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Today, in 1951, Jeffry Ross Hyman, widely known as Joey Ramone, was born in Forest Hills, Queens, New York. Joey's legacy with his band THE RAMONES, is still alive and well even though he passed away on April 15, 2001, in New York City at the age of 49.
Joey's image, voice and tenure, is what made him a staple of the New York Punk Rock scene. He can actually be called the ambassador of CBGB's and is definitely one of the musicians to blame for the legacy that the venue managed to establish. To this day, musicians from all over the world study Joey's on stage presence in order for their own performances to be magical. Joey: you are missed!
During a recent entry of Robb Flynn's "THE GENERAL JOURNALS: DIARY OF A FRONTMAN... AND OTHER RAMBLINGS", Flynn wrote in detail about the legacy of Jeff Hanneman and shared a bunch of stories that he shared with the legendary guitarist who passed away recently from liver failure. Here is what Flynn wrote: "Still can't believe the Jeff Hanneman from Slayer is dead, things like that just don't happen. Thrashers don't die??!! WTF!!??
I'm not going to sit here and say how him and I were best buds or something, we definitely weren't, I'd barely call us acquaintances, I did 8 tours and over 120 shows with the dude and honestly, I never really got to "know him". I was always closer with Kerry. Jeff was super quiet, really kept to himself, would get rowdy when he was drunk, but was a bit aloof, and seemed annoyed at the people partying around him despite the fact that he himself would be getting hammered.
I can remember some good hangs with him though. The first was in Basel, Switzerland back in November, 1994 when Machine Head was main support to Slayer on the Divine Intervention tour. It was one of those shows were something so random happens it just never leaves you, in this case, the show was sponsored by Chesterfield cigarettes and every kid entering the show got 2 free packs of smokes. I've never seen so much smoke in a venue in my life. I remember walking onstage and yelling at our roadie / everything-guy Mike Scum, "DUDE, turn off the fuckin' smoke machine", he said "YOOOOO, it's not the smoke machine bro, it's the cigarettes!" It was damn near impossible to breath onstage. After the show we were hanging backstage and Jeff walked back, we started bitching about the crazy cigarette show, and he invited me back to the dressing room to grab a beer, we sat down and chatted for a while, and then I went all Slayer-nerd on him and started grilling him on what songs he wrote.
Me: "Who wrote Angel Of Death?"
Jeff: "I did"
Me: "Lyrics too?"
Jeff: "Yep"
Me: "Reign In Blood?"
Jeff: "Me"
Me: "Dead Skin Mask?"
Jeff: "Yep"
Me: "South Of Heaven?"
Jeff: "Me"
Me: "Black Magic?"
Jeff: "You know it"
Me: "Hell Awaits?"
Jeff: "Yep"
On and on it went, that man wrote both the music and lyrics to a large goddamn portion of my favorite Slayer songs. He was a huge influence on my songwriting growing up in particular with arrangements and the bold use of key changes. The one thing Slayer band always had over so many other bands is they were all over the guitar neck when it came to key changes. Leads would be in some of the most random keys ever, but somehow it made it all that much more frantic, and when the chorus kicked back in, BOOM! CRUSHING! Set up perfectly. He was one of the few metal heads I met who never really got into Pantera, he told me he "liked some stuff", but thought they we're "too bluesy at times", and that he "liked more evil notes or sad riffs"
Another good memory was sharing a tour bus on the August 2001 Korean / Japan / Australia tour, it was all fly-dates and hotels, we were sharing crew, tour manager and manager, so we all rode on the bus together to and from the airport to the hotel every day. Sometimes the rides were an hour or two, so you'd just all BS and hang. One time a kid in Australia bum-rushed the bus while we were all sitting in it, hammered after partying one night. He was desperate for autographs and came on the bus screaming (what else?) "SLAAAAAAAAAYYYYYEEEEERRRR!!!" He then saw me and went all, "Oh shit, Robb Flynn, mate I fuckin' LOVE Machine Head, but it's fuckin' SLAAAAAAAYYYYYYYEEEERRRRR" I looked the fucker right in the eye and slurred, "Oh just FUCK RIGHT OFF!!" Hannamen fell out dying, he laughed for 10 minutes straight, cracked him up, that slightly feminine high pitched giggle that he always did.
