M-16

In 1994 three Dominican musicians drawn from separate bands launched the power metal trio M-16. Guitarist Omar Rodríguez, bassist/singer Daniel Estrella, and drummer Cristian Peña relocated to New York two years later. Following their signing with Manhattan’s Mother West Records, the Latin hardcore ensemble cut a debut seven-track EP issued under the name M-16. Ex-Lockdown drummer Ray Reed replaced Peña on the kit ahead of the release of the band’s first full-length album, Canciones Escritas en el Exilio.