News From the Pit

By Eddy Metal

"Every dog has his day"

I am soooo slammed lately, it is not funny. Being in two bands is a chore, I tell you. Most people can't keep one band going with the bad economy, marriage, kids, work, drug/alcohol addictions, nagging girlfriends, let alone having two bands! I've never been in two serious bands at one time before. It's a lot of work, but I am loving it. I have to be honest with you peeps, I've been really frustrated with the scene the last few years, but now both bands have doing a bit better lately! And the scene is slowly re – energizing itself once again. I guess it's true what they say, "Every dog has his day."

We jam foru times a week, and the best part is that I get to play commercial type rock (that women dig) and also the down-and-dirty metal stuff that gets the blood pumping. Hell. yeah. The best o' both worlds! But don't worry, I'm keeping up with all the other stuff I do for the scene and trying to hook you bands up the best I can. Remember though; I cannot print what I do not know (I'm not a seer!) so be sure to email me all your info/news/showdates so I can properly give them the exposure they deserve. I do all this work for you people so we can have a better scene and that our original music can be heard and noticed by people who wouldn't ordinarily check out our stuff. I'm fargin trying, so give me a helping hand and get me some good info to use! Eddymetal1@aol.com

Aside from jamming I've been busy planning and booking The Rock For Kosair VII Benefit, which is coming up on Friday November 18 at Phoenix Hill Tavern. Everyone knows about my Annual Benefit for Kosair Children's Hospital Charities. Three stages of music! Over 16 bands! We take the money raised at the door and go to buy new toys to take to Kosair! So far we have taken about thirty thousand dollars worth of toys to the kids for Christmas, when the Charity needs it the most! I want you to know that without you bands, this wouldn't have been possible. You guys have been awesome in the support of this great event/cause, and this year is looking great so far!!! Be ready for one killer show, and of course, we will be having the guitar giveaways this year as well, so you will want to get there early to get a free guitar drawing with paid admission while they last! There will be a limited number of free guitar drawing tickets.

Please help me get word out about the Rock for Kosair Benefit. Kosair Children's Hospital have helped our town so much (I hear stories all the time), I think it's time we paid them back at the time of year they need it most. Maybe you can take up a collection at work, or donate money.

I'll be setting up a Rock For Kosair bank account for such a purpose. Anyway you can help, contact me at Eddymetal1@aol.com

I recently went to the fair to see Black Stone Cherry, Adelitas Way and others, and boy, was that show a total piece of crap. It wasn't the bands in question, it was the sound system that day. That was the worse outdoor sound I've ever heard there! It was unbearable. People were leaving because of it. Even my non-musician friends who know nothing of PA systems noticed. My friend Mudd at 93.1 the Fox came onstage to bring on the bands and he sounded low as hell volume-wise and it was soooo distorted you could barely understand a word he and Shannon "The Dude" were saying. I felt bad for them.

They didn't deserve that BS after all the help they had been for the event. Fargin uncool.

The sound guys running the show were idiots. Even a non–soundman like myself knows to turn down the friggin GAIN until it clears up! Then boost the volume! And the music? OMG.

Sounded like listening to a jam box inside a thick cardboard box, cranked to the limit where it sounds muddy and distorted. Thaaaaaanks.

I was psyched to see Black Stone Cherry again after such a long while. Those guys are awesome!

I got there during the last three songs of their set and it sounded terrible. The band was great as always! No complaints there at all, but that PA sound was atrocious.

The drums were overpowering, you could hardly hear any guitars and the bass subs were cranked to the point of rumbling. Hey, Fair Execs! Please do us all a favor and get another company to run sound outdoors next year! Because these dudes were clowns.

About six songs of BSC and Adelitas Way were all me and my friends could take of that PA System, so we ventured to the Budweiser Tent. It's a shame because I'm sure all the bands were good.

I've been to more concerts than anyone in Louisville I am thinking and I am a bit of a sound snob. I know a good venue/PA system when I hear it, and that was the worst sound there – ever!

