Saint Vitus is an American doom metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1978. They are considered to be one of the first doom metal bands, and have been labeled as one of the "big four" of that genre, along with Candlemass, Pentagram and Trouble. Having released nine studio albums to date, Saint Vitus never achieved a popular breakthrough, but have exerted great influence on the development of doom metal, sludge metal, and stoner rock. The original lineup consisted of Dave Chandler (guitar), Mark Adams (bass), Armando Acosta (drums) and Scott Reagers (vocals). They recorded their first two albums before Scott Weinrich replaced Reagers in 1986. The lineup of Chandler, Adams, Acosta and Weinrich is the longest-lasting. The third album Born Too Late (1986) is generally acknowledged as their best release. After breaking up in 1996 and briefly reforming in 2003, Saint Vitus reunited again in 2008 with the band's "classic" lineup, featuring Weinrich, Chandler, Adams and Acosta, and embarked on a successful tour. However, after 30 years in the band, Acosta left Saint Vitus in 2009 due to worsening health, and was replaced by Henry Vasquez. By 2016, both Weinrich and Adams had left Saint Vitus and were replaced by Reagers and Pat Bruders respectively, leaving Chandler as the only constant member of the band and reuniting two-fourths of the original lineup. History Formation and first two albums (1978–1985) The band was formed in 1978 under the name Tyrant, with Dave Chandler (guitar), Mark Adams (bass), and Armando Acosta (drums). Vocalist Scott Reagers joined the group after the first Tyrant show, when their first singer was fired. Their main influences were Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Blue Cheer, Blue Öyster Cult and Alice Cooper. They changed their name to Saint Vitus in 1980, after the Black Sabbath song "St. Vitus Dance". The band's early sound combined the dark and psychedelic style of bands like Black Sabbath and Blue Cheer with the aggressive heavy metal and hardcore sound of Judas Priest and Black Flag, another favorite band of Chandler. In the beginning, their style was considered "out-of-date" compared to the hardcore punk, glam and speed metal genres, which were popular at the time. Being rejected by the Los Angeles metal community, Saint Vitus were involved in the punk rock scene. During a live performance with Overkill, Saint Vitus was discovered by Black Flag. Black Flag guitarist Greg Ginn signed them to