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Heavy metal vocalist and Grim Reaper member Steve Grimmett passed away on August 15, at the age of 62. The news was revealed by his son Russ Grimmett on social media. He wrote:
“We can’t begin to put into words the current feelings. But as dad was so well known the news is starting to reach out earlier than we would have liked. Unfortunately, our dad passed away today and leaves a massive hole in the world and our hearts. We are utterly heartbroken. Sleep tight dad. We we always love you xxx.”
Steve Grimmett was best known as the vocalist of British heavy metal band Grim Reaper, which first rose to prominence in the 1980s, with albums like Fear no Evil and Rock You to Hell. Grim Reaper disbanded in 1988 but was re-formed in 2006, with Grimmett as the only constant member.
Everything we know about Steve Grimmett
Born on August 19, 1959, Grimmett was with a band named Medusa before he joined Grim Reaper. The band gained recognition during the 1980s with three albums, several singles and MTV airplay. However, they disbanded in 1988.
After this, Grimmett had a brief stint as a member of the British thrash metal band Onslaught.
Then came The Steve Grimmett Band, which included Ian Nash, Chaz Grimaldi and Pete Newdeck. In 2006, the band came to call themselves Steve Grimmett's Grim Reaper and has continued to perform under that name ever since.
They also recorded Steve’s solo album, Personal Crisis, in 2007 and released a limited edition live EP, Live in Europe in 2011 that included the famous Reaper songs.
The band headlined the British Steel festival in London and the Heavy Sound Festival in Belgium in 2013. Their album, Walking in the Shadows, was released in September 2016.
Other projects by Grimmett include a group called Sanity Days, formed in 2011 by Steve and former Onslaught members. They used to play songs from Onslaught’s popular album, In Search of Sanity, at various festivals. They then performed at a concert to launch the inaugural International Day of Heavy Metal in December 2012, where they were joined by Severenth and Twisted State of Mind.
In 2013, Steve produced and recorded the British grunge-metal band Burnthru for their new album, Faithless. Sanity Days also released a new album called Evil Beyond Belief in March 2015.
In January 2017, Steve suffered an infection in his right leg below the knee and had to be amputated. He started walking again with a prosthetic leg in April of the same year and returned to the stage in July 2017.
"Blasting Grim Reaper tonight": Netizens pay tribute on Twitter
Twitter was flooded with heartfelt remembrance posts when people heard about Grimmett's demise:
Grimmett is survived by his wife and son.
