Death – Symbolic

The story of Death begins near Orlando, Florida, circa 1984, when vocalist/guitarist Schuldiner formed a band named Mantas with guitarist Rick Rozz and drummer Kam Lee. Although they’d yet to finish high school, the eager teens quickly set about trying to replicate the most excessive heavy metal sounds imaginable, which they often heard on demos obtained via the bustling underground tape-trading circuit existent at the time. Many of these heavy metal sounds originated in the U.K., where bands like Iron Maiden, Angel Witch, and Venom were riding high on the New Wave of British Heavy Metal; others in continental Europe, where diabolical agents like Mercyful Fate, Hellhammer, and Bathory were sowing the seeds of black metal; and others still in the American West Coast, where young bands like Metallica, Slayer, and Exodus were redefining the genre by injecting it with unprecedented speed and energy, thus giving birth to thrash metal. All of these developments converged to spark the young Floridian’s excitement, and the soon-to-be rechristened Death spent the next few years refining their chops through endless, arduous rehearsals and sporadic live performances. Their hard work and perseverance finally paid off when a three-song demo tape called “Mutilation” began drawing rave reviews in the metal underground, soon convincing Bay Area-based thrash specialists Combat Records to sign the group.