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With Ozzfest all but confirmed to return as a one-day festival at Aston Villa Football Club in Birmingham, UK, I think back to how many incredible lineups I saw at Ozzy's traveling festival between 2004 and 2010 (the only one between those years I didn’t go to was 2008's one day event in Texas).

My very first Ozzfest was in 2004 at the then Tweeter Center in Camden, NJ (Aug. 26) I'll never forget how blown away I was by both Judas Priest and Slayer. The highlight of the night, though, was when Bill Ward came out and delivered the unfortunate news that Ozzy was ill and couldn't perform that evening. After a few seconds of boos, the crowd became stunned when Ward announced that Black Sabbath would be performing with Rob Halford filling in. What proceeded was an amazing and historical set - with Halford absolutely crushing Ozzy-era classics.

6 years later I'd attend my last Ozzfest at the same venue (rebranded to Susquehanna Bank Center). Ironically Halford was playing with his solo band on this tour's edition - but he didn't need to fill in for anyone, as Ozzy closed out the night with a rousing solo set (after Motley Crue played a surprising fun, bare-bones set... well, as bare-bones as a Motley Crue show can be). The highlight of the day, though, was witnessing a tornado briefly blow through - forcing Black Label Society to cancel their second stage headlining set (though somehow not canceling the rest of the day...).

There's a ton more stories I can recall from both metal festivals... but that's for another time 😉

Who was the best band you ever saw play Ozzfest? Favorite lineup? Share in the comments below, and stay tuned for more things to come from this space (including stories from festivals like this)!

12 years ago, i spent an emotional weekend at GWAR-B-Q - held months after the sudden death of Dave Brockie at Hadad’s Lake in Richmond, Virginia. Honestly, I could spend hours reliving memories from this particular weekend - I can still vividly remember the sight of seeing Oderus Urungus' costume burnt to a crisp during a fitting viking funeral, and how the emotions ran high for everyone as GWAR returned onstage.

I tried to put some thoughts down in writing via Substack (link below) - including stories involving Lamb Of God's Randy Blythe and former members of GWAR, but hope to share more memories from that weekend at a Virginia waterpark in the near future. In the meantime, check out my post via Substack for a start (and this clip for some photos of the weekend):

https://iheardbrucemightshowup.substack.com/p/that-time-i-saw-oderus-urungus-viking

Stay tuned for more things to come from this space, including stories from concerts and music festivals like this!

Slash made a special appearance during "The Lost Boys" musical on Broadway this week. While I can't say I've seen the legendary Guns N' Roses guitarist on Broadway, I have seen him live with GN'R and with Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators - including at the Wellmont Theater in Montclair, NJ, on Oct. 1, 2018. Seeing Slash in such an intimate setting (well, intimate for Slash) was amazing in and of itself, but as a fan of his solo work, hearing songs like "Anastasia" was especially amazing (plus, the entire band sounded fantastic - seriously looking forward to Slash and Myles hitting the road together again soon). This particular show was especially special as I got to go with my nephews - both in their pre-teens at the time, and both still big fans of Slash.

Stay tuned for more things to come from this space, including stories from concerts like this!

Ritchie Blackmore joined Deep Purple onstage last night (Aug. 12, 2026) for the first time in more than 30 years at the Jones Beach Theater in Wantagh, NY - joining the band for an encore of "Smoke On The Water." I never got to see Deep Purple play with their influential founding guitarist, but I did see them when their co-headlining tour with Judas Priest came to the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ, on Sept. 6, 2018. And nothing against Deep Purple... but let's just say it's nearly impossible to follow Rob Halford and the almighty Metal Gods (seriously, not sure how any band would want to play AFTER Judas Priest).

What reunion do you hope to one day see on stage? Share in the comments below and stay tuned for more things to come from this space, including stories from concerts like this!

13 years ago (Aug. 10), I saw Black Sabbath at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. As great as the Godfathers of Metal were that night, it was what happened the following day that stands out to me... the morning after, I got a DM from a girl I had been chatting with on a dating app. She asked if I was free that night to grab dinner. Any other person I would've probably used the excuse of being "too tired and soar after seeing a concert" to go out (and admittedly I was both - I had traveled back n forth between Philly and my apartment in Jersey City for the show, so basically across the entire state of NJ, and I headbanged so much during the show that I was completely drained), but I didn't want to pass on any chancr to finally meet her. And thank goodness I went... 13 years later, we're about to celebrate our 10 year wedding anniversary, have raised two incredible kids (shout out to my twins!), and have gone to so many concerts together that I've lost count. So yeah, you could say that the day after I saw Black Sabbath live, I met my go-to concert buddy for life...

Who's your favorite person to go to concerts with? Share in the comments below, and stay tuned for more things to come from this space (including stories from concerts like this)!

What else can be said about Metallica's 'Black Album' that hasn't already been said since its release 35 years ago today (Aug. 12)? It's such a massive, monumental album in rock history (not just metal) - one I gained even more appreciation for after seeing Metallica play it in its entirety (from back to front) at the Orion Music + More festival in Atlantic City, NJ (June 24, 2012). I got to cover the entire weekend for Metal Insider (hence the media wrist band seen at the end of this clip), and while I was pretty much burnt to a crisp by the time Metallica took the stage for their second headlining set of the festival, I was in awe of how each song off the Black Album sounded so powerful live. Admittedly it's such a popular album that for a while I took it for granted, but that special show proved why the Black Album remains one of the best selling albums of all time.

Which album would you love to see performed from start to finish? Which albums have you already seen performed in its entirety? Share in the comments below, and stay tuned for more things to come from this space (including stories from concerts like this)!

Even after 35 years, seeing Metallica play "Enter Sandman" never gets old. Case in point - here's the band closing out their show at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia back on May 12, 2017. Granted, this particular performance benefited from the unbelievable fireworks display above the massive stage, plus a sold out stadium singing along to one of the most recognizable metal anthems of all time. I also always look back fondly at this show, as I went with my cousin - we've shared a close bond since kids because of our love for bands like Metallica, so getting to see them live with him is something I'll always be grateful for.

Stay tuned for more things to come from this space, including stories from concerts like this!

20 years ago this week (Aug. 6), Metalocalypse premiered on Adult Swim. The animated series (which asked the question 'What if a death metal band was so larger than life that they were more powerful than most countries") was so popular that co-creator Brendon Small created a live version of Dethklok. I got to see Dethklok in the flesh (well, sorta) twice - the first time at the House Of Blues in Boston (Oct. 27, 2009) during their co-headlining tour with Mastodon. Brendon assembled a ridiculously talented group of musicians (drummer Gene Hoglan, bassist Bryan Beller, and guitarist Mike Keneally) to help bring the songs to life while classic moments from the show displayed on a screen behind them. The show perfectly showcased how funny Metalocalypse was and how intricate and melodically brutal the music was (seriously, Dethklok's songs are WAY better than they should be).

Funny side story - I had just started writing for Metal Insider around this time, and had been promised a spot on the guest list for the show. However, when me and my friend arrived we discovered no tickets were left for us at will call, and the show was sold out. We drove from our college campus in Worcester to Boston, so we were determined to make sitting in traffic worth it - so we scrambled to first find an ATM to grab cash (ah, the days before digital payment options...) and then find someone willing to sell us tickets outside the venue. Luckily we were successful, but as a result missed High On Fire's opening set and walked into the House Of Blues just as Converge were playing their last song. Well, at least we got to see Dethklok and Mastodon 😆

Stay tuned for more things to come from this space, including stories from concerts like this!