DIMEBAG Tribute Show In New Hampshire Planned For This Friday

Shawn Macomber of the Nashua Telegraph has issued the following report:

For the national press, the shooting death of PANTERA/DAMAGEPLAN guitarist Dimebag Darrell in December at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, was just another sensationalistic news story. But for heavy-metal fans worldwide, the murder was a tragedy.

Before the bodies of Darrell and the four others killed were cold, commentators were pontificating on cable news shows about the dark reputation of heavy metal and "reaping what you sow." It petered out as pundits ran off to chase down their next straw man.

Nobody bothered to stick around and take pictures of the heavy-metal community proving wrong every nasty innuendo thrown its way in the wake of the tragedy. While the holier-than-thou squad has lost interest, benefit shows have cropped up for both the Dimebag Darrell Memorial Fund, which was set up to cover bereavement and medical expenses for the other victims — John "Kat" Brooks, Chris Paluska and Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson, and another special fund over at VH1's Save The Music Foundation.

SpiderBiteRadio.com, in conjunction with LFE Concerts and Sabian Cymbals, will get in on the charitable action with a tribute show Friday, Feb. 25, at Raxx Billiards in Manchester to benefit VH1's Save The Music Foundation. JOSH LOGAN & NOBODY'S BUSINESS, THYK, FEAR OF FLYING, Q, VEGAS TEMPER, PURGE DI and THRUST 13 will all be on hand performing covers of PANTERA and DAMAGEPLAN songs throughout the night.

"We really wanted to come together and put a show on because Dimebag's music touched a lot of people in the area," said Tracey Vail, of the Manchester-based Internet radio station and independent label.

"PANTERA was a staple of the heavy-metal scene, and a lot of that was based on the fact that Dimebag created an entirely new style of guitar playing. Most heavy-metal bands out there today recognize how important PANTERA was."

Melissa Benerakis of Q, a NINE INCH NAILS-style, industrial hard-rock band out of Springfield, Mass., said when the call came from SpiderBiteRadio.com, her band didn't hesitate to jump onboard.

"It was an honor to be asked," Benerakis said. "We rarely do covers, and PANTERA is such a different style of music than us, but we still are very excited to be involved. Dimebag's death was a huge loss. He was an insane guitar player, a fixture of rock 'n' roll, irreplaceable. There are other people out there who can hold their own in a different light, but we'll never see the likes of Dimebag again. This show seemed like a good way to recognize that loss." Read more.