A.N.I.M.A.L. (Acosados Nuestros Indios Murieron Al Luchar; meaning "Harassed, Our Indians Died While Fighting") is a heavy metal band from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The band's sound is a combination of thrash metal, groove metal and nu metal, and most lyrics deal with issues of ethnic minorities and indigenous people of Latin America; evident in song titles such as Sólo Por Ser Indios ("Only For Being Indian"), Guerra De Razas ("Race War"), Poder Latino ("Latin Power") and Raza Castigada ("Punished Race"). The band experienced commercial success in the mid-to-late 1990s and toured throughout a number of Latin American countries, the United States and Europe, and also opened for numerous big names from the worldwide rock and metal scene such as Pantera, Biohazard, Bad Religion, Ratos de Porão, Suicidal Tendencies, Sepultura, Soulfly, Megadeth and Slipknot. History Formation and early years (1992–1995) The band started as Animal with the line-up of Andrés Gimenez (ex-Beso Negro - vocals and guitar), Roberto "el Polaco" Zelasek (ex-Los Violadores- bass) and Anibal Alo (drums), but after Zelasek left the band, they had to change the name to A.N.I.M.A.L due to legal reasons (Animal was registered under Zelasek's name, he recorded under this name, but never released any official record). In 1993 Gimenez recruited Marcelo "Corvata" Corvalán as their new bassist and then recorded their self-titled debut album, which (unlike later releases) had a more classic heavy metal oriented sound with some mild grunge influences. During that period of time, the band opened for Biohazard and Bad Religion in the Obras Sanitarias arena in Buenos Aires, and then Pantera at the same venue. By that same year, drummer Anibal Alo left the band to be briefly replaced by Javier Dorado, who quickly left to form Mate Cosido (alongside Gimenez' ex-Beso Negro's partner Lito Pared), then in 1994, Martin Carrizo entered the band and recorded Fin De Un Mundo Enfermo, which represented a drastic change in their sound to a more groove and thrash oriented sound influenced by the likes of Pantera, Prong, Sepultura and Biohazard. That album was the beginning of their rise to fame, as they sold out Cemento, (a defunct rock concert hall in Buenos Aires, Argentina), numerous times and opened for Suicidal Tendencies and, once again, Pantera. Mainstream success (1996–2000) In 1996, the band flew to Los Angeles and recorded El Nuevo Camino Del Hombre, an album with a heavier yet more melodic sound, a