R.I.P. Mike Scaccia
Mike Scaccia The world of metal lost another legend yesterday prematurely. Mike Scaccia of the legendary Rigor Mortis (one of the best late-80′s thrash metal bands whose first album was a masterpiece) suffered a heart attack last night on stage with Rigor Mortis and subsequently passed away. Mike was more well-known as a guitarist [...]
Saint Vitus and Weedeater 9/30/12 at Bottom Lounge
Last night could have been considered a heavy metal holiday as Saint Vitus returned to Chicago for the first time in nearly a decade. They not only returned but they brought Weedeater with them! The Bottom Lounge saw a good turnout of metal fans willing to stay out late on a Sunday night and those [...]
Anthrax 9/27 at The Vic Theatre
Thrash metal stalwarts Anthrax returned to Chicago for the third time in a year to headline a show at The Vic. The band has been touring almost constantly since late last year when they released a new album with all but one member (Dan Spitz) of their “classic lineup” titled Worship Music. Their last outing [...]
Saint Vitus and Weedeater to play Bottom Lounge this Sunday
This Sunday a pair of bands is playing at the Bottom Lounge that are so good that it should be declared a metal holiday. Long-time heavy metal band, Saint Vitus are teaming up with the more modern but equally great Weedeater. Either one of these bands would be more than enough reason to venture out [...]
Down 9/22/12 at House of Blues
In recent years the return of fall mean New Orleans based metal/rock band Down hits the road for their annual tour. For those of you unfamiliar with the band, it consists of Phil Anselmo of Pantera, Pepper Keenan of Corrosion of Conformity (the 90′s alt-rock version of the band), Kirk from Crowbar/Kingdom of Sorrow and [...]
The Summer Slaughter Tour 8/16/12 at House of Blues
The heaviest day-long tour of the year is The Summer Slaughter Tour. This tour features around a dozen extreme metal bands sharing a stage for a full day of brutal music. The annual tour (which features a different lineup every year) made a stop here in Chicago Thursday night at the House of Blues. The [...]
System of a Down and Deftones 8/15/12 at Allstate Arena
System of a Down and Deftones both enjoyed quite a bit of success from the mid 1990′s through the early 2000′s and both of them are still at it, having outlasted a lot of bands from that era. The two bands joined forces for a summer tour that concluded here in Chicago Wednesday night at [...]
Rockstar Mayhem Fest 7/21/12 at First Midwest Bank Amphitheater
Summer brings two annual festivals on opposite ends of the music spectrum: Warped Tour which caters mostly to pop-punk and emo bands these days, and the Rockstar Mayhem Fest which caters to heavy metal bands and fans of heavy music. The former happened a couple of weeks ago and the latter just happened on Saturday. [...]
Korn 2/24/12 at Congress Theater
Friday night Korn returned to the Congress Theater after a couple of years away from the city since their last appearance at the Rockstar Mayhem Festival. The band is on the road in support of their new album called, The Path of Totality, which is also the name of this current tour. The venue filled [...]
Anvil 2/23/12 at Reggies
Thursday night, Anvil made a return visit to Reggies over in the South Loop. Last year they put on a really good show at the same venue and for their return visit they were joined by three other bands. Ironfinger got the show started. They had lengthy songs that had a southern heavy metal sound [...]
Beneath Oblivion – From Man to Dust
Doom metal with more complex song structures and post-rock/post-metal influences that result in a very interesting and heavy album that gets better with each successive listen. Rating: Beneath Oblivion – From Man to Dust LP The Mylene Sheath For their first full-length album, Beneath Oblivion find themselves a home on a label that wouldn’t be [...]
Coroner confirms Gwar guitarist Cory Smoot’s cause of death
The Smoot family and Slave Pit Inc. released a statement regarding the official cause of death of guitarist Cory Smoot. Cory had played the character of Flattus Maximus for over ten years, and was discovered dead on the band’s tour bus on November 3rd of this year. He was 34. Stated North Dakota coroner William Masselo, [...]
Gwar guitarist found dead
Cory Smoot (as Flattus Maximus) In what couldn’t be any more horrible news, Gwar guitarist Flattus Maximus (real name Cory Smoot) was found dead this morning by his band mates as they were preparing to head to Canada on their current tour. Dave Brockie, singer of Gwar whose stage name is Oderus Urungus, issued the [...]
Gwar 10/31/11 at House of Blues
It has been a Halloween tradition for years that Gwar lands on our planet and performs in Chicago and this year was no different as the band returned once again to the House of Blues. The ornate interior of the venue was wrapped in plastic for the occasion as the club was packed full with [...]
Anthrax, Testament, and Death Angel 10/15/11 at Congress Theater
Saturday night the Congress Theater presented a metal trifecta that would make any late 1980′s metal fan drool and that was the return of Anthrax along with Testament and Death Angel. All three of these bands were held in very high regard during the late 1980s when thrash metal reigned supreme and Anthrax were one [...]
Weedeater 9/17/11 at Reggies
Saturday night a touring package of four excellent heavy bands made a stop at Reggies in Chicago for a night of metal in the South Loop. This package tour featured the mighty Weedeater as the headliner and that alone was reason enough to hit up one of Chicago’s finest clubs and the fact that three [...]
Down 9/16 at Austin’s Fuel Room
After a two-year wait since their last trip to the midwest, metal superstars Down returned to IL and instead of playing Chicago opted once again to play in Libertyville at Austin’s Fuel Room. Hundreds of fans packed the restaurant portion of the venue waiting the extra hour delay for the doors to open and in [...]
Doro Pesch 9/11/11 at Reggies
Sunday night not only marked the tenth anniversary of one of the most tragic days in American history but it also marked the return of a metal legend to Reggies. That legend is the “queen of metal”, Doro Pesch. Doro has enjoyed a long career in music spanning the better part of three decades now, [...]
Wolves in the Throne Room and Indian 9/1 at Reggies
September got off to a great start with the long-awaited return of Wolves in the Throne Room to Chicago. After two years they finally hit the road again and started their tour right here in the Windy City. Reggies was the host for this monumental evening that featured three unique and amazing metal bands. Chicago [...]
Rockstar Mayhem Festival 8/5/11 at First Midwest Bank Amphitheater part two
As the day progressed so did the non-stop lineup of bands playing the Rockstar Mayhem Festival and there was only a few more bands to go before the main pavilion opened up for the four main event, big-stage acts. People were sweaty and hot but they stayed hydrated by visiting the Rockstar tent which had [...]
COC/Coliseum 7/30 at Reggies
Saturday night over in the South Loop, Reggies had a four band show that featured one legendary punk/metal band from the old days who was touring with one of the finer bands of the modern-day. Those two bands are COC and Coliseum and you couldn’t ask for a more solid pair of bands playing a [...]
Anvil 7/26/11 at Reggies
Tuesday night, veteran heavy metal underdogs Anvil made their return to the Windy City to headline a show at Reggies. After enjoying some long-overdue recognition with the release of their documentary a year or so ago, the trio from Canada are back with another new album and tour. The metal-friendly Reggies was a perfect place [...]
Voivod – Warriors of Ice
A very strong live album that also serves as a best-of Voivod with its track list that will please long-time fans as well as providing a good introduction for the unfamiliar. Rating: Voivod – Warriors of Ice Sonic Unyon Metal In the mid 1980s a little thrash metal band from Canada named Voivod made their [...]
