Edward J. Repka (born October 22, 1960) [1] is an American graphic artist, best known for creating album covers for metal bands as well as shirt designs, including those featuring Megadeth's mascot Vic Rattlehead. Repka's portfolio also includes Dark Angel's logo and model designs for the Hellraiser films. He works for the National Entertainment Collectibles Association as their lead painter and head of art direction.
Repka's artwork based on the original Universal Studios film The Wolf Man was used as the cover art for the first issue of horror magazine HorrorHound.
Repka admits that despite being known as the "King of Thrash Metal Art," [2] he is not a big fan of the genre. He is more into the punk genre like the Misfits. [3]
Thrash metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo. The songs usually use fast percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead guitar work.
Death Angel is an American thrash metal band from Daly City, California, initially active from 1982 to 1991 and again since 2001. They have released nine studio albums, two demo tapes, one box set and three live albums. The band has gone through several line-up changes, leaving guitarist Rob Cavestany as the only constant member; he and vocalist Mark Osegueda are the only members of to appear on all of their studio albums.
Bay Area thrash metal referred to a steady following of heavy metal bands in the 1980s who formed and gained international status in the San Francisco Bay Area in California. Along with Central Florida, the scene was widely regarded as a starting point of American thrash metal, crossover thrash and death metal.
Scream Bloody Gore is the debut studio album by American death metal band Death, released on May 25, 1987, by Combat Records. It is considered by many to be "the first true death metal record". Chuck Schuldiner, the band’s founder and leader, performed guitar, bass and vocals, and composed all tracks on the album.
Vic Rattlehead is the illustrated mascot of the American thrash metal band Megadeth. Vic is a skeletal figure wearing a suit who embodies the phrase "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" as well as a symbol of censorship. His eyes are covered by a riveted-on visor, his mouth is clamped shut, and his ears are closed with metal caps.
Heathen is an American thrash metal band originating from the San Francisco Bay Area, active from 1984 to 1993 and again from 2001 onwards. Despite never achieving commercial success, the band is often credited – alongside Exodus, Testament, Forbidden, Death Angel and Vio-lence – as one of the leaders of the Bay Area thrash metal scene of the mid-to-late 1980s, and they have gone through several lineup changes, leaving guitarist Lee Altus as the only constant member. To date, Heathen has released four studio albums: Breaking the Silence (1987), Victims of Deception (1991), The Evolution of Chaos (2009) and Empire of the Blind (2020).
Morrisound Recording is an audio recording facility in Tampa, Florida, United States, owned and operated by brothers Jim and Tom Morris. Since its opening in 1981, Morrisound has been responsible for the popularization of death metal, but caters to other genres.
Terrorizer was an extreme music magazine published by Dark Arts Ltd. in the United Kingdom. It was released every four weeks with thirteen issues a year and featured a "Fear Candy" covermount CD, a twice yearly "Fear Candy Unsigned" CD, and a double-sided poster.
This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 1989.
This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 1990.
Hazardous Mutation is the second album by the American crossover thrash band Municipal Waste. It is also the band's debut on Earache Records. The album's main theme is zombies, other monsters, and partying all tied together with humorous yet brutal lyrics. It was also released as a special edition with a bonus live DVD. It was the first album produced by Nick Poulos.
Evildead is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1986. The band was originally composed of members of two former bands, Agent Steel and Abattoir, including guitarist Juan Garcia, who is their only remaining original member. During their initial nine-year run, Evildead released two studio albums: Annihilation of Civilization (1989) and The Underworld (1991). Evildead suffered from extended inactivity due to lineup changes and problems with making a third album, which resulted in their breakup in 1995. After a reunion from 2008 to 2012, the band reformed once again in 2016, and have since released two more studio albums: United $tate$ of Anarchy (2020) and Toxic Grace (2024).
Victims of Deception is the second album by the American thrash metal band Heathen, which was released in 1991 by Roadrunner Records. It was re-issued by Metal Mind Productions in 2006 as a digipak in a limited amount of 2,000 numbered copies.
William Lee Rauch was an American drummer who played in several thrash metal bands based in California from 1983 to 1987.
Toxic Holocaust is an American thrash metal band from Portland, Oregon.
Juan García , also known as Juan of the Dead, is a Cuban-American guitarist. He is perhaps best known as the guitarist for the thrash metal bands Agent Steel and Evildead and the power metal/speed metal band Abattoir. Garcia is also the rhythm guitarist of Body Count.
Suicidal Angels are a Greek thrash metal band formed in 2001 in Athens, Greece, by guitarist/vocalist and main songwriter Nick Melissourgos. Since its inception, the band has released eight studio albums, and has gone through several line-up changes leaving Melissourgos as the only constant member.
Hyades is a thrash metal band from Busto Arsizio, Italy, formed in 1996.