Atheist is a death metal band from Florida, USA. Their music is highly technical and sometimes reminiscent of jazz. They combine brutal riffs with subtle latin music arrangements. They are attributed as being one of the main developers of Florida death metal. They were founded in 1984 under the name Oblivion. That was the first incarnation of the band. The band was founded by guitarist (later on also become the vocalist) Kelly Shaefer and a drummer by the name of Mark. Mark was replaced by drummer Steve Flynn, because Kelly and Steve had similar musical tastes. Roger Patterson would later join as their bassist. By early 1985, they changed their name to R.A.V.A.G.E. (which stands for Raging Atheists Vowing A Gory End). As R.A.V.A.G.E., they recruited a singer that is only known by the name of Scrappy. He did not participate on any of the R.A.V.A.G.E. recordings. The first demo was released in 1985 and it was called Kill or Be Killed (also known as the Rotting in Hell demo). The next demo would be the last in 1987 called On They Slay with lead guitarist Mark Scwartzberg.

After their last demo as R.A.V.A.G.E., they changed their moniker to Atheist. They released a couple of demos, Hell Hath No Mercy in 1987 and Beyond in 1988. They recorded their debut album, Piece of Time, in 1988 and it was going to be released on the label Mean Machine. In 1989, another demo was released. However, the record label went bankrupt. Atheist had to wait until 1990 to release it on Active. In 1991, bassist Roger Patterson died in a car accident and Atheist recruited Tony Choy to record their second album, the now classic Unquestionable Presence. However Roger Patterson recorded a total of 6 pre-production tracks and one demo for Unquestionable Presence before he died. Atheist disbanded for the first time in 1992, reuniting in 1993 and recording their last album Elements before disbanding for the second time.

Kelly Schaefer played with Neurotica until 2002. Tony Choy played in a number of other bands, including Pestilence and Cynic. Tony Choy also happens to be in a Latin band called Area 305

Relapse Records re-issued the band's three albums in late 2005, as well as a vinyl box set containing the three albums plus the R.A.V.A.G.E. demo On They Slay. Former drummer Steve Flynn has recently re-emerged in a new band called Gnostic, www.gnosticmusic.com

In the beginning of 2006 Atheist announced they were regrouping to perform live during the summer and fall of 2006 including a much awaited performance at Wacken Open Air Metal Festival in Germany. The line-up will be Schaefer, Burkey, Choy and Flynn.