power trip band riley

Riley Gale, Singer for Thrash Metal Band Power Trip, Dead at 34

By Althea Legaspi

Althea Legaspi

UPDATE (5/25):  An autopsy report for late Power Trip frontman Riley Gale ruled that the musician died from the toxic effects of fentanyl, while the manner of death was ruled accidental. The autopsy report was first shared on YouTube by the user Heavy Metal Picker, while Rolling Stone confirmed the cause of death with the Dallas County Medical Examiner’s office.

Riley Gale, the singer for Dallas, Texas thrash metal band Power Trip, died Monday, his family confirmed in a statement. He was 34. The cause of death has not been publicly revealed.

“It is with greatest of sadness we must announce that our lead singer and brother Riley Gale passed away last night,” the family of Gale wrote in a statement shared on Power Trip’s Twitter. “Riley was a friend, a brother, a son. Riley was both a larger than life rock star and a humble and giving friend.

“He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart. He treated everyone he met as a friend and he always took care of his friends. We will celebrate Riley’s life and never forget the great works of music, charity, and love that he left behind. You, the fans, meant so much to him, please know how special you are.” In the statement, the family also invited fans to share their memories.

Formed in 2008, the band released two full-length albums on Southern Lord, 2013’s Manifest Decimation and 2017’s Nightmare Logic . The latter made Rolling Stone ‘s “ 20 Best Albums of 2017 ,” which was noted for “frontman Riley Gale’s ferociously flabbergasted bark: Rather than trading in straight-up rage, he delivers lines like ‘You’re waiting around to die/And I can’t fucking stand it!’ with something approaching bewildered indignation.”

In 2018 they released the compilation album Opening Fire: 2008-2014, with Live in Seattle 05.28.2018 coming out earlier this year. Gale also appeared on Body Count’s “Point the Finger” from Carnivore . “I’m devastated, ” Body Count frontman Ice-T tweeted . “Still don’t know how… I’m speechless.”

A funeral and visitation arrangements are pending.

pic.twitter.com/wJM1WnqXDp — POWER TRIP (@powertriptx) August 26, 2020

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Power Trip’s Riley Gale Dead at 34

Riley Gale, singer of the Dallas thrash metal band Power Trip , died on Monday. The band confirmed the news in a statement. He was 34. This story is developing.

“It is with the greatest of sadness we must announce that our lead singer and brother Riley Gale passed away last night,” the band wrote. “Riley was a friend, a brother, a son. Riley was both a larger than life rock star and a humble and giving friend. He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart. He treated everyone he met as a friend and he always took care of his friends. We will celebrate Riley’s life and never forget the great works of music, charity, and love that he left behind. You, the fans, meant so much to him, please know how special you are. If you have a memory of Riley please share it, no matter how small, as we remember him.”

Gale was 22 when he formed Power Trip, working an office job and going to school at the University of North Texas in Denton. Power Trip released two albums on Southern Lord: their 2013 debut Manifest Decimation and 2017’s Nightmare Logic . Their rarities compilation Opening Fire: 2008-2014 was released in 2018, and a live album arrived earlier this year.

Gale was politically outspoken. The title of Power Trip’s Nightmare Logic song “If Not Us Then Who” was inspired by the late civil rights icon John Lewis. Gale spoke in interviews about how the album was also a reaction to extreme wealth disparity and the idea of a “revolt” against the very rich. Once, when Power Trip’s music played on Fox News, the band tweeted an all-caps “CEASE & DESIST.” “If you don't like our stances, don't support our band,” Gale said in a 2018 Revolver interview . “It doesn't make a single difference to us. ... We try to make it pretty clear that we might all be white males, but this is not a band for white males to enjoy and be dumb rednecks.”

“It’s a mystery to me that we’re as big as we are,” Gale said in that same interview. “I saw us hitting a ceiling a lot longer ago and now we’re having people telling us we could turn this into a career and I don’t know if I believe them. I don’t even know if I have it in me, but we’re going to try.”

The band is asking for privacy and donations to Dallas Hope Charities .

This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.

This article was originally published on August 25 at 8:29 p.m. Eastern. It was last updated on August 25 at 8:54 p.m. Eastern.

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Riley Gale, Fiery Singer Of Power Trip, Dead At 34

Lars Gotrich

Riley Gale, performing with Power Trip on Nov. 8, 2015 in Austin, Texas. Gary Miller/Getty Images hide caption

Riley Gale, performing with Power Trip on Nov. 8, 2015 in Austin, Texas.

Riley Gale, the throat-shredded vocalist for the Texas-based metal band Power Trip , died Monday of unspecified causes. He was 34.

His death was announced in a Facebook post by his bandmates:

"It is with the greatest of sadness we must announce that our lead singer and brother Riley Gale passed away last night. Riley was a friend, a brother, a son. Riley was both a larger than life rock star and a humble and giving friend. He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart. He treated everyone he met as a friend and he always took care of his friends. We will celebrate Riley's life and never forget the great works of music, charity, and love that he left behind. You, the fans, meant so much to him, please know how special you are. If you have a memory of Riley please share it, no matter how small, as we remember him."

Posted in Tribute to my friend Riley Gale.... Gone far to soon.. 35yrs old.. GOD BLESS YOU homie... So Fn sad.... pic.twitter.com/DwHoXdVj7R — ICE T (@FINALLEVEL) August 26, 2020

With Gale at the helm, Power Trip offered a "heavy hopelessness that thrashes with punk immediacy and metal intricacy," NPR Music contributor Maria Sherman wrote of "Firing Squad" in 2016 . Gale's lyrics often dealt with destruction, but also social inequity, imploring, like the track "If Not Us Then Who," his listeners to action: "Get up / Out of your cave and into the fire / Time's short, this is our last resort / To get through to you, what have I got to do?"

