Damage Inc.

   

Damage Inc.
Damage Inc in 1982 from left; Max Leftfield, Griffin Beckett, Daniel Mustang, Gary Alaric (behind)
Background information
Origin	Porciúncula, Gold Coast, Sierra
Genres	Thrash metal speed metal heavy metal progressive metal
Years active	1979–1989 2006 2007 2022
Labels	Vanquish Records (1980-81) Avocado (1981-present)
Past members	Original line-up Max Leftfield Daniel Mustang Griffin Beckett (1979–1983) Gary Alaric (1979–1989) Kevin Eldridge (1983–1989) 2006, 2007 and 2022 line-ups Max Leftfield Daniel Mustang Kevin Eldridge Stephen Alaric Henry Leftfield Griffin Beckett (2022)
Associated acts	The Unfourgiven Speed Demons Lockjaw Sureiyaa

Damage Inc. (short for "Incorporation") was a Sierran thrash metal band formed in Porciúncula in 1979. Its original lineup consisted of guitarist/vocalist Max Leftfield, guitarist Daniel Mustang, bassist Griffin Beckett, and drummer Gary Alaric; in 1983 Beckett would leave to form his band, with Kevin Eldridge replacing him on bass shortly afterward. At the height of their fame in the 1980s, the band had popularized the Sierran thrash metal scene with songs such as "Whiplash" and "Four Mechanix", and are seen alongside Sureiyaa, Quikkill, and Lockjaw as one of the "big four" in Anglo-American thrash metal. In 1980, the band released its first album Damage Your Ass on the independent record label Vanquish Records, to minor commercial success but received critical acclaim, with the band landing their first venue gigs during this time. Due to their hectic performances and the album's notoriety spreading by word of mouth, the band had caught the attention of bigger labels, which led to Damage Inc signing with Avocado Records. The band's untitled second studio album, commonly known as Damage Inc., would be released in 1982 to moderate success, debuting at number 39 on the Sunset 100 chart. According to the Porciúncula Times, the album confirmed the band's status as the leading heavy metal band of the modern era, and for redefining the norms of thrash metal. Damage Inc. would be the last to feature bassist Griffin Beckett, who would leave the band after their 1983 Hail To The Victors tour to form his own band, later known as Lockjaw. He would be replaced by Kevin Eldridge.

In 1985, the band would release their third studio album, Last Rites, which peaked at number 26 on the Sunset 100 and receiving widespread acclaim from critics, whom praised its music and political messaging. It is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influential metal albums of all time. It would be certified five times Platinum by the RIAA in 2000 in the Kingdom of Sierra alone, and was later certified two times platinum in the United Kingdom. In 2015, Last Rites became the first metal recording to be selected by the Library of Parliament for preservation in the Federal Recording Depository for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." The band's subsequent tour in support of Last Rites from 1985 to 1987 would take a heavy toll on band members, with the group taking a hiatus in 1988. By 1989, the band would reconvene for work on their fourth and later final album, Peace Sells But No Ones Buying. During the recording process which lasted from April to August, drummer Gary Alaric suffered immensely from alcoholism stemming from his personal life, and by the end, his deterioration was evident. After the album's mixing and mastering had been completed in September 1989, Alaric would move to San Francisco City, dying that October before the band's scheduled tour from an overdose on Methaqualone, known commonly as Quaaludes. His death would cancel the tour, with the remaining members announcing to fans outside of the Avocado Records headquarters in November that the band would dissolve following the album's release, feeling that they would not be "Damage Inc" without him.

Peace Sells But No Ones Buying would be released on 8 December 1989 and become Damage Inc's best-selling album upon release, peaking at number two on the Sunset 100, where it charted for 98 weeks, and featured the band's first Sunset Hot 50 single, "One", which peaked at number 44 as well as being the band's only song to have a music video, being recorded prior to Alaric's death. It would be nominated for a Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental at the 31st Percy Awards. Peace Sells But No Ones Buying was certified platinum nine weeks after it was released in stores, and in 2013 was certified Diamond by the RIAA for unit sales of more than ten million. Despite Damage Inc being defunct, its band members would continue as an offshoot band or split off to form their own, the most popular of which being The Unfourgiven, co-founded by Leftfield and Eldridge, and Speed Demons, founded by Mustang.

Since the 1990s, more than a dozen live albums and compilations featuring the band's unreleased material, lost demos and outtakes have been released. Surviving former members of the band have sporadically collaborated and participated in one-off concerts. Notably, the band members would re-unite in 19 January 2006 for a performance at the Occidental Palace's ballroom in honor of the recently-coronated King Charles II, a huge fan of the band in his youth, with the rehearsal and performance being released as a live album. In 2007, Damage Inc was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, of which the members would attend but would only perform "One". The third and more recent of these re-union concerts was the 2022 Fight Fire with Fire Concert held at Overstars Center in Grands Ballons to raise awareness for the 2022 Sierran wildfires, with revenue going to those affected. The performance featured a returning Beckett on bass while Eldridge played acoustic and rhythm guitar. During these post-break up re-unions, their line-up features drums performed by both Alaric's son, Stephen Alaric, and Leftfield's son, Henry Leftfield.

History

1979–1981: Formation, Damage Your Ass and signing to Avocado

Vocalist and guitarist Max Leftfield (L) and drummer Gary Alaric (R) were founders of Damage Inc.

