Grimskull influences: Wolfsbane - Steel

1993-1994 was a turbulent time to be a Iron Maiden fan. We knew Bruce Dickinson was leaving the band, and we were DYING to know who would replace him. There was a lot of rumours going on, some magazines said that Michael Kiske from Helloween would get the job, while others said that original vocalis Paul Di'Anno would return. But finally it was announced that Blaze Bayley got the job.

Blaze Bayley was the lead singer of the band Wolfsbane, a band who was mentioned a lot in metal magazines in the early 90's, but never really made it big. None of us had heard the band before, and since it was before the internet, it took some time until we actually heard their music. But we finally got our hands on their second album "All Hell's Breaking Loose .. Down At Little Kathy Wilson's Place", and despite the extremely long title we thought the music was absolutely AWESOME!

Our favorite was the first song off the album, a song called "Steel". And it was exactly the direction we hoped Iron Maiden would take after Bruce left. It was the perfect mix of gritty old school metal and macho attitude. And we had no doubt in our minds that Blaze was the right man for the job. Unfortunately Maiden chose a darker and slower direction.

No matter what, Wolfsbane has been a huge influence for Grimskull. And if Grimskull is ever accused of having any form of punk influence, this is where we got it from.

Cheers, TJ