Taking their name from a lyric in Ram Jam's 1977 version of "Black Betty," hard rock supergroup the Damned Things, featuring members of Anthrax, Fall Out Boy, Alkaline Trio, and Every Time I Die, emerged in 2010 with the chart-topping Ironiclast, which employed a muscular blend of riff-chugging classic rock and in-your-face heavy metal.

Founded in 2009 by Fall Out Boy lead guitarist Joe Trohman and Anthrax guitarist/lead vocalist Scott Ian, who had begun writing together the year prior, the group eventually expanded to include Every Time I Die vocalist Keith Buckley, Anthrax guitarist Rob Caggiano, Every Time I Die bassist Josh Newton, and Fall Out Boy drummer Andy Hurley. Utilizing the powerful riffage of Anthrax and the driving, hook-laden pop of Fall Out Boy to create an infectious thrash/classic rock hybrid, the band released their debut album, Ironiclast, via Mercury Records in 2010, which hit number one on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. Busy with their flagship groups, the Damned Things took their time getting back into the studio, but they returned in 2019 with their sophomore long-player, High Crimes, which featured a new lineup consisting of Ian, Trohman, Buckley, Hurley, and Alkaline Trio bassist Dan Andriano. ~ James Christopher Monger, Rovi