Started in 2008, the Dallas metal band quickly ascended in the scene's ranks with its hardcore-heavy thrash and a live show somewhere between a party and a rally. Power Trip released two albums, 2013's Manifest Decimation and 2017's Nightmare Logic , plus a compilation of early tracks and two live albums.

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Riley Gale, lead singer of Power Trip, dies at 34

Riley Gale, who is best known as the lead singer of thrash metal band Power Trip, died Monday night at age 34. A cause of death was not immediately given.

The band shared the news in a statement on their Twitter account on Tuesday. “It is with the greatest of sadness we must announce that our lead singer and brother Riley Gale passed away last night,” the band wrote . “Riley was a friend, a brother, a son. Riley was both a larger than life rock star and a humble and giving friend. He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart. He treated everyone he met as a friend and he always took care of his friends. We will celebrate Riley’s life and never forget the great works of music, charity, and love that he left behind. You, the fans, meant so much to him, please know how special you are. If you have a memory of Riley please share it, no matter how small, as we remember him.”

Gale helped form the band in 2008. In 2009, their first EP Armageddon Blues was released and was followed up by another EP, Power Trip , two years later. They went on to release two albums on Southern Lord: their 2013 debut Manifest Decimation and 2017’s Nightmare Logic . This was followed by a compilation album, Opening Fire: 2008-2014, in 2018. In 2019, Power Trip tweeted that they were at work on their third album.

Fellow musicians shared their condolences on Twitter Tuesday night as the news broke. "I just got the news.. He was only 35.. I’m devastated.. Still don’t know how... I’m speechless. So Fd up.. smh," rapper Ice T wrote .

"So sad to hear of Riley Gale’s passing. I only had the good fortune of meeting him once, but he had a way of making you feel like you’d known him forever, instantly," Slipknot drummer Jay Weinberg shared . "Such a profound loss. Love and deepest sympathies to Power Trip and everyone close to him."

The band is asking for privacy at this time. In lieu of flowers, well-wishers are being asked to donate to Dallas Hope Charities .

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Riley Gale, Lead Singer of Metal Band Power Trip, Dies at 34

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Riley Gale, the lead singer of the metal band Power Trip , has died at 34, his family announced on Tuesday evening.

“It is with the greatest of sadness we must announce that our lead singer and brother Riley Gale passed away last night,” this family shared on the band’s Twitter account. No cause of death was given.

“Riley was a friend, a brother, a son. Riley was both a larger than life rock star and a humble and giving friend. He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart. He treated everyone he met as a friend and he always took care of his friends. We will celebrate Riley’s life and never forget the great works of music, charity, and love that he left behind. You, the fans, meant so much to him, please know how special you are. If you have a memory of Riley please share it, no matter how small, as we remember him,” the statement said.

pic.twitter.com/wJM1WnqXDp — POWER TRIP (@powertriptx) August 26, 2020

In 2008, Gale helped form the band in Dallas, Texas, with a lineup consisting of drummer Chris Ulsh, bassist Chris Whetzel and guitarists Blake Ibanez and Nick Stewart. Their first EP “Armageddon Blues” released in 2009, followed by the self-titled “Power Trip” in 2011. The band then dropped two full-length studio albums, “Manifest Decimation” in 2013 and “Nightmare Logic” in 2017, in addition to a compilation album called “Opening Fire” in 2018.

Power Trip played and toured with other heavy metal artists, such as Ozzy Osbourne, Anthrax, Exodus, Five Finger Death Punch, Napalm Death and more.

In lieu of flowers, Gale’s family is asking for donations to be made to Dallas Hope Charities.

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Remembering Power Trip’s Riley Gale: The Pride of Texas Metal

Click here to read the full article on SPIN.

Yesterday, metal lost one of its realest: Riley Gale, singer for Dallas thrash kings Power Trip , who died at age 34. As someone who followed the band in their home state, there’s a lot I could say about Gale and the band he fronted. They meant a lot to me and a generation of metal and hardcore fans. “Decade-defining” doesn’t even come close. It’s impossible to encapsulate what a force they were and what a generous dude he was, but here’s to trying.

Power Trip were the best metal band of the 2010s, but more importantly, they are a source of pride for Texan headbangers and moshers. Despite Texas’ reputation for outsized state love, that’s not an easy endeavor. To be a real Texan is to embody conflicted admiration: The barbecue, UGK and East Texas’ sprawling forests are all praise-worthy; the battles over abortion rights, an illegitimate and racist border wall and the piss-poor response to COVID-19 are not. Pride is great; shame is heavier. Gale was equally quick to shit on Sen. Ted Cruz and show love to Lone Star hardcore legends Iron Age because he knew to be Texan is to be conflicted. He was blessed with a tongue that lashed but also loved. He knew that his fans wanted the best for Texas. Though he never specifically wrote a song about slain Austin Black Lives Matter activist Garrett Foster, Gale sang with a similar spirit: Never back down on your values, never compromise.

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What separates Texas bands is that they just go harder than everyone else. Gale was a Texan: He had to scream his heart out; he had to whip everyone into a merciless frenzy; he had to top himself constantly. And he fucking did it. Power Trip shows were notorious for a reason — everyone was moving or at least moved . He made his Texan fans proud to be Texans. When they blew up, we still knew they were one of us.