Damage Incorporation, initially known as Seringe, was formed in Porciúncula, Gold Coast, by guitarist and frontman Max Leftfield, bassist Louis Jones, and drummer Gary Alaric, in January 1979. Leftfield and Alaric had been friends since a young age, previously playing together in a short-lived band known as Maniakal before later settling on Seringe after some of their teachers, hearing the trio rehearse during lunch time, alerted their parents of the band's "demonic" lyrics. Afterward the band was banned from rehearsing in their highschool, the two stuck together and brought in Jones to form a new group, where they would rehearse a set mainly formed of covers by various rock artists, including Planetaria, Leviathan, and Dred Tenets, in Jones' garage. The band underwent several line-up configurations that included firing Jones over reported drug abuse and laziness, hiring Caden Lars to replace him due to Lars being able to host rehearsals in his parent's garage, and hiring Daniel Mustang as lead guitarist due to his expensive equipment. Shortly after becoming a four-piece band of Leftfield, Alaric, Lars, and Mustang, the band would begin performing at local clubs. They would be scouted by Roger Stanwood, an independent talent agent, whom would be hired to be their manager on the promise of more concerts. As Mustang recounted decades later, "Stanwood came along. He had no real reputation yet in music [or anything]. He was just kind of an agent working in Porciúncula. So he started directing the band and he just thought I wasn't suitable, for whatever reasons he had. I don't know whether it was the way I looked, or my religious background – who the fuck knew? Anyway, he influenced them and they went along with it, Max Leftfield and Caden Lars, and I was kicked out." With Mustang kicked out of the band, Stanwood would hire Johnnie Hagg as a replacement with the group of Leftfield, Alaric, Lars and Hagg naming themselves Stain. After a disastrous gig with Hagg where the band was boo-ed off stage, the band fired both Stanwood and Hagg, and invited Mustang back to the group to continue as Seringe. Mustang stated, "I started my own band and I was, frankly speaking, doing much better than they were. Then, one night I got a call from Max and he said, 'Can we get together?' Basically, 'Can you please come back? We fucked up and we're sorry.'"

Damage Inc performing on 15 April 1980 at The Boom Room in Grands Ballons.

On 6 October 1979, Lars would quit the band due to differences arising between him and Leftfield, leaving the trio. The following day, Alaric and Leftfield would attend a show at the Providencia nightclub Orchid Court, which featured bassist Griffin Beckett in the band ToeJam. The two were "blown away" by Beckett's use of a wah-wah pedal and asked him to join Seringe, and although Beckett initially declined the offer, by December, he had accepted the offer due to lead singer Cam Jackson of ToeJam dying at age 22 due to an accidental overdose and the band subsequently breaking up. Beckett would suggest a name change to Damage Incorporation, shortened to Damage Inc., which the members agreed. In early 1980, Damage Inc recorded its first original song, the Leftfield-penned "Hit the Lights", at a studio located inside Hard Carnage Records for their upcoming compilation album, Heavy Metal Annihilation, after founder Caleb Dolton was handed a demo following the band's performance at a local bar. During this time, the group had started out playing covers of songs by bands such as Torkbrain, Steel Clergy, Nympho Guns, and the Redeemers at parties and clubs, though Leftfield and Mustang would periodically write their own songs for the band to play. On 21 March 1980, Heavy Metal Annihilation, Vol. I was released; early pressings listed the band incorrectly as "Damnage Ink", angering the band and leading themselves to distance from Dolton. Despite this, the song generated underground buzz by word of mouth and the band played its first major gig on 15 April, at The Boom Room in Grands Ballons, Gold Coast. Based on the strength of a new demo Fist Full of Metal, recorded in Beckett's garage during March and including songs later included on their debut, with Leftfield's "Hit the Lights", "Take Your Breath Away", "Seek & Destroy"; Mustang's "Jump In The Fire", "Four Mechanix", and "Metal Militants"; and Beckett's "Anesthesia", they were chosen to open for Brazorian heavy metal band Loaded Chamber at three gigs of their 1980 K.S. tour, though despite giving their demo tapes out to various label A&Rs, none would sign the band however the tapes themselves would be bootlegged heavily, leaving the band without much money due to their binge lifestyle at the time.

On 2 June 1980, Damage Inc was invited to open for the Sierran rock band Monger at the Woodwind Wonders Club in Glendale, Gold Coast. They would perform six of their own songs, including a performance of "Four Mechanix" where Mustang knocked out a man on stage mid-solo for winking towards the man's girlfriend, then proceeding to finish the solo, while they would additionally perform two cover songs. During this performance, the band would be spotted by Dan Tyler, a local record store owner whom had recently founded Vanquish Records in the store's basement. Impressed with the band's "raw energy", he met with them backstage and offered the band a recording contract after listening to their demo. In contract, the band was given $10,000 to record and produce their debut album, though they would not have ownership over the master recordings featured on the album. The recording of the album turned out to be very difficult for the band however, as Beckett and Mustang were both homeless at the time and Alaric would not show up for hours due to alcoholism. After spending $8,000 of the budget on drugs, alcohol, and food, the band, fed up over undesirable results in the sound quality, fired the original producer hired by Tyler, Mike Zachary, and finished the recording themselves in Leftfield's grandparent's garage with freelance engineer Terry Brown, with both Brown and Leftfield having producer credits in the album's liner notes. The band would set up mattresses and other sound-reduction materials to record the original master recording of their album, which they completed after two takes totally nearly three hours and featuring no additional, unreleased material, as the band's policy at the time was to only write songs if it were "record-worthy". Due to rapidly dwindling funds, the album was rushed into release, producing a low-fidelity sound in the mixing and stocking local shelves less than a week after the tracks were mastered. With ten tracks including a cover of "These Boots", Damage Your Ass was released on 12 September 1980 by Vanquish Records, generating substantial underground popularity for the band with an initial pressing of 5,000 copies being quickly sold out. Local newspaper critics at the time considered the album highly derivative of emerging New Wave of Brazorian Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) bands, though in later years the album has received praise for its "blistering technicality", with Porciúncula Times writer Edgar Byrd writing that "[The album] raised the bar for the whole thrash metal scene, with guitarists forced to perform even more accurately and powerfully". The album would further establish the sound of thrash metal, a subgenre from heavy metal defined by its rapid riffs and intense percussion.

