Initial career (1985–1997) The origins of the band date back to early 1985 when they were founded as 'Forbidden Evil' by drummer Jim Pittman and guitarist
Robb Flynn (later of
Vio-lence and
Machine Head), with the original lineup being completed by Craig Locicero (guitar), Russ Anderson (vocals) and John Tegio (bass). Flynn named the band after a song by the Chicago band War Cry that was featured on the
Metal Massacre 4 compilation. They recorded demo tapes and appeared on the now-out-of-print live album ''The Eastern Front – Live At
Ruthie's Inn''. By 1986, Jim Pittman, John Tegio, and
Robb Flynn left the band and were replaced by
Paul Bostaph (drums), Matt Camacho (bass) and Glen Alvelais (guitar). Then in 1987, the band's name was shortened to Forbidden in order to prevent the band from being mistakenly perceived as a
black metal band. After considering offers from several record labels, the band signed with
Combat Records in 1988 and released their debut album
Forbidden Evil in September of that year.
Reunions and Omega Wave (2001–2010) In August 2001, Anderson, Bostaph, Alvelais and Camacho reformed for a one-time, six song performance for
Chuck Billy's
Thrash of the Titans benefit concert, using their original name Forbidden Evil. Guitarist Steve Smyth stood in for Craig Locicero who was unable to join the event due to his commitment to recording with
Manmade God. Former guitarist Tim Calvert also performed for the final three songs of the set while drummer Jeremy Colson performed two songs on drums before Bostaph performed four songs. In 2007 Forbidden reformed again for reunion shows to take place in 2008 both in the US and in Europe. The reunion initially featured the
Forbidden Evil line-up from 2001, this time including Craig Locicero but without Paul Bostaph, who had prior commitments with
Testament.
Gene Hoglan (of
Dark Angel,
Death and
Strapping Young Lad fame) played drums for the band's first few reunion shows. After Hoglan, Mark Hernandez (ex-
Vio-lence,
Heathen,
Defiance) took over on the drums for the band's European tour, which included an appearance on the main stage at Belgium's Graspop festival. They also played some Japanese dates later in the year. After the tour, Glen Alvelais quit the group, stating that he felt he "could no longer take all the accusations and distrust that came with our so-called chemistry." Guitarist Steve Smyth stepped in as Alvelais' replacement. was released in 2010. The band toured extensively in the U.S., Europe and South America to promote the album.
Switching drummers, hiatus and third reunion (2011–present) In August 2011, drummer Mark Hernandez left Forbidden, citing personal reasons. Gene Hoglan replaced him for a few shows, including Alcatraz Festival. In November of that year, the band announced their new drummer was Sasha Horn. However, in July 2012 when Matt Camacho announced he was leaving the band to pursue his legal career and Russ Anderson stated his intention to "take a break" from the music business, Forbidden was effectively over once more, with Locicero stating in 2013: "Unfortunately, I think Russ is finished, and by the time he would want to step up and do it again, it would be too late. It became painfully obvious to me that Russ really wasn't cut out for the road anymore and that's why Forbidden broke up the first time. I ended up doing too much work and I needed everyone to step up and help me out, and the same thing started happening again; when the original members aren't really motivated, it's just not fun anymore. So I don't think I ever want to go backwards again." Although Forbidden had not performed live since 2012 nor been active since the split with Camacho and Anderson, Locicero reported in April 2016 that the band was still under contract with
Nuclear Blast. Despite not ruling out the possibility of a reunion, he stated, "The schematics are very confusing here. When we ended, there was two members from out of state (one out of the country) plus Matt and Russ retired from music until further notice. All of this presents a large hurdle if we just 'wanna get together to jam.' So you must understand that it is simply not likely. But as I stated, never say never." In April 2023, Forbidden launched an official
Instagram account, posting images displaying each letter of their band logo in front of a black background; those posts had led to speculation that a third reunion of Forbidden was in the works. This reunion was officially announced on April 19, with Norman Skinner replacing Russ Anderson (who is now retired from the music industry) on vocals. Forbidden played their first show in 11 years on July 16, 2023 at Baltic Kiss in
Richmond, which was held as a "secret show" under the name Twisted into Evil, followed nearly a month later by an appearance at the Alcatraz festival in
Kortrijk. The band's additional reunion dates included opening for
Death Angel at two shows in
San Francisco in December 2023, and appearing at the
Hell's Heroes Festival in
Houston in March 2024. Forbidden had also begun writing new material for their next studio album, which was planned for an early 2025 release. The band released its first song in 15 years "Divided by Zero" to streaming services on June 26, 2025. The group was heading to Europe that summer and playing at the Alcatraz Festival. On January 14, 2026, it was announced that Forbidden had signed a deal with BLKIIBLK Records. ==Band members==