Metallica is an often thrown-around comparison and not just as a lazy genre reference: Power Trip genuinely seemed like they were next to ascend to the metal zenith. Still, Gale retained humility and admiration for his fans. He never wanted the moshers to calm down, and he expressed frustration when venues wouldn’t allow stage-divers. He would stick around and talk to fans after a marathon performance — and if he ever had a bad show, there was no way you could tell. Gale was the face of his band, and he used that as an open gate. Power Trip were the best fucking metal band on the planet, and they were for everyone, provided you weren’t a bigot or in Trapt . They are proof that in the musical trenches, there is genius; it’s not exclusive (or majority held) by the big guns.

Power Trip never forgot where they came from, and they big-upped anyone who sweated it out with them in the struggle. This was never more evident than during the second edition of their own Evil Beat festival back in January, in what was maybe the first and last good weekend of 2020. Held at the Southside Ballroom in their hometown, a slew of their friends and mentors came together for the ultimate all-day rager: Two of their biggest thrash influences, California’s Vio-Lence and Canada’s Razor, ripped into crowds half their age; Deafheaven, former tourmates and another of the decade’s definitive metal bands, made an one-off stop following an Asia tour two months prior; old hardcore comrades Warthog and Wiccans played alongside New Orleans punk confounders Special Interest and noise legend Prurient (who contributed electronics to Power Trip’s breakout record, 2017’s Nightmare Logic ); and they didn’t even headline their own fest, leaving that to death metal legends Carcass. It wasn’t a wall of thrash clones. These were friends and inspirations. Gale didn’t fuck with lanes, and that’s what made Evil Beat, and Power Trip by extension, so memorable.

I was hoping, once COVID-19 was no longer a daily threat, that Power Trip would have announced Evil Beat 3. They were also working on a third record, which would have been a welcome relief. More than a decade into their career, they were only getting started: Their crossover from old thrash-heads to young hardcore kids to college-rock normies to Ice-fucking-T and many points in between was nothing short of impressive. No band is universal, but they were their own dedicated, volatile, loving universe.

Don’t consider this an eulogy: Power Trip will never die, even if Gale has left us. They have two perfect thrash records and a decade of memories through blood, broken bones and goodwill towards fellow bangers. Gale’s family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Dallas Hope Charities , an organization focused on LGBTQ youth.

Gale wanted us to help out each other. His intensity was one of a kind; his generosity is something we can come closer to matching.

To see our running list of the top 100 greatest guitarists of all time, click here .

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For the surviving members of metal band Power Trip, the Grammys are a bittersweet coda

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On Monday night, just a few weeks after a freak deep freeze brought Texas to the brink of an electric-grid collapse, the surviving members of the Texas metal band Power Trip gathered at guitarist Nick Stewart’s house in Dallas.

The four — Stewart, 32; guitarist Blake Ibanez, 29; drummer Chris Ulsh, 33; and bassist Chris Whetzel, 33 — had spread out across the state and country during the fall and winter surge of the pandemic. They’d hadn’t all been in the same room since the early fall of 2020.

“I just got here like five minutes ago; it’s so strange to me to be seeing these guys for the first time in six or seven months,” said Ulsh, who now lives in Philadelphia.

“It’s been a long time, but it doesn’t feel like it,” Stewart said. “I guess it hasn’t really hit me until right now.”

The last time they were all together was for a funeral. On Aug. 24, Power Trip’s singer, Riley Gale, died at 34, a brutal loss of one of their genre’s most viscerally compelling performers and empathetic songwriters. In a devastating year for music, Gale’s death hit especially hard — a young singer at the height of his powerswho had shared stages with Ozzy Osbourne and Danzig and whose band was poised for stardom.

Although no cause of death has been publicly released (a representative for the group said, “The family has not released the toxicology report to anyone, so Riley’s cause of death cannot be confirmed”), one of metal’s most important and inventive groups of the last decade now has to stare down a future without its singer — and close friend.

Monday’s interview was the first time Power Trip had spoken publicly as a group since Gale’s death.

On Sunday, Power Trip is nominated for its first Grammy, for metal performance, for a version of its song “Executioner’s Tax (Swing of the Axe),” released off a surprise live LP in June. For a group that takes its ferocious cues from ’80s thrash and hardcore, the band members are unexpectedly earnest about this potential award. They had huge ambitions as a band, and each said that their peers acknowledging their achievements with Gale would be a truly meaningful coda as they grieve.

“Losing Riley was the saddest thing that ever happened to me,” Ulsh said. “But I’m so proud of everything we accomplished together. One of the coolest things from the start was that there was no ceiling to this band, and this Grammy nomination is a perfect example of that.”

Seven months on from Gale’s death, the band and its peers understandably struggle to talk about what he meant to their lives. “Just heard about Riley. Goddamnit. Sending love to his family and friends and his band,” Anthrax’s Scott Ian wrote on social media after news of Gale’s death broke. Ice-T wrote, “I’m devastated... Still don’t know how... I’m speechless.”

Asked about fond memories of his friend and bandmate, Ulsh took a few beats to try to describe their last days together.

“It still feels very fresh. It’s hard to talk about,” Ulsh said. “We were close. I spent a lot of my downtime on tour with him. It’s still hard to fathom.”

“We’ve never been through anything like this,” Ibanez agreed. “But it’s definitely brought us closer. You’re together all the time, then in the blink of an eye, you know you’ll never see each other again.”

“But this has helped us all realize how much we love each other,” Stewart said.

Power Trip’s members have played together for more than a decade, but even though they released their last studio album, “Nightmare Logic,” in 2017, their worldview seemed perfectly timed to the present moment of public fury and big-picture social critique.

Their music pulls from the hard-riffing roots of Texas metal forebears like Pantera but caught the ear of the tastemaking L.A. metal label Southern Lord. Power Trip arrived at its brand of thrash metal through a lens of basement hardcore punk and fervent prison-reform politics.