The band performing on 22 September 1980 in Porciúncula.

After Damage Inc finished recording the album, they began their first tour abroad in Astoria and Superior with the band Latency and The Ripper Twins, both acts had also signed to Vanquish, as part of the label's Metal From Hell tour. Originally slated to last three months from 9 September to 15 November, the company would reportedly advance them barely enough money for their own tour bus, and often times the band members would take turns driving to their gigs and paying for their own food. About halfway through the tour, on 21 October, the tour bus that they had purchased stopped working, and without anymore funds, the band were forced to drop from the tour and return to Sierra. Soon afterward, they would be dropped by Vanquish though they would continue to perform throughout Porciúncula county. On 29 November, the band would have their first big-break when they were chosen as an opening act for five gigs on Planetaria's 1980–81 Televised Genocide tour. Lead singer of Planetaria, Ozzy Osburn, would send Jim Barr, an A&R representative of Avocado Records, the band's debut album Damage Your Ass to his office. Upon hearing it in December, Barr would call Osburn to talk to Leftfield over the phone, and after officially meeting at the Avocado Headquarters in San Francisco City in January 1981, Avocado would sign Damage Inc with an $80,000 advance as part of a $250,000 deal for two albums. Leftfield would recall in 2022 how positive the advance was for the band, stating "With the advance I could afford an actual car, I remember it was a 1968 Torino. It was used, seats were shit and I think it cost like $2,000. The hardest thing, and you can ask anyone, about growing up in Porciúncula was getting a ride anywhere. I used to have to ride, like, three buses to get to our rehearsal if my parents or somebody was at work. This was pre-Cabme, not that I would’ve been able to afford Cabme if it had been around... Getting your own car in LA is a right of passage."

1981–1983: Damage Inc. and Beckett's departure

In early 1981, it would be reported in local magazines that Damage Inc's previous album, Damage Your Ass, had sold over 40,000 copies. Though this didn't spite the band entirely, this reportedly angered Mustang over monetary losses, though he would later recall, "It didn't matter if we had finally made our [commercial break], all I remember is that I wanted blood. People around me began saying that the record was a 'one-time affair' or that I couldn't play guitar... really I wanted to be faster and heavier than past, present, and future bands." Fueled by the desire to produce a much heavier record than their prior, Mustang would elevate the intensity of his guitar playing almost as a challenge to the band's debut. Beginning in March, Damage Inc began composing new material in Leftfield's newly-bought house, soon to be dubbed the Metal Manor, and from July, began performing the songs that were to make up their second studio album at concerts. After spending most of their advance, the band members would often eat one meal a day and, if touring abroad, would stay at fans' homes while playing at clubs or festivals throughout the summer of 1981. Though initially wishing to keep the songs for their album, the band would enter Amethyst Sounds studio in Bernheim, San Joaquin after performing a show the same night to record an EP they could sell to recoup their costs. Before entering the studio, Leftfield had collected ideas using tape recordings of various jam sessions they thought were the best. The band would go through the tapes and select the strongest riffs to assemble into songs, with instruments being recorded separately and assembled with the help of another freelance engineer, Otto Maldonado, whom would be forced to act as executive producer after fights between Leftfield and Mustang became more frequent. The band members were not used to creating songs in a studio, as they had not done so for Damage Your Ass, and much preferred the live setting anyways. The drums, in particular, would be recorded in an empty warehouse at the back of the studio, which was not soundproof and caused immense reverberation. In total, five tracks would be arranged, two of which being covers, with the band pressing as many physical copies at the studio as they could to sell at their shows while the master tapes were delivered to Avocado Headquarters, where Harley Collins provided audio mastering and Jude Rivers worked on remastering.

The band during a live performance in Bernheim, San Joaquin.

The 23:02 EP, named after the extended play's runtime, would officially be released on 24 August 1981 by Avocado Records, being the band's first release to chart on the Sunset 100 after landing at number 65, and would grow the band's cult following for being darker and heavier than Damage Your Ass, laying the groundwork for the future direction in the band's sound. The band would go on tour to support the EP and other demos they had recorded to sell, both as headliners in small clubs and as an opening act for other bands. Around this time, the band had begun opening for Leviathan on their tour supporting their tenth album Tenth Circle, with Damage Inc playing their first mid-sized arena to widely positive reviews, leading to the band returning back stage afterward to various label A&Rs trying to sign them, with security being forced to intervene on one instance. Following the positive reception the EP had received, Damage Inc started officially recording for their debut album in February 1982, at Plateau Recordings in San Francisco City, San Francisco, primarily due it being down the block from the Avocado Headquarters and in close proximity to their hotel. Over a month's time, the band would hone their recording process as they grew more comfortable with their new producer, Jack Hayes, whom had previously produced Mustang's favorite album by Astorian thrash band Sureiyaa, Lotus (1981). With Hayes, these sessions would produce songs such as "Time To Die", "When Hell Freezes Over", and "For Whom The Bell Tolls", while earlier 'jam' recordings would be worked on and completed, with "Fade to Black", "The Ending Is Near", "Chosen Ones" and "Devil's Island" being among those. In an interview for Mind of Metal magazine that same month, the band revealed that they had finished most of their major label album, with Leftfield describing the sessions as a "total blur" but revealed that the songs they've recorded at that point as 'much faster' than "Four Mechanix" or "any other one" from their debut album.