Dude backed me when Kerry King and I were beefin all that time long ago, he would come up to me at festivals and would talk, just be normal. He even backed me in Decibel magazine when they asked him about the beef, saying "Robb is a good dude", and that "Kerry was like the girlfriend of the band, always beefin' with someone". I got a good laugh outta that.
The last memory I'll share is from the American leg of the Divine Intervention tour in March 1995. It was Slayer band, Biohazard supporting, and Machine Head opening. We were playing the International Ballroom in Atlanta Georgia. He had been sitting out some of the new songs from "Divine", which was odd to me. We were hanging out in their dressing room before the show, just him and I, and I mustered up the nerve to ask him what the deal with it was. At first he joked that he just "didn't feel like learning them, didn't like 'em, Kerry wrote them", he was chuckling, and then he stopped. He looked down and got serious. He said he'd been having a lot of pain in his wrists, his hands and wrists were going numb all the time, and would go numb during those songs because they were really fast, then he started to cry. It was a startling confession. I offered some awkward feel-good comment, but he just continued to cry, and I decided to sit there in the silence with him for a minute. He gave me a hug, and said "Whoa!", and laughed walked out toward the stage, turned back and said "thanks dude".
It was an intense moment, one of those rare, intense moments you have with someone, let alone with someone from another band.
It made me really respect the dude.
That's the Jeff I'm gonna remember.
To Kerry, Tom, Dave, Paul, Rick Sales Mgmt and Jeff's family, my sincere condolences.
R.I.P brother."
As previously reported, MACHINE HEAD has begun jamming some NEW music, and the recording sessions are going very smoothly according to Robb Flynn. Here is what he recently posted on The General Journals (sign up HERE): "We've been really productive writing-wise. As of last night we have 4 songs pretty much done musically, another 5 jams / half songs. The song we finished last night felt like it could be something really special. Phil has been on a riff roll, bringing some really unique sounding riffage and Dave McClain (our secret weapon) has brought some damn cool riffs to the table as well." MACHINE HEAD on the road in 2013: HEADLINE DATES: (Tix on sale now)
Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival tour dates for 2013 are as follows:
- 06/29/13: San Manuel Amphitheater in San Bernardino, CA
- 06/30/13: Shoreline Amphitheater in Mountain View, CA
- 07/02/13: Idaho Center Amphitheater in Nampa, ID
- 07/03/13: White River Amphitheater in Auburn, WA
- 07/05/13: Desert Sky Pavilion in Phoenix, AZ
- 07/06/13: Isleta Amphitheater in Albuquerque, NM
- 07/07/13: Fiddler's Green Amphitheater in Englewood, CO
- 07/10/13: Molson Canadian Amphitheater in Toronto, ON– CANADA
- 07/12/13: First Niagara Pavilion in Burgettstown, PA
- 07/13/13: Susquehana Bank Center in Camden, NJ
- 07/14/13: Darien Lake Performing Arts Center in Darien Center, NY
- 07/16/13: Comcast Center in Mansfield, MA
- 07/17/13: Bangor Waterfront in Bangor, ME
- 07/19/13: Toyota Pavilion in Montage Mountain in Scranton, PA
- 07/20/13: Saratoga Performing Arts Center in Saratoga Springs, NY
- 07/21/13: The Comcast Theatre in Hartford, CT
- 07/23/13: PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, NJ
- 07/24/13: Jiffy Lube Live in Bristow, VA
- 07/26/13: Klipsch Music Center in Noblesville, IN
- 07/27/13: First Midwest Bank Amphitheater in Tinley Park, IL
- 07/28/13: DTE Energy Music Theatre in Clarkson, MI
- 07/30/13: Lakewood Amphitheater in Atlanta, GA
- 07/31/13: 1-800-Ask-Gary Amphitheater in Tampa, FL
- 08/02/13: Tower Amphitheater in Austin, TX
- 08/03/13: Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion in Woodlands, TX
- 08/04/13: Gexa Energy Pavilion in Dallas, TX Subscribe to The General Journals: Diary Of A Frontman... And Other Ramblings http://thegeneraljournals.hosted.phplist.com/lists/?p=subscribe
One week ago, the Heavy Metal world suffered together as one when we all got the sad news that Slayer guitarist and founding member Jeff Hanneman passed away of liver failure at the age of 49.His friend and former bandmate Dave Lombardo paid tribute to Hanneman via the following post:
"Jeff was the guy that shaved his head and shared the music he was so inspired by. I enjoyed Dead Kennedys, Circle Jerks, Black Flag and The Germs with him. My drumming was getting faster and Jeff was writing original songs with a punk attitude. The fusion of Heavy Metal and Punk took over Slayer’s early mediocre style, hence a new force was born.
