Spending early Sunday afternoon with Accept. I was hooked on this band the day I heard "Fast As A Shark" back in he day. Hollllllleeeeeeee shit! Been a fan ever since.
Accept - Blast From The Past Trailer (2002)
My mid-afternoon viewing pleasure. How can anyone not be a fan of Y&T? Dave Meniketti is such an underrated musician. The guy smokes on guitar (Rock, Blues - you name it) and capable of singing effortlessly (even to this day in 2017). Plus the late, great Phil Kennemore on bass. I'll never be able to watch this one enough. Definitely one of my favorite concert videos. And this CD/DVD was hard to come by as well. Was a thorn in my side for many years.
Y&T - I Believe In You [Live: One Hot Night 2006]
Ended my afternoon with a look back at Black Sabbath's 2013 tour since today's Tony Iommi's birthday. Such a great show, even though Bill Ward wasn't onboard. So many fantastic songs here (aside from the classics). This was a nice little find. I had already pre-ordered the Blu-ray, then found out afterwards there was a CD/Blu-ray version released on the Vertigo label in the UK. Had to have it. The Deluxe Box set included three more songs, interviews and behind-the-scenes. Might have to get that at some point. And I'm looking forward to the package they'll be releasing later this year in regards to their final show (filmed a few weeks ago on Feb 4th). This time I'm waiting before I pre-order anything.
Well, as goes many of my blogs, we have another milestone to celebrate. And this one is a doozie.
Like many others who have laid claim that KISS Destroyer is the album that got them into the band or Hard Rock music (or both); I was most certainly the latter. KISS changed my life forever with this one.
KISS released their landmark album Destroyer40 years ago today (March 15, 1976). Of course there's always going to be a number of people who say it's their least favorite or the worst album etc. But the majority will side with this one being their masterpiece; the uber-KISS album to own if you're going to own one KISS album. When people ask me my favorite KISS album I tell them it's a toss up between Destroyer and KISS Alive. And I've read the horror stories about Alive and Alive II not being so very "live". But I digress because I love both of those albums and big part of my youth (or my "yute" as actor Joe Pesci would say). And I could care less what was recorded in a studio and what was passed off as an actual 'live' performance. Just take my allowance, please!
Jumping in the way-back machine here, Destroyer is one of the first pieces of vinyl I purchased with my own money (the first one being The Monkees Greatest Hits). Yes, haha...funny, but I loved that album. AND I was eight years old. But I redeemed myself for missing the KISS boat earlier and the third album I bought was KISS Alive. Anyway, moving on......
In the Spring of '76 our family moved to Livingston, NJ. Not the epicenter of rock 'n roll, but as long as I could get New York City radio stations on my radio, then I was happy. I was into whatever was on the radio (light Rock - Chicago, Fleetwood Mac etc.).
Not one piece of furniture was moved into the house yet and my sister was already beating up on a neighborhood boy a few houses up the street from us. The guy she was pouncing on (Brian) was Don's brother; Don being the kid who turned me onto Destroyer, thus turning me into a KISS/Rock music fanatic. And I mean fanatic.
After Brian's Mom came to the house to not welcome us to the neighborhood, but to find out why her son was forced to eat dirt and getting beat upon (aka; ass handed to him), she had brought her son Don along. He was my age and awkward like me, so we actually bonded immediately. Not to say his brother didn't give me shit every time he saw me at his house. The paybacks to my sister beating his ass was by way of a punch to my back, arms, charlie-horse, headlock, ultimate wedgies.....it was never ending. But Don and I figured out how to keep his brother out of the room while we were in there.
Play-by-play of how it all went down for me:
Don: Have you heard the new song "Detroit Rock City"?
Me: Huh?
Don: You know, the song by KISS.
Me: Who?
Don: <blank stare>
Me: <blinking>
Don: You've never heard of KISS?
Me: I've heard of kissing.
Don: NO! The band KISS. With the makeup and costumes!
Me: <still blinking> <staring off and getting ready to make a run for it>
Don then places a vinyl record onto this massive stereo system, drops the needle and I hear the opening sequence of "Detroit Rock City" which is a radio announcer talking about a head-on collision car accident. Then a person is heard jingling keys, opening a car door, starting the engine, revving up the engine, jamming his radio, speeding away while singing KISS' own tune "Rock N Roll All Night". The car revs off.......
The guitar kicks in.....Da na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na....drums BOOM!! BOOM! More guitar: Da na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na......drums BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM! Then Paul sings:
"I feel uptight on a Saturday night Nine o' clock, the radio's the only light I hear my song and it pulls me through Comes on strong, tells me what I got to do I got to Get up Everybody's gonna move their feet Get down Everybody's gonna leave their seat You gotta lose your mind in Detroit Rock City...."
