Sodom is a German thrash metal band from Gelsenkirchen, formed in 1981. They have gone through many lineup changes, leaving bassist/vocalist Tom Angelripper as the only constant member. The band is currently composed of Angelripper, guitarists Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik (who was a member of Sodom from 1987 to 1989 and rejoined in 2018) and Yorck Segatz, and drummer Toni Merkel. Along with Kreator, Destruction and Tankard, Sodom has been referred to as one of the "Big Four" of Teutonic thrash metal. Sodom heavily influenced the German black metal scene. In addition, the band is regarded as a pioneer of early death metal. Mike McPadden wrote that the most Venom-blackened of German "Three Kings" (Destruction and Kreator being the other two), Sodom further merged thrash and death metal into a "wicked and decadent sound". Sodom has released seventeen studio albums, three live albums, two compilation albums and seven EPs. They achieved their first commercial success with their third studio album Agent Orange (1989), which was one of the first thrash metal albums to enter the German album charts, where it reached number 36. Their most recent studio album, Genesis XIX, was released on 27 November 2020. Sodom is one of the best-selling thrash metal acts of all time, having sold over two million records.