On May 11, 2022, The Black Dahlia Murder announced that their irrepressible, inimitable singer, Trevor Strnad, had died at the age of 41. The band described him as, “A walking encyclopedia of all things music. He was a hugger, a writer, and truly one of the world’s greatest entertainers.” Within minutes, it became abundantly clear that the sense of loss was profound. Through any and every channel they could, metal fans and musicians expressed in clear terms that they wished Trevor was still here, and that he had made the world around him, and heavy metal in particular, a better, brighter, and more fun place to be. As Lamb Of God guitarist Mark Morton put it on Twitter, “Sending out love & light to the [The Black Dahlia Murder] family and everyone that loved Trevor… which is pretty much anyone that ever met him.”
It was a sentiment repeated often, from fans who met him once for five minutes, to his peers such as Suicide Silence’s Mark Heylmun and Trivium bassist Paolo Gregoletto, to legends of the underground like Slayer/Exodus guitarist Gary Holt (who toured with TBDM in 2006) and Arch Enemy/ ex-Carcass guitarist Michael Amott. And there are multiple reasons so many wish so much that he was still with us. His championing of underground metal was legendary, his band slayed, he was a superb singer, and he was a downright decent human being who would give anyone the time of day – and probably make them laugh to boot.
Trevor Scott Strnad grew up in Michigan, in the Midwest of the US. In 2001, he co-founded The Black Dahlia Murder, and while the band would go through a number of significant line-up changes over the next two decades, Trevor and guitarist Brian Eschbach remained in the line-up. The band kicked up enough attention with their three demos and debut EP that Metal Blade signed them in time for their debut album, Unhallowed, released in June 2003.