"Thank you, Jeff, for your inspiring discovery of Punk Rock that has continued to shape my personal drumming style."
Come pay tribute to one of the most influential guitarists of our generation, tonight at Idle Hands Bar (25 Ave B, between 2nd and 3rd streets) FREE! SLAYER will be blasted on the PA & Jäger specials all night long! RSVP HERE!
Our condolences go out to Jeff's family, friends and the Slayer camp! Rock in Peace, Jeff!
As we all know by now, on Thursday, May 2, Slayer guitarist and founding member Jeff Hanneman passed away of liver failure at the age of 49.
The band's longtime publicist issued the following statement:
"Slayer is devastated to inform that their bandmate and brother, Jeff Hanneman, passed away at about 11AM this morning near his Southern California home. He was 49. Hanneman was in an area hospital when he suffered liver failure. He is survived by his wife Kathy, his sister Kathy and his brothers Michael and Larry, and will be sorely missed."
Come pay tribute to one of the most influential guitarists of our generation, this Thursday 5/9 at Idle Hands Bar (25 Ave B, between 2nd and 3rd streets)
FREE! SLAYER will be blasted on the PA & Jäger specials all night long!
This Sunday, April 14th, marks three years since the late great Peter Steele passed away from heart failure at the age of 48. In celebration of the legacy that the "green giant" left behind, our friends from Duff's Brooklyn have announced an annual meet-up at the bar. Here is a statement they released via their Facebook page:
"Peter's
fans have turned April 14th into a annual meet-up at the bar, this year
shouldn't be any different. This year's gathering will be held this
Saturday night the 13th, into the Sunday the 14th. Any further details
TBA."
As previously announced, Metal journalist Jeff
Wagner is writing an authorized biography of Peter Steele called "Soul
On Fire" and he is asking fans to help.
"If you're a fan, have recollections of meeting Peter, have photos, tattoos, or anything, PM the Facebook group HERE.
This is a total labor of love and one that his followers will hopefully
find an indispensable part of the Type O continuum. Stay Negative!"
This rocks! Avery Molek is a 6 year old boy who loves Rock music, and already is a pretty badass drummer. Get this: he has been taking drum lessons since he was 4. This week he uploaded a video of him jamming to VAN HALEN’s classic song "Hot For Teacher". You can now watch the video below. In addition to doing covers, Avery has played 15 shows all at the age of 5. Six of the shows were solo one hour shows and nine shows were playing in four different live bands spanning in four states. That was what he calls his 2012 "Out Of The Basement" tour. "Yes, I said ‘Tour’! I am only 6! So anything more then one gig is a Tour!", says Avery. Most notable were The Hard Rock Cafe, The Illinois State Fair & Sturgis Fest “Bike Week” in Michigan.
This past Wednesday, March 6, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY leader Zakk Wylde was the center of attention at Club Nokia in Los Angeles, California. The occasion? Wylde and his band performed a very special "unplugged" concert for an upcoming DVD entitled "Unblackened". Our friend Jamie Harvey from Grammy.com, was present at the event and put together a pretty solid review. Here are a few excerpts of her review, followed by some images of Wylde and crew. Enjoy!
- The band's concert at Club Nokia celebrated his career outside of his
renowned stint with the legendary Ozzy Osbourne, summarizing his body of
work with his early '90s project Pride & Glory, solo albums such as
1996's 'Book Of Shadows', and his catalog with BLS, which spans nearly 15 years.
- The BLS crowd is akin to a biker gang: They all ... and I mean all
... wear BLS back patches adorning vests and coats and BLS shirts. They
refer to themselves as "chapters" based on location, and they're all
part of a "family." As the chapters assembled, some seated and some
standing, and some with a glass of beer or whiskey in hand, they
meandered around equipment set up to both live stream the show on AXS TV
and to record the performance for a live DVD/CD to be titled 'Unblackened'.
