Zorlac and the Texas Thrash Connection

Zorlac never had Powell's budget or Vision's storefronts. What it had was Texas: a scene built on empty pools, fast music, and a shop-to-shop network that treated skateboarding as a sibling of thrash metal. Founded by Jeff Newton, the brand found its identity when Brian 'Pushead' Schroeder started drawing for it.

Pushead's ink

Pushead's crosshatched skulls gave Zorlac an instantly recognizable look — and when Metallica licensed his art for their merchandise, the circle closed: the 1988 Zorlac Metallica decks are collected by two different subcultures at once, which keeps supply thin and prices unpredictable.

Texas humidity was not kind to eighties maple. Expect honest wear on almost every surviving example; suspiciously clean Zorlacs deserve suspicious questions, which is exactly what our authentication center is for.