Halloween

Biography

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Halloween (1983-present): a Power Metal band from Detroit, Michigan, USA.

ebutinng in 1984, Halloween started with Don't Metal With Evil under the line-up of Brian Thomas (vocals), Rick Craig (guitar), George Neal (bass) and Bill Whyte (drums). The debut was originally released in cassette format only but the next year was re-released on higher quality cassette and in vinyl format.

The band actually formed in 1981 as Bitch with Thomas who came from a band called Alcatraz (not the Graham Bonnett, Malmsteen band), Craig from the band Limousine, bassist Ed Reynolds, guitarist Mark Scott and future Seduce drummer Chuck Burns. George Neal, however was quickly ousted before a liver performance ever happened. In 1982 on Halloween night, Bitch officially became Halloween.

Burns left in 1983; guitarist Mark Scott took over the drums but soon left, citing personal issues, to be replaced by the aforementioned Bill Whyte of Detroit-based band Nightmare.

The band then entered The Old School House Studios in Ann Arbor, MI with former Plasmatics guitarist Wes Beech in 1985 to record a follow-up album. The sessions dragged on through 1986 to early 1987 before the band shelve the project. On Halloween night in 1988, Craig and Whyte played their final show featuring opening act Damien. The show was filmed and was financed by the band as well as good friend Crimson Glory guitarist Jon Drenning.

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The band recruited guitarist Billy Gray and future Godsmack drummer Tommy Stewart (known as Tommy Scott back then) to play multiple shows around Detroit and Toledo supporting Crimson Glory. Stewart and Gray then recorded the famous Vicious Demo in 1989 with producer Rob Tylak, who would go on to produce their next album. Stewart and Gray left in 1990 with Gray going on to join Fair Game and Stewart going on to join Lillian Axe.

Various line-up changes and live shows followed, as well as a couple of demos, over the following years before the band traveled to New Jersey to use a studio which they found stripped of most of the recording equipment! Nonetheless, they cut what they could, and returned to Detroit. Those sessions ended off being aborted as well and re-recorded with Tylak in 1991, resulting in No One Gets Out (1991) with Donny Allen replacing Craig and Billy Adams replacing Whyte.

After several years of hiatus, the band returned to come across as early American '80's Metal, like a Motley Crue without as much pomp and glam. The follow-up album Victims of the Night, was originally recorded in 1986 and was actually their second album with the original line-up but shelved until 1998. They would go on to release 4.0 - Tricks, Treats, and Other Tales from the Crypt (2003), Not Dead... in the Murder City Demo (2004), E.vil P.ieces 6/6/6 EP (2006), Horror Fire (2006), 13 Tracks of Horror (Compilation: 2008) and Terrortory (2012) now featuring the membership of George Neal (bass), Brian Thomas (vocals), Rob Brug (drums), Don Guerrier (guitars) and T.J Richardson (guitars).