The Metal Grapevine

All That Remains and Hatebreed Coming:

Yup, you heard me! Promoter Terry Harper booked us another barnburner of a show. On Thursday. December 8 at Expo 5, these wicked bands will be letting loose upon Louisville. I always liked both of these bands and will be looking forward to checking out some of their new music. It's been far too long since I've seen either of these bands. It's really great that we are able to see such shows here in town. Many towns do not get such a luxury, but thank God, we have a promoter here who is all about some metal. Pray that God takes good care of Terry Harper, for if anything ever happened to him, we would be up chit creek without a paddle! I'm sure Terry will give you peeps some free tickets for the giveaway, so be on the lookout for the giveaways to this awesome show in the November Issue.

Local Bands: I'm sure Terry will book some of us locals for this bill, so be prepared. you metal bands, you might get the call to open.

Rock For Kosair 7:

Okay, it's time for one of the best Louevil music showcases and benefits that Louisville has to offer. It's Rock For Kosair VII at Phoenix Hill Tavern on Friday November 18. Proceeds from this show will go to buy toys for the kids at Kosair Children's Hospital and Kosair Charities for Christmas. You've been waiting for the lineup and here it is. This is a monster lineup! It may be the best RFK yet. Bands playing are: Recourse To Reason (featuring former members of Days Of The New), Elephant Room, Centerfold, The Louisville Crashers, (the return of Lexington asskickers) SuperUnknown, Signal The Revolution, Trust Divided, The Zoo Kings, Some Kind Of Saint, Krosjoint, Lucid Grey, Shatterstone, Popkiss Chainsaw and 16 Bones. We will have guitar giveaways as usual! That's just another reason to come up and support the cause. Several people from the scene will be helping me run the event: Jeanette Lively, Bizkit, Tim Hicks, Angel Hall, Frank Karaglanis, Allen Ashbaugh, and more – .so thanks to all those people for taking the time to help out the kids for Christmas. It shows you have a good heart for donating your valuable time.

DIO Disciples (Former Dio Members/Friends) To Play Lexington W/ Superunknown:

I told you a few months ago about that club in Lexington called Buster's Billiards where I went to see Cinderella. Well, I might be attending another show there! This time it's DIO Disciples, the band tribute to Ronnie James Dio, featuring some friends/former members of the infamous Ronnie James DIO band. The list of members is impressive, indeed. They include vocalist Tim "Ripper" Owens (Judas Priest, Iced Earth) and Toby Jepson; Dio guitarist Craig Goldy; bassist Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot, Ozzy); keyboardist Scott Warren and drummer Simon Wright. It may not be Ronnie, but these guys certainly have the goods to make for one helluva show for us fans of the great master himself. You will be able to hear all the classics like "Heaven And Hell," "Rainbow In The Dark," "The Last In Line," "Holy Diver" and all the other Dio songs you love. Tim "Ripper" Owens, who took over vocal duties for Judas Priest when Halford left, is one wicked singer and I'll probably go just to see him sing some Dio. The show at Buster's is October 4 and the place is pretty cool, so hop in your car and take a road trip for one night. You won't regret it. Lexington rock band SuperUnknown (who will be on my Rock For Kosair show on November 18 at PHT) will be opening for DIO Disciples. They are an amazing band, so be early to see these guys! They will blow you away. I don't book out of town bands much these days, but I could not resist booking these guys for RFK7. They are thaaaat good!

Ronnie James Dio's widow and manager Wendy Dio commented: "There will never be another Ronnie, but we want to keep his music alive and we hope you will support the band and become one of the DIO DISCIPLES."

Wendy Dio also recently revealed that Rob Halford (Judas Priest), and Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Black Country Communion), and Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters, Nirvana), and Lemmy Kimister (Motörhead), and Alice Cooper, Sebastian Bach (Skid Row) and Chris Jericho (Fozzy) are among the artists who will appear on a forthcoming tribute album to Ronnie. Grohl will do the Black Sabbath hit "Mob Rules" and Halford will take on "Long Live Rock 'N' Roll." Cooper already has a song in mind, going back to the ELF days, according to Wendy.