Damage Inc's second studio album would be turned in to Avocado Headquarters shortly afterward, though the band had not given the album a title collectively and argued over it while the master tapes were mixed. The band's manager at the time, Charlie Collins, would suggest to the band they simply do not name it and to refer to it as the band's own name, "Damage Inc.". This would be the only title unanimously agreed upon by the band after Leftfield argued that their fans would know which records was theirs, so long as their name was on it. The artwork would be commissioned by graphic artist Jordan Burnham of the skateboard deck company and later magazine, RipTide, being the first artwork he had created for the band, which was originally based off of sketch drawings by Alaric, and would become a de facto logo for the band going forward. Damage Inc. would be released on 21 April 1982, debuting at number 39 on the Sunset 100 chart. Though the band faced controversy at the time over its "demonic" album cover portraying a flaming skull, and as such the album received no radio airplay nor critic reviews, it would attain a peak position of 25 in its fourth week after release. The album would also chart globally to lesser success, and by April 1986 it was certified Gold. In 2010, the album was certified 2× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for two million copies shipped in Sierra alone. In the years following its release, the album has achieved widespread acclaim from music critics, journalists, and musicians alike. The June 1984 review by Porciúncula Times writer James Smit would infamously grant the band a perfect "10/10" score on the album, crediting the group for redefining the norms of thrash metal by incorporating power ballads, refining what lacked on the group's debut, and specifically singled out "For Whom the Bell Tolls" as an example of Damage Inc's growing music potential. The January 2003 Sierra Media review by Shane McCarty would regard Damage Inc as an album where "speed metal becomes art" and for "setting the pace" of metal in the years to come.

Leftfield during a performance in the United Kingdom on 12 June 1982.

In promotion of the album, the band would embark on a co-headlining tour with Brazorian hard rock band A.C.E. from June to August 1982 in Europe, and September 1982 to March 1983 in North America. Unlike their prior tours, the band had hired tour personnel and secured proper bus transport. Billed as "Hail To The Victors", the first leg in Europe consisted of 30 shows, being a mixture of both concerts and festivals, to crowds ranging between 5,000 and 24,000, and grossing more than $750,000 on sales alone by its conclusion. The North American tour would consist of 84 shows among Conference of American States members, with the crowds as large as 50,000 at their Day in the Sky festival performance. The band would garner more notoriety surrounding each concert as the tour progressed, usually due to Mustang fighting a crowd goer who tossed something at the band mid-performance or arguing with someone on stage, or if the band were being interviewed and didn't like questions surrounding the themes of horror and violence in their lyrics, they would simply end the interview without answering any more questions. Footage of this would be included in the 2003 Rockumentary film based on the band, Damage Control: Thrash Incorporated, directed by Dave Coon and made without the band member's knowledge. In February 1983, the band would unexpectedly drop as a co-headliner on the tour amidst dates in Superior, returning to Sierra. Though many believed it to due member's illness, Leftfield would reveal the band had been banned for "two to three years", stating that on 29 January, shortly after playing a show in Saint Anthony, the band's manager Collins received a letter from then-President Alexander Ludendorff, who cited lyrics from the band's debut album as the reason for the ban despite the band having toured previously in the country specifically for their debut album. Upon returning to Sierra however, Beckett would leave the band over "private and personal reasons", and would later found the band Lockjaw. During a 1988 interview with Lockjaw, Beckett said he wanted to work on what would later be the band's debut album with drummer Joel Booth, which both Leftfield and Mustang were opposed to, with Beckett recalling Leftfield equating it to infidelity and raising questions such as, "Where would it end? Does he start touring with it? Is it his band?".

1983–1987: Eldridge joins and Last Rites

The band's lineup in 1983, from left to right: Kevin Eldridge, Daniel Mustang, Gary Alaric, and Max Leftfield.

After Beckett left, the band would hold auditions for a replacement on bass guitar at the Weeping Cannon studios in Porciúncula. Among those whom would audition include Rhys Wright of Bleeding Dog, Clark Ward, Louis Cox of Mass Hysteria, and Thomas Harris of The Scalping. It would be Kevin Eldridge of Killing Time, however, who would impress the band the most, with his perfect rendition of Beckett's solo and group portions "Anesthesia" being signaled out specifically by Alaric for the band's wish to hire him. After taking two months off from touring, the band would return on their third leg of the headlining Hail To The Victors tour, playing 18 shows in the Caribbean and South America between April and May 1983, supporting Ozzy Osburn in Columbia City, Antilles on the 3 and 4 June, and then returning to headline in Europe for an additional leg in the fall, with the tour concluding on 9 December. Since the beginning of the tour in 1982, the band had hired additional personnel to film their live performances for it to be included on a live album of the tour following its conclusion, however, with both Mustang and Leftfield's on-stage antics derailing songs, their banning from entering Superior, in addition to Beckett's departure, the original films to the band's 1982 tour performances has been considered lost. Performances featuring Eldridge in 1983, however, would first be compiled in the 2003 box set, Total Damnation, with the entirety of select performances from the tour being released on DVD as part of the 2019 box set, The Final Straw: 40 Years of Damage. Upon returning to Sierra, the band would fire their manager Collins and at Avocado's recommendation, the band would become a client of Mars Arts, which had previously managed bands such as A.C.E. and were additionally managing the Blind Lions at the same time, with their agent being Saúl Collazo.

