D. D. Verni
This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. (March 2010) |
D.D. Verni | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Carlo Verni |
Also known as | D.D. Verni, D.D. Blaze |
Born | 12 April 1961 |
Origin | New Jersey, United States |
Genres | Thrash metal |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter, composer, producer |
Instruments | Bass, guitar, vocals |
Years active | 1979–present |
Labels | E1 Entertainment – Nuclear Blast Records |
Associated acts | Overkill, The Bronx Casket Co. |
Carlo "D.D." Verni (born 12 April 1961) is an American musician, songwriter, and producer, best known as a founding member, bassist and songwriter of the band Overkill. He and vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth are the only two remaining original members throughout the band's history. In addition to his work with Overkill, Verni has recorded four albums with his side project the Bronx Casket Co. and released several solo projects. He is also the composer of The Bronx Casket Co....A New Musical.[1]
Music career[]
Pre-Overkill bands[]
In 1976, Verni met Rat Skates, who had been learning to play drums since age 15, at New Providence High School.[2] They shared the same musical interests in hard rock bands like Kiss, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Starz, Black Sabbath, and Rainbow, and were then introduced to punk music such as The Damned, The Ramones, The Vibrators, and Generation X. The three formed a punk group known as The Lubricunts in 1979. The group disbanded in 1980, and Verni, along with bandmate Skates, posted an advertisement for a vocalist and guitarist to join the band. Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth answered the ad, and brought guitarist Rob Pisarek.
Overkill[]
After rejecting several names, the band finally settled on "Overkill". Their early covers included punk songs by The Ramones and The Dead Boys. By late 1980, the band had recruited dual guitarists, and the setlist was made up of songs by bands such as Motörhead ("Overkill", half of the Ace of Spades album), Judas Priest ("Tyrant" was their closer), and Riot. Along with the new influx of heavy metal covers, the band still played a smattering of punk covers, with extra distortion, intensity, and speed marking Overkill as one of the first thrash bands.
At this point, the band started writing original songs, including "Grave Robbers" (later renamed "Raise The Dead"), "Overkill", and "Unleash the Beast (Within)". More songs followed, including "Death Rider" (1981) and "Rotten to the Core" (1982). In 1983 Rich[clarification needed] left and Bobby Gustafson remained as the sole guitarist. The band became a staple at New York and New Jersey clubs, such as L'Amours, and Verni gave Ellsworth the nickname "Blitz" due to his over-the-top lifestyle. Verni has been the sole songwriter for the music of Overkill since Horrorscope.[1]
Overkill released their first album Feel the Fire in 1985, and along with their contemporaries (including Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth and Anthrax), they helped define a new genre of music, known as "thrash metal". Overkill have released 19 full-length albums as well as two live albums and EPs, and several DVDs. They have done thousands of shows for millions of fans and toured extensively. They have appeared in many major music publications and have sold millions of records worldwide. Verni's signature bass sound is regarded as one of the most definable in heavy metal. He usually plays with a pick as opposed to with his fingers.
Work outside of Overkill[]
Verni released his first solo album, Barricade, in 2018.[3] He will also release a debut album under the name D.D. Verni & The Cadillac Band, Cadillac Man, on September 17, 2021.[4]
Discography with Overkill[]
Title | Type | Label | Year |
---|---|---|---|
Power in Black | Demo | Blood Metal Music | 1983 |
Overkill | EP | Azra / Metal Storm | 1984 |
Feel The Fire | Studio album | Megaforce | 1985 |
Taking Over | Studio album | Megaforce/ Atlantic | 1987 |
!!!Fuck You!!! | EP | Megaforce/ Caroline | 1987 |
Under the Influence | Studio album | Megaforce | 1988 |
The Years of Decay | Studio album | Megaforce / Atlantic | 1989 |
Horrorscope | Studio Album | Megaforce / Atlantic | 1991 |
I Hear Black | Studio album | Atlantic | 1993 |
W.F.O. | Studio album | Atlantic | 1994 |
Wrecking Your Neck | Live album | CMC International | 1995 |
The Killing Kind | Studio album | CMC International | 1996 |
!!!Fuck You!!! and Then Some | EP | Megaforce | 1996 |
From the Underground and Below | Studio album | CMC International | 1997 |
Necroshine | Studio album | CMC International | 1999 |
Coverkill | Covers album | CMC International | 1999 |
Bloodletting | Studio album | Metal-Is | 2000 |
Wrecking Everything | Live album | Spitfire Records | 2002 |
Killbox 13 | Studio album | Spitfire Records | 2003 |
ReliXIV | Studio album | Spitfire Records | 2005 |
Immortalis | Studio album | Bodog Music | 2007 |
Ironbound | Studio album | Nuclear Blast Records | 2010 |
The Electric Age | Studio album | Nuclear Blast Records | 2012 |
White Devil Armory | Studio album | Nuclear Blast Records | 2014 |
Historikill: 1995–2007 | Box set | Nuclear Blast Records | 2015 |
Grinding Wheel | Studio album | Nuclear Blast Records | 2017 |
The Wings of War | Studio album | Nuclear Blast Records | 2019 |
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b Huey, Steve. "Biography: Overkill". Allmusic. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
- ^ Blabbermouth (10 July 2014). "Former OVERKILL Drummer RAT SKATES Uses HITLER And Holocaust Footage in Bizarre Anti-'Dictator' Video". BLABBERMOUTH.NET.
- ^ "OVERKILL's D.D. VERNI Reveals Artwork, Track Listing Of 'Barricade' Solo Album". Blabbermouth.net. 7 August 2018. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
- ^ "OVERKILL's D.D. VERNI Reveals Artwork, Track Listing Of 'Barricade' Solo Album". Blabbermouth.net. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
- Living people
- People from New Jersey
- 1958 births
- People of Calabrian descent
- American people of Italian descent
- 20th-century American bass guitarists
- Overkill (band) members
- American male bass guitarists
- 20th-century American male musicians
- American heavy metal bass guitarists