Animetal USA

Lore & Background

Animetal USA was formed as a tribute to Eizo Sakamoto's band Animetal. Their debut self-titled album, released on October 26, 2011, features English-language heavy metal covers of anime theme songs including 'Debiruman no Uta' from Devilman, 'Makafushigi Adventure!' from Dragon Ball, and 'A Cruel Angel's Thesis' from Neon Genesis Evangelion. The songs were arranged by Impellitteri and former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman. For their second album, the band asked Japanese and American fans to submit requests for songs to cover.

In March 2012, the band collaborated with Hironobu Kageyama of JAM Project to provide the opening theme to the Naruto anime spin-off series Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals. This song was released as a single and included on their second album, *Animetal USA W*, released on July 25, 2012.

Reader's Guide

Animetal USA occupies a unique niche as a Japan-based American band that specialized in heavy metal covers of anime theme songs. Their significance lies in bridging Japanese anime culture with Western heavy metal, bringing iconic anime melodies to an English-speaking audience. The band's lineup featured notable metal musicians, including members of Judas Priest, Ozzy Osbourne, and Yngwie Malmsteen's bands. Their debut album showcased arrangements by Marty Friedman, adding credibility to the project. The band's collaboration with JAM Project and Hironobu Kageyama for a Naruto spin-off theme further cemented their role in anime music. Although their activity appears to have ceased after 2016, their spin-off D-Metal Stars continued the concept with Disney covers, achieving chart success on Amazon Japan and Billboard. Animetal USA's legacy is as a short-lived but culturally bridging project that celebrated anime music through the lens of heavy metal.

Did You Know?

• Animetal USA made their world debut at the 2011 Loud Park Festival, performing with Momoiro Clover Z.
• Their debut album features covers of anime themes from Devilman, Dragon Ball, and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
• A spin-off project, D-Metal Stars, released a Disney covers album that charted on Billboard's Kid Albums chart.

Formation & A Dream Team of Metal Legends

Animetal USA was conceived as a tribute to Eizo Sakamoto's original Animetal project, assembling a roster of Western heavy metal icons to perform anime theme songs. The group made its world debut at the 2011 Loud Park Festival, sharing the stage with J-pop act Momoiro Clover Z. The original lineup was extraordinary: Michael Vescera on lead vocals, known from Obsession, Loudness, and Yngwie Malmsteen; Chris Impellitteri on guitar, frontman of his eponymous band; Rudy Sarzo on bass, with credits in Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne, Whitesnake, and the Geoff Tate-era Queensrÿche; and Scott Travis on drums, best known from Judas Priest and Racer X. Each musician was assigned a thematic stage name—Metal-Rider, Speed-King, Storm-Bringer, and Tank #1. In 2012, Travis departed to resume touring with Judas Priest, and Jon Dette of Killing Machine, Slayer, and Testament stepped in as Tank #2. The band was based in Japan despite being composed entirely of American players, a deliberate nod to the anime culture they were celebrating.

Musical Output & the Anime-to-Metal Translation

The self-titled debut album arrived on October 12, 2011, presenting English-language heavy metal arrangements of iconic anime theme songs. The tracklist spanned decades of animation, from Devilman's "Debiruman no Uta" to Dragon Ball's "Makafushigi Adventure!" to Neon Genesis Evangelion's "A Cruel Angel's Thesis." Guitarist Chris Impellitteri and former Megadeth player Marty Friedman handled the arrangements, giving each song a distinctly Western metal interpretation while preserving the melodic hooks Japanese audiences already knew. For the second record, the band took a fan-driven approach, soliciting song requests from both Japanese and American listeners to shape the tracklist. That album, Animetal USA W, was released in Japan in June 2012. In March of that same year, the group announced a collaboration with Hironobu Kageyama of JAM Project, providing the opening theme for the Naruto spin-off Rock Lee & His Ninja Pals. The song was issued as a single and included on the second album. The partnership deepened in summer 2012 with a limited national concert tour called the Japan-America Anison Summit, uniting Animetal USA and JAM Project on the road.

D-Metal Stars & the Disney Crossover

In 2016, the core members of Animetal USA launched a spinoff project called D-Metal Stars, shifting their focus from anime themes to Disney classics. The lineup retained Vescera and Sarzo but swapped Impellitteri for John Bruno of Obsession and brought in BJ Zampa on drums, a musician with credits in House of Lords, Obsession, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Dokken. The project was recorded for Walt Disney Records and produced the debut album Metal Disney, released in Japan in October 2016. One standout track, "I See the Light" from Tangled, featured special guests Demon Kakka of Seikima-II and Jeff Watson of Night Ranger. The album quickly climbed to number three on Amazon Japan's Hard Rock and Metal Best Sellers chart and hit number two on the Children's Chart. In March 2017, Universal Music Group brought the record to the US market, where three tracks charted on the Billboard Spotify Viral 50 and the album peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Kid Albums chart—proof that the anime-to-Disney crossover resonated far beyond its niche origins.

Legacy & the Unfinished Third Chapter

Animetal USA's story is marked by both extraordinary highs and an abrupt, unresolved ending. In November 2013, the band signed with Warner Bros. Records for a planned third album slated for 2014 release. However, no further announcements ever materialized, and the project seems to have vanished into silence. The original lineup—Vescera, Impellitteri, Sarzo, and Dette—was active from 2011 through 2016, after which the band effectively dissolved, with the D-Metal Stars project serving as its final creative outlet. What remains is a brief but remarkable window in which some of the most celebrated names in Western heavy metal converged to serve a Japanese pop-culture tradition. Their two albums, the JAM Project collaboration, the Naruto spin-off theme, and the Disney crossover collectively represent a unique cultural bridge that has not been replicated at that level of musical pedigree. The unanswered question of the Warner Bros. third album continues to haunt fans who never got to hear what that next chapter might have sounded like.