Also, Rainbow In The Dark: The Autobiography Of Ronnie James Dio, the memoir of the heavy metal master, will be published in the spring of 2012 via MTV Books.

R.I.P Ronnie!!!

The No-Kill Benefit Killed!

Musician Dave Moody had a great idea and made it happen. The Benefit Concert he put on to save the region's animals was a success! They had probably 600 to 800 people or so at the Hill on a Sunday! I think they raised about $7000. Hopefully the money will be used to help out a bunch of abused animals that need homes or save some animals in shelters that might be put to sleep eventually. I am an animal lover and would never hurt an animal. I even cried when I was little because my hunter father goaded me into shooting a squirrel.

That was the end of my hunting days. I sucked as a hunter and was no doubt a disappointment to my redneck family of sportsmen who love to shoot furry animals with machine guns.

I was proud to have helped Dave run the show and keep the show on schedule. It definitely was a fun day! I even got to take my dog Roo to the show. He was a friggin rockstar that day! He got more attention than the bands did! Ha.

I got to see some very good bands! It was mostly cover bands, but there were a few originals in there, too! I finally got to see Seize The Day, the classic rock band consisting of veteran local musicians I've jammed with many times. They kick butt and play some great classic stuff. Local original band BoneJinn played a great set, the best I've heard since the original lineup! Keep it up guys! This lineup is the ticket! Scary Uncle was also real good. I love Scary Uncle. They are probably one of my favorite cover bands. Vocalist Chuck Weber is an amazing singer and Adam Young rocks on guitar, too! I've known drummer Danny Murphy since I was like 15 or so. All around good guys and musicians. Another good cover band was a new cover band of older gentlemen called Soundtrip. Good stuff!!! The Bound was an acoustic act that impressed me as well. I finally got to see Recourse To Reason, which is a Louevil super-band featuring a few members of Days Of The New. They sounded real good and pulled a nice crowd, too. The benefit founder Dave Moody is the bass player in the band and the guy always helps out with benefit shows. More than anyone in Louisville, I'm thinking! Recourse To Reason will also be playing the Rock for Kosair show in November! Thanks for helping with all the benefits you have played for/supported Dave! I've seen this guy lose money by not playing his usual cover band gigs, just to help out great benefits like this one. Is that unselfish or what?

Next year should be even better, so look out for The No-Kill Benefit 2012! Hopefully there will be more original bands in the mix next year (hint hint) .

Down (Phil and Pepper) and Louevil Local Acts Review:

Wow, what a night. While I fully admit I was never a big Down fan, but after seeing them last year, I became a fan. Former Pantera Vocalist Phil Anselmo seemed like a changed man. No longer was he all doped up on heroin and he seemed to have his mojo back as he wailed through the set with much enthusiasm. It was the same way at Expo 5 on September 19. The guys sounded even better than last year, in my opinion. It was fargin excellent and I am soooo glad Phil got his act together. I think all that drama with the death of Dime straightened his butt out. Phil even dedicated a song to Dime during the set! On guitar was Peeper Keenan, who looked a bit old, but was wailing bigtime, and former Crowbar guitarist Kirk Windstein rounded out a lethal guitar duo that had the crowd eating out of the palms of their hands. These two had some magic as a team and it showed. Feedback, raunchy blues, Phil's killer (and sober) vocals and sludgy metal riffs with that New Orleans flavor was the specialty of the day at Expo 5. Drummer Jimmy Bower enjoyed a birthday this night and the band stopped the show a few times to let the fans sing "Happy Birthday" to the hard-hitting skinman. Phil seemed to be having a ball playing at Expo 5. We were at sound check before anyone was allowed in and heard the band setting up sound and running through a few songs and Phil was very pleased with Expo 5's sound system and stage. He loved the PA System at Expo and would not shut up about it. With good reason of course, because the sound that night was sick! Both in the main room and in the back room on the second stage! The band played "Hail To The Leaf," "The Path," "Lysergik Funeral Procession," "Pillars Of Eternity," "New Orleans Is A Dying Whore," "Losing All," "Ghosts Of Mississippi," Temptations Wings," "Eyes Of The South" and the last song and encore was "Stone The Crow" and "Bury Me In Smoke." This was a classic stoner groove show from hell. Every aspect you could want in a stoner groove show was here. The musicianship was great. The fans were appreciative and ready for good music.

