Grim Reaper

After spending the morning and early afternoon with 5 million Cubs fans, I went out to Bolingbrook (about an hour away) to catch the legendary Grim Reaper. We got there early to have dinner before the show. So early in fact that Steve, his wife, and the rest of the band were about a table away from us having dinner themselves. I decided not to approach him till after the show.

The evening started with a local band called Faith in the Fallen. I had never heard of them but was surprised how good they were. Their sound is a weird mix of Life of Agony inspired groove metal, with touches of Empire era Queensrÿche. Somehow it works.

Next up was local power metal legends, Damien Thorne. They played a full set of about 10 songs before closing out with an amazing cover of “Heaven and Hell”. The highlight of their set was getting to hear “Damien's Procession (March of the Undead)”. Epic!!!

Finally it was time for Grim Reaper!!! Despite a meager turnout of about 20 people, they delivered a full hour and a half set playing all of the classics, as well as a handful of new songs which fit right in. The one song they didn't play despite myself and 2 other guys shouting for it was “Dead on Arrival”. Unfortunately, Steve said he wouldn't be able to sing that song without blowing his voice out for the next two days and considering they had a show the following night, that would be a problem. I had heard mixed things recently about Steve live, but Friday night he sounded phenomenal, even if he couldn't hold the final note of “See You in Hell” for more than 10 seconds. Seriously, who can?