Annihilator

Annihilator is a Canadian heavy metal and thrash metal band formed in 1984 by its leader and only permanent member Jeff Waters. The band did not land its first contract with the record company Roadrunner until 1989, after a first self-produced record in 1986, titled "Phantasmagoria", which remained confidential and is today impossible to find. The band's early days saw the participation of John Bates, who even took part in writing songs on at least three Annihilator albums and would also be the founder of Bates Motel and then Big John Bates, a rock outfit with a burlesque show. The first real album Alice in Hell thus came out in 1989 on the Roadrunner label. Its musical quality allowed it to immediately meet with relatively significant success and it ranked at the time as one of the best sellers of the Roadrunner label.