truly started to creep back in.
  • Instrumentals: "Frankenstein," "Ghost Dance," "R.I.P. (Undone)" and "Feeding Frenzy"
  • Intercourse with You: "Fatal If Swallowed," "Head First."
  • In the Style of: According to Blitz, the White Devil Armory bonus track "The Fight Song" is apparently very much in the vein of The Ramones, New York Dolls, and Sham 69.
  • Last Chorus Slowdown: "In Union We Stand," from Taking Over.
  • Lead Bassist: D.D. Verni is equal parts Type A and C; not only is he known for his aggressive and technical playing style, but he is also the only founding member left after Rat Skates' departure.
  • Long Runner: With 18 studio albums released, they are one of thrash metal's longest recording bands.
  • Long Runner Lineup: They went twelve years without a lineup change between 2005 and 2017, when Lipnicki quit (though he had not been touring for some time before he formally left).
  • Lyrical Dissonance: "Hello from the Gutter" (from the third album) is an upbeat song about living in piss poor conditions in the sewers of New York City.
  • Mascot / Metal Band Mascot: Chaly, a horned skull with bat wings.
    • They have gotten in arguments with Avenged Sevenfold for their similar-looking Deathbat, going so far to send them shirts with Chaly and the words "Get Your Own Fucking Logo!" on them.
  • Metal Scream: Blitz is a solid Type 4.
  • New Sound Album: I Hear Black introduced band's Groove Metal sound for the 90's.
  • Numbered Sequels: "Overkill" from from self-titled EP and Feel the Fire has currently four sequels.
    • Also, Killbox 13, ReliXIV, and Immortalis (look at the last two letters) are the 13th, 14th, and 15th releases in the band's main discography.
  • Obsession Song: "Certifiable" from The Killing Kind.
  • Portmantitle: Song titles "Soulitude" and "Genocya" and the albums Coverkill and ReliXIV.
  • Quit Your Whining: "Drunken Wisdom" appears to be from the perspective of someone getting frustrated of someone's whining and telling the angster where to shove it.
    Why don't you get yourself a life? Just get the fuck out of here!
  • Sampling: "The Wait/New High in Lows" from W.F.O. opens with the "Here comes the pain!" quote from Carlito's Way.
  • Stage Names: Several founders had stage names, all of which were references to their favorite punk acts:
    • Bobby Ellsworth = Bobby Blitz (reference to Johnny Blitz from the Dead Boys)
    • Carlo Verni = D.D. Verni (reference to Dee Dee Ramone)
    • Lee Kundrat = Rat Skates (reference to Rat Scabies from The Damned)
  • Special Guest: This was Eddy Garcia's role as a touring drummer, due to Ron Lipnicki's decision to leave. He did not formally join, however, and Jason Bittner got the call and joined full-time.
  • Strictly Formula: Put in an Overkill album, and you pretty much know exactly what you're getting.
  • Spell My Name With An S: Due to the way their logo is styled, some people write the band's name as "Over Kill."
  • Subdued Section: "In Union We Stand," "Electric Rattlesnake" (compared to the rest of the song), and "Good Night"
  • Title-Only Chorus: "Elimination"

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