Troy Story: A Podcast for the Collar City have released a special episode revisiting Ozzy Osbourne’s thrilling concert at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s (RPI) Houston Field House in the Collar City on January 27, 1996, part of the “Retirement Sucks!” tour which marked the heavy metal legend’s return to the stage after a four-year absence.
The triple bill of Osbourne, Korn, and Life of Agony attracted a nearly-sold out crowd to the Collar City that cold January evening in the Collar City, the first major concert at the Field House venue in more than four years. Those nearly 6,000 people in attendance experienced an exciting evening of music, moshing, and even a few manic Ozzy fans who took things to the extreme, including injuries and someone hanging from the arena’s rafters.
“As a lover of heavy metal, I’m so grateful to the countless fans who shared their thoughts and memories to this special retrospective on Ozzy’s stop in Troy three decades ago,” podcast host and producer John Salka said. “In the immortal words of Ozzy Osbourne himself: never say die! We hope this episode is a fitting tribute to Ozzy’s life, legacy, and important contributions to music and culture around the world.”
To celebrate the 30th anniversary of Ozzy’s performance in Troy, fans were asked to contribute memories for a retrospective looking back at this exciting moment in Troy’s heavy metal history.
Using archival materials, news stories, and the voices and memories of fans in attendance that night, along with rediscovered audio from Ozzy’s headlining performance in Troy, listeners are immersed in months and weeks leading up to the concert and a blow-by-blow account of the evening.
Notable voices in the episode include two RPI alumnus: award-winning music video director and screenwriter Thomas Mignone (Slipknot, Mudvayne, Sepultura, Type O Negative) who was touring with Life of Agony and later as part of OzzFest; and Joe Freda, then-RPI student and marketing director for RPI’s The Polytechnic newspaper who reviewed the concert that evening.
In January 2026, Troy’s city council unanimously approved a resolution, sponsored by Councilmember Katie Spain-McLaren, commemorating Ozzy’s 1996 Troy concert. The resolution was bizarrely opposed by Troy’s Republican Committee and several former Republican officials, including one who stated “[the city council is] practically holding a seance to resurrect Ozzy Osbourne by honoring him as the Prince of Darkness… what kind of far-reaching legislation is this?”
Hear the full episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, all major podcast platforms, and troystorypod.com.
Previous episodes of Troy Story: A Podcast for the Collar City that explore Troy’s musical history include headlining concerts by Metallica (1989) and Slayer (1991), and Bruce Springsteen’s 1978 two-set performance during his Darkness on the Edge of Town tour.
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