Jimmerz
02-21-2005, 03:50 AM
some more shit from the people who were directly involved that night proves the media blew some smoke up everyones ass as always.
Wed Dec 15, 2004
Today I was contacted by two local Columbus Roadies that were both eyewitnesses to the DamagePlan Shootings exactly one week ago tonight in Columbus Ohio at the Alrosa Villa club. They are members of the local stage crew in Columbus, and work several venues including the Alrosa. "Jon" is the club's stage manager and "Tubbs" is the club's F.O.H. (Front of House Sound Man) and was working monitors that fateful night as he normally did when a national act like DamagePlan played the club. Neither Jon nor Tubbs have spoken publicly until now, even though both have been contacted by several national and local news sources and have been asked for comments. They have chosen to tell their story here to make sure their words are not misrepresented or taken out of context.
Here is their story of those terrible few minutes that have changed their lives forever and taken a close friend from them in the same instant. As Jon emotionally told me, "It was the worst <deleted> thing I have ever seen in my life."
Both Jon and Tubbs said that the afternoon could not have gone any better. The band and their crew were extremely professional and friendly. Jon remembers Jeff "Mayhem" Thompson (the head of the band's security) making sure the local crew all had plenty of water and Dimebag Darrell Abbott even made small talk with some of them during the sound check. "They were all incredible," said Jon. During the day however, a strange man made a nuisance of himself, and was finally told to leave the area by "Mayhem." Hangers-on and Want-ta-bees are common in the music business, and no one figured this guy was really dangerous. This of course turned out to be Nathan Gale, who as we know now ended up shooting six people, and killing four of them later that day. Other than that apparently minor incident, the set-up for the show went remarkably smooth. Tubbs now also remembers that just prior to the show Gale's van was parked behind the band's tour bus, and they announced over the PA several times for the owner to have it moved or it would be towed...which the Gale reportedly did shortly before DamagePlan took the stage.
As the gig was about to start, Jon was on the stage with his roommate and close friend Erin "Stoney" Halk. On the opposite side of the stage stood Jeffrey 'Mayhem' Thompson performing his security duties by scanning the audience for any potential threats to the band. About that time (just a few minutes prior to the band entering the stage) Jon was thirsty, and decided to walk to the bar and get a bottle of water. He told "Stoney" that "the stage is yours" meaning that the responsibility for the security on that side of the stage (stage right) was now his. Stoney motioned a "thumbs up" to verify that he understood. Jon worked his way through the crowd and was near the bar when he heard the first shots. POP, POP, POP...He looked up and saw the horrific sight of Dimebag falling to the ground and the mass confusion unfolding on the stage. His most vivid memory of that moment strangely, is the ear-splitting feedback caused by Dimebag falling on his own guitar. During the next few panic filled minutes he grabbed and pushed people towards the closest door. In a blur of time he eventually ended up making his way towards the stage, grabbing Vinnie Paul Abbott (drummer for DamagePlan and the brother of the now slain guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell) and ushered him to safety.
Tubbs was stage left and watched the entire surreal event unfold just a few feet in front of him. He says he was probably the last person to talk to Dimebag having said something to him as he entered the stage. As the monitor guy for this gig, his mixing console was only about 5 or 6 feet away from the lead guitarist. According to Tubbs, the shooter (Nathan Gale) entered the stage from the stage right area (not from the audience as previously reported) As Gale determinedly ran towards Dimebag the stage right roadie "Stoney" ran after him. "Mayhem" saw Gale and converged on him from stage left. Neither one got to center stage fast enough. Gale fired at least five bullets at point blank range into the doomed artist's body. The final bullet was a fatal head shot fired as he went down. "He was dead before he hit the stage", says Tubbs. "The way the attack happened, nothing could have saved him...nothing," He also remembers the feedback (a droning hum at about 600 Hz, notes the trained ear of the audio tech)
The next few minutes were confused, but this is what else Tubbs remembers.
