Notice this isn’t a Heavy Metal Heaven entry, this guy with some due respect is going to the lower level for sure. So that aside, Don Decker is gone. The cornerstone of the Minneapolis metal scene Don was a mover and a shaker via promoting shows and his retail store Nightfall Records. His band Anal Blast were admittedly a joke and while some of the members went on to a "slightly" more successful band, Don never stopped doing what he loved, even if it was performing in a shitty diaper.
Even if you weren’t knee deep in the scene, Chicagoans might remember the local Nightfall location that opened on Lawrence (near the Admiral Theater) in 1997. He’s been gone from Chicago for quite some time as the store closed in maybe ‘99 but the guy had friends here, there, everywhere, he was just 41.
I did business with Don over the years, mostly advertising related stuff for the store or for the Milwaukee Metal Fest. He was a real pain in the ass, but he was committed to the cause. That tops everything when it’s all said and done.
The first time I went to Nightfall was when it had just opened. I walked in and Don was on the phone, so I looked around while he kept on with his conversation…
“Oh, this fucking place is great, the location? Fuck, it’s near a strip joint, there’s tons of whores walking around, the liquor store two doors down is fucking open ‘til 2:30 and there’s a shithole gyros place across the street too. I fucking love it! O.K. Ma, see ya, bye.”