- Set List:
"Losin' Your Mind" "The Blessed Hellride" "Sold My Soul" "Road Back Home" "Spoke In The Wheel" "House Of Doom" "Queen Of Sorrow" "Machine Gun Man" "Sweet Jesus" "In This River" "Throwin' It All Away" "Takillya (Estyabon)" "Won't Find It Here" "Rust" "Speedball" "I Thank You Child" "Stillborn"
BLACK LABEL SOCIETY leader Zakk Wylde, will be the center of attention when the filming of the "Unblackened" DVD takes place on Wednesday, March 6 at Club Nokia in Los Angeles, California. The event will take place at 8:00 PM, and tickets are available HERE.
The set is expected to contain intimate versions of some of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's most popular songs, as well as songs from "Book Of Shadows"(Zakk Wylde's solo album) and Wylde's Southern Rock band PRIDE & GLORY. The show will feature Wylde on guitar and piano, alongside the members of BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, as well as a four-piece string section, pedal steel, and special guests.The concert will be broadcast live exclusively on AXS TV. A CD/DVD will be released later this year via Eagle RockEntertainment. During this year's NAMM, which concluded this past Sunday (January 27), Guitar Center chatted with Zakk Wylde about what fans can expect from the bands next DVD project. Watch the interview here:
Today (January 14), BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's Zachary Phillip "Zakk" Wylde (born Jeffrey Phillip Wielandt) is celebrating his 46th birthday! And since Wylde never stops reinventing himself, he celebrated his birthday by opening his NEW merch store (video below).
Here are some facts about Wylde:
- He was born in Bayonne, New Jersey.
- Started playing the guitar at the age of 8 and at the age of 14
he worked at Silverton Music in Silverton, New Jersey.
- Wylde grew up in
Jackson, New Jersey, and went to Jackson Memorial High School, where he
graduated in 1985.
- He would practice playing the
guitar as much as 12 hours per day and would often play the guitar
almost non-stop between coming home from school and leaving for school
the next morning, then sleeping through the school day. Happy birthday Zakk, and MANY more to come! Photo credit: Zakk Wylde
As previously announced, the surviving members of SUICIDE SILENCE will play a special show on December 21 at the Fox theater in Pomona, California as a tribute to their late singer, Mitch Lucker. All proceeds from the event will go towards the education of Mitch's five-year-old daughter, Kenadee Lucker. The concert announcement was made last night (Saturday, November 24) during the sixth annual California Metalfest at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, California.
The band has announced the first batch of guests vocalists, see the poster below.
The Heavy Music world was struck by the very sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his 2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
Speaking to the audience, SUICIDE SILENCE guitarist Mark Heylmun said (see video HERE), "We fucking lost our brother; I'm sure you all know that. We all miss him more than anything in the fucking world."
The remaining members of the band have set up a memorial fund for Mitch Lucker’s family following the singer’s tragic death last week. Here is their statement regarding this matter:
Fans who wish to donate can do so via the link below, with donations of $20 of more receiving a commemorative t-shirt as a token of thanks. All proceeds will go towards the educational fund of Mitch’s five-year-old daughter, Kenadee.
On December 8th 2004, Nathan Gale shot DIMEBAG Darrell Abbott on stage, while Damageplan was performing at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus Ohio. Dime was shot six times (four times in the head), which killed him instantly. Gale continued shooting, killing four others and wounding a further seven. Jeff “Mayhem” Thompson (Damageplan’s head of security) was killed after tackling Gale, as was Alrosa Villa employee Erin Halk. Nathan Bray (a fan of the band) was killed while trying to perform CPR on Dimebag and Mayhem. Gale was finally shot dead by officer James James D. Niggemeyer. Dimebag Darrell was laid to rest at the Moore Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Arlington, Texas. From that moment on Heavy Music was never the same.
This past Saturday, December 8th, our community paid honor to DIMEBAG on his eighth death anniversary. Our friends in Machine Head joined the worldwide DIME tribute and did a PANTERA jam during their performance in Atlanta, Georgia. Here is fan filmed video, courtesy of the The PRP.
Here is what Riki Rachtman had to say about the legacy that DIMEBAG left behind:
MACHINE HEAD has easily had the most chaotic North American tour of
their 20+ year career. Not only did they have to cancel and reschedule a
bunch of tour dates "thanks" to Hurricane Sandy, but they also had to
pull out from a slew of tour dates during their current tour with
DETHKLOK, ALL THAT REMAINS and THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER due to Robb
Flynn's hernia surgery (Watch Flynn's surgery diary HERE).
