As we wind down 2012, (which was a great year) we also start looking forward to 2013. We had some new doors open for us this year, we got to cover the 2012 Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar tour, we got to cover the great Skeletonwitch show, we reconfigured Music U-Night into Rock U-Night, and I started this Blog. Bleach Bangs Radio interviewed some great bands, and we saw the CD releases of local NM bands Beard, and Rusty Tramp. I also am going to be attending the dedication of the West Mesa Performing Arts Center to Randy Castillo this December. I also made a lot of new friends and met and heard a lot of new bands. I love you all.
2013 promises to start off on an equally great note. We have been fortunate enough to have obtained media access tot he 2013 NAMM show in Anaheim California in January. We plan on interviewing various instrument/gear companies and bring it to you first hand. We plan on continuing to bring you new bands, new interviews, new CD reviews, and new show reviews. If there is anything you want to see let us know. We are fan driven and here for you, the music lovers.
yours in Rock
the Hellion!
GONNA TAKE A FEW DAYS OFF TO ENJOY FRIENDS AND FAMILY!!!! I AM THANKFUL FOR ALL OF YOU WHO READ THIS BLOG, THOSE WHO MAKE THE MUSIC THAT WE LOVE, AND THOSE OF YOU WHO MAKE IT ALL HAPPEN! BACK ON FRIDAY, KEEP IT ROCKIN’!
the Hellion
I have a good friend who truly knows the meaning of family, Ish Garcia. This man sacrifices for his family by working out of the country to earn a living in this hard economic time. When he does get the opportunity to spend time at home he makes the best of it by giving back by sharing his passion for music with his family. I truly believe in the healing power of music as does he, Ish uses the power of music to help his autistic son “Matt The Cat”. I got Ish to take some of his rare time to answer a few questions:
1. When did you first fall in love with music?
Ish: I have always loved music, since a baby , really. In love, maybe after I heard and bought a Hendrix album Axis Bold As Love, after that ,I realized I couldn’t go a day without some kind of music.
2. What is it about music that touches you?
Ish: Music just gets inside,- lyrics, rhythm, it just depends on the song.
3. What do you do to support you favorite bands?
Ish: Support ?- Buy the Album-whole album , not just the one you like on the radio, buy the album that’s why they made an album,I’m pretty sure the song are strung together for a reason. Also, buy a shirt, usually bands I like /love have cool merch for sale. Buy a ticket for the show and see ’em live!!! Share that shit with all your friends. Hope fully the small bands you like will make it, like Guns N’ Roses or Alice in Chains, Pantera , they all started doing small gigs and then bang, I would like to witness it first hand.
4. Tell us about some of your favorite bands and your passion for music.
Ish: Jimi Hendrix – Guitar god great lyrics, His cover songs are better than the originals themselves-in my opinion Black Sabbath-Ozzy and Dio for me undecided…,c’mon its Sabbath, need I say more Ozzy-its like crack for my ears Zeppelin, to me its real rock n roll to me a blue print of what rock and roll should sound like. Alice in chains-Lyrics, the sound of Layne and Jerry together , chunky riffs.What is grunge ? Black Label Society-Everything I love all rolled into one-Doom, chunky riffs-blues, melody To me music is magical or spiritual and powerful, its in the air ,it’s a time machine. even when you cant see it, you can feel it, it can make you feel strong when your weak, inspire you, calm you down. I believe music is a super natural living thing, a gift to us. I couldn’t see a world without it. My wife is the one who really introduced me to Alice in Chains, and I’m so grateful. And as far as BLS, I gotta hear at least one song a day, and I have to blow out my ear drums with it.
5. Tell us a little about “Matt The Cat”
Ish: We took him to his first big( not local) concert and meet n greet. in 07 velvet revolver he loved slash from rock band. and then liked guns and roses, they were all cool to him, he got Duffs sweat band at the end of the show. I notice a big difference with Matt when we go to Black Label shows in particular, he’s dressed like everyone, so he feels “in” and true BL family show him respect. He loves the music , he gets exited when we tell him Black Labels in town. He can act like himself without being judged. Taking him to the meet n greets and concerts and seeing him be happy is priceless.
Thanks Ish, you have my utmost respect and love.
the Hellion
FARMINGTON NM- After a grueling 4 hour drive (and a few u-turns) we found the venue (thanks to Jonene for driving!). We found a sweet parking spot and walked around the building and WOW!!! There was quite a line waiting to get in to see the AWESOME Jack Russell’s Great White!