Even the most demanding tough-guy metal fans could recognize their sincerity and ability. Gale was not an overtly menacing physical presence onstage, in the way many metal frontmen try to posture. But alongside peers like Code Orange, Turnstile and Oathbreaker, something about Gale’s conviction connected deeply with fans well beyond metal’s typical catharsis.

“Power Trip was the first heavy band I can remember that was universally beloved since, like, Slayer,” said Albert Mudrian, editor of the metal magazine Decibel. “Everybody knew the stars were aligning for them to take the next step. There aren’t many extreme bands who crossed over, who can crack a Billboard top 10. Power Trip were in the position to join them.”

The band was especially attuned to the ongoing movement against police violence. Power Trip’s 2013 song “Conditioned to Death” riffed on Michel Foucault to depict prison’s strangling of human potential. Gale guest-howled on “Point the Finger,” a 2020 single from Ice-T’s metal band Body Count released at the height of the racial justice protests after George Floyd’s death. The band’s song “If Not Us Then Who” quoted civil-rights activist John Lewis.

Even the stampeding licks of “Executioner’s Tax,” an older song now up for a Grammy in a live version, hits harder in light of the roiling demonstrations against police brutality over the last year.

“Death hides behind veiled faces / It only takes one swing and you’re gone,” Gale screamed. “The executioner, the beginning and the end / He carries cold hard steel masked with the taste of medicine.”

Listening to that live recording today “definitely hits home,” Whetzel said. “It takes me right back to that show. It touches me now in a way I wouldn’t have imagined.”

Although the pandemic had already shuttered the band’s world of sweat- and spit-soaked live shows, the group was working on new material and in January 2020 had just thrown the second edition of its hometown festival, Evil Beat, with Deafheaven, Carcass and Torche. Even mainstream outlets like NPR took notice of their rise.

“It’s easy for me to downplay what we accomplished, but the response has been pretty incredible,” Ibanez said. “To get this outpouring of respect and love was very cool. It’s helped a lot. It makes me feel like what we were doing had a purpose.”

Few metal bands take the Grammys as a defining barometer of success. But as Power Trip slowly begins to think about both its legacy and its future (the band has no idea yet what its next steps in music will be: “We do want to continue to play music together; we just are not sure what that looks like at this time,” Ibanez said.), it keeps turning back to its songwriting with Gale and the way the music resonated with fans, those deeply immersed in metal as well as far outside that sphere.

A Dallas LGBTQ transitional-housing center, Dallas Hope Charities, plans to name its new library after Gale, who helped raise thousands in donations and invited its volunteers to set up outreach efforts at Power Trip shows. “If that is something that brings them calm to their anxiety and lets them have that quiet time and that space, that’ll be there for them,” Chief Executive Evie Scrivner told the Dallas Observer, announcing the library after Gale’s death.

“It’s easy for a band to say they’re ‘anti-authoritarian,’ but Riley was looking around and seeing people who were really oppressed; that’s what he reacted to,” Mudrian said. “He wasn’t lamenting his own situation so much as he was listening to the stories of other people. That speaks to a generousness he had as a person.”

All four band members are just beginning to assess what Gale meant to their lives and what their band has meant to metal. But as a valediction for this time in their career, they’re proud that this recording of “Executioner’s Tax” is a testament to Power Trip’s importance to metal, at the Grammys and far beyond.

“I hope we changed people’s perceptions about what a metal band can be,” Ibanez said. “We didn’t have to compromise; we just were who we were, and people respected that about us. I hope that’s how people will remember us.”

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Riley Gale, Lead Singer of Thrash Metal Band Power Trip, Dead at 34

"He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart," the musician's family said in a statement

Power Trip lead singer Riley Gale has died. He was 34.

Gale's family announced his death with a statement posted to the band's Twitter on Tuesday.

"It is with the greatest of sadness we must announce that our lead singer and brother Riley Gale passed away last night," the statement said. No cause of death was given.

"Riley was a friend, a brother, a son. Riley was both a larger than life rock star and a humble and giving friend. He touched so many lives through his lyrics and through his huge heart. He treated everyone he met as a friend and he always took care of his friends."

The statement continued to say that Power Trip's fans "meant so much" to Gale, and encouraged donations to Dallas Hope Charities in lieu of flowers. Funeral arrangements are pending, the family said.

Power Trip began in 2008, and the band released the album Manifest Destination in 2013, followed by Nightmare Logic in 2017, which made Rolling Stone 's list of the top 20 albums for that year. They released a compilation album titled Opening Fire: 2008-2014 in 2018, and a live album earlier this year.

Gale attended the University of North Texas and formed the band when he was 22.

Earlier this year, Gale collaborated with Ice-T's band Body Count for track "Point the Finger" and featured in the video which was f ilmed at the start of the coronavirus pandemic while everyone was social distancing.

After hearing the news, Ice shared his shock on Twitter.

"I just got the news.. He was only 35.. I’m devastated.. Still don't know how... I'm speechless. So Fd up.. smh," the rapper wrote.

Creeping Death, another metal band based in Texas, shared a tribute to Gale on Twitter.

"Riley always put on for the home team, he and Power Trip helped open a lot of doors for us and many other bands out of the Texas hardcore scene over the years," the band wrote in a tweet. "The music world lost a huge star, Rest in Power Riley Gale."

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Power Trip Spreads the Gospel

In 2021, guitarist Blake Ibanez asked his friend, metal vocalist Seth Gilmore, if he wanted to mess around and sing songs by Ibanez’s old group, the beloved thrash-metal band Power Trip, for fun. But Gilmore demurred. “I just wasn’t in a place to take something on like that,” he says.