Additionally, they were unable to perform in Portland, Oregon due to a
bus breakdown. In order to make the best of all the chaos, the band came
out out with a great t-shirt concept. Here is what they had to say
about it. Check it out HERE!
Recently, MACHINE HEAD released 'Machine Fucking Head Live' via Roadrunner Records (Pick it up HERE!).
It's Machine Head's second live effort; 'Hellalive' was released in
2003. Nine years have passed and Machine Head still slay and
administer a "Bay Area Beatdown" in the live realm. Full details HERE!
As previously announced, the surviving members of SUICIDE SILENCE will play a special show on December 21 at the Fox theater in Pomona, California as a tribute to their late singer, Mitch Lucker. All proceeds from the event will go towards the education of Mitch's five-year-old daughter, Kenadee Lucker. The concert announcement was made last night (Saturday, November 24) during the sixth annual California Metalfest at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, California.
The band will be announcing the first batch of guests vocalists tomorrow (December 8th), so stay tuned!
The Heavy Music world was struck by the very sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his 2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
Speaking to the audience, SUICIDE SILENCE guitarist Mark Heylmun said (see video HERE), "We fucking lost our brother; I'm sure you all know that. We all miss him more than anything in the fucking world."
The remaining members of the band have set up a memorial fund for Mitch Lucker’s family following the singer’s tragic death last week. Here is their statement regarding this matter:
Fans who wish to donate can do so via the link below, with donations of $20 of more receiving a commemorative t-shirt as a token of thanks. All proceeds will go towards the educational fund of Mitch’s five-year-old daughter, Kenadee.
As previously announced,
the surviving members of SUICIDE SILENCE will play a special show on
December 21 at the Fox theater in Pomona, California as a tribute to
their late singer, Mitch Lucker. All proceeds from the event will
go towards the education of Mitch's five-year-old daughter, Kenadee
Lucker. The concert announcement was made last night (Saturday, November
24) during the sixth annual California Metalfest at the NOS Events
Center in San Bernardino, California. Here is the official event poster:
The Heavy Music world was struck by the very
sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE).
According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near
the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his
2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main
Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
Speaking to the audience, SUICIDE SILENCE guitarist Mark Heylmun
said (see video HERE), "We fucking lost our brother; I'm sure you all
know that. We all miss him more than anything in the fucking world."
The remaining members of the band have set up a memorial fund for
Mitch Lucker’s family following the singer’s tragic death last week.
Here is their statement regarding this matter:
Fans
who wish to donate can do so via the link below, with donations of $20
of more receiving a commemorative t-shirt as a token of thanks. All
proceeds will go towards the educational fund of Mitch’s five-year-old
daughter, Kenadee.
As previously announced, the Heavy Music world was struck by the very sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his 2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
According to Blabbermouth.net, the surviving members of SUICIDE SILENCE will play a special show on December 21 at the Fox theater in Pomona, California as a tribute to their late singer, Mitch Lucker. All proceeds from the event will
go towards the education of Mitch's five-year-old daughter, Kenadee Lucker. The concert announcement was made last night (Saturday, November 24) during the sixth annual California Metalfest at the NOS Events Center in San Bernardino, California.
Speaking to the audience, SUICIDE SILENCE guitarist Mark Heylmun said (see video below), "We fucking lost our brother; I'm sure you all know that. We all miss him more than anything in the fucking world."
He continued, "I think something that is really important to us is that we consider SUICIDE SILENCE a family — as far as the band goes, as far as any crew member we've ever had, anybody that's ever worked for us, and the fans… Everyone is family; that is the greatest thing that's ever happened to us and we're so grateful to be a part of this.
"This is the most difficult thing we've ever had to deal with.; I really don't know where to start. We're just dealing with it day by day, and I hope everybody else is dealing with it. It's just unreal to have to be up here right now talking about this.
"We wanna say thank you all so much for donating to Kenadee's education fund.
"Everybody's been asking what we're gonna do as a band. We're putting together a show. It's gonna be at Fox Theater on December 21. Just kind of the best show, the best event that you could possibly imagine. Obviously, Mitch is not gonna be there. We're gonna have a different singer every single song. We're gonna put the best show that we possibly can together. It's already in the works. Tickets go on sale next Friday. Hopefully everybody can make it out. It's gonna be really fucking special. And all the money that is going towards the show is going to Kenadee's educational fund. So it's going to a cause and Mitch would really appreciate it and we appreciate it. Thank you very much."