We ultimately got into the venue (we were on the guest list thanks to Jack and his management Valerie Ince) and were pleasantly surprised. The venue was surprisingly well put together. The sound system was pumping out some killer rock n’ roll, lights were well placed and had good effect, the stage was set in a good place with views from most places in the bar.
The place continued to fill up and the mood was ripe for a great rock n’ roll show. The crowd was patient and enjoyed the music as they waited for the show to begin.
DIRTNAP
http://www.facebook.com/Hellazonamusicgroup
To be completely honest I had never heard of Dirtnap prior tot his show. WOW! They took the stage hard and got the crowd fired up and ready. Reminiscent of the sleaze bands from the glory days of the Hollywood Strip, Dirtnap brought it. People gravitated quickly to the stage and fed their energy to the band. Dirtnap is: Vocals- John Dame, Guitar- Darren Mc Kee, Drums- Troy Yahraes, Bass- Joe Nutt. The band threw Twinkies to the crowd (due to the demise of Hostess, and I got it from a very reliable source “Jonene” that the band bought a copious amount of them) who literally “ate them up”. The bands dirty, sleazy, nasty rock n’ roll brought a huge smile to my face and took me back tot he glory days of Rock!
Each band member brought to the stage their own unique character. I found this to be extremely cool as they put a great effort into bringing the crowd an entertaining show. Let’s check them out:
John Dame
John is the mastermind of the chaotic circus of Dirtnap. The Ringleader of this band of hooligans if you will, he leads the crowd into the madness.
Joe Nutt
Joe handles the bottom end and has that devil-may-care mischievous air about him. I bet if you hang out with him some sort of shenanigans would ensue.
Darren McKee
Darren is the guy who gets lost in his music, we all know the guy (in fact, I am one) who when music is on there is no talking to him.
Troy Yahraes
Troy is well…the drummer and we ALL know about drummers right? Awesome guy and keeps the beat to a T!
Thanks to Dirtnap for delivering an AWESOME set and getting out and supporting a class act like Jack Russell’s Great White!
http://www.facebook.com/jack.russell.1232?ref=ts&fref=ts
I was personally excited to see Jack and crew in action again. EVERY time I have seen Jack perform in the past he has been spot on. This show was no exception. The band was tight, the crowd was right, and the songs were KILLER! I know Jack is a stickler for perfection and it shows.
Jack Russell pre-show
Jack has assembled a stellar bunch of players to support his iconic vocals. I know this discussion has come up on many levels (even here on the blog) about band members revolving in and out of bands but in my humble opinion, Jack Russell is THE embodiment of GREAT WHITE! I mean no disrespect to other performers who have made an admirable attempt at covering Jacks’ vocal work but there is only ONE Jack Russell. Let’s get into the band:
Jack Russell – lead vocals, percussion
Matthew Johnson – rhythm guitar, keyboards, backing vocals
Derrick Pontier – drums, percussion
Robby Lochner – lead guitar, backing vocals
Dario Seixas- bass guitar, backing vocals
The hits came played and sang to perfection, plus we were treated to selections from Jack’s solo releases, and a special song sung by Matthew Johnson. This song led to a surreal moment in the evening for me. during the song Jack was sitting on the stage near me and became totally lost in the song. Closing his eyes and mouthing the words and clapping his hands in rhythm. I reached for my camera and stopped, I decided that I wanted to keep this moment for myself and hold it special in my heart. Sorry all, it was that magical to me. The crowd cheered on as song after song hit them. Jack has put himself in great company with this group of musicians. Matthew and Robby held down the guitar duties to perfection, no sour notes, clean, nice tone, and they played off of each other flawlessly. Dario owned every inch of the stage with both his bass playing and his showmanship, complimenting Jack by engaging the crowd and drawing them even deeper into the performance a great add to the crew. Derrick kept everyone in time and held the beat like clockwork, a solid drummer backing a solid outfit. The evening culminated with “Once Bitten, Twice Shy” which brought the crowd to the brink of insanity with joy. There were some scary moments when I thought the crowd was going to end up on the the stage but it all worked out. A great show indeed!
Jack is Back indeed! I HIGHLY recommend getting out and seeing the show if they come anywhere near you. Thanks to Dirtnap, Jack Russel and crew for an outstanding night of glorious Rock N’ Roll!!!
the Hellion
http://www.facebook.com/wornstar
Wornstar clothing had me hooked by the get go. My good friend Adz Redpath from the band Darksite brought them to my attention. He wore their clothing onstage and swore by it.