It was a heavy prospect to consider. In August 2020, Riley Gale , the esteemed frontman for Power Trip, had died from an accidental overdose at the age of 34. A fixture within the Dallas metal and hardcore scenes, Gale didn’t so much sing as emit a colossal bellow. His 12-year career in Power Trip (with guitarists Ibanez and Nick Stewart, drummer Chris Ulsh, and bass player Chris Whetzel) had galvanized metalheads in and outside diehard circles, and the band’s legendary shows were raucous affairs — a place where everyone was invited to rage in a welcoming mosh pit.

Gale’s death had left the community devastated and the band’s future uncertain. But in December 2023, Power Trip briefly reunited for an emotive show in Austin with a new lead singer in tow: Gilmore, who had finally decided to take Ibanez up on his offer. Now the band, with Gilmore as front man, is kicking off their first formal shows in four years with a string of dates this summer, including Goldenvoice’s inaugural No Values punk festival this weekend in Pomona, California, and ending with Queens’s Knockdown Center in August.

Part of the band’s approach this time stems from encountering newer Power Trip fans over the last four years. “I meet people at shows that just found out about us, like, ‘Aw I never got to see you guys. Please play,’” Ibanez says. “That’s what it’s really about at the end of the day. There’s some unfinished business for all of us.”

Blake, you initially asked Seth to mess around on a few Power Trip songs. How did these shows come about?  Blake Ibanez (guitar): I had an idea to do some Power Trip songs at my band Fugitive’s show in Austin.

Nick Stewart (guitar): We had planned to play a couple of Power Trip songs after the Fugitive set. And then in the lead-up to that, we got asked to do the No Values festival. So we had already planned on doing the songs, and the fest offered us to play that.

Chris Ulsh (drums): We were just waiting for the right thing to come along. It’s not like we’re just going to play one show; it’s going to be a few across the country, and it’s going to be a lot of work. We didn’t want to just say “yes” to the first thing that came through.

B.I.: The cool thing about the Austin show was it was a low-pressure environment to see how it all went over. The reaction was really positive. It was like, Oh, okay, if there’s a good opportunity to do this formally, we’ll probably take it . We felt pretty confident we could pull this thing off and do it justice.

Were you concerned initially you weren’t going to pull it off? B.I.: I mean, I wasn’t really concerned. Me and Seth have played together for a while now; he’s sung over material I’ve written. The other thing is he’s been fronting bands as long as we’ve been a band. I’m sure he wouldn’t have said “yes” if he didn’t feel like he could do it. It didn’t feel like we went out and found some guy that looked and sounded like Riley, which would have been the wrong decision. With Seth and all his history in our scene and with me, it was a no-brainer.

But if it bombed, then hey, we just were having fun at the Fugitive show, you know what I mean? But I didn’t feel like it was gonna bomb. We can play our instruments all right still. [ Laughs. ]

Seth, what was it like for you to step in as frontman at that moment? Seth Gilmore (lead vocals): It didn’t feel real until it started happening … and it was pretty crazy. I really can’t put a word to how I actually felt about it.

Chris Whetzel (bass): There were moments where we were just laughing because it felt so wild to be up there. It was weird.

B.I.: We finished playing the Fugitive set, and I was kind of gassed. I’d put a lot into that. But then there was this rush of doing this again. I was battling to get more energy, but also getting hyped up. And, like, obviously, all the nerves of playing the songs again.

I noticed Seth gave the mic a couple of times to people in the crowd at the Austin show. I was moved by that — it felt like it was as much their show as yours. Is that something you intended to do? S.G.: It definitely felt like the right thing to do. I mean, as soon as it started, it felt insane. But I realized, Oh, this isn’t about me. It’s about everybody in this room and the other four guys onstage with me. It was very cathartic, I believe, for everybody.

Can you tell me more about how you came to be part of the band? S.G.: Blake was like, “Hey, would you be interested in this?” At the time, I was like, “Ah, I don’t know if I could do that right now.” About a year later, we had just finished a Fugitive show Nick had played in San Antonio. I think within that week, Blake had come over and asked again. And I was like, “Yes, absolutely.”

B.I.: We’d been playing as Fugitive for a couple years. And I feel like Seth had gotten a different level of confidence from playing bigger shows … and just playing alongside me. I think people that are fans of Power Trip that listen to my band, they know who he is now. It’s not like, Who the fuck is this guy? 

N.S.: It feels really organic. I mean, I don’t even know how long I’ve known you, Seth. Like, over ten years?

S.G.: Probably close to 15.

B.I.: Seth used to beat Nick’s ass at basketball back in the day.

N.S.: Maybe. We don’t have to talk about that. [ Laughs. ]

S.G.: For the record, I didn’t beat his ass. It was a pretty close game.

Seth, why did you say “no” at first? Did you feel like you weren’t ready to take something like this on?  S.G.: It was obviously a huge undertaking. And at the time, I don’t think I really had the confidence to do it. It was just a little too soon. And then I got more confidence playing shows, doing something on a bigger scale, like Fugitive. Also, the job I had at the time, I was traveling all over the U.S., just doing crazy shit.

What kind of job? S.G.: I was working for a company that worked alongside insurance. So I was basically storm chasing. I’d go to areas that were damaged from storms, and I’d have to go and climb really high roofs and dangle from a rope. I was completely overwhelmed at the time.

B.I.: He was risking his life then. Then he’s like, Well, I could just do this now and risk my life that way, you know?

