The heavy music community is mourning the loss of Shaun Glass, a pioneering guitarist, songwriter, and a cornerstone of the Chicago metal scene for over four decades. Glass passed away peacefully on July 1, 2026, following a severe stroke suffered on May 31st brought on by undiagnosed high blood pressure. He spent nearly a month on life support surrounded by loved ones before entering hospice care.

Throughout his prolific career, Glass left an indelible mark on extreme and alternative music. He helped shape the foundational sound of Chicago metal through his work with seminal underground acts Terminal Death and Sindrome, before going on to achieve global recognition with death metal titans Broken Hope, groove-metal mainstays SOiL, Dirge Within, The Bloodline, and most recently, Repentance. Over four decades, he shared stages with the genre’s biggest names and crafted a discography that remains deeply influential to fans worldwide.

Beyond his musical legacy, Glass was known throughout the industry as a fiercely loyal friend, mentor, and advocate for the underground community, spending his life connecting bands and strangers to opportunities without ever expecting anything in return. Because of the overwhelming medical debt incurred from a month on intensive life support, alongside final expenses, a GoFundMe campaign has been established by close friend Troy Dixler on behalf of the Glass family to protect the future of Shaun’s son, Maddux.

The full tribute written by Troy Dixler on behalf of Shaun’s family can be read below:

“On July 1, 2026, the world lost Shaun Glass, a legendary musician who spent over four decades shaping the Chicago metal scene through Terminal Death, Sindrome, Broken Hope, SOiL, Dirge Within, The Bloodline, and most recently Repentance. 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.

Shaun’s wealth was never in a bank account, it was in every room he ever walked into. 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.

On May 31, 2026, Shaun suffered a stroke brought on by undiagnosed high blood pressure. 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.

A fundraiser has been set up for Shaun’s family by Troy Dixler.

Every donation goes into the Maddux Glass Irrevocable Trust. 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.

If Shaun ever made you feel like family, connected you to someone, or picked up the phone when you needed him, this is the moment to give back a fraction of what he gave so many of us for free.

Shaun Glass made thousands of people feel like they mattered. Now it’s our turn to make sure his son knows he mattered too.”

Fans, friends, and colleagues wishing to support the family and honor his memory can contribute to the fundraiser directly via GoFundMe.