Frustrated with the lack of overall reception the group felt they deserved, the rise of the glam metal scene and its domination on the mainstream charts, and Beckett's band Lockjaw receiving commercial success on the backdrop of the band routinely dissing Damage Inc at shows and in interviews, Damage Inc was spurred create an album that would impress both critics and fans alike. Despite their past records being primarily led by either Leftfield or Mustang, the band would collectively rehearse new songs in the garage of the Metal Manor in mid-1984. Eldridge would describe the songwriting process as starting with "either Mustang's guitar riffs or Alaric's drumming, which were either built upon or deconstructed until they started to sound like something good". The band would then devise a song title and theme, crafting lyrics to suit. They would record demo tapes in a newly-built studio inside Leftfield's house, but after being "unsatisfied with the acoustics of Sierran studios" they had considered, they would travel to Eldridge's native Anchorage, Alaska to record. After settling on NorthStar Frontier Studios due to their recording discography, the band would bring back Hayes to return as the band's producer for their third studio album, with Mustang coining the title for the record, Last Rites. Following their banning from Superior, they aimed to reshape public perception of heavy and thrash metal through socially conscious lyrics addressing themes of control, the occult, and abuse of power. Alaric's classical training and harmonic understanding enhanced the compositions and arrangements. According to music writer Jamar Ballard, Last Rites introduced a new level of heaviness and complexity in thrash metal, displaying atmospheric and precisely executed songs. Leftfield's vocals had matured from the hoarse shouting of the first two albums to a deeper, in-control, yet aggressive style. Being more comfortable in the studio, the recording would take longer than their previous albums due to the band's new sense sense of perfectionism and higher ambitions, with recording lasting from August 26 to 30 November 1984 and the band incorporating additional instruments such as piano and kettledrums, performed by Mustang and Alaric respectively.

Released on 11 January 1985, Last Rites had a 68-week run on the Sunset 100 album charts; it debuted on 25 January at number 88 and would peak at number 29 four weeks later. Sunset reported that more than 500,000 copies were sold in its first year despite virtually no radio airplay and no music videos, and in 2002, Last Rites was certified 5× Platinum by the RIAA for sales exceeding five million domestically. The album was less successful on an international level, despite entering the top 12 on the Scandinavian and British album charts and the top 50 on the German and French album charts in its inaugural year. In 1996, eleven years after release, it peaked within the top 15 in Astoria. In 2004, the album reached the top 50 on the Russian album charts. It has gone on to receive Platinum certifications in nine other countries. In retrospect, Leftfield cited Last Rites as his favorite album, "I feel Last Rites has a lot of everything. It's got instrumentals, it's got great segues, great riffs. It's got one of my favorite songs ever, "Pulling Your Strings", like any time I can hear that particular song, I'm all in. "Black Friday" is an amazing song too... It's just got everything that I hold dearly about Damage Inc."

Promotional poster featured outside venues of the Last Rites Tour during the 1985 fall European leg.

Damage Inc performing on the Last Rites Tour in 1985.

With more commercial viability and success than their prior records, Avocado would reportedly offer up an "impressive lot of money" to retain the band on their label as Heavy metal acts began to breakthrough further into the mainstream, which while Mustang wished for the band to leave, their personal 1981 agreement allowed a majority decision amongst band members, with Leftfield, Eldridge, and Alaric all wishing to remain on Avocado. They would go on to sign for three more records, with Avocado now retaining additional royalties over live recordings, touring, and publishing; a 360 deal with the only clause being the band keeping creative freedom over their music and its artwork. A major facet going against other major label offerings at the time for the band were consequentially their artist's portfolios, with Leftfield recalling a conversation with Sureiyaa's guitarist Kojima Kōno where he advised Damage Inc to "never, ever sign to O.P. Entertainment if you want to keep your soul". The band would embark on the Last Rites Tour in promotion of the album: initially they supported The Hookers in North America from February to July, in which they headlined a string of Brazorian dates between 21 May and 2 June with Houston Blues, and were the main act themselves throughout the fall and winter European legs with support from Sureiyaa and Noiseoasis. During the concluding sessions of the album, when the band felt exhausted or uninspired, Leftfield would sort through his bin of track tapes and the band would play covers of their favorite songs to lighten the mood, with these being recorded and later sold as an EP during the accompanying Last Rites tour as The $5.99 Covers EP on cassette, with the EP being officially released on CD as The $9.99 Covers EP, as an effort by the band to ensure distributors and retailers were not overcharging fans, with the original cassette sticker sold in stores featuring a sticker reading: "If they try to charge more, STEAL IT!".

In total, the band toured more than 350 shows between February 1985 and October 1987. Each member would suffer toward the end due to burnout, though due to the straining on his personnel relationships, Alaric would particularly begin a destructive lifestyle starting sometime amidst these tours in late 1986. During the band's early days, Alaric was known to partake in "a rainbow-like variety" of marijuana and pills, namely Amphetamines, but at the same time Mustang would recall his "reserved" nature in their earlier years. This early drug use would escalate into alcoholism and drug addiction later in life, with Alaric reflecting in a 1986 Newstar cover shoot of the band, "[We] went through the same stages everybody goes through – the bloody drug corridor. Really drinking suited us lot better." According to Mustang, Alaric began 'placing his mark' by destroying hotel rooms while Damage Inc were on their 1986 September–November European festival tour. In addition to hotel rooms, Alaric destroyed friends' homes—and even his own—including throwing furniture from upper-story windows. These acts, often fueled by drugs and alcohol, were Alaric's way of demonstrating his eccentricity and he enjoyed shocking the press with them. Longtime roadie, Miki Shunsen, observed: "He was trying to make people laugh and be Mr Goofy; he wanted people to love him and enjoy him, but he would go so far. Like a train ride you couldn't stop." By early 1987, his lifestyle had begun to undermine his health and reliability on the stage. One such incident, during the 1987 Drunk Disco tour where the band was supporting Den Boer on their own festival tour in Latin America and performing in front of 'tens of thousands' of people, Alaric had ingested a mixture of Methaqualone, known commonly as Quaaludes, and was seen visibly holding a bottle of whisky before their performance at SunFest '87. During the first song "Seek & Destroy", Alaric would sporadically jump in and out tune, leading to Leftfield forcing the band to restart the show but humorously replying, "We're in no rush... I don't think the audience is either," which would lead to some cheering, however, by the fourth song, "After You", Alaric had passed out on his drum kit. The band would stop playing, and a group of roadies carried Alaric offstage. Despite breathing, he would remain unconscious. The band continued without him for several songs before Mustang asked, "Can anyone play the drums? – I mean somebody good?" A drummer in the audience, 17-year old Lorenzo Moreira, came up and played the rest of the show, with Moreira later going on to be co-founder of Antillean black metal band Coveiro.

