D. D. Verni

D.D. Verni
Background information
Birth name	Carlo Verni
Also known as	D.D. Verni
Born	April 12, 1961 (1961-04-12) (age 50)
Origin	New Jersey, USA
Genres	Groove metal, thrash metal, heavy metal, gothic metal
Occupations	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Bass, guitar, vocals
Years active	1980–present
Labels	Bodog Music
Associated acts	Overkill, The Bronx Casket Co.

D.D. Verni (born Carlo Verni), is an American bassist, best known as founding member and longtime bassist/songwriter of thrash metal band Overkill.^[1]

Early years

In 1976, Verni met Lee "Rat Skates" Kundrat in high school, who had been learning to play drums since age 15. They shared the same musical interests in hard rock bands like Kiss, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Starz, Black Sabbath, Rainbow and were then introduced to punk music such as The Damned, The Ramones, The Vibrators, Generation X, and through another classmate Fred Hensley (who became known as vocalist Billy Vector.) With Skates using drums that were borrowed from neighborhood friends, the three formed a punk group known as The Lubricunts in 1979 with another classmate Ken Sibley on guitar, who became known as Nick Fuse. The group disbanded in 1980, and Verni, along with fellow bandmate Skates, posted an advertisement for a vocalist and guitarist to join the band. Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth answered the ad, and brought guitarist Dan Spitz with him. Although a bassist, Blitz would focus on vocals in the new band.

Overkill

After rejecting several names, including "Virgin Killer", the band finally settled on "Overkill", after the Motörhead album of the same name. Early covers, especially those done under the "Virgin Killers" name, were punk songs by The Ramones, The Dead Boys and others. 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 would follow, including "Death Rider" (1981) and "Rotten To The Core" (1982). In 1983 Rich 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 D.D. gave Bobby the nickname "Blitz" due to his over-the-top lifestyle, a lifestyle that once earned Bobby an ejection from the band for a few days in 1983. Around this time, the classic green logo was adopted, which Rat Skates specifically designed to stand out on a poster loaded with red and black logos of other bands on the bill. Verni has been the sole songwriter for the music of Overkill, since Horrorscope. ^[2]

Discography with Overkill

D. D. Verni on Jalometalli Metal Music Festival 2008

Title	Type	Label	Year
Power In Black	Demo	Blood Metal Music	1983
Overkill	E.P.	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

References

1. ^ Huey, Steve. "Biography: Overkill". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p5086/biography. Retrieved 16 March 2010. 
2. ^ Huey, Steve. "Biography: Overkill". Allmusic. http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p5086/biography. Retrieved 16 March 2010. 

Persondata
Name	Verni, D. D.
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	1961-52-12
Place of birth
Date of death
Place of death