Power Trip surprised fans on Friday night (December 1) for a surprise gig in Austin, Texas.
It’s the first performance from the thrash metal band since the unexpected death of frontman Riley Gale in 2020. Aged 34, Gale was later confirmed to have died from fentanyl. My Chemical Romance and Trivium are among the bands who have paid tribute to Gale in the wake of his passing.
The band reunited as headliners for a show with crossover thrash band Fugitive. Co-founded by Power Trip’s guitarist Blake Ibanez lsat year, Fugitive also features Power Trip’s Nick Stewart as a touring member. On Friday, Houston’s Skourge lent their vocalist Seth Gilmore to sing with Power Trip (Gilmore also plays in Fugitive). Watch footage of the moment below:
Power Trip played a short setlist of five songs: “Soul Sacrifice,” “Executioner’s Tax,” “Hornet’s Nest,” and “Manifest Decimation” and “Crucifixation”.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Ibanez said, and spotlighted Gilmore for filling in on vocals.
Gale was honored as the namesake of a new library at the Dallas Hope Center in 2020, the city’s one shelter for LGBTQ+ youth. The Riley Gale Foundation was also launched in honour of the frontman, which supports LGBTQ+ organisations, animal rescues and mental health initiatives.
My Chemical Romance’s Gerard Way also spoke of his admiration for the late Gale at the band’s Milton Keynes show last year.
“I was so inspired by that fucking dude,” he said. “They were gonna be one of the bands that were gonna open for us… or I was gonna ask at least. They could have said, ‘Fuck no’, which I would have been totally respectful of, but I have a feeling they might have said yes.”
Way added: “They were a great fucking band… rest in peace Riley motherfucker!”