On a side note; the local bands on the second stage really kicked some butt this night. Stonecutters, Lucid Grey and Krosjoint (my band) had a great show as well and packed the back room. The PA system was thunderous, thanks to excellent soundman Brian Daniels. My band Krosjoint had a blast and we'd like to thank Terry Harper for having us on the bill. It was my first national gig in eight years! What a night!

Judas Priest/Black Label Society/Thin Lizzy in Cinci:

Judas "Fargin" Priest!!! I know several people who are really stoked about seeing maybe the last show Judas Priest will ever play in this part of the world ever again. The farewell tour! I have many stories/memories regarding the Judas Priest shows that I have seen over the years, from the time I was 10 when my dad took me, to the time I went and saw them while I was wearing parachute pants (it was 1984), and to the time they played with Black Sabbath/Slayer on the reunion tour, to last but not least, a few years ago in Cincinnati with Whitesnake. This final show is at US Bank Arena in Cincinnati on Tuesday November 8 with Thin Lizzy and Black Label Society. To see the true metal masters in action one time before they fade into the sunset, do whatever you can to attend this bad-ass show. Rob Halford is the quintessential heavy metal vocalist and is an icon for all generations of metal music. Do NOT miss this farewell concert!!!

LA GUNS Live At Phoenix Hill:

Sweet! I love LA Guns! On October 29 at the Hill, the Eighties bad boys will bring down the house I'm betting. I saw them at Expo 5 a few years ago and, boy, did they rip some chit up! It was wicked. Tracii Guns is one mean guitar player! Are you a fan of guitar playing? Do not miss this guy playing his Les Paul! Tracii kicks butt. His tone is legendary. The band surprised me very much by how good they were. I saw the back in '85 or '86 with AC/DC and they were killer. I've been a fan since! If you love raunchy good time Eighties rock n roll, then do not miss seeing these LA legends do what they do best. Hopefully there will be lots of cute females there!

Lucid Grey, Movin On Up:

The hard rock progressive band Lucid Grey have really impressed me lately, not only with their musical talent, but with also the ability to remain humble and be all-around good dudes. You all know how I complain about how all the bigger bands have these huge pumpkin headed egos? Well, Lucid Grey is right up there with the Louevil big dawgs musically, yet they are still cool as phuck. They don't cancel, ever. Even when a member was sick, they showed up and performed acoustically and fargin rocked just as good! I saw them open for Down at Expo 5 and they were great and had the crowd screaming their heads off. They got hooks, good songs, good vocals, a mean bass sound and some serious groove going on. Their sound is highly structured and is not a simple Nirvana-like endeavor. These guys took their time and wrote some good stuff. Their CD sounds fantastic too.

This band from Louisville/Lexington is dedicated and has the goods to do something special. If you get a chance to see them, make sure you do. You will be glad you did.

Stone Temple Pilots Cancel Iroquois Amphitheater Gig:

The Stone Temple Pilots concert scheduled at The Iroquois Amphitheater on September 14 was canceled. It was too good to be true, and now we have been robbed of our backyard show of the year. Lame! I was really looking forward to seeing them again and checking out the newly renovated Iroquois Amphitheater. I'm pissed.

Hopefully it wasn't drugs again. I thought vocalist Scott Weiland was clean again!?!

