Jeff Waters (born February 13, 1966), is the guitarist and mastermind of the thrash metal band Annihilator and remains as the only original member in the band. He was born in and resides in Ottawa, Canada. As the main songwriter for Annihilator, Jeff is considered among the most influential guitarists to up and coming modern metal guitar players. The list of players influenced by him includes Alexi Laiho, Willie Adler, Matt Heafy/Corey Beaulieu and Ol Drake .He performs most of Annihilator's guitar and bass parts himself in his home studio and hires various rotating members to cover tours. He is the main producer of all of Annihilator's albums from King of the Kill up until now, and also performed lead vocals for the band between 1994 and 1997. Jeff played on Roadrunner Records' Roadrunner United CD playing the solos in the songs "The Dagger" and "Independent ". He was the producer of Defiance's debut album entitled "Product of Society", and made a guest appearance on After Forever's self-titled album.In the early stages of his career Jeff Waters used a Hamer Flying V. Around 1994 he began to experiment with other guitars and over the next few years used classic models such as a Gibson SG and Gibson Les Paul to achieve the diversity of sounds in Annihilator's music during this time period. He would also use a Fender Stratocaster from time to time in the studio. Jeff has been known to use an ESP Dave Mustaine signature Flying V that he owns, and it was this guitar that he used to record Schizo Deluxe as mentioned in the video section of annihilatormetal. com. Jeff currently plays Ran Guitars. Jeff's father was in the military and he lived in various parts of Canada before settling in Ottawa at the age of nine. He studied classical guitar as a youth.He was twice asked by Dave Mustaine to join Megadeth in 1989, and again in 2004, but declined due to his commitments to Annihilator.

Primal Fear is a German power metal/heavy metal band formed in 1997 by Ralf Scheepers (Vocals/Ex-Gamma Ray), Mat Sinner, Stefan Leibing and Tom Naumann . Their style is a heavy power metal sound with the Halford type vocals of Ralf Scheepers. Scheepers formed the band after he was not hired as Rob Halford's replacement in Judas Priest, a job for which he was a finalist, that went to Tim "Ripper" Owens. Their latest album called 16.6 will be released in 2009 and will supported with a double-headlining European tour with Brainstorm.

D.O.A. is a hardcore punk band from Vancouver, BC. They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, and Minor Threat. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound as hardcore. Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, however original bassist Randy Rampage has rejoined DOA after a long absence and is in the current lineup. D.O.A. has often released music on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles Records, and they have released an album with Jello Biafra titled Last Scream Of The Missing Neighbors. D.O.A. has always maintained an uncompromising anarchist populist political stance. The band is known for its outspoken political opinions and has a history of performing for many causes and benefits. Its slogan is "Talk minus Action equals Zero." The band has been active on many issues, including Anti-racism, anti-globalization, freedom of speech, and the environment. Founder Joe Keithley now spends a great deal of time working with his record company Sudden Death Records which has branched off into many areas of music.

Extreme is an American rock band, headed by frontmen Gary Cherone and Nuno Bettencourt, that reached the height of their popularity in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Among some of Extreme's musical influences are Queen and Van Halen; The band have described their music as 'Funky Metal'. They have released five studio albums, two EPs and two compilation albums since their formation. The band was one of the most successful rock acts of the early 1990s, selling over 10 million albums worldwide. Extreme achieved their greatest success with their 1990 album Pornograffitti, which peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200, and was certified gold in May 1991 and 2u00D7platinum in October 1992. That album featured the acoustic ballad single "More Than Words", which reached #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 in the United States.

Randy Black is a Canadian-born rock drummer and recording artist known best for his stints as the drummer for Click, Bif Naked, Annihilator, and Primal Fear. Although Randy's actual acoustic drum configuration is not unique to the field of drumming, Randy's playing style is notable for his ability to play ambidextrously with a symmetrical set of cymbals, specifically a dual set of remote hi-hats and ride cymbals to his right and to his left respectively.

Megadeth is an American heavy metal band led by founder, front man, guitarist, and songwriter Dave Mustaine. Formed in 1983 by Mustaine and bass player David Ellefson following Mustaine's departure from Metallica, the band has since released eleven studio albums, six live albums, two EPs, thirty singles, thirty-two music videos, and three compilations.As a pioneer of the American thrash metal movement, Megadeth rose to international fame in the 1980s, but experienced numerous line-up changes, due partly to the band's notorious substance abuse problems. From 1983 to 2002, Mustaine and Ellefson were the only continuous members of the band. After finding sobriety and securing a stable line-up, Megadeth went on to release a string of platinum and gold albums, including the platinum-selling landmark Rust in Peace in 1990 and the Grammy nominated, multi-platinum Countdown to Extinction in 1992. Megadeth disbanded in 2002 after Mustaine suffered a severe nerve injury to his left arm. However, following extensive physical therapy, Mustaine reformed the band in 2004 and released The System Has Failed, followed by United Abominations in 2007; the albums debuted on the Billboard Top 200 chart at #18 and #8, respectively. Megadeth, along with their new lead Guitarist Chris Broderick, are currently working on their 12th studio album which is scheduled for release in September 2009. Megadeth is known for a distinctive guitar style, often involving complex, intricate musical passages, and trade off guitar solos. Mustaine is also known for his original "snarling" vocal style, as well as his recurring lyrical themes, often involving politics, war, addiction, and personal relationships.As one of the most commercially successful of all heavy metal bands, Megadeth has sold more than 20 million albums worldwide, with six consecutive albums being certified platinum in the USA. The band has also received great critical acclaim with seven consecutive Grammy nominations for Best Metal Performance. In the band's 24 active years, Megadeth has had 20 official members, with Dave Mustaine remaining as the driving force, main songwriter, and sole original member following the end of his musical partnership with David Ellefson in 2002, due to personal disagreements. Megadeth is hailed as one of the bands among the "Big Four of Thrash," along with Metallica, Slayer, and Anthrax, who were responsible for creating and popularizing the genre in the 1980s.