Elsie Sutton (pictured) would direct the only film Damage Inc would be featured in, The Dark Side of Rock, of which the band contributed to the soundtrack.

Despite Alaric's worsening addiction problems derailing live performances, the band would appear positive in their appearance in the 1987 documentary The Dark Side of Rock directed by Elsie Sutton, being her second documentary to chronicle a period of music, the first of which being The Decline of Western Civilization. Unlike the punk scene explored in the original 1979 documentary, The Dark Side of Rock explored the mid-80s Porciúncula heavy metal scene, notably highlighting many of the struggling, unsigned acts which appear convinced that worldwide stardom awaits them, despite no backup plan in place should this success fail to happen. Unlike the excess featured by acts such as The Hookers or Rome, in their interview with Sutton, Damage Inc would discuss with her about the way women, and groupies in particular, are treated terribly in the metal scene. At the end of the interview, Mustang grabs one of his guitars, smashing it on the set, and then joking that he'll have to "wipe [his] ass with 50s instead of 100s" to afford a replacement. The band would contribute a song to the soundtrack of the same name, "Take No Prisoners", recorded in the back of Chopper Music store, despite Alaric despising the sound of the acoustics. The soundtrack would be the only instance that both Damage Inc and their former member Beckett's band Lockjaw would be featured on the same track listing, as they would be interviewed in the movie as well.

1987–1989: Feuds, Peace Sells But No Ones Buying and Alaric's death

By the time Damage Inc had finished their concert circuit, their commercial viability had reached new heights. In prior years, radio stations had refused to outright play the "violent thrash" music, but through the underground popularization of acts such as themselves as well as Lockjaw and Sureiyaa, music request hotlines would be flooded with requests to the point where radio executives were forced to submit to playing heavier metal and thrash music out of fear of being boycotted entirely, while new radio stations such as Z99.6 "The Heavy" would gain national popularity by the late 1980s through a constant re-playing of records such as Damage Inc's Last Rites. So while Damage Inc were reaching the apex of their popularity, they would be drawn into a bitter feud with their former bassist Beckett and his thrash metal band Lockjaw. Initially there were no issues, as Beckett would sign to Sontune Music in 1985 and release their debut album, Catharsis. By 1987, however, the band's second album Life On The Wire was given a rare and coveted five-star rating by Porciúncula Times critic Clark Bergin, with Mustang revealing in a 1993 Sierra Media interview that the band all felt "slighted" because Last Rites had went un-reviewed only a year and a half prior and him personally feeling it had something to do with "label politics". After the release of The Dark Side of Rock, the feud would become commercially known as unknown to the band at the time, Lockjaw was also interviewed for the movie and their portion of the film featured the band dissing Damage Inc. At the beginning of the interview, while Beckett is with other bandmates Jay Russell and Riley Walsh at rehearsal before a concert, he would reveal then that "Leftfield equated my side work to infidelity" against Damage Inc, but dissing the band by saying, "She's a better broad, what can I say?". After the concert, Beckett continues their interview by asking the director, Sutton, to show them the song that Damage Inc had recorded for the soundtrack. The band, after listening, then disses them by remarking how, "they're gonna have to change their name, not a whole lot of 'damage' there," as well dissing Alaric's drumming, "sounds drunker than ever", before laughing it off. With the film's release, however, the band were reportedly fuming, not only about the disses aimed towards their group but due to this now-publicized feud, reporters and media outlets would swarm their houses to get any response. Mustang would recall in 1993 an instance where three reporters would try to ask him questions while using a bathroom at Shirley's.

Instead of respond to reporters and magazines, at the suggestion of their label and manager Saúl Collazo, the band focused on "releasing their frustration and anger" into their next album. Having previously recorded "Take No Prisoners" for the soundtrack film, Mustang, Alaric, as well as Leftfield would compile their own demo tapes of guitar riffs, drum patterns or vocal takes throughout 1988 while doing small festival performances instead of large-scale venues in an effort to save their faltering relationships. After being given a larger recording budget than their previous two albums, they would return to NorthStar Frontier Studios in Anchorage, Alaska, the same studio where they recorded Last Rites to record their fourth studio, and later final, album. Unlike the shorter sessions of their previous records, the band would spend nearly five months working on the album, from April to September 1989. The band originally wanted to re-hire Hayes as producer for their album, however at the time he was already producing Ozzy Osburn's solo album, Breaking All the Rules (1989), and would instead recruit Gideon Weber, whom previously produced for Planetaria and Noiseoasis. Weber's initial objective involved fine-tuning and organizing the guitar tones, which the band had struggled with. To facilitate this, guide and click tracks were employed, providing a framework for tempo and drumming consistency to help Alaric. Recording took place in a live room, with each instrument tracked separately in four different studios. The recording process utilized three reels per song: one for drums, another for bass and guitars, and a third for additional elements. After years of smoking 'two packs a day', Mustang's voice would become very hoarse, with him decidedly focusing on perfecting heavier riffs and more complex and complicated solos. Concurrently, Leftfield and Mustang would have the news playing in the background of the studio to craft lyrics during these sessions, and would often commence recording with unfinished material, with Leftfield's focus being on maintaining a gritty energy rather than prioritizing vocal delivery. The band would also incorporate unusual instrumentation such as a gong and sitar, which Eldridge revealed in a 2023 interview that "[they] found [them] one afternoon in the studio's attic after too many drinks". While recording the album, Mustang, Leftfield, and Alaric's marriages would suffer and end in divorce.

