Fear Factory’s Dino Cazares has called on the metal community to financially support the son of the late Shaun Glass, a Chicago metal legend who passed away following a stroke.
Glass spent over four decades shaping the Chicago metal scene through bands including Terminal Death, Sindrome, Broken Hope, SOiL, Dirge Within, The Bloodline, and Repentance. He suffered a stroke on May 31, 2026, brought on by undiagnosed high blood pressure, and passed away on July 1, 2026, after nearly a month on life support. Cazares shared a GoFundMe campaign link to help cover the medical debt and secure a future for Glass’ son, Maddux.
“Shaun Glass passed away of a stroke and there is a GoFundMe for his son’s future,” Cazares said. “If you care to donate here’s the link.”
The GoFundMe campaign paints a vivid picture of who Glass was to those around him.
“On July 1, 2026, the world lost Shaun Glass, a legendary musician who spent over four decades shaping the Chicago metal scene,” the campaign reads. “He shared stages with some of the biggest names in the genre and left behind music that fans still play on repeat. But if you ask anyone who actually knew Shaun, the music was never the most impressive thing about him.”
The campaign goes on to describe Glass’ impact on the people around him.
“Shaun’s wealth was never in a bank account, it was in every room he ever walked into,” it continues. “You could know him for five minutes and walk away feeling like you’d known him your whole life. He introduced bands, friends, and strangers to chances they never would have found on their own, not because it benefited him, but because that’s just who he was, and he never once asked for anything back. Ask around the metal scene and you won’t find one person who claims to be his best friend. You’ll find fifty. That’s not an exaggeration. That was just Shaun.”
Regarding the financial situation left behind, the campaign explains the scope of the need.
“On May 31, 2026, Shaun suffered a stroke brought on by undiagnosed high blood pressure,” it states. “He spent nearly a month in the hospital on life support, surrounded the entire time by people who truly loved him, before passing peacefully on hospice care. Shaun’s insurance is pending, and anyone who has ever dealt with a hospital bill knows what even a few days in intensive care can cost. A month on life support has left behind an overwhelming amount of medical debt and final expenses.”
All donations are directed toward a protected trust established in Maddux’s name.
“Every donation goes into the Maddux Glass Irrevocable Trust,” the campaign concludes. “Shaun’s medical and final expenses are paid from it first, but the heart of this fund is Maddux, giving him the education, stability, and future his father always wanted for him. That future is protected in this trust, permanent, and something no one can ever take from him.”
The GoFundMe campaign remains active as the metal community rallies around Glass’ family.
Glass’ death at 57 prompted an outpouring of tributes from across the rock and metal world. Fellow musicians and fans reflected on a career that left a permanent mark on heavy music.
Glass first gained recognition as the bassist for Chicago death metal outfit Broken Hope, a band that became a cornerstone of the early 1990s underground metal scene. He later co-founded SOiL, the nu-metal act that brought his name to a wider mainstream audience. The move cemented his reputation as one of Chicago’s most versatile and enduring metal figures.
Glass departed SOiL around 2009 but never stepped away from music. He continued contributing to the scene through a string of projects, most recently serving as guitarist for Repentance.
Musicians who paid tribute to Glass described him as a lifelong metalhead whose dedication to the genre never wavered. His career spanned multiple decades and included recorded work with some of the most respected names in Chicago heavy music.
The loss of Glass at a relatively young age underscored the financial vulnerabilities that many working musicians face, even those with decades of experience and deep community ties. The response from figures like Cazares reflects the tight-knit nature of the metal world, where calls to action from respected voices carry real weight and translate directly into support for those left behind.