As Dimebag hit the floor the shooter now turned his attention to Tubbs (still only about five feet away). Gale raised the gun and aimed it at Tubbs who was now literally looking down the barrel of the gun. However, before he could shoot Tubbs, the two Roadies ("Stoney" and "Mayhem") tackled Gale from opposite sides. Neither one had a weapon, and both were putting their own lives at risk to try to stop the shooter from killing anyone else. Erin "Stoney" Halk was an ex-Marine and Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson was a massive 7'1'' man and a very scary looking dude, so I'm sure they both thought they had a better than even chance to disarm the gunman. They were wrong. We now know that Nathan Gale was also a trained ex-Marine and he dropped his first empty clip and slapped another one in the semi-automatic 9 mm pistol in the blink of an eye. He killed both of these heroes within seconds of his first victim. Gale had at least five clips of bullets and he reloaded at least once, but probably twice, says Tubbs. As "Stoney" and "Mayhem" died making the ultimate sacrifice, two more roadies and several members of the audience also rose to the occasion and stormed the stage. Chris Paluska (the DamagePlan Tour Manager) took a shot to the stomach, and is still in serious condition in a local hospital (according to the most recent report). John "Kat" Brooks (the band's drum roadie) also took a hit (but thankfully has now been released from the hospital). According to Tubbs, both were definitely trying to subdue Gale. About the same time several members of the audience climbed the crowd barrier protecting the stage, and some tried to help "Dimebag" with CPR while others made their own attempts to subdue the shooter. (MORE HEROES). Tubbs believes that Nathen Bray (the only "civilian" casualty) was actually killed because he was one of those fans that climbed the stage. Tubbs does not believe that any shots were directed at the fleeing audience at any time (again contrary to published media reports). While all these failed attempts of these unarmed heroes attacking an armed gunman were happening, both Tubbs and Jon noticed several police officers quietly entering the club. Most of them took defensive positions, apparently waiting for more back up. Directly disputing published police reports they both claim that the officer that eventually killed Gale was NOT the first officer on the scene. He appeared however to be the first officer that decided to do something about the situation. Seeing that Gale had a hostage and that he was temporarily distracted by the waves of roadies and fans trying to disarm him, the officer shot the perpetrator from behind with a shotgun blast killing him instantly. With that shot, the hostage was released, and the carnage finally ended. The entire incident lasted only a few minutes.
There are reports that there may be some home video of the event. Tubbs seriously doubts that. Any camcorder would have been "smuggled" into the venue since cameras were forbidden per the terms of the band's contract. Any available video images would probably come from low quality camera cell phones and would probably only be still photos. None have surfaced as of this writing, but the police may have any existing images impounded as evidence.
As you can see there is more to this story than has generally been reported. According to Jon and Tubbs there were AT LEAST SIX and possibly more TRUE HEROES that night at the Alrosa Villa club. Certainly the police officers risked their lives and deserve our thanks and accolades. Officer James D. Niggemeyer probably saved many lives by taking the intuitive and ending the bloodshed and should be duly honored for his heroics. So too should we honor Erin "Stoney" Halk (who Tubbs emotionally credits with saving his own life), Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson, Nathen Bray, Chris Paluska, and John "Kat" Brooks. Heroes all. Four Roadies and a Fan that disregarded their own safety to protect others. The surviving band members and the 250+ members of the audience may in fact owe their very lives to these heroes. I know Tubbs believes he does.
Tubbs and Jon are both having a hard time dealing with the memories of that night, and they both want to remain out of the public eye. I hope that everyone respects their wishes. They both felt however that a corrected version of this event was important and should be told so that the dead and wounded can be properly honored as heroes... hence this article.
They wanted me to tell everyone that both of them, as well as the entire Alrosa crew, the local Columbus stagehands, the Alrosa club owner and employees, and the family of Erin Halk all deeply appreciate the prayers, the condolences, and the outpouring of love that has been expressed this week in response to this senseless act. They would like everyone to continue to pray for the survivors, the victims, and the victim's families (including the family of Nathan Gale).
Finally I asked Jon and Tubbs if they would stay in the entertainment business after this traumatic experience.
Without hesitation they both said... "Hell yes!"
Written by Karl Kuenning RFL
www.roadie.net (http://www.roadie.net/)
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - Karl Kuenning RFL 2004
P H I L L S P E A K S
Jan. 21, 2005 - PHILIP ANSELMO Says PANTERA Would Have Played Again
Philip H Anselmo; On Behalf of Darrell Lance Abbott-Pt. I
I’ve been stumbling around in a coma of loss. No truer lyric has been written than “You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.” To explain my side of things with the hiatus of Pantera, please give me a moment and think about what I say. Think.
