Angelripper formed Sodom with guitarist Frank "Aggressor" Testegen and drummer Rainer "Bloody Monster" Focke in 1982, in a desperate bid to get out of work in the coal mines that the three had worked in.
Angelripper je s gitaristom Frankom "Aggressorom" Testegenom i bubnjarom Rainerom "Bloody Monsterom" Fockeom 1982. godine osnovao Sodom, želeći napustiti rudnik ugljena u kojem su sva trojica radila.