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The Senseless Tragedy of Darrell Abbott
Should Not Turn Heavy Metal Into a Scapegoat

By Scott Baker

  Heavy Metal is once again the bad guy.

A tagged term, following other credential defying idioms such as punk, hippie, or the dreaded rock n roll, heavy metal has made the fool foolish, time and again.

With the murder of four people at a Damageplan concert on Wed., Dec. 8, headlines were quick to notify with the specific that  'there was a shooting at a heavy metal concert in Columbus, OH.'
Before identities, before anyone knew former Pantera guitarist 'Dimebag' Darrell Abbott was the guitarist killed in mention, fingers were already being pointed and heads were shaking no at the aggressive music style pinned into a corner by the backlash effect that certain idiots choose to use for their own corruption at the said event(s).

 Not that there aren't any murders every day outside of this event. But only in the next town, in the neighboring city, in the other state, right? The fact of the matter is, a senseless killing spree by a deranged obsessive fan (or lover, or worker, you get the picture), often gets lumped in with a tag or a term that puts an even darker cloud over what would normally be something such as a pastime, an event, or entertainment for that of the fans enjoying a concert such as that horrible evening.

The latest report as we come to deadline revealed the killer, 25 year old Nathan Gale, was obsessed with Pantera since adolescence, which then led to him to discuss threats to sue them over stolen lyrics as well as his identity. The backlash has led to much discussion regarding the genera of music in general.

"Putting the blame on a certain genre of music for an unfortunate and tragic event is ridiculous," stated Gary Johnson, a music teacher in Essexville. "This is a tired media tactic that goes back to the Rolling Stones at Altamont and before. That makes about as much sense as blaming the sport of basketball for the Pacers/Pistons brawl at the Palace."

 In less than five minutes, Gale killed Erin Halk, 29, a club employee who loaded band equipment; fan Nathan Bray, 23, of nearby Grove City; and band bodyguard Jeff Thompson, 40. Officer James Niggemeyer saved others when he slipped through the back door and shot Gale, putting an end to what could have been much worse.

"I think so many people were affected,"  said Lynn Roberts, DJ at Z93.3 WKQZ in Saginaw. "Just the calls I received on-air were incredible. We ran a few different tributes for those fans. I was, however, really disappointed when I turned on the news Thursday evening to hear Peter Jennings blaming it all on 'the dangers of heavy metal music. What a joke. (There's) Nothing like someone who probably has never even shook his head to an aggressive rhythm, trying to explain what happened. Heavy Metal fans are some of the most loyal music lovers. An incident where someone obviously not mentally sound does not define all of those (music fans) who listen to that genre of music. Because Mark David Chapman shot John Lennon, are we going to talk about the dangers of those who listen to any music from the Beatles?  Dimebag Darrell was an incredible musician and Metal Music wasn't the same once he was there and won't be the same without him."

Being that it was the 24th anniversary of the murder of John Lennon, people still feel the loss of a piece of their lives in both factors, even more so than hearing what they shouldn't be listening to.

"My band Ratchetjaw was set to open for Damageplan on Thursday, December 9th, at the Machine Shop (in Flint)," said Tod Walraven, guitarist from Auburn.  "The event affected me greatly. 'Dime' was pretty much the last guitarist I looked up to enough to try to learn his riffs, solos, and songs. He carried on in the great tradition of (Randy) Rhoads and (Eddie) Van Halen. The whole Metal Community will sorely miss him. (This is) Probably the saddest day in Metal History. God Bless the families, friends and all the innocent people that were harmed that day."

The event might even change how smaller shows are treated in terms of the band and the patronage, underscoring the need for metal detectors and frisking people entering shows.

"I have to admit it makes me think again about some idiot walking into any club and shooting the place up while I'm on stage, which is something that has never entered my mind in my 21 years of playing in venues across the state of Michigan," added John Cashman, drummer for Radio Therapy.  "I guess the threat has always been there, but we just needed to see in on CNN to make it seem real."

Photo of Dimebag Darrell by kay mcentee

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