I joined the band in late ‘86/early ‘87, and the chemistry clicked like a vice grip, we hit it off like four bad mother fuckers could. Perfection. Dime, Vince and Rex could play fucking anything. You pick the style, they could pull it off. So in reality we had to find out where our musical hearts lay strongest. After short deliberation, our intention was to be the most devastating ‘hard core-heavy metal’ band in the world.
You know, when the so called heavy metal press first got wind of ‘Cowboys from Hell’ they were absolutely unsure what to think. More bad reviews than good at the time. The Reason? They had never heard a band quite like us before, and I can’t blame the press or anyone for not hearing the full experience, but there were flashes in songs like ‘Primal Concrete Sledge’, and “Message in Blood’. Once again as I have said before, the press remained basically unimpressed, BUT, with the heavy metal audience, the phenomenon of Pantera had already begun. Slowly but surely, the fan base grew larger and larger (the best fans in the world I say still!)
The LP that I believe was the first ‘true’ Pantera LP was our second major release ‘Vulgar Display of Power’. As a band, our brotherhood and obvious originality and musicianship cemented us as one of the most feared and loved bands ever to step on a stage. That, is what we all lived for. We figured as long as our awesome audience was moved (head banging, skanking, stage diving, of course) we would play for us and them. Of course we had a deep connection with both our music and our audience, and we were also very different, image and attitude wise… It was extremely rare to see a lead vocalist or anyone with a shaved head unless you looked deep into the underground with bands like the Cro-Mags, Agnostic Front, Rose Tattoo, etc…(I didn’t mean to leave anyone out). The difference between us and these great bands was the fact that we also had an insanely great guitar player who was respected alongside the best of the best, and a rhythm section so unique and tight, goddamn they were tight, tight is and always will be the word. I guarantee throughout our 17 year existence it would be extremely difficult to have one memory of Rex or Vince messing up or playing a part wrong ever. That to some people may be amazing or impossible, however I mean what I say 100 times over. They were the best damn musicians I’d ever seen or heard. Period.
With ’Far Beyond Driven’, our 3rd major offering, going to #1 on the Billboard top #200, it seems appropriate to say that some Rock Magazines were taking notice, one way or another. Guitar magazines throughout the world were right on the money by calling Dimebag the best axe man of the time. That was absolutely true and within his lead style, influenced by the likes of Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhodes, Ace Frehley, and himself (it’s true, I believe most all great lead guitar players have their own style to hear and influence. By god Darrell had that type of talent and then some). His rhythms he came up with, in ways, probably became even more influential. His influences were extremely varied and unique from guys like James Hetfield (Metallica), Kerry King and Jeff Hannemen (Slayer), Judas Priest to Motorhead, AC/DC, ZZ top, Robin Trower and even some of the ultra underground bands I would play him. In all honesty he preferred a more accomplished guitar player than some of the rawer sloppier stuff that I adored, but what he did love about the rawer stuff was its all out assault on the ears. Bless him, he did love that. Within his style he commanded and demanded the best out of himself, and all of us around him. So I will say to everyone in Texas that ever called me a friend, and especially all of my brothers that helped work with us as Pantera on the road crew; I love all of you. To the fans in Texas, and the rest across America and the world, beware of the shit you read in rock magazines. When these pathetically titled ‘journalists’ (not all of them, but a lot still), had finally caught on to the fact that we, Pantera, had beaten all the odds a band could, and the press had no choice but to build us up until it seemed that they were all of a sudden desperate to make us supermen in the magazines, it was an assignment. It wasn’t true to them, they were getting paid for it. We weren’t supermen, just a great band. During our whole career, there were always those interviews where you could tell that the ’journalist’ didn’t know shit about our band, using wrong facts, whether they made us look good or bad, not knowing a thing about our characters, our musicianship, or our careers; asking the same questions, or as ’journalists’ love to do, just plain making up whatever they wanted. For every ‘journalist’ out there, these facts may or may not fit in with the way you personally do your work , but I know and so the fuck do you that this load of bullshit behavior, that thousands of fans read on a regular basis, is absolutely irresponsible, and it’s obvious that you truly don’t care about your responsibilities to the fans, or how many lives you truly destroy. It’s all about what sells magazines, isn’t it?