ADZ REDPATH
As I looked into getting some Wornstar clothing, I found that I knew several people who also wore their clothes and in turn, I helped others to find out about them and start wearing them as well.
Kurt Arft John Exall Martin Tully the Hellion
Mark Voykin
These guys are just a few of the people I know that wear Wornstar Clothing. I find their products to be of the highest quality and their service world class. The attention to detail is amazing and the support of their customers is awe inspiring. Let’s learn a little about Wornstar from their site:
Wornstar Rock n’ Roll Clothing for Rock Stars and Fans
Originally conceived in 2002 by Sylvia and Stephen Jensen, Wornstar Clothing was launched. Wornstar grew out of Sylvia’s 15 years of experience styling rock star photo shoots for her husband Stephen’s entertainment design and photography studio, F3 Studios. Beginning as altered clothing for photo shoots and album covers, Sylvia’s work quickly gained the attention of Stephen’s Rock Star clients and led to creating custom pieces for them to wear in front of the camera and on stage. Stephen had designed merchandise graphics for his rock star clients and several companies and even some other apparel companies and decided that starting a line with his wife was a natural extension of F3 Studios.
Stephen is responsible for designing guitars and graphics for Dimebag Darrell, Dave Mustaine, Shaun Glass, Corey Beaulieu, and more; album graphics for Dirge Within, Soil, A.M. Conspiracy and many others as well as created amazing artwork and ads for music industry manufacturers. Stephen is also known for his amazing photography and you can learn more about him on his website blog at
This proven combination made the foundation of what Wornstar Clothing is all about.
The Wornstar Clothing line is a combination of exclusive graphic clothing and customized recycled clothing. Our goal is to make clothing for the rock n roll life style that is cool to look at and comfortable to wear. Every piece on this website can be purchased as is or customized to fit your taste and needs, or we can even design something from scratch specifically for you. Wornstar will be constantly updated, changing and evolving, so check back often.
Please visit our onlinestore for wear ready custom clothing or use the contact form to submit a request. http://www.Wornstar.com/
• Image Consulting
• Styling & Wardrobe Coordination
• Custom Clothing featuring designs by
Stephen Jensen, F3 Studios
• Custom Recycled Clothing
• Set Design
• Photography, Hair and Make-up, Design and Printing coordination
Great people, great clothing, great company. Whether you are a performer, or just want to step up your game, you cannot go wrong with Wornstar clothing. Do yourself a favor and check them out and get noticed!
the Hellion
Well my blog has completely exceeded my dreams. over 15,000 views in over 100 countries! Thank you all! I am very humbled by the global response. One of my goals was to make this a blog for the people and to have the readers interact with it. Therefore, I am asking my readers for their input to the blog. If you have ideas, a piece you wrote (CD reviews, show reviews, or just a subject you are passionate about) please send it to me and I will review it for inclusion on the blogsite. You can reach me at janaya64@msn.com or message me here. Be a part of the Hellion rocks!!!
the Hellion
PHILIP ANSELMO and WARBEAST Confirm January 8, 2012 Release Date for New Split Album ‘War of the Gargantuas’ – Marking the Release of Philip Anselmo’s First Solo Work
WARBEAST Set to Release New Full Length Album ‘Destroy’ in Early 2013
Legendary Pantera, Superjoint Ritual and DOWN vocalist PHILIP ANSELMO and Housecore Records thrashers WARBEASTrecently announced that they will be releasing a new split album entitled War of the Gargantuas. The split now has an official release date of January 8, 2012 and will include two songs from each artist. This album serves as the first release of any solo work by PHILIP ANSELMO during the span of his nearly 30-year legacy. Also, the two WARBEAST tracks on the split feature former bassist Alan Bovee before his amicable departure from the band. Since then, Dre Karst has joined on bass.
“This split is a glimpse into the future of both my solo project and ultimate thrash metallers WARBEAST. The title of the split is War of The Gargantuas and it is fitting on many levels because of our combined love for the 60’s Japanese film of the same name, the power of our combined musical output(s) and our humorous affection that plays out within each of our “Gargantuan” personalities,” states PHILIP ANSELMO. “Both WARBEAST and myself have full length LP’s that will be released shortly after this is released, but this split is unique musically. It is a time capsule; a loud pause ‘til we both release our full length products. Enjoy the destruction of music!”
