Head of David were an experimental heavy metal act whose sound helped pave the way for the subsequent industrial, grindcore, and noise rock genres. Hailing from the town of Dudley, just a few miles outside the city of Birmingham in the heart of England's so-called Black Country, Stephen R. Burroughs (vocals), Eric Jurenovski (guitar), Dave Cochrane (bass), and Paul Sharp (drums) were clearly influenced by the region's heavy industry and depressed economy during the mid-'80s when formulating Head of David's grimy and oppressive sound. This sound was potent enough to make an immediate impact upon the release of their first two efforts in 1986: September's Dogbreath EP and October's simply named LP, which remarkably climbed to number three on the U.K. indie charts and was followed in July of 1987 by the live Shit Hits the Fan, which made it to number 21.