A month has gone by since we, his former band mates, his current band mates, his friends and fans around the world, have lost Dimebag. I can’t necessarily speak for them, but for me, it’s the first thing that comes to mind when I awake, if I sleep at all, still. It is also the last thing I think about as I lay down to rest. God damn it still hurts me. I want to be there for Vinnie Paul no matter how long it takes. I want to be there for Rita if she’ll have me. I want to be there for the Kat and the rest of the crew as well, people that have been a part of my life for 17 ½ years. Once again, I’m hoping my biggest hope; that they realize that the bad stuff written about our bands and ourselves was coerced nonsense made to sell magazines. Bare with me, please. I beg you all. By the way, all of the level headed fans that write in and offer support, that in itself is the best therapy I’ve received yet. I have considered retirement because of a broken heart, but also in my heart, I cannot let my fans down. As the days go by I realize that I’m at war with some things inside of myself, that I don’t mind sharing with you: I always, truly always, no matter if it was my own dreams just coming to the surface, if we, just the four of us, were to sit in a room together, we’d have been laughing, crying, and laughing again. The weight of the world would be lifted off of our shoulder as we hugged each other. Play together again? I have a suspicion that our fans would demand some type of reunion. My god I thought of that so many times and because what our fans wanted, they usually got. It may have taken a little longer, but think about how long it took the original Black Sabbath to play together again!?
Then in one night early December, 2004, an event changed the entire year and our entire lives into one of the cruelest sort. Some mentally disturbed individual …crushed the dream. He took one of the most talented, extroverted people ever to grace this earth. I’m crushed for the loss of my friend that I loved, for Vince his brother, for Jerry his father, for Rita his life companion, for all of his good friends, for every music fan that was inspired and loved his playing; especially those who were lost or were injured that night we lost Darrell. None of what I have said will ever bring him back, and it hurts so bad. I add very humbly in hope that no one else out there ever has to go through something like this; Keep your loved ones close.
Yours Truly, I can take no more at this time-
Philip H Anselmo
Wed Dec 15, 2004
Today I was contacted by two local Columbus Roadies that were both eyewitnesses to the DamagePlan Shootings exactly one week ago tonight in Columbus Ohio at the Alrosa Villa club. They are members of the local stage crew in Columbus, and work several venues including the Alrosa. "Jon" is the club's stage manager and "Tubbs" is the club's F.O.H. (Front of House Sound Man) and was working monitors that fateful night as he normally did when a national act like DamagePlan played the club. Neither Jon nor Tubbs have spoken publicly until now, even though both have been contacted by several national and local news sources and have been asked for comments. They have chosen to tell their story here to make sure their words are not misrepresented or taken out of context.
Here is their story of those terrible few minutes that have changed their lives forever and taken a close friend from them in the same instant. As Jon emotionally told me, "It was the worst <deleted> thing I have ever seen in my life."
Both Jon and Tubbs said that the afternoon could not have gone any better. The band and their crew were extremely professional and friendly. Jon remembers Jeff "Mayhem" Thompson (the head of the band's security) making sure the local crew all had plenty of water and Dimebag Darrell Abbott even made small talk with some of them during the sound check. "They were all incredible," said Jon. During the day however, a strange man made a nuisance of himself, and was finally told to leave the area by "Mayhem." Hangers-on and Want-ta-bees are common in the music business, and no one figured this guy was really dangerous. This of course turned out to be Nathan Gale, who as we know now ended up shooting six people, and killing four of them later that day. Other than that apparently minor incident, the set-up for the show went remarkably smooth. Tubbs now also remembers that just prior to the show Gale's van was parked behind the band's tour bus, and they announced over the PA several times for the owner to have it moved or it would be towed...which the Gale reportedly did shortly before DamagePlan took the stage.
