William Shatner played Chicago’s Riot Fest on Sunday night fronting a heavy metal band, 24 hours after the group played its first concert of any kind.
The 95-year-old took the Rebel Stage at Douglass Park on September 20 with The *uckers for a half-hour set between 5:25 and 6 p.m. It was the band’s first festival appearance. The night before, they had made their live debut at an official Riot Fest aftershow at Park West.
Both shows followed the same pattern: originals from Shatner‘s forthcoming album, What The F Is Heavy Metal?, alongside covers of Ozzy Osbourne‘s “Crazy Train“, Motörhead‘s “Ace Of Spades” and Metallica‘s “Enter Sandman“.
Getting him there took Riot Fest more than a decade. Co-founder Mike “Riot Mike” Petryshyn has said organisers wrote to Shatner repeatedly for over ten years before he agreed to perform in 2026.
The band behind him is a working group of experienced players. Marcus Nand, who has worked with Mike Tramp and Candice Night, plays guitar and serves as musical director. Phil Soussan, who co-wrote Ozzy Osbourne‘s “Shot In The Dark” and played bass on The Ultimate Sin, is on bass. Britt Lightning of Vixen plays guitar, and Fred Aching of Kings Of Thrash and Dead Groove is on drums.
What The F Is Heavy Metal? will be released through Cleopatra Records but does not yet have a date. Shatner has said around 35 musicians appear on it, among them Brian May of Queen, Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, Rob Halford of Judas Priest, John Moyer of Disturbed and former Slayer drummer Dave Lombardo.
He explained the title to Michael Moynihan of “The Moynihan Report” earlier this month.
“Cleopatra, the label that I work with frequently, said to me, ‘Why don’t you do a heavy metal album?’ And I said, ‘What the F is heavy metal?’ Then I heard ‘Patience‘, the song ‘Patience‘ [by Guns N’ Roses]. So we write a song called ‘Impatience‘. ‘I’m not gonna wait around for you. I’m not waiting for you. Here, read my lips.’ And it’s all about, ‘I’m not waiting around for you. Yeah. You hear me? You hear my lips? I’m not waiting.’ And it’s got that kind of rage and tempo… Impassioned. ‘I’m tired of old age. I’m tired of losing hair. I’m tired of not eating. I’m tired of catching a cold. I’m tired of being tired. I’m tired!’” he explained.
He said he went into the project deliberately as an outsider.
“You gotta start with the premise that I really know nothing,” he said. “I’m inquisitive. Apparently, I’m inquisitive, and I’m reading and looking up all the time, stuff. So I began to experiment. I fastened on to emotions. I thought heavy metal has gotta be about emotions — violent, passionate… Not violent — passionate emotions. ‘The Black Sky‘ is about what we’re doing to the planet. ‘Impatience‘ — don’t keep me waiting. ‘Rage‘. Five songs with meaning to me. I’m enraged, I’m angry about, I am disgusted with.”
He may not be finished with festivals. Speaking to CNN‘s Elex Michaelson in July, Shatner said he would play a half-hour set at a festival “in the desert” in spring 2027, which the interviewer identified as Coachella. Coachella has not yet announced its 2027 lineup.
Shatner‘s recording career predates most of the musicians on his new album. His first record, the spoken-word The Transformed Man, came out in 1968. Has Been, produced by Ben Folds, followed in 2004, and Seeking Major Tom in 2011. In August he released Love & Other Mysteries, a spoken-word collaboration with Brad Paisley.