The official reason is – .according to the band's representative – lead singer Scott Weiland is suffering from inflamed vocal chords and is regrettably unable to perform. Something sounds rotten in Denmark, if you ask me. Or it could have been slow ticket pre–sales. I heard it wasn't selling so good, but, that is no reason to cancel and disappoint everyone! Most people I know are struggling to get by and would probably have gone at the last minute when they got paid, but now we will never know I guess. [The band canceled the next four shows - Ed.] Whatever. If I was the promoter, I would have been furious!

TOOL Tribute To Play PHT On Oct 15:

Fans of Tool should love that Opiate, the Tool tribute band, will be at Phoenix Hill Tavern on October 15. I've never even heard of a Tool cover band before, so this should be worth checking out if you like Tool. I've never been a fan myself, but I know a lot of people who do like Tool! Make plans to see these guys! I wonder if the singer will also wear the infamous pink panties like Maynard did in concert! I saw Tool at Ozzfest one year and I was like "um, ooookkkkkkk, why is this guy wearing pink panties?"

Cover Band Alert, Point1zero:

I finally got to see the female-fronted cover band Point1zero and they jam! Formed in May 2006, this band took a while to get going and build up momentum, but now they seem to have gotten things straight because they have been playing a lot around town as of late! Vocalist Andi Ramser is a beautiful woman inside and out and has a great voice. Usually women in this position are stuck up and think they are god's gift, but not Andi. She is very humble, sings well and puts on a great show for the fans. The band plays songs by Green Day; No Doubt; Flyleaf; Chevelle; Foo fighters; Pink; Joan Jett; STP and others. The band has been busy playing PHT, Horseshoe Casino and O'Shea's recently and will next be playing at Mr. G's in Middletown on October 8 and then at Phoenix Hill Tavern on November 19.

If you want to hear a good cover band that is just now getting the attention they deserve, check out point1zero at a club near you! Andi and company will rock your world!

Louevil New Blood On The Move:

Change is sometimes a good thing. I know I've been complaining about a lot of stuff this last year, but we have a bunch of new good bands that are bringing the scene back to the way it once was. I see light at the end of the tunnel. Some of these fresh new rocking bands include: Recourse To Reason; Lucid Grey; Centerfold; Signal The Revolution; Krosjoint; Diverbird; Popkiss Chainsaw; Trust Divided and Elephant Room. These bands have something going on musically and you peeps should take notice, as these are new blood warriors that could hopefully change our scene of late, for the better. Seek out these talented rockers!

Bring Metal Back To Headliners!

Okay, this is starting to make me angry. I talked to the owners about the rumor that metal was banned from the newly renovated Headliners Music Hall. I was told that it's not a problem and that Headliners will still have rock/metal shows there. Um, when?

Apparently I was lied to, or appeased, because I haven't seen one darn rock show there in forever, it seems. Don't get me wrong, I love Expo 5 and the people there, but I also miss seeing good rock/metal shows at the place that has featured this music for many, many years. Headliners was like a second home to me and I miss seeing shows there. I also miss playing there. I don't understand the close-minded ness of this decision to ban metal music at the venue. I feel like it is a shot aimed directly at us metal lovers. It's almost impossible to have a local music show there anymore, too, since the prices to use the venue have skyrocketed. I have very fond memories of playing Headliners in a few of my original bands.

I have put many hours into writing and promoting shows there at Headliners. Trying to make it the best that I can with what I do for the newspaper. I don't mind helping clubs and venues here in town one bit, but to be shut off after all that work and support? Years and years worth. Fargin uncool.

To The Delusional Pud Who Said "This":

I recently called out some A–Hole people for doing a very low thing to an innocent man, Allen Ashbaugh, because these people were wrong and told lies to get Allen in trouble. Now this douche is attacking me for standing up to them for attacking Allen. The guy said that all I ever do is talk about myself in my column. I can see where he would think that, but the fact is that I am very active in this music scene, as a writer/columnist, promoter of original music at a premier Louisville nightclub and I also play music myself. So it is kind of hard to not write about my experiences in this music scene. I always looked at it as, and as a writer, it is much more informative and "real" to have the information coming from someone who knows the scene inside and out and not some preppy kid out of college who don't know chit about our scene, or the music they write about.

