San Francisco's Death Angel are a product of the bustling Bay Area thrash metal scene of the '80s. Combining serious guitar crunch and speed with technical expertise, they create complex thrash filled with time changes and tricky arrangements, and are considered to be one of the "big eight" of the genre, alongside Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Testament, Exodus, and Overkill. Emerging in 1982, the group found underground success with their first two albums -- 1987's The Ultra-Violence and 1988's Frolic Through the Park -- before dipping their feet into the mainstream with their 1989 major-label debut Act III. Death Angel aren’t just a band, they are a family. Formed in the early '80s by cousins Mark Osegueda (vocals), Rob Cavestany (lead guitar), Gus Pepa (rhythm guitar), Dennis Pepa (bass), and Andy Galeon (drums), the group was also precocious; the band members recorded their 1986 Kirk Hammett-produced "Kill as One" demo while still in their teens. In fact, drummer Galeon was only 14 when Death Angel issued their first album, 1987's astoundingly mature The Ultra-Violence on Enigma Records. The following year's sophomore Frolic Through the Park offered a few slight refinements, most notably in the uncharacteristically humorous and accessible single "Bored." Signing with the Geffen Records hit factory the following year seemed like the next step toward certain stardom, and Death Angel left nothing to chance with their third album, 1990's superlative career highlight Act III