By Metal Dave The photo above looks calm enough, but it’s surrounded by some crazy before/after stories. Thanks to my pal Jason McMaster and his longstanding friendship with mighty metal singer John Bush (above), I’ve had awesome access to Anthrax (and Armored Saint) over the years. Obviously, great access = great stories, but not everything…
By Metal Dave It’s no secret the Ramones are 2Fast2Die’s all-time favorite band so it’s always a thrill to rub black-leather elbows with New York’s pioneering punks. Three of the original members are no longer with us (RIP), but the Ramones’ legacy forever remains too tough to die (I told you it’s no secret). The…
By Metal Dave I like to call this picture “My Bodyguard,” because the girl towering over me is clearly tough enough to take care of business. Her name? Corey Parks, who at the time of this photo was the fire-breathing, cleavage-heaving, girl-on-girl makeout bass player in a dainty little feel-good, white trash-n-whiskey combo called, ahem, Nashville Pussy (one…
By Metal Dave Before Southpark Meadows was home to Bed, Bath & Beyond, it was a sprawling cow pasture that hosted some of the biggest rock concerts in Austin. How big? During the 1990s, I was at Southpark Meadows for Metallica with Fight, Suicidal Tendencies and Candlebox; Van Halen with Skid Row; Pearl Jam with…
By Metal Dave Buckcherry’s 1999 debut album turned me into an instant lifelong fan. More accurately, it was a 1998 advance promo CD with a plain white insert that served as my introduction. In those early days, the band name was broken into two words before morphing into one in order to dispel confusion that singer…
By Metal Dave In the spirit of Halloween, I take you back to 1988 when I lived in an apartment I lovingly dubbed “The Bomb Shelter” (if you were there, you understand). By no accident, The Bomb Shelter was located directly behind Sneaker’s, which was THE hard rock/heavy metal/meat market club in San Antonio at…
Until I got married and later became a father, the most memorable day of my life was Oct. 22, 1992. On that date, I finally met the Ramones. All I had to do was show up, case the joint and keep a sharp eye out for four leather jackets.
By Metal Dave Shot in 2007 on the back steps of Casino El Camino (Sixth Street, Austin, TX.), this picture frames a hazy portrait of me and my pal, Frank Pugliese. Me? I’m a geek. Frank? He’s the iconic punk singer for San Antonio garage-blasters, the immortal Sons of Hercules. The Sons and I go back…
By Metal Dave It’s tough to get noticed in a world of rock’n’roll loudmouths, but calling your band the Toilet Boys will surely arch some eyebrows. Firm believers that no publicity is bad publicity (the name says it all, right?), New York’s Toilet Boys were a sleazy blend of transvestite vampire bikers meets KISS and…
By Metal Dave This pic was taken in 1991 at the Cameo Theater in San Antonio during the same week that my lifelong buddy Al and I saw Infectious Grooves at the same venue. We always laugh about this week, because we were toast from all the late nights, gigs and various other “shenanigans.” For…
So much time had lapsed that I had no idea why this letter from San Francisco was waiting for me. I opened it, unfolded it and began reading a hand-written, thank-you from Cliff’s Mom. Whoa! That’s heavy!
By Metal Dave I love rock-n-roll, but as a teenager I also had a huge crush on Joan Jett (although, now that I think about it, I also had a poster of Nancy Wilson in my school locker). Dressed in skintight leather and sporting some of the coolest hair ever, Joan was knock-down sexy in…