said that the band never saw any money from the release, the Overkill EP garnered the band massive underground interest, and the attention of Jon Zazula, owner of Megaforce Records, one of the most prominent independent heavy metal record labels at the time. Megaforce signed Overkill to a multi-album record contract and released their full-length debut album Feel the Fire in 1985. Hailed by many critics and fans as a thrash metal masterpiece, the album cemented the band's position as one of the driving forces of the East Coast thrash movement. The band spent the better part of 1985 and 1986 touring in support of Feel the Fire, touring Europe with Anthrax and Agent Steel, and supporting Slayer on their Reign in Blood tour in North America. Overkill's grueling tour schedule and the growing buzz for Feel the Fire resulted in the band being courted by several major labels; they eventually signed to Atlantic Records, making Overkill one of the earliest thrash metal bands to sign to a major label. Rise to success (1987–1990) Overkill's second album, Taking Over, was released in March 1987; it was the first to be released by Megaforce in cooperation with Atlantic Records. The album featured longer songs and improved production. Taking Over also brought the band public recognition, becoming their first album to hit the Billboard 200, while Overkill's first-ever music video "In Union We Stand" received moderate airplay on MTV's Headbangers Ball. Another European tour followed, this time opening for Helloween. Overkill also opened for Megadeth on their Peace Sells tour in North America, and then headlined their own US tour, accompanied by Megaforce/Atlantic labelmates Testament. In late 1987, the !!!Fuck You!!! EP was released, consisting of a studio recording of the Subhumans' song "Fuck You" as well as a handful of live tracks recorded earlier that year in Cleveland. 1987 also saw the departure of founding drummer Rat Skates. He was replaced by Mark Archibole for a short time, and then on a permanent basis by Danish drummer Bob "Sid" Falck, formerly of Paul Di'Anno's Battlezone. Overkill closed out the year with a one-off show at the Christmas on Earth festival in Leeds, England, together with Megadeth, Kreator, Nuclear Assault, Voivod, the Cro-Mags, Lȧȧz Rockit and Virus. Overkill released their third album, Under the Influence, in July 1988. Once again produced by Alex Perialas, who had worked on the band's first two