Seth, how do you approach keeping Riley and the band’s legacy going but doing it in your own way? Has there been anything that’s been helpful for you in that process? S.G.: I’ve just tried to make it not about me. It’s about the legacy of the band. I could never replace Riley. He was a one-of-a-kind guy, and it’s really just trying to pay tribute. You know, he was a huge influence on my life. He was a titan. So as long as I can make it not about myself, that’s been the biggest key.

I wanted to ask about Brandon Gale, Riley’s father, and the statement he made about the Power Trip show in Austin and how he was caught “by surprise” — which he’s since clarified and apologized for. Has the dust settled with that? Has he reached out to you guys with these shows coming up? B.I.: I think everything’s cool. It seems like he’s happy that the band’s playing and going to spread the gospel and honor Riley’s legacy. I think that’s what everybody wants. I can’t say we’re talking all the time. But I think everybody’s on the same page and happy that we’re getting to shine a light on what Riley did — what we did — and celebrate it, and keep it relevant.

N.S: I think it’s important for us to remember, like, when we did the Fugitive show, we played those couple of songs and just the reaction from the crowd, and the fans and the friends and everybody being there, it was such a fun night. That stuff just fueled us to be motivated to continue to want to play more shows.

Do you have any plans after the last show in August, or are you going to do these shows and then reassess?  B.I.: I think we’re just vibing it out, seeing how the shows go and letting that simmer. We’ll take it one step at a time. It’s all unknown at this point, but we’re really excited for the shows. Hopefully we don’t fuck them up.

N.S.: We leave it all out there. And we feel it after the show for sure.

B.I.: I feel it after the shows more than I used to. So I’m not looking forward to that.

N.S.: A lot of neck exercises are going to be in the future, for sure.

C.W.: Once we started getting back together and figuring this shit out, I was like, I gotta be at the gym . Like, I have to be physically in shape in order to pull this off.

B.I.: We’re all doing extra stuff right now for sure to not pass out onstage.

I noticed that the date that you guys are playing New York happens to be the four-year anniversary of Riley’s passing. Was that a coincidence? B.I.: Yeah, it was a total coincidence.

N.S.: I think we were originally supposed to play earlier that month, and the date didn’t work out. We were shocked when we found out like, Oh, wow, that is the same date . We had no idea.

C.W.: It’s a nice way to memorialize Riley and his legacy. On that day it’ll be emotional for fans — and for us as well.

B.I.: What better way to shed light on that day and do something than at a big, huge show in New York?

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Power Trip Announce 2024 Return, Name Live Vocalist

A few months after reuniting for a brief live set this past December, Power Trip have announced their 2024 live return and named the vocalist they will continue with for these upcoming gigs.

The members of Power Trip — Blake Ibanez, Nick Stewart, Chris Whetzel and Chris Ulsh — played a show in Austin, Texas on Dec. 1 with Seth Gilmore of the bands Skourge and Fugitive. It marked their first live performance since the death of vocalist Riley Gale in August of 2020.

It appears as though the band plans to continue on with Gilmore as their vocalist. In a new post on their Instagram , Power Trip announced their first live show of 2024 will take place at California's No Values festival on June 8. They also alluded to some other shows that will take place later in the year.

The statement reads:

Nearly four years ago to the day, unbeknownst to us, we would perform for the last time as Power Trip. It has been a difficult road since then, marked by deep pain, grief, and everything else that came with losing our brother Riley. We know this can’t be undone, and it will always remain part of us. We have thought deeply about the future of Power Trip and what always comes back to us is that this band was founded on resilience, perseverance, and most importantly: a love for the music and for all of the people it has brought us closer to along the way. We’ll never have the words to convey our appreciation of the enduring support we’ve received over the years, and we feel as though the time is right to get back on stage for all of you who’ve been there throughout our existence as a band. With that, we are excited to announce a round of upcoming 2024 performances starting with  @novaluesfestival  on June 8th in SoCal. Joining us will be our long-time close friend/collaborator, and singer of  @fugitive_tx  /  @skourge713  —Seth Gilmore—who will be handling vocals for these upcoming shows. Stay tuned, more info on the way… Riley Gale Forever. Power Trip Forever. See you in the pit. - Blake, Chris, Nick and Chris

Misfits , Social Distortion , Iggy Pop , Turnstile , Bad Religion , Sublime , The Dillinger Escape Plan , The Damned , Suicidal Tendencies and Black Flag are among the other artists who are set to play the festival.

Check out the post below to see the full lineup.

After Power Trip's December 2023 show with Gilmore, Gale's family issued a statement that they were caught "entirely by surprise," as they were apparently unaware that the remaining members were planning a show together.

READ MORE:  12 Bands That Called It Quits After the Death of a Member

Shortly after, Gale's father clarified the family's comments in a new message, and wrote, "We also would like to specifically appreciate and thank Seth Gilmore. He really put his all into that performance."

"As Riley's dad and the person who wrote the original message, it broke my heart to hear that I got it wrong. I humbly request that you understand the raw emotions we face and how they impact us every day thinking about what the world lost when Riley died," he concluded.

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“The time is right to get back on stage”: Power Trip announce first headline shows since death of Riley Gale

The reunited thrashers, now fronted by Seth Gilmore, will follow their comeback at this summer’s No Values festival with headline dates in Dallas and New York

Power Trip have announced their first headline shows since the passing of vocalist Riley Gale in 2020.

The Dallas-Fort Worth thrash metal band will be fronted by Seth Gilmore, a longtime friend and the singer of fellow Texans Fugitive.

The five-piece – completed by guitarists Blake Ibanez and Nick Stewart, bassist Chris Whetzel and drummer Chris Ulsh – say in a new statement: “Nearly four years ago to the day, unbeknownst to us, we would perform for the last time as Power Trip.