As the gig was about to start, Jon was on the stage with his roommate and close friend Erin "Stoney" Halk. On the opposite side of the stage stood Jeffrey 'Mayhem' Thompson performing his security duties by scanning the audience for any potential threats to the band. About that time (just a few minutes prior to the band entering the stage) Jon was thirsty, and decided to walk to the bar and get a bottle of water. He told "Stoney" that "the stage is yours" meaning that the responsibility for the security on that side of the stage (stage right) was now his. Stoney motioned a "thumbs up" to verify that he understood. Jon worked his way through the crowd and was near the bar when he heard the first shots. POP, POP, POP...He looked up and saw the horrific sight of Dimebag falling to the ground and the mass confusion unfolding on the stage. His most vivid memory of that moment strangely, is the ear-splitting feedback caused by Dimebag falling on his own guitar. During the next few panic filled minutes he grabbed and pushed people towards the closest door. In a blur of time he eventually ended up making his way towards the stage, grabbing Vinnie Paul Abbott (drummer for DamagePlan and the brother of the now slain guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell) and ushered him to safety.
Tubbs was stage left and watched the entire surreal event unfold just a few feet in front of him. He says he was probably the last person to talk to Dimebag having said something to him as he entered the stage. As the monitor guy for this gig, his mixing console was only about 5 or 6 feet away from the lead guitarist. According to Tubbs, the shooter (Nathan Gale) entered the stage from the stage right area (not from the audience as previously reported) As Gale determinedly ran towards Dimebag the stage right roadie "Stoney" ran after him. "Mayhem" saw Gale and converged on him from stage left. Neither one got to center stage fast enough. Gale fired at least five bullets at point blank range into the doomed artist's body. The final bullet was a fatal head shot fired as he went down. "He was dead before he hit the stage", says Tubbs. "The way the attack happened, nothing could have saved him...nothing," He also remembers the feedback (a droning hum at about 600 Hz, notes the trained ear of the audio tech)
The next few minutes were confused, but this is what else Tubbs remembers.
As Dimebag hit the floor the shooter now turned his attention to Tubbs (still only about five feet away). Gale raised the gun and aimed it at Tubbs who was now literally looking down the barrel of the gun. However, before he could shoot Tubbs, the two Roadies ("Stoney" and "Mayhem") tackled Gale from opposite sides. Neither one had a weapon, and both were putting their own lives at risk to try to stop the shooter from killing anyone else. Erin "Stoney" Halk was an ex-Marine and Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson was a massive 7'1'' man and a very scary looking dude, so I'm sure they both thought they had a better than even chance to disarm the gunman. They were wrong. We now know that Nathan Gale was also a trained ex-Marine and he dropped his first empty clip and slapped another one in the semi-automatic 9 mm pistol in the blink of an eye. He killed both of these heroes within seconds of his first victim. Gale had at least five clips of bullets and he reloaded at least once, but probably twice, says Tubbs. As "Stoney" and "Mayhem" died making the ultimate sacrifice, two more roadies and several members of the audience also rose to the occasion and stormed the stage. Chris Paluska (the DamagePlan Tour Manager) took a shot to the stomach, and is still in serious condition in a local hospital (according to the most recent report). John "Kat" Brooks (the band's drum roadie) also took a hit (but thankfully has now been released from the hospital). According to Tubbs, both were definitely trying to subdue Gale. About the same time several members of the audience climbed the crowd barrier protecting the stage, and some tried to help "Dimebag" with CPR while others made their own attempts to subdue the shooter. (MORE HEROES). Tubbs believes that Nathen Bray (the only "civilian" casualty) was actually killed because he was one of those fans that climbed the stage. Tubbs does not believe that any shots were directed at the fleeing audience at any time (again contrary to published media reports). While all these failed attempts of these unarmed heroes attacking an armed gunman were happening, both Tubbs and Jon noticed several police officers quietly entering the club. Most of them took defensive positions, apparently waiting for more back up. Directly disputing published police reports they both claim that the officer that eventually killed Gale was NOT the first officer on the scene. He appeared however to be the first officer that decided to do something about the situation. Seeing that Gale had a hostage and that he was temporarily distracted by the waves of roadies and fans trying to disarm him, the officer shot the perpetrator from behind with a shotgun blast killing him instantly. With that shot, the hostage was released, and the carnage finally ended. The entire incident lasted only a few minutes.
There are reports that there may be some home video of the event. Tubbs seriously doubts that. Any camcorder would have been "smuggled" into the venue since cameras were forbidden per the terms of the band's contract. Any available video images would probably come from low quality camera cell phones and would probably only be still photos. None have surfaced as of this writing, but the police may have any existing images impounded as evidence.
