'80s Metal History (February 2nd)

"My grandmother screams louder than you, and she's DEAD!" Remembering Exodus singer Paul Baloff "Bonded By Blood", who died February 2, 2002 at age 41. R.I.P. and "Smash everything, leave nothing unsmashed!"

February 2, 1991: After a short break following their performance at "Rock In Rio II", Judas Priest were back on the road and brought the European leg of the "Painkiller" Tour to Stockholm with support from Pantera and Annihilator.

February 2, 1988: Guns N’ Roses with openers Great White played a show at The Ritz in New York City that was taped by MTV. We watched Slash play a guitar solo lying on his back and Axl Rose leap into the crowd during "Paradise City" 🤘

February 2, 1981: Black Sabbath ended the "Heaven And Hell" Tour in St. Austell, England. Drummer Vinny Appice replaced original drummer Bill Ward during the tour's North American leg after Ward suddenly left the band due to personal issues.

After lining up a month-long tour just two weeks earlier, Iron Maiden postponed all dates after February 13th because they were going into the studio with producer Will Malone to record their first album. Sounds - February 2, 1980.

February 2, 1984: Ozzy Osbourne's "Bark At The Moon" Tour with Mötley Crüe and Waysted rolled into Pittsburgh.

February 2, 1985: W.A.S.P., Metallica and Armored Saint brought the "Future Of Metal" to Cleveland.

February 1982: Thin Lizzy released their 11th studio album "Renegade" in North America (November 1981 in the UK). Keyboard player Darren Wharton was now a permanent member of the band and contributed writing opening track "Angel Of Death"

February 2, 1981 is NOT THE CORRECT RELEASE DATE for Iron Maiden's "Killers". It was issued in the UK on February 16th (see ad) and late May 1981 in North America.

February 2, 2004: Exodus released the album "Tempo Of The Damned" in Europe (March 9th in North America), their first studio effort to accredit founding guitarist Kirk Hammett for a song, "Impaler", which featured one of the main riffs used on Metallica's "Trapped Under Ice". Release date source: Blabbermouth.net - December 8, 2003.

February 2, 2018: Saxon released their 22nd studio album "Thunderbolt" featuring the title track and "They Played Rock And Roll", the latter dedicated to Motörhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister. Release date source: Blabbermouth.net - November 7, 2017.

February 2, 2018: Ahead of the release of their 18th studio album "Firepower", Judas Priest released the title track as the lead single. The flip side is a live version of "Breaking The Law" recorded at Wacken Open Air in Aug. 2015. Release information source: Blabbermouth.net - February 2, 2018.

Alternative metal band Diamond Rexx released their second studio album "Rated Rexx" in 1990. Formed in 1985, they built a huge following in their hometown of Chicago and released three albums before going on hiatus in the '90s.

February 2, 1983: KISS brought the "Creatures Of The Night/10th Anniversary" Tour to West Palm Beach, Florida and ahead of their show at West Palm Beach Auditorium, did an in-store appearance at Specs Music.

February 2, 1977: Van Halen played the Starwood Club in Hollywood, California. The following night producer Ted Templeman along with Warner Bros'’ Mo Ostin offered the band a recording contract.