Dark Angel
Formed in Los Angeles, California, USA, in 1983, Dark Angel specialize in ‘ultra-heavy thrash metal’. The original line-up consisted of Don Doty (vocals), Jim Durkin (guitar), Eric Meyer (guitar), Rob Yahn (bass) and Jack Schwarz (drums). Early demos saw the band sign to Axe Killer Records resulting in the release of WE HAVE ARRRIVEDin 1984. Unfortunately this was a clumsy effort which at times made them sound unrehearsed. Soon after its release, Rob Yahn and Jack Schwarz left to be replaced by Mike Gonzalez (bass) and Gene Hoglan (drums), who would become the band's chief lyricist. Signing a new deal with Combat Records, they released DARKNESS DESCENDS. This brutally heavy and uncompromising album showed the band to have made the transition into a tight, cohesive unit. There was a lull in their recording career until they reappeared in 1989 with LEAVE SCARS. If anything, this release was even heavier. Featuring new vocalist Ron Rinehart, it also contained a cover version of Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song. The band then embarked on a European tour recording a live mini-album, LIVE SCARS, which was released in 1990 as a stop-gap until the next studio project. Before commencing work on that the band underwent another line-up shuffle replacing Jim Durkin with ex- Viking guitarist Brett Eriksen. Together they recorded TIME DOES NOT HEAL, a turbulent vortex of twisted riffs and savage drums. Definitely not a band for the faint-hearted, Dark Angel continued to combine unsavoury lyrics with ferocious musicianship, though by this point the impact had waned. Hoglan would go on to cause further sonic mayhem in Death.