As you can see there is more to this story than has generally been reported. According to Jon and Tubbs there were AT LEAST SIX and possibly more TRUE HEROES that night at the Alrosa Villa club. Certainly the police officers risked their lives and deserve our thanks and accolades. Officer James D. Niggemeyer probably saved many lives by taking the intuitive and ending the bloodshed and should be duly honored for his heroics. So too should we honor Erin "Stoney" Halk (who Tubbs emotionally credits with saving his own life), Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson, Nathen Bray, Chris Paluska, and John "Kat" Brooks. Heroes all. Four Roadies and a Fan that disregarded their own safety to protect others. The surviving band members and the 250+ members of the audience may in fact owe their very lives to these heroes. I know Tubbs believes he does.
Tubbs and Jon are both having a hard time dealing with the memories of that night, and they both want to remain out of the public eye. I hope that everyone respects their wishes. They both felt however that a corrected version of this event was important and should be told so that the dead and wounded can be properly honored as heroes... hence this article.
They wanted me to tell everyone that both of them, as well as the entire Alrosa crew, the local Columbus stagehands, the Alrosa club owner and employees, and the family of Erin Halk all deeply appreciate the prayers, the condolences, and the outpouring of love that has been expressed this week in response to this senseless act. They would like everyone to continue to pray for the survivors, the victims, and the victim's families (including the family of Nathan Gale).
Finally I asked Jon and Tubbs if they would stay in the entertainment business after this traumatic experience.
Without hesitation they both said... "Hell yes!"
Written by Karl Kuenning RFL
www.roadie.net (http://www.roadie.net/)
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED - Karl Kuenning RFL 2004
P H I L L S P E A K S
Jan. 21, 2005 - PHILIP ANSELMO Says PANTERA Would Have Played Again
Philip H Anselmo; On Behalf of Darrell Lance Abbott-Pt. I
I’ve been stumbling around in a coma of loss. No truer lyric has been written than “You don’t know what you’ve got, ‘til it’s gone.” To explain my side of things with the hiatus of Pantera, please give me a moment and think about what I say. Think.
I joined the band in late ‘86/early ‘87, and the chemistry clicked like a vice grip, we hit it off like four bad mother fuckers could. Perfection. Dime, Vince and Rex could play fucking anything. You pick the style, they could pull it off. So in reality we had to find out where our musical hearts lay strongest. After short deliberation, our intention was to be the most devastating ‘hard core-heavy metal’ band in the world.
You know, when the so called heavy metal press first got wind of ‘Cowboys from Hell’ they were absolutely unsure what to think. More bad reviews than good at the time. The Reason? They had never heard a band quite like us before, and I can’t blame the press or anyone for not hearing the full experience, but there were flashes in songs like ‘Primal Concrete Sledge’, and “Message in Blood’. Once again as I have said before, the press remained basically unimpressed, BUT, with the heavy metal audience, the phenomenon of Pantera had already begun. Slowly but surely, the fan base grew larger and larger (the best fans in the world I say still!)
The LP that I believe was the first ‘true’ Pantera LP was our second major release ‘Vulgar Display of Power’. As a band, our brotherhood and obvious originality and musicianship cemented us as one of the most feared and loved bands ever to step on a stage. That, is what we all lived for. We figured as long as our awesome audience was moved (head banging, skanking, stage diving, of course) we would play for us and them. Of course we had a deep connection with both our music and our audience, and we were also very different, image and attitude wise… It was extremely rare to see a lead vocalist or anyone with a shaved head unless you looked deep into the underground with bands like the Cro-Mags, Agnostic Front, Rose Tattoo, etc…(I didn’t mean to leave anyone out). The difference between us and these great bands was the fact that we also had an insanely great guitar player who was respected alongside the best of the best, and a rhythm section so unique and tight, goddamn they were tight, tight is and always will be the word. I guarantee throughout our 17 year existence it would be extremely difficult to have one memory of Rex or Vince messing up or playing a part wrong ever. That to some people may be amazing or impossible, however I mean what I say 100 times over. They were the best damn musicians I’d ever seen or heard. Period.