The remaining members of the band have set up a memorial fund for
Mitch Lucker’s family following the singer’s tragic death last week.
Here is their statement regarding this matter:
Fans
who wish to donate can do so via the link below, with donations of $20
of more receiving a commemorative t-shirt as a token of thanks. All
proceeds will go towards the educational fund of Mitch’s five-year-old
daughter, Kenadee.
The organizers of the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival will officially kick off an auction in te Unite The United Holiday to benefit the Mitch Lucker Memorial Fund. The auction kicks off at 9 AM PST.
As previously announced, the Heavy Music world was struck by the very sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his 2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
The remaining members of the band have set up a memorial fund for Mitch Lucker’s family following the singer’s tragic death last week. Here is their statement regarding this matter:
Fans who wish to donate can do so via the link below, with donations of $20 of more receiving a commemorative t-shirt as a token of thanks. All proceeds will go towards the educational fund of Mitch’s five-year-old daughter, Kenadee.
Last week, the Heavy Music world was struck by the very sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his 2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
The remaining members of the band have set up a memorial fund for Mitch Lucker’s family following the singer’s tragic death last week. Here is their statement regarding this matter:
Fans who wish to donate can do so via the link below, with donations of $20 of more receiving a commemorative t-shirt as a token of thanks. All proceeds will go towards the educational fund of Mitch’s five-year-old daughter, Kenadee.
"We thank you for your continued love & support through this devastating time," comment the band. "We’d like to reiterate our thoughts from last week sending all our love out to those most affected by the loss of Mitch. We still can’t quite believe it."
Last week, the Heavy Music world was struck by the very sad news that Mitchell Adam Lucker passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). According to the Los Angeles Times, Lucker struck a light pole near the intersection of Main and 13th streets and was thrown from his 2013 Harley Davidson. The motorcycle continued sliding south on Main Street and struck a northbound 2007 Nissan Titan pickup.
The remaining members of the band have asked their fans to refrain from purchasing bootleg merchandise to honor Lucker. An official t-shirt and memorial fund is being set up and will be announced this week.
"We appreciate everyone trying to help out, but there is no existing fund at this time. Please check back here for official updates," the group wrote on its Facebook page. "Please do not purchase any bootleg RIP shirts from eBay or other online stores. We want to ensure that those of you who wish to make such purchases will have your money going to the right place and that you’ll receive a quality commemorative product. An official t-shirt and donation fund will be surfacing this week and nothing officially connected to the cause currently exists. Please continue to check this page to keep informed."
Here is a video we shot in the dark (with a camera light) that features our founder Jo Schüftan sharing his story about the hugest hurricane in the last 100 years (image gallery HERE) and discussing the impact that Mitch's death had within the entire music world.
This was definitely one of the toughest weeks in Horns Up Rocks history. Not only were we forced to work from "Everyday Gourmet Deli" in New York City from Tuesday morning until today (Friday) since we lost electricity and water thanks to "FrankenSandy", which slightly delayed our entire work flow, but we closed this trying week with the very sad news that Heavy Music icon Mitchell Adam Lucker has passed away at the young age of 28 (More information HERE). Here is a video we shot in the dark (with a camera light) that features our founder Jo Schüftan sharing his story about the hugest hurricane in the last 100 years (image gallery HERE) and discussing the impact that Mitch's death had within the entire music world.
We would like to offer our condolences to Mitch's family, friends, band members, fans worldwide, and everyone at Nuclear Blast Records and Century Media Records who are affected by this loss.
America's much-treasured icon Johnny Cash, who would have turned 80 years old on February 26, will be the focus of a series of tributes and celebrations in 2012, starting with the official ground-breaking of the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home Project in Dyess, AR. 'A number of family members including Cash's children Rosanne, John Carter, Cindy and Kathy Cash Tittle, plus at least seven of his grandchildren, will be on hand for the launch event scheduled to take place February 26, 2:00PM at the Dyess Community Center, followed by a birthday tribute.