“It has been a difficult road since then, marked by deep pain, grief, and everything else that came with losing our brother Riley.

“We know this can’t be undone, and it will always remain part of us. We have thought deeply about the future of Power Trip and what always comes back to us is that this band was founded on resilience, perseverance, and most importantly: a love for the music and for all of the people it has brought us closer to along the way.

“We’ll never have the words to convey our appreciation of the enduring support we’ve received over the years, and we feel as though the time is right to get back on stage for all of you who’ve been there throughout our existence as a band.”

After forming in 2008 and releasing two lauded albums, 2013’s Manifest Decimation and 2017’s Nightmare Logic , Power Trip entered a period of inactivity due to the death of Gale on August 24, 2020, aged 34.

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The band later unofficially reunited as “special guests” at a Fugitive concert in December 2023, with Gilmore fronting them.

The return, with Gilmore still up front, was made official on February 20, when Power Trip were booked to perform at the California punk festival No Values in June 2024.

The band’s twin headline shows will follow the No Values event. They will take place in Dallas, Texas, on July 6 and in New York City on August 24. The full list of dates is below and tickets will be available on March 1 at 11am eastern time.

Tickets to No Values are on sale now.

Power Trip 2024 tour dates:

Jun 08: Pomona No Values festival, CA Jul 06: Dallas The Factory In Deep Ellum, TX Aug 24: New York Knockdown Center, NY

Louder’s resident Gojira obsessive was still at uni when he joined the team in 2017. Since then, Matt’s become a regular in Prog and Metal Hammer, at his happiest when interviewing the most forward-thinking artists heavy music can muster. He’s got bylines in The Guardian, The Telegraph, NME, Guitar and many others, too. When he’s not writing, you’ll probably find him skydiving, scuba diving or coasteering.

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POWER TRIP To Support PANTERA On Early 2025 European Tour

Texas thrashers POWER TRIP will support PANTERA on the Philip Anselmo -fronted outfit's European tour in early 2025.

Confirmed tour dates:

Jan. 21 - Helsinki, FI @ Ice Hall Jan. 23 - Stockholm, SE @ Hovet Jan. 24 - Oslo, NO @ Spektrum Jan. 26 - Copenhagen, DK @ Royal Arena Jan. 28 - Amsterdam, NL @ AFAS Live Jan. 31 - Ljubljana, SI @ Arena Stožice Feb. 01 - Ostrava, CZ @ Ostravar Aréna Feb. 03 - Budapest, HU @ Budapest Arena Feb. 04 - Kraków, PL @ Tauron Arena Feb. 06 - Hamburg, DE @ Sporthalle Feb. 07 - Berlin, DE @ Max-Schmeling-Halle Feb. 09 - Düsseldorf, DE @ Mitsubishi Electric Halle Feb. 10 - Brussels, BE @ Forest National Feb. 12 - Bologna, IT @ Unipol Arena Feb. 13 - Zürich, CH @ Hallenstadion Feb. 15 - Paris, FR @ Adidas Arena Feb. 18 - Glasgow, UK @ OVO Hydro Feb. 19 - Leeds, UK @ First Direct Arena Feb. 21 - Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena Feb. 23 - Birmingham, UK @ BP Pulse Live Feb. 25 - London, UK @ OVO Arena Wembley

In a recent interview with Sh!t Talk Reviews , POWER TRIP guitarist Blake Ibanez spoke about the band's recent return to the live stage for their first full performances since the tragic passing of frontman Riley Gale .

POWER TRIP 's longtime friend and collaborator Seth Gilmore has stepped in for Gale to handle vocals for the band. Gilmore is embedded in Texas's hardcore and punk communities and is well known as the vocalist of SKOURGE and as the frontman of Dallas thrash metal band FUGITIVE , which he founded in 2021 alongside Ibanez .

Regarding Gilmore 's addition to POWER TRIP , Ibanez told Sh!t Talk Reviews : "He's a natural. He's been on stage a long time. Once we had done all this FUGITIVE stuff and we had done these last couple of recordings, his voice is killing it and he really feels good on stage. And I think I kind of asked him before we even started FUGITIVE if he wanted to mess around and maybe try out or throw something down on one of these… We had been working on a POWER TRIP record that we recorded all the music to. And I think at the time — it was during COVID — and he was sort of, like, 'Ehhh…' It was a little soon after everything had happened — it was probably a year after everything went down — but it was still a little soon, a little fresh. And I don't know if he really had the confidence level yet to feel like he could approach that the right way. I don't blame him, 'cause it was a little soon and it was a weird time."

He continued: "At this point, it had been so long. And I think we'd been playing together. I think POWER TRIP fans knew who he was. When it comes to like what we're doing, in terms of POWER TRIP , I had really no desire to reform the band if we couldn't do it the way we wanted to do it, with people that we wanna work with. We come from a scene, so we're not gonna just hold YouTube auditions for a guy that sounds like Riley , bring him in. It's gonna be someone that's a friend of ours, that's from our world, that's from our scene. And I just think the way it worked out — it had been long enough since POWER TRIP had played."

Regarding what criteria he and his POWER TRIP bandmates had for bringing in a new vocalist, Blake said: "It's not about filling any shoes. I think people need to understand that. We're not even really a full-time band. We're just playing some shows. So it's really just about playing the songs again and kind of honoring what we did and celebrating the songs and doing it a different way. I think we realized that getting someone that sounds just like him would have been really weird and, I think, not the right thing to do, because that's not right. And I think Seth is in the same family tree vocally, but he's got his own sound and his own delivery. And I think he sings the songs a little bit differently in a way that I think is more him. He's his own person. And so we wanted that."