My eyes widened. I sat their motionless and felt a little out of body experience going on at that moment. I was deep in thought, "What......what....what is this? How come I never heard it before today? Why have I never heard of KISS?" Once I snapped out of it, I asked, no I told Don to lift the needle and play that song again. But this time we sat on the bed and sang along to the lyrics printed on the album sleeve. I sat there staring at the KISS logo too. It was just coolest logo I ever saw in my short life.
When I heard the car accident portion of the song I didn't put two and two together and thought the accident was another car. Forgive my ignorance, I was a pup. And it took me a few weeks to figure out the song was about a guy who died on his way to a rock concert (hence the foreshadowing of the song's intro). But the parts of the song that hooked me was the guitar (no doubt about it - fell in love with the guitar because of this one song) and the chorus "Get Up/Everybody's gonna move their feet/Get down/Everybody's gonna leave their seat".
After listening/singing along to "Detroit Rock City" ten times or so, we started to read about the KISS Army and we had to join. Don went off to find a few bucks, a couple envelopes and stamps. When he left the room, I went over to the record player and saw the Destroyer album cover for the first time. And the first time I ever set eyes on the band. The makeup....the costumes.....I kinda freaked out. Maybe even pee'd a little. I was looking at a devil band (no fault of my own, I was brought up in a Catholic family). I couldn't look away from the cover. I never saw anything like it.
When Don came back to the room he saw me standing there with the album cover in my hand with my mouth wide open. He asked me what was wrong. Said I looked like I saw a ghost. I was speechless. Between "Detroit Rock City" and the album cover, I didn't know what hit me. Mind you, at this point I hadn't listened to any other song on Destroyer except for DRC. When Don asked me if I wanted to listen to the rest of the album I was like, "THERE'S MORE????"
We listened to the rest of the album and...............the rest is KISStory. I was hooked from that point on. Once I bought my own copy of Destroyer I listened to it for months on end. I learned all the lyrics, air guitars, and air drums. The broom and tennis racket were my new instruments, the basement was my stage and the mirror, my audience. My parents had a phenomenal stereo in the basement and it was louder than my little suitcase style record player. So when Mom and Dad were at work I would blast KISS on the stereo. If they only knew back then. Yeah, my ass would've been sore and grounded for months. Good thing I learned some ninja skills early on.
From there I moved on to Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple (yes, late to those too...I know), then Van Halen in '77. I was the only ten year old in my class at the time who even knew who Van Halen was, but that's for another blog.
"Now we're Anthrax and we take no shit And we don't care for writing hits The sound you hear is what we like I'll steal your pop-tarts like I stole your.....Socks!"
Trying to catch up on my blog since last week and failing miserably. First world problems, right?
Saw Anthrax last week (Wed Feb 10th Albuquerque, NM) then left for Vegas the day after to attend the Black Sabbath show. Then returned home on Mon 15th, back into work-mode annnnnd it's Friday.
So, Anthrax. I've never been let down by a performance by these guys over the years. Show sold-out as well. Been a loyal fan since their 1984 debut Fistful of Metal was released on Megaforce Records (when it was still an indie label). I made damn sure to get that baby signed.
The Meet & Greet (M&G).
I took part in the M&G prior to the concert and brought A LOT of items with me to get signed by the guys. Kinda felt bad for guitarist Jon Donais (ex-Shadows Fall) since everything I brought was Anthrax/S.O.D. related (all prior to him joining the band in 2013). I had memory relapse and forgot to grab my Shadows Falls CDs and the Anthrax live CD/Blu-ray Chile On Hell he appears on. He signed a group photo we were given, but other than that, bupkis. He makes his studio album debut with the band on the upcoming release For All Kings (release date: Fri Feb 26th). I've had a copy for over a month and it's pretty amazing. I've read a few online reviews already and some people are slamming it. But if you give it a proper listen all the way through without any distractions, you'll enjoy the hell out of it.
Back to the M&G. Things kicked off about an hour before the doors opened. Stood in a small group with others by the front doors. The people at the front of the long line were asking why we didn't go to the back of their line. Ugh, always some drama...Metal show or not. Bonus part of an M&G is not only meeting the band and hanging out with them for a bit, but also early entry. My patience run low nowadays listening to these kids complain about having to stand in line and wait to get in. They have no idea. But I digress. There was a 16 yr old guy who was in line for VIP and befriended me by saying how much he loved my Ace Frehley shirt (a total KISS fan and who eats, sleeps, and shits 80s Metal). He was so mad about being born later in life and missing the 80s Metal shows. So, I passed the time talking with him about the many (huge understatement) shows I attended back in the 80s. His mind couldn't take much more. He had to sit down for a while (true story). He made me feel pretty old...haha. But it was fun talking with him and fielding a ton of questions.