You have to admit, the other publications in town don't touch the stuff we cover!

Too many times I have seen unqualified idiots writing in local publications. Just because you did well in school and can write halfway decently does not make you knowledgeable about music and our music scene. I like to think that my knowledge from booking bands from 1995 at places like The Toy Tiger and Phoenix Hill, being on the radio for several years as local music DJ and my experience playing original music for so many years would be a great insight and usable contribution to my column and all the stories/articles that come with it. If anything, it gives me an edge! Sorry if you think I'm talking about myself too much. If you don't like my style of writing, it's simple – Don't Fargin Read It! You can always read other publications, but don't expect it to be "real" and don't expect stories on the real Louevil rock/metal scene. Because it's obvious they don't care about it like we do here at LMN.

I play guitar, book shows and know about playing music, so I use that to the best of my ability to keep this column real, truthful and honest, and if you don't like that, sorry about your luck.

Upcoming Shows

The Boondocks

Saturday, October 8 – "Save The Boondocks!" w/ Branded By Hate, Demise Of The King, We Are War, Nothings Wrong, Stone Line Blue, Devil In The Darkness.

Expo 5

Tuesday, October 11 – We Came As Romans w/ Miss May I, Of Mice And Men, Texas In July and Close To Home. 6:30 P.M $15.

Friday, October 14 – Stone Line Blue.

Sunday, October 16 – Circa Survive w/ Maps And Atlases and Sleeper Agent. 6 p.m. $20

Tuesday, October 25 – Big Sean w/ Cyhi Da Prynce and Shawn Chystopher. 8 P.M $21

Friday, October 28 – All Time Low w/ The Ready Set and He Is We. 6:30 p.m. $20

Wednesday, November 9 – Owl City w/ Days Difference. 7:30 p.m. $20

Thursday, December 8 – All That Remains and Hatebreed. 7 p.m. $20

Phoenix Hill Tavern

Friday, October 7 – The Original Rock Showcase Series: Lucid Grey, Diverbird, Overload, Broke And Bleeding and 18 – Xray . Free before 9 p.m.

Saturday, October 15 – Opiate, the Tool Experience. 9 p.m.

Friday, October 21 – Krosjoint, Mixed Magic. Yunghomie . Two Pump Chump. Raze the day. 9pm $10

Friday, October 28 – Helmet w/ The Name Is Stroker. 7 p.m. $15

Saturday, October 29 – LA Guns. 8 p.m.

Monday, October 31 – Mushroomhead, Motograter, Psychostick, Blue Felix, Ventana and Tenafly Viper.

7 p.m. $20

Friday, November 4 – The Original Rock Showcase Series: Burning Babylon, Diverbird, Year Of The Gun, Stone Line blue.

Friday, November 18 – Rock For Kosair VII Benefit for Kosair Children's Hospital. Proceeds go to buying toys for the kids at Kosair Charities. 3 stages. Over 16 bands. Recourse To Reason (featuring former members of Days Of The New), and Elephant Room, Centerfold, Louisville Crashers, (Lexington asskickers) Superunknown, Signal The Revolution, Trust Divided, The Zoo Kings, Some Kind Of Saint, Krosjoint, Lucid Grey, Shatterstone, Popkiss Chainsaw, 16 Bones. $10.

Friday, December 9 – Mayhem w/ Keep Of Kalessin, Hate and Abigail Williams. 7 p.m. $20 – $50

Union Station

Saturday, October 1 – Evil Emily, Broke And Bleeding, Overload and 18 – X – ray.

Friday, October 28 – Overload, Branded By Hate, Granshaw, Led To The Grave and Forced Asphyxiation.

The Vernon Club

Tuesday, October 18 – Rival Schools w/ Balance and Composure and Hostage Calm. 7 p.m. $12.

Wednesday, November 16 – Framing Hanley w/ T.B.A. 7:30 p.m. $10