Annihilator is a Canadian thrash metal band founded in Ottawa in 1984. It is the highest-selling Canadian thrash metal group in history, having sold more than three million albums worldwide, although most sales have been generated outside of Canada. Along with Sacrifice, Voivod and Razor, Annihilator is known as one of the "big four" of Canadian thrash metal. They are also considered to be part of the "second wave" of thrash metal bands from the late 1980s and early 1990s. Annihilator has released seventeen studio albums and undergone many line-up changes. Waters is the only remaining original member, and assembles touring or session musicians to perform with him. Annihilator's first two studio albums, Alice in Hell (1989) and Never, Neverland (1990), are considered to be influential Canadian heavy metal records. Many of their later albums — including their third, and only major-label album Set the World on Fire (1993) — also received praise from critics, and enjoyed success in Europe and Japan. Their most recent studio album of original material, Ballistic, Sadistic, was released in 2020. History Early years (1984–1988) Annihilator was formed in Ottawa, Ontario, by Jeff Waters and guitarist John Bates. Waters said he named the band after the tank that Eddie Murphy's character rode on in the 1984 film Best Defense. Waters and Bates wrote and recorded the song "Annihilator" (not to be confused with the song of the same name released on the 1994 album, King of the Kill). This original version of "Annihilator" was released on the special edition of the 2005 album Schizo Deluxe. Waters and Bates then recruited drummer Paul Malek and bassist Dave Scott. In 1985, the band produced a demo titled "Welcome To Your Death". Bates and Scott left the band before its release, citing "artistic differences" and "personality conflicts". In 1986, Waters and Malek recorded another demo, "Phantasmagoria". A third demo, "Wicked Mystic" / "Word Salad" was recorded by Waters and Malek in 1987 and sent only to labels. Waters then moved to Vancouver, where he assembled an entire line-up, including drummer Ray Hartmann and former D.O.A. bassist Randy Rampage on vocals. In 1988 and 1989, Waters recorded guitar and bass tracks and produced what would become the band's debut album. Once the album was finished, he hired bassist Wayne Darley and guitarist Anthony Greenham. Rise to fame (1989–1993) In 1988, Annihilator was signed to Roadrunner Records and released their