Attic Theatre

During the fall of 1986 the band Theatre of Ice committed to its only extended tour of the United States. To accommodate the tour, three new members were added to the band; Jay Planty on guitar, Ted Preiss on bass, and Jason Cobb on drums. For the most part the tour was uneventful, playing mostly as a supporting act, the group performed before crowds that were largely unfamiliar with their history. On New Year's Eve, 1986, the tour concluded in Fallon, Nevada, the birthplace of the band, with a performance in what had long been alleged to be a haunted slaughterhouse. A large concrete edifice, the abandoned slaughterhouse had been the site of many strange sightings and the subject of local ghost stories for over 20 years. More of a video shoot and recording session than an actual concert, it was made open to the public and several hundred of the locals braved the spirits and the cold to attend the show. With their now stripped down, punkier sound, the band tore through several versions of In the Attic, Miron, Gone With the Worms, A Cool Dark Place to Die, Red Asphalt and Within the Ruins of a Mind. The concert was intended to conclude at the stroke of midnight, ushering in the New Year. But sometime slightly after 11:00pm a bizarre event occurred; all the power suddenly turned off and the slaughterhouse was thrown into total blackness. A few seconds later an unearthly moan howled forth from every speaker and amplifier. Another worldly wail that lasted nearly 30 seconds. Stunned and terrified, the majority of the crowd hastily dispersed and the concert came to a screeching halt. To this date it is still a matter of speculation as to whether this was an actual supernatural occurrence or was staged by the band in an attempt to add to their mystic and legend. What is known is that Jay Planty, Ted Preiss, and Jason Cobb left the band after the event. Planty and Preiss would return several years later, but this was the last time the band recorded at any alleged haunted…