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Ah the memories… This live show was recorded at the Classic Metal Festival in Cleveland back in 2002. Incidentally that was my first time attending this great festival, and due to Deceased not being able to play, October 31 even played twice in two days. Even though I've only seen October 31 three times (twice that year, and another time in 2003 at the CMF, this time near Chicago), I can say that "Stagefright" captures the essence of an October 31 and could hardly have been better: Raw, energetic, and let's not forget King Fowley's rants, jokes and thanks in-between songs. :) The sound overall is surprisingly good. When I first heard this had been recorded at CMF II, I wasn't expecting too much sound-wise because I didn't think they could get much decent recording out of a small club like that (even though that remains my favourite of the three CMF venues I've been to.) The sound is almost crystal clear, and only when there's talk between the songs do some things get a bit lost, but not too much either.

This is not one of those big production live albums (this is not Maiden, after all), but this remains a very enjoyable live album that's worth picking up even if you have the studio albums, or if you want to check out the band but don't know what to buy first. And hey, the show ends with a very cool cover of Saxon's "Power and the Glory". What more could you ask for? Check it out.