“These two songs we have on War of the Gargantuas were the next level after Krush The Enemy,” states WARBEAST guitarist Scott Shelby. “They’ve been a staple in our set list for the last two years. These songs are a pure demonstration of our unique Texas thrash metal style.”
WARBEAST also recently announced the upcoming release of their second full-length album, Destroy. The album is scheduled to be released in early 2013 via Housecore Records and is currently in the mastering stages. Stay tuned for more information on Destroy coming very soon.
War of the Gargantua LINE UP:
PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS are:
Philip H. Anselmo – Vocals
Marzi Montazeri – Guitars
Bennett Bartley – Bass
Jose Manuel Gonzales – Drums
WARBEAST are:
Bruce Corbitt – Vocals
Scott Shelby – Lead Guitar
Joe Gonzalez – Drums
Bobby Tillotson Jr. – Lead Guitar
Alan Bovee – Bass
—
WARBEAST is currently annihilating some European tour dates with DOWN. See below for all current tour dates.
WARBEAST headline dates in Germany:
11/6 – Siegen, Germany @ Vortex
11/7 – München Germany @ Backstage
11/8 – Vienna, Austria @ Arena
We’re back with another round of bands for your earholes!!!
1. HOUR OF PENANCE
http://www.facebook.com/hourofpenance
Giulio Moschini – Guitars / Backing Vocals, Silvano Leone – Bass / Backing vocals, James Payne – Drums, and Paolo Pieri – Vocals / Guitars make up this band from Italy. Forged in the dark shadows of “The Holy Capital”, this most unholy of quartets have steadily been making a name for themselves as one of the most intense, talented and impressive, both in the studio & live onstage, modern death metal bands around. These tyrannical troubadours of brutality have so far spread their plague of destruction across the breadth of the European continent from pulverizing festivals in Portugal and Spain in the West through laying waste to Germany, the Netherlands & central Europe to besieging the Czech Republic in the East.
2. THEART
http://www.facebook.com/followtheart
Azaria – Vocals and Guitar, Kara Jayne – Vocals and Bass, Jak – Guitar, and Jordan – Drums. It’s Rock N Roll but it’s Glam. Dynamic and Eclectic. Songs about Love, Lust, Life & all other four letter words. Raw and dirty music to touch your primal soul.
3. MADLIFE
http://www.facebook.com/Madlifemusic
Angry Phill- Vocals, Isaiah- Guitar, and Kyle- Drums MADLIFE is advancing through 2012 with three major announcements. Their newest extolled single, “To Live and Die In Hollywood” debuted at #8 new adds on Media-base Active Rock Radio, quickly gaining momentum the second week climbing to #6. Secondly, they announced their endorsement deal with Schecter Guitars. Lastly, while gearing up for international touring, the highly anticipated 4th album, “21st Century Megalomaniac is the next chapter in MADLIFE’s chronicles. Its unmistakable headway of innovative musical tonality irrefutably blends with the angry lyrical sonnets.
4. BLOODY HAMMERS
http://www.facebook.com/BloodyHammers
Vocals, Bass: Anders Manga, Organ: Devallia, Guitar: Zoltan, and Drums: Curse. Bloody Hammers’ full length debut ‘Bloody Hammers’ is an explosion of heavy sound and infectious melodies. Propelled by singer Anders Manga’s captivatingly melodic vocals, ‘Bloody Hammers’ is a psych/hard rock/horror fan’s dream come true—a strong display of dooming riffs, crooning to soaring vocals and driving grooves. ‘Bloody Hammers’ is an addictive album with a retro edge that appeals to both the Nick Cave and the Black Sabbath sides of the brain. This is an absolute must-have for fans of the southern USA metal and dark hard rock scenes.”
5. CHASSIS
http://www.facebook.com/chassisofficial
Michał “Misiek” Gabryelczyk – vocal, Mateusz “Matrix” Rybicki – guitar, Maciej “Koniu” Kończak – guitar, Piotr “Piooro” Piórkowski – bass, and Karol Skrzyński – drums CHASSIS is a rock band based in Gdansk, Poland. Their dynamic and energetic songs are based on solid rocking riffs, tight, expressive rhythm section and vast harmonic landscapes. In combination with melodic and mighty vocal lines, Chassis brings a perfect blend of styles for wide audience.
the Hellion
the Hellion Rocks 