Said Rosanne Cash, "February 26th, 2012 marks the 80th anniversary of my father's birth. On that day, the extended Cash family will gather at his boyhood home in Dyess, Arkansas, to celebrate the groundbreaking of the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home project: an undertaking long in the planning, and a great honor and thrill for our family. This entire year we celebrate not just his roots and history, but the breadth and depth of his artistic legacy, his spirit and authenticity, and the love and rhythm he brought to all our lives which continues to inspire millions of people around the globe."
The Johnny Cash Boyhood Home Project will be a permanent tribute to Cash's early life and that of his family's, as well as reflect an historical slice of American life during the 1930's Great Depression. Arkansas State University is spearheading the restoration of not only the house that Cash grew up in and its various outbuildings, but has taken under its wing several other Dyess historic buildings in an effort to preserve the town's rich heritage. ASU's end-goals include the establishment of a Johnny Cash museum, a space for educational workshops, classes, and demonstrations, the creation of tourism-related jobs in the town, and providing scholarships to ASU for deserving students from the Dyess area.
ASU's Dr. Ruth Hawkins, who initiated Arkansas's Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum and other Arkansas heritage sites, is overseeing the Johnny Cash Boyhood Home Project. "We are working very hard to achieve authenticity in this restoration," said Dr. Hawkins. "Based on photos and the recollections of family members, the house will be furnished as it was during the 1930s and 1940s when the Cash family lived there. We've gone so far as to take core paint samples from the house and send them for lab analysis to ensure that we have the correct colors.
Fundraising for the project began last August with the first annual Johnny Cash Music Festival held on the ASU Jonesboro campus. The concert featured performances by John Carter Cash, Rosanne Cash, George Jones, Kris Kristofferson, and many others, all of whom donated their time. The Cash family is committed to hosting the Festival yearly, and has earmarked all proceeds for the Dyess restoration project.
Johnny Cash, known as "J.R.," grew up in Dyess Colony, an agricultural resettlement community in Arkansas that was part of the "New Deal," the government's economic program that provided relief to desperately poor families. In 1935, the Cash's were one of 500 original families who received a brand new Colony house, 20 to 40 acres of land, a mule and seed for farming (less than 40 houses remain). Life in the Dyess Colony served as a tremendous influence on the young J.R., with the back-breaking work he did in the cotton fields, and the music he sang in church and heard on the radio providing the inspiration for many of the songs he would later write, such as "Five Feet High and Rising" and "Pickin' Time."
Also set for this year-long birthday celebration is the opening of the new Johnny Cash Museum in downtown Nashville. On display will be many items from the legendary House of Cash that closed in 1999, as well as additional memorabilia endowed by the Cash family. Details will be announced shortly. Also in celebration of Cash's 80th birthday, Columbia/Legacy will release a series of archive titles beginning with Bootleg IV: The Soul of Truth slated for April 3. More information will be announced shortly. In addition, three documentaries on Johnny Cash's life are in various stages of development.
Separate from spearheading their father's 80th birthday celebrations, John Carter and Rosanne Cash are each busy with their own projects. Rosanne, whose book "Composed: A Memoir," was released in hardcover last August and called "one of the best accounts of an American life you'll likely ever read" by the Chicago Tribune, is currently writing a new album of original songs based on Southern themes and people. In March, Simon & Schuster will publish "Cat In a Rhinestone Suit," the third in a series of critically-acclaimed children's books written by John Carter. His "House of Cash: The Legacies of My Father" was released last October.
Marc Rizzo became Max Cavalera's musical ally in October of 2003 when he joined Soulfly to record "Prophecy". Ever since then Max and Marc have developed a signature sound that is recognized by thousands of fans worldwide. Marc is also the co-founder of Cavalera Conspiracy, the band that reunited Brazilian Heavy Music brothers Max and Iggor Cavalera. So who is to blame for Rizzo's accomplishments and his incredible guitar shredding skills? Dimebag Darrell Abbott from Pantera and Damageplan.
"Dimebag will always be the greatest Metal guitar player of all time! He had it all as a player: technique, feel, tone, riffs, songs! Definitely my biggest influence and i listen to him everyday for endless inspiration."
This Saturday, December 10th, Marc Rizzo will be paying tribute to his all-time favorite guitar player at "A Holiday Tribute Show For Dimebag Darrell". The event is presented by Horns Up Rocks and it will take place at the Trash Bar in Brooklyn, New York. At this not to be missed event, Marc will be performing some original songs, as well as some Pantera, Sepultura, Soulfly, and Cavalera Conspiracy covers!