With ’Far Beyond Driven’, our 3rd major offering, going to #1 on the Billboard top #200, it seems appropriate to say that some Rock Magazines were taking notice, one way or another. Guitar magazines throughout the world were right on the money by calling Dimebag the best axe man of the time. That was absolutely true and within his lead style, influenced by the likes of Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhodes, Ace Frehley, and himself (it’s true, I believe most all great lead guitar players have their own style to hear and influence. By god Darrell had that type of talent and then some). His rhythms he came up with, in ways, probably became even more influential. His influences were extremely varied and unique from guys like James Hetfield (Metallica), Kerry King and Jeff Hannemen (Slayer), Judas Priest to Motorhead, AC/DC, ZZ top, Robin Trower and even some of the ultra underground bands I would play him. In all honesty he preferred a more accomplished guitar player than some of the rawer sloppier stuff that I adored, but what he did love about the rawer stuff was its all out assault on the ears. Bless him, he did love that. Within his style he commanded and demanded the best out of himself, and all of us around him. So I will say to everyone in Texas that ever called me a friend, and especially all of my brothers that helped work with us as Pantera on the road crew; I love all of you. To the fans in Texas, and the rest across America and the world, beware of the shit you read in rock magazines. When these pathetically titled ‘journalists’ (not all of them, but a lot still), had finally caught on to the fact that we, Pantera, had beaten all the odds a band could, and the press had no choice but to build us up until it seemed that they were all of a sudden desperate to make us supermen in the magazines, it was an assignment. It wasn’t true to them, they were getting paid for it. We weren’t supermen, just a great band. During our whole career, there were always those interviews where you could tell that the ’journalist’ didn’t know shit about our band, using wrong facts, whether they made us look good or bad, not knowing a thing about our characters, our musicianship, or our careers; asking the same questions, or as ’journalists’ love to do, just plain making up whatever they wanted. For every ‘journalist’ out there, these facts may or may not fit in with the way you personally do your work , but I know and so the fuck do you that this load of bullshit behavior, that thousands of fans read on a regular basis, is absolutely irresponsible, and it’s obvious that you truly don’t care about your responsibilities to the fans, or how many lives you truly destroy. It’s all about what sells magazines, isn’t it?
A month has gone by since we, his former band mates, his current band mates, his friends and fans around the world, have lost Dimebag. I can’t necessarily speak for them, but for me, it’s the first thing that comes to mind when I awake, if I sleep at all, still. It is also the last thing I think about as I lay down to rest. God damn it still hurts me. I want to be there for Vinnie Paul no matter how long it takes. I want to be there for Rita if she’ll have me. I want to be there for the Kat and the rest of the crew as well, people that have been a part of my life for 17 ½ years. Once again, I’m hoping my biggest hope; that they realize that the bad stuff written about our bands and ourselves was coerced nonsense made to sell magazines. Bare with me, please. I beg you all. By the way, all of the level headed fans that write in and offer support, that in itself is the best therapy I’ve received yet. I have considered retirement because of a broken heart, but also in my heart, I cannot let my fans down. As the days go by I realize that I’m at war with some things inside of myself, that I don’t mind sharing with you: I always, truly always, no matter if it was my own dreams just coming to the surface, if we, just the four of us, were to sit in a room together, we’d have been laughing, crying, and laughing again. The weight of the world would be lifted off of our shoulder as we hugged each other. Play together again? I have a suspicion that our fans would demand some type of reunion. My god I thought of that so many times and because what our fans wanted, they usually got. It may have taken a little longer, but think about how long it took the original Black Sabbath to play together again!?
Then in one night early December, 2004, an event changed the entire year and our entire lives into one of the cruelest sort. Some mentally disturbed individual …crushed the dream. He took one of the most talented, extroverted people ever to grace this earth. I’m crushed for the loss of my friend that I loved, for Vince his brother, for Jerry his father, for Rita his life companion, for all of his good friends, for every music fan that was inspired and loved his playing; especially those who were lost or were injured that night we lost Darrell. None of what I have said will ever bring him back, and it hurts so bad. I add very humbly in hope that no one else out there ever has to go through something like this; Keep your loved ones close.
Yours Truly, I can take no more at this time-
Philip H Anselmo