Raised tomb of drummer Gary Alaric located at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Porciúncula, Gold Coast.

With eleven songs finished but more demos prepared for inclusion, the band would be forced to return to the Avocado Headquarters in San Francisco City, San Francisco, after exhausting much of the funds and needing more time to finish the album. After previewing the album to label executives on 8 October, executives were reportedly ecstatic at the record and material presented, and according to Mustang, were pressuring the band to release the album "as is" which they felt went against their contract which stated they held creative control over music, but executives argued they didn't have control over the release of the music and had already been scouting an upcoming release date and scheduling tour dates. Two nights later, on 10 October, friends of Alaric that had been staying with the drummer said that he had arrived at his residence "somewhat intoxicated" around 2 a.m., but had been "laughing, listening to music and watching TV up until 9 a.m.". At 2 p.m. PST on 10 October 1989, a friend observed the drummer lying on his bed in fetal position with all windows closed. This did not raise much suspicion because, while he had been a recovering alcoholic, it had been known that the drummer frequently relapsed and would sleep late after a night out. The following day, on 11 October, at 9 a.m., the band would arrive to pick up Alaric to meet with label executives, where they would, with the friend, observe him lying in the same position as before, in which the friend discovered that he had no pulse and was not breathing; with the band members immediately calling emergency services. At 9:14 p.m., two ambulances reached Alaric's rental home in Glen Park, San Francisco City; Alaric was pronounced dead at the scene. Shortly afterwards, the San Francisco Police Department confirmed that he had died. His death at age 27 prompted media comparisons to other musician deaths at the same age, collectively named the "27 Club". Shortly after his death was announced, media and camera crews appeared near Alaric's residence to pay their respects. Forensic investigators entered the flat as police cordoned off the street outside; they recovered two large bottles of whiskey from his room, as well various prescription and illicit drugs such as diazepam, doxepin, methaqualone and cocaine. After an investigation, the coroner ruled Alaric's death an accidental overdose on methaqualone and alcohol intoxication. Alaric was buried on 18 October 1989 at Hollywood Forever Cemetery in Porciúncula, with his gravesite featuring a long rectangular reflecting pool and raised tomb based off classic Greek architecture.

Shortly after Alaric's death, the band would refuse to speak to any reporter or news outlet until 1 December 1989, where they would hold a press conference in front of the Avocado Records Headquarters in San Francisco City, announcing that the band were dissolving following the release of their final album, Peace Sells But No Ones Buying, feeling that they would not be "Damage Inc" without Alaric and releasing it in tribute. Released on 8 December 1989, Peace Sells would become Damage Inc's best-selling album upon release, peaking at number two on the Sunset 100, where it charted for 98 weeks, and featured the band's first Sunset Hot 50 single, "One", which peaked at number 44 as well as being the band's only song to have a music video, being recorded prior to Alaric's death and featuring clips of the 1973 anti-war film Danny Got A Rifle. It would be nominated for a Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance Vocal or Instrumental at the 31st Percy Awards, with the band members being forced to not formally accept it on-stage due to their unwillingness to perform. Peace Sells But No Ones Buying was certified platinum nine weeks after it was released in stores, and in 2013 was certified Diamond by the RIAA for unit sales of more than ten million.

Musical style

A pioneering force, Damage Inc is one of the "big four" metal bands responsible for the emergence of speed metal and thrash metal, alongside Sureiyaa, Quikkill, and Lockjaw. In their early musical ventures, the band showcased a quintessential thrash metal sound, garnering critical acclaim for the exploration of personal and socially relevant themes within their lyrics, setting them apart from their contemporaries. Notably highlighted by Duluth Standard in retrospect, Damage Inc stood out as one of the rare heavy metal acts that received critical acclaim consistently and redefined the metal landscape in the 1980s. Guitarists Max Leftfield and Daniel Mustang were lauded for their "aggressive and head-pounding" styles, characterized by the vigor of power chords and the driving force of "chugging" pedal points. Music critic Thomas Harrison noted that Damage Inc's musical pace leaned towards a faster tempo, influenced equally by heavy metal and punk rock, positioning them as a distinctive subgenre blending elements of both.

Damage Inc's sound has been described as thrash metal, speed metal, heavy metal and progressive metal, with members of the band stating their influences stem from early heavy metal and hard rock bands and artists Planetaria, Leviathan, Bliss, Dred Tenets, His Majesty, Stratocloud, Den Boer, A.C.E. and Hadrian, and by the New Wave of Brazorian Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) bands Torkbrain, Steel Clergy, By The Sword, Fire On The Horizon and New Generation Warfare as well as European bands Machine Gun and The Raging Bulls. Early punk rock bands The Killers, Nympho Guns, and the Deviants also influenced Damage Inc's style as did post-punk band Fatally Depressed. In years after their breakup, Leftfield has cited Torkbrain specifically as probably the biggest influence on the band, though Mustang believes Planetaria to be.