There was about 20 of us doing the M&G. We all had albums, CDs, cassettes (yup), guitars, photos and all that jazz to have autographed. We were given a VIP laminate, a deck of Anthrax For All Kings playing cards (signed by the band), turntable mat (Evil Twin single cover), photo of band, etc.
The band came out to the lobby where we were waiting and the M&G ensued. Charlie was first in line, then Joey, Frankie, Jon and Scott. It was great to converse with these guys, especially Joey and Frankie. I try very hard not to fanboy out during these things. It was easier when I wrote for 'zines and interviewed bands because I could do that for an hour. I told Joey I last met him when his solo band Belladonna opened for Motörhead in 1996. He had a good laugh with that one and went on to tell me about how great that tour was opening for Lemmy. I always have so much to say and so little time. Photo opp with the band (we used our own phones)....three photos and done.
Quick shot of the beanie, t-shirt and a few CDs I had signed. I brought three albums and nine CDs with me not expecting all of them to get signed. Especially since some M&Gs specifically indicate to bring no more than two items. No limit indicated for this one, so I figured it was fair game to bring a 'few' items (included Spreading The Disease[30th Anniversary Edition], Among The Living, Armed and Dangerous, Fistful Of Metal and S.O.D. - Speak English Or Die [30th Anniversary Edition].
The show.
This bad boy was sold-out (kind of rare for 'burque), which made the show even sweeter since this would've been a day off for them (currently on tour opening for Lamb of God). Yes, opening for LoG. Again, I digress. Best part about getting an Anthrax headline show...longer set. WIN! Anyway, the 'Thrax delivered a non-stop barrage of Thrash Metal from start to finish. Riff upon riff. The pit action on the floor was a throwback to the old-school days. I was up in the balcony snapping photos and making sure I didn't get caught in a mosh (I did plenty of that shit when I was much younger. Thanks but no thanks). The band was feeding off the energy being thrown back at them from the audience and the band played heavier with every song. Again, I've never been disappointed with any of their concerts (something I told Frankie earlier and he responded, "Man, I swear, you won't be disappointed by his one either."). The man didn't lie.
Setlist:
Hymn 2 (tape intro)
A.I.R.
Lone Justice
Madhouse
Caught in a Mosh
Got the Time
Evil Twin (new song)
Fight 'Em 'Til You Can't
Breathing Lightning (new song)
Medusa
March of the S.O.D.
In the End
Antisocial
Encore:
I'm the Man --> total surprise!!
Indians
Among the Living
Another one for the books.
I'll always support this band, purchase albums and some swag. I'm big on supporting the bands I love. Be sure to pick up their new one For All Kings on Fri Feb 26th. If you're like me and prefer the deluxe editions, then purchase the 2-CD UK version since it includes four live songs not included on the US version.
"I am the walkin' dude I can see all the world Twist your minds with fear I'm the man with power Among the living Follow me or die...."
Today marks the 24th anniversary of the passing of Armored Saint guitarist Dave Prichard. He was diagnosed with leukemia and on Feb 28, 1990, he passed away from the disease at the early age of 26.
He had made a substantial mark in the music world spanning one EP and four albums [Armored Saint EP (1983), March of the Saint (1984), Delirious Nomad (1985), Raising Fear (1987), Saints Will Conquer – LIVE (1988)].
But Dave lived on even after his untimely death.
1991’s ‘Symbol Of Salvation’ included a demo of Dave’s solo on the song “Tainted Past”. In 2001, Metal Blade Records released the 2-CD set ‘Nod to the Old School’ which included unreleased tracks, rarities, demos and live material. And in 2003, ‘Symbol of Salvation’ was re-issued/remastered as a 3-disc collection which included all of Dave’s original 1989 4-track demos of every song from that album (except “Half Drawn Bridge”). 2004 saw the DVD re-release of their 1987 VHS “A Trip Thru Red Times” which included video’s (pro and bootleg).
I had the privilege of seeing Dave with the Saint opening for Metallica in ’85 and again in ’86 opening for Saxon. He always had that ‘it’ factor and it would’ve been only a matter of time before he became more well-known.
Enjoy this live Saint concert – Hell On Wheels Tour filmed in Minneapolis, MN (Sept 15, 1987)
We miss ya Dave!
“Give in/Give and take/Taken by mistake/From now on I call the shots/Long before I die, long before I die” – taken from 1986’s ‘Delirious Nomad’…opening track “Long Before I Die”.
