Mushroomhead to celebrate 30th Anniversary with epic Halloween show at the Agora

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Milestone anniversaries are exceedingly rare in creative endeavors. That notion is not lost on Steve “Skinny” Felton, drummer and founder of Cleveland theatrical art-metal ensemble, Mushroomhead.

“October 23 is the actual date of our very first performance 30 years ago,” said Felton, checking in with Cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer last week from St. Louis, Missouri.

“Even more interesting and oddly unique is that we’ll play the Agora on October 28,” he added.

“That’s the first time we ever played the Agora. It’s quite fitting that we’re back home on that date for this year’s Halloween show.”

And yet, every day for the last 30 years has been Halloween for these masked marauders of mayhem.

Known for their incognito stage performances, Mushroomhead’s blend of firebrand metal, rock and arthouse theatrics struck a note with fans almost immediately when the band emerged in 1993.

Their jumpsuit-and-mask aesthetic with unsettling music to match quickly harkens back to the early days of Alice Cooper—albeit turned up to eleven and filtered through John Carpenter and grindhouse films, with stage production to match.

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The band inspired many other artists to do the same, perhaps most notably Iowa’s Slipknot. This led to a highly publicized feud between the two musical units back in the early 2000s.

Mushroomhead self-released their 1995 debut, which became an instant underground hit. Subsequent self-releases “Superbuick” (1996) and “M3″ in 1999, were pushed by a street team effort. From that point on, the group’s looks and line-ups began to morph—not unlike those of Swedish heavy outfit Ghost.

After a brief stint on Eclipse Records, Mushroomhead signed to Universal Records for the release of “XX,” itself a compilation of the band’s independent releases. The group later released “Savior Sorrow” for the pioneering rock label, Megaforce Records (Metallica, Anthrax, Ministry) in 2006. “Beautiful Stories for Ugly Children” would follow in the Fall of 2010, debuting at #44 on the Billboard charts.

Felton said that the whirlwind has “provided a lot of gold star moments” over the years.

“So many of those moments, really. Like, holy [expletive], signed to a major with Universal Records, you know? Then it’s the [Ozzy Osbourne’s] Ozzfest roadshow. Being on the other side of the world and having fans walking up to you and show off their [Mushroomhead] ‘X-Face’ tattoos,” Felton recounted.

“And it all just keeps snowballing, man. Like being logistically 11,000 miles from home for the first time, your head is just spinning,” he added. “You’re almost having these out-of-body experiences on-stage—and you’re signed to a major label. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I was definitely terrified at first.”

Felton said that while band personnel, management and label were “all high-fiving” in celebration of having “made it,” he saw all these moments a little differently.

“For me, it was, ‘Oh, wow. Now the bar’s been raised, we must stay at this level,’” he said. “This [didn’t feel like] time to celebrate and kick your feet up. It’s time to work harder, a little bit of a Catch-22.”

That paradox led to many line-up changes, a couple of label moves and several new-look costume changes. Today, the band is signed to Napalm Records and has a new, “as-yet-untitled album due June 2024,” which is currently being mixed by Matt Wallace (Faith No More, The Replacements).

“We’ve been proofing mixes on the road,” said Felton.

“Things are sounding good. Writing and getting into the final stretch of a record always takes me back. It reminds me of how fortunate I am to create art and share it with people all around the world.”

Felton is equally grateful for the Internet, “which is a far [expletive] cry from street teams and handing out music. Back in the ‘90s when we started, we were lucky to get our cassettes and our CDs out there,” he said.

“Today, you don’t have to be in New York, Los Angeles or London to be discovered anymore,” he added. “That really keeps your hometown pride solid. You remember that first show where we were paid $60 at Flash Gordon’s [defunct club, Kamm’s Corners] and you smile because you remember how it started.”

Felton is pragmatic when asked if there’s a secret recipe for bands to follow to enjoy that kind of success.

“All I can say is that we have been very blessed to be able to do this. Whether it’s 10-20-30 years—pretty much any time at all—anyone who gets to do this for any length of time knows how blessed and lucky and fortunate they are and to really soak in that,” he said.

“If there’s a secret, it’s to wake up every day with the goal of figuring out how to make your band, brand or artwork a little more accessible,” Felton said.

“To have an opportunity to create art with multiple people—to have their attention, time and creativity for a while—while chasing that creative element, staying inspired, believing in yourself and being true to your art is what does it, from my point of view,” he offered.

Having equally dedicated people around you doesn’t hurt either.

“If not for the tremendous contributions of the many band members, crew people, management, labels over 30 years? It’s a blessing. I can’t imagine what it would have been like without them,” he added.

Mushroomhead’s 30th Anniversary Halloween concert with special guests Hellzapoppin, Kurt Diemer, Fleischkrieg, Bittersweet Revenge and Twysted Asylum happens this Saturday, Oct. 28, at the Cleveland Agora, 5000 Euclid Ave., Cleveland 44103. Tickets: 216-881-2221 or visit agoracleveland.com.