Ibanez added: "You can't really win, 'cause some people want [us to get someone who] sounds exactly the same. If we did that, then the same group of people would be criticizing us for getting a lesser version. He's a different person; it's not gonna sound the same. But I really like what he brings to the songs, and I think this is the best-case scenario for us to play again."

In July, POWER TRIP drummer Chris Ulsh told Metal Hammer about how the decision to return as POWER TRIP came about: "During COVID, we were still having bi-weekly or monthly Zoom meetings, and at one of those, we just came out with it, like, 'Hey, do you guys want to keep playing music together?' Everybody obviously still wanted to do that, but we didn't really know if it was going to be POWER TRIP or a different band or whatever. As those conversations progressed, we realized we wanted to keep doing POWER TRIP , but didn't really know what that would look like. As the COVID restrictions started lifting, Blake and I were getting together, working on some new music, just to keep busy. We tried out a couple things, with different people, just demoing vocals over it, just to kind of get a feeling for the full song. But initially nothing really came of it. It just didn't come as easily as maybe we would have thought."

Regarding Gilmore 's addition to POWER TRIP , Ulsh said: "Yeah, during that time, Blake started FUGITIVE with Seth . He was someone that we reached out to at the beginning, but he wasn't ready. Somewhere along the way, I think he started feeling a lot more comfortable filling that role. We decided to test him out at that show in Austin [last December], since FUGITIVE were playing, and one of my other bands. So, we just had everyone get onstage."

In announcing POWER TRIP 's return to the live stage, surviving members Ibanez ,  Nick Stewart (guitar, vocals),  Chris Whetzel (bass) and Ulsh wrote on social media: "Nearly four years ago to the day, unbeknownst to us, we would perform for the last time as POWER TRIP . It has been a difficult road since then, marked by deep pain, grief, and everything else that came with losing our brother Riley .

"We know this can't be undone, and it will always remain part of us. We have thought deeply about the future of POWER TRIP and what always comes back to us is that this band was founded on resilience, perseverance, and most importantly: a love for the music and for all of the people it has brought us closer to along the way.

"We'll never have the words to convey our appreciation of the enduring support we've received over the years, and we feel as though the time is right to get back on stage for all of you who've been there throughout our existence as a band."

Regarding Gilmore 's addition to the POWER TRIP lineup, the band said: "It feels right playing our songs with Seth , who's been a longtime figure in Texas hardcore, and we've had the pleasure of watching and playing alongside his bands since the origins of POWER TRIP . We're grateful for his dedication to this project and can't wait to see everyone."

Gilmore stated: "I'm honored to have the opportunity to contribute to the legacy of POWER TRIP and deliver these songs to the fans of past and current generations. I would not be who I am today without the massive influence that both the band and its members have had on my life, and I look forward to celebrating their work alongside them while giving it my all to honor the spirit of Riley 's memory."

Ibanez , Stewart , Whetzel and Ulsh played a surprise five-song set with Gilmore on December 1, 2023 at Mohawk in Austin, Texas.

Riley died on August 25, 2020. An autopsy report for Gale ruled that he died from the toxic effects of fentanyl, while the manner of death was ruled accidental.

Following the news of Gale 's death, a number of other artists shared tributes to the frontman, including members of CODE ORANGE , ANTHRAX and COHEED AND CAMBRIA .

Riley guested on the track "Point The Finger" on BODY COUNT 's "Carnivore" album, released in March 2020, and BODY COUNT frontman Ice-T later suggested in an interview with Stereogum that Gale 's death was opioid-related. Ice-T said in December 2020: "When we shot the video [for 'Point The Finger' ], he looked healthy. It was a good vibe. That's why I got blindsided when I got the call from his dad, who said that Riley passed away. Apparently, he was dealing with the same bullshit everyone is — this opioid stuff. He'd gotten clean, and when you relapse, you go back to the same dose you're used to and it kills you. It was a really sad thing."

Gale 's autopsy report noted that he died from pulmonary edema — a condition caused by excess fluid in the lungs. This was caused by "the toxic effects of fentanyl" in Gale 's system. The fentanyl in Gale 's blood was measured at 22.5 ng/ml (nanograms per milliliter),and he tested negative for all other drugs and alcohol.

The report went on to note that Gale had a "history of Xanax abuse" and a "history of depression," and revealed Riley was found "unresponsive on the floor at home."

In October 2020, plans were announced for the Riley Gale Library at the Dallas Hope Center — the city's sole shelter for LGBTQ+ youth.

POWER TRIP released two albums on Southern Lord , 2013's "Manifest Decimation" and 2017's "Nightmare Logic" . A rarities compilation, "Opening Fire: 2008-2014" , followed in 2018.

"Nightmare Logic" peaked at No. 22 on Billboard 's Hard Rock Albums chart.

POWER TRIP was said to be working on its third album at the time of Riley 's death.

Photo credit: Adam Cedillo

Please join us in welcoming Power Trip as specials guests on our EU/UK Tour! Tickets available at https://t.co/5nMtRVcXuj #pantera #powertrip #forthefans #forthrbrothers #forlegacy #uktour #eutour #livemusic pic.twitter.com/9d7nJenff9 — Pantera (@Pantera) September 16, 2024

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DEFTONES, THE MARS VOLTA & FLESHWATER Add Two Dates To Their North American Tour

DAVE NAVARRO Doesn't Have Much Faith JANE'S ADDICTION Will Play Again

SLIPKNOT Is Plotting A 25th Anniversary Reissue Of Their Self-Titled

The Finnish Broadcasting Company Just Released A Six-Part Podcast On CHILDREN OF BODOM's ALEXI LAIHO

Album Review: NIGHTWISH Yesterwynde