(1994)-were also successful on the Billboard charts, with the latter two cracking the top ten on the Top Heatseekers chart. The band's next five studio albums- Under the Influence (1988), The Years of Decay (1989), Horrorscope (1991), I Hear Black (1993) and W.F.O. Overkill achieved their first mainstream success with its second studio album and Atlantic debut, Taking Over (1987), which peaked at number 191 on the Billboard 200. They were one of the first thrash metal bands to sign to a major label (having signed to Atlantic Records in 1986), and rose to fame as part of the genre's movement of the mid-to-late 1980s, along with the 'big four' ( Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax) as well as Exodus and Testament. To date, Overkill has released nineteen studio albums, an album of cover songs, two EPs, one demo tape and three live albums.

The band has a notable mascot named 'Chaly', a skeletal bat with a skull-like face, horns, bony wings and green eyes, who has appeared on most of their album covers. Along with Nuclear Assault and Anthrax, whose one-time lead guitarist Dan Spitz was also an early member of Overkill, 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. In addition to Verni and Ellsworth, Overkill's current lineup includes Dave Linsk on lead guitar, Derek Tailer on rhythm guitar and Jason Bittner on drums. Verni and lead vocalist Bobby 'Blitz' Ellsworth as the only constant members. They have gone through many line-up changes, leaving bassist D. Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey.

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