Damage Inc's writing process is often a group-effort, though Leftfield and Mustang claim most of the individual writing claims to many of the band's major hits. Music released from the group contains intense tempos, harmonized leads, and "ten-minute instrumental power tracks". Michelle Scott of Music Box Magazine said Damage Inc. and Last Rites featured "extended, progressive epics; concise and tight head-knockers". She also said Damage Inc expanded its compositional technique and range of expression to take on a more aggressive approach on Peace Sells But No Ones Buying, with lyrics dealing with personal and socially conscious issues. She described the style as a mix of "the instrumental virtuosity of the NWOBHM with the speed and aggression of hardcore punk". Mustang has also listed albums by The Landing and John Paul Clapten as recordings that influenced him.

Discography

Studio albums

• Damage Your Ass (1980)
• Damage Inc. (1982)
• Last Rites (1985)
• Peace Sells But No Ones Buying (1989)

Compilation albums

• Incorporation (2008)

Concert tours

Year(s)	Title	Legs (locations) and dates	Number of shows	Supporting acts
1980	Summer Sierran Tour	KS: 14 April – 18 April 1980	3	Loaded Chamber (headliner)
The band would be an opening act for Brazorian heavy metal band Loaded Chamber as part of their tour in Porciúncula, Sierra.
1980	Metal From Hell	AT: 9 September – 15 November 1980	41	Latency, The Ripper Twins
This was the first major tour the band co-headlined abroad, with other Vanquish Records-signed acts in Astoria, with the band supporting their first album, Damage Your Ass. The band were unable to complete the tour due to their bus breaking down on 21 October. Average attendance was 1,500 people.
1980	Televised Genocide	KS: 15 December – 20 December 1980	5	Planetaria (headliner)
Damage Inc was chosen to open for five gigs on Planetaria's 1980–81 Televised Genocide tour in Porciúncula. Lead singer of Planetaria, Ozzy Osburn, would send Avocado A&R Jim Barr the band's debut album, Damage Your Ass to his office. Upon hearing it, Barr would sign the band. They would perform in front of 8,000 people.
1981	Damage It Up Tour	KS: March – November 1981	~80
The band would play small venues throughout Federal Sierra in clubs, bars, and festivals; later supporting the 23:02 EP.
1982–1983	Hail To The Victors	EC: 11 June – 22 August 1982 CAS: 10 October 1982 – 29 January 1983, 19 April – 11 May 1983, 3 – 4 June 1983 EC: 21 June – 9 December 1983	178	A.C.E. (co-headliner), The New Romantics, Torkbrain, The Renegades; Ozzy Osburn (co-headliner, 1983), Verotik
The first leg in the European Community consisted of 30 shows, being a mixture of both concerts and festivals, to crowds ranging between 5,000 and 24,000, and grossing more than $750,000 on sales alone by its conclusion. The North American tour would consist of 84 shows among Conference of American States members, with the crowds as large as 50,000 at their Day in the Sky festival performance. In February 1983, the band would unexpectedly drop as a co-headliner on the tour amidst dates in Superior, been banned from the country for "two to three years" over their lyrics. Upon returning to Sierra, Beckett would leave the band, being replaced by Eldridge. The band would return as sole headliner in the Hail To The Victors tour, playing 18 shows in the Caribbean and South America between April and May 1983, and later supporting Ozzy Osburn in Columbia City, Antilles on the 3 and 4 June, and then returning to co-headline with A.C.E. in Europe for an additional leg in the Fall.
1985–1987	Last Rites	NA: 8 February – 23 July 1985 EC: 1 August – 19 December 1985 NA: 7 January – 19 May 1986, 2 June – 29 July 1986 EC: 7 August – 22 December 1986 NA: 13 January – 15 June 1987	346	The Hookers (co-headliner, 1986), Houston Blues (co-headliner, 1986), Sureiyaa, Noiseoasis, Machine Gun, Rural Still Life, The Blind Lions
The tour supported the band's third album Last Rites in which they initially supported The Hookers in North America from February to July, co-headlined a string of Brazorian dates between 21 May and 2 June with Houston Blues, and were the main act themselves throughout the fall and winter European festival tour. Throughout 1986 and 1987, they would be sole headliners with various supporting acts. Peak audience attendence is reported at 43,212.
1987	Drunk Disco	SA: 21 June – 29 June 1987	7	Den Boer (headliner), Shades of Vertigo, Dave Meyers Band, The Renegades, Rock Candy
The band would support Den Boer in touring South America to crowds as large as 100,000.
1988	Tour 1988	SA: 30 May – 11 September, 1988	30	Sofia in Bondage, The Mariner's Bay
The band would play small venues locally in the Gold Coast to audiences of up to 2,500.
1990–91	Peace Sells Tour	SA: June 1990 – April 1991	~100
Originally meant to support their fourth album Peace Sells But No Ones Buying, but would be cancelled before commencing due to drummer Gary Alaric's death.

Members

• 

  Max Leftfield

• 

  Daniel Mustang

• 

  Gary Alaric

• 

  Griffin Beckett

• 

  Kevin Eldridge

Principle Members

• Max Leftfield - vocals, rhythm guitar (1979-1989)
• Daniel Mustang - vocals, lead guitar (1979-1989)
• Gary Alaric - drums, percussion (1979-1989)
• Griffin Beckett - bass guitar (1979–1983)
• Kevin Eldridge - bass guitar (1983-1989)