See You In Hell

When we started 2022, I was all excited about chasing a bunch of New Wave Of British Heavy Metal records during the year. I had big plans. I wanted to cross off some heavy hitters from Samson, Satan, and Witchfinder General. I wanted Iron Maiden and Venom singles. I should know better. I have terrible focus, and it wasn't long before I'd lost immediate interest in buying NWOBHM records and I found obsessions with different eras of hardcore. I managed to pick up a few NWOBHM records, but it wasn't as fruitful as I'd imagined back in January. Anyway, as we were closing in on the end of the year, I felt the need to make one more big move before hammering in the last nail in the NWOBHM Chase Of 2022 coffin.

In August of 2022, the singer for Grim Reaper, Steve Grimmett passed away unexpectedly. I had caught Grim Reaper for a show on their US tour in 2018, and Steve was just happy to be on the road and playing those old songs. He hung out after their set to talk with fans and let them get photos. Class act. With his recent passing, it just felt like it was finally time for me to grab the original UK Ebony pressing of the first Grim Reaper album, See You In Hell.

For an album that is nearly 40 years old, this copy that I'd picked up was in great shape. Is there any better feeling than receiving an old record, opening the box and seeing that it still looks brand new? This record doesn't command a high price tag, but it is still a stone cold NWOBHM classic for me. There were a lot of those bands that I didn't discover until many years later, but I had this See You In Hell cassette when I was 13 or 14 and I rocked the shit out of it. Makes me feel good to finally have this in my collection, next to the original pressing of the second Grim Reaper album, Fear No Evil. Now I just need Rock You To Hell to complete the trifecta.