Bif Naked (born Beth Torbert on June 15, 1971) is a Juno Award-winning, multi-platinum record selling, Canadian rock singer-songwriter, poet, cartoonist, and actress.

Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band from Tampa, Florida that combines influences from thrash metal, power metal, progressive metal, opera, speed metal and NWOBHM. Iced Earth has been known to have a volatile and oft changing line-up. Founding member, songwriter, and rhythm guitarist Jon Schaffer being the only original member who has remained, handling nearly all of the songwriting and leading the band. Current vocalist Matt Barlow and former lead guitarist Randall Shawver are the next longest-tenured members, the only people besides Schaffer to have spent a full decade in the band. Shawver, the first lead guitarist to record with the band, joined in 1988 and remained until 1998. Barlow joined in 1994 and remained until 2003, when he was inspired by the September 11, 2001 attacks in the U.S. to leave the band and become a law enforcement officer. However, he returned to the group in late 2007. In 1999 Jon Schaffer teamed up with Blind Guardian vocalist Hansi Kürsch to form a side project called Demons & Wizards and have released two albums to date.

Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. The band has been recording since 1984, releasing 14 studio albums, 2 EPs, 2 live albums and a "covers" album. Overkill has gone through many line-up changes, with singer Bobby Ellsworth and bassist D.D. Verni remaining the only consistent members. The band also has a notable mascot (named Chaly), a skeletal bat with a skull-like face, bony wings, and green eyes. It has appeared on most of their album covers.

Stress Factor 9 is a hardcore punk band from Vancouver, formed in 2004. SF9's members include frontman Randy Rampage (founder of the hardcore band D.O.A.) and drummer Ray Hartmann The band has one CD (Brainwarp Mindspin) and last played in January 2007.

Anvil is a Canadian heavy metal band who have influenced many musicial groups including Metallica. The band's history is featured in the 2009 documentary Anvil! The Story of Anvil.

Testament is an American thrash metal band from Oakland, California, formed in 1983. Testament has two Top 40 albums and one Top 50 album to its credit in the UK. Their 2008 album entered the Top 20 in Germany at #15. The 1999 album The Gathering also entered the Top 50 in Germany. They had minor top 100 album success in the United States.

Kevin James LaBrie (born May 5, 1963) is a Canadian vocalist who is best known for being the lead singer in progressive metal band Dream Theater.

Big John Bates is a rockabilly trio from Vancouver led by John Bates, a Gretsch-endorsed guitarist who melds Roots punk & Rock noir. They are the first rock and roll band to add a Burlesque group (the Voodoo Dollz) and creating a synchronized live group touring as "The Lowbrow Road Show". Claiming to be originally influenced by The Cramps and The Reverend Horton Heat, Big John Bates began releasing albums in 2001 in the blues-rock and kustom kulture scenes, performing over 600 shows in 15 countries. Based in Vancouver Canada, Big John Bates & the Voodoo Dollz were the first neo-burlesque performers to take their live show throughout Europe and North America. European interviews with BJB & the Dollz have been featured on Europe's VH1 and National TV shows in France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Television documentaries in North America on the A&E Network and Discovery Network have featured band interviews on the influences of film-makers such as Russ Meyer and authors Dashiell Hammett and Mickey Spillane. The Voodoo Dollz are also the longest consecutively running burlesque troupe in Canada and have influenced many musical groups and countless other burlesque performers. Touring across Europe with the Dollz re-introduced burlesque to B-movie actress Tura Satana who herself initially influenced their infamous "Kitten With a Whip" burletta.

Steven "Steve" Siro Vai (born June 6 1960 in Carle Place, New York) is an Italian American instrumental rock guitarist, songwriter, vocalist, producer, beekeeper, and actor. After starting his professional career as a music transcriptionist for Frank Zappa, Vai would also record and tour in Zappa's backing band starting in 1980. The guitarist began a solo career starting in 1984 and has released 13 solo albums as of 2008. Apart from his work with Frank Zappa, Vai has also recorded and toured with numerous musical artists including Alcatrazz, David Lee Roth and Whitesnake. Vai has been a regular touring member of the G3 Concert Tour which began in 1996. In 1999 Vai started his own record label Favored Nations with the intent to showcase, as Vai describes: "... artists that have attained the highest performance level on their chosen instruments."