WHY ARE THOSE KIDS HEADBANGING ON THE NAILBOMB RECORD??

June 1995, Max and I were holed up at a hotel near the hospital I was to give birth to Igor at. Igor was my 7th child and I was sure he would come out like a speeding rocket, so we booked a hotel and waited…and waited…and waited. After his hair and fingernails were customized, he decided it was okay to make his entrance! It was a grueling, all day affair. When I was finally near delivery, guess what? He was too big. A 9 pounder!!! After 3 hours of attempting delivery the doctor came in for a C-section. This must have kicked Igor in the butt, as he promptly decided it was time.

I remember after he was born, I asked the nurse if I could stay an extra night. She sternly looked at me and said “We aren’t a hotel!” Ok, I could take a hint. Grab the baby and get out!

We headed straight to a place that WAS a hotel, and checked in with our brood. I needed a break from housework and band work! We piled the kids in and ordered room service. Max was goofing around taking photos and doing some work on the Nailbomb release he and Alex had put together. Proud to Commit Commercial Suicide was just as much an infant as Igor was.

From the other room, all I could hear was Jonathon Davis shouting “Are you ready?????” WTF? Max was up to something! He showed me the polaroids of Richie, Jason and Zyon raging and told me it would be the band photo for the record. Of course I thought he was kidding! Alex stopped by to see his new brother-in -law, and loved the cameos. He said…”I want to be Zyon!” We left it at that!

Class dismissed……

HOW MAX "LOST HIS GEAR"... OR HOW WE ENDED UP WITH THE SEPULTURA BACKDROPS...

1996, what a chaotic year!   Yes, we ended up returning to our roots, but it was more like Chaos AD.  As you know, my Students, Max and I were feeling things were being cut against the grain during the recording of Chaos.  Here it was, December 16, 1996... the final day of my contract, I was completing my agreement with Sepultura, had buried my son and counted the days.  Brixton was sold out, the record was booming and RECOUPED!  But for Max and me, things were in a tunnel, and we couldn't see the exit.

The riot erupted after the show was over.  I went in a room with the 3 guys, my "friends" and was handed  a letter saying they weren't working with me any more.  I was offered to manage Max, stay together with Sepultura, and keep things merry....but another wife would take my job and manage the other 3.  I stayed quiet.  What did I need another manager for?  The band that when I met, I bought shoes for, got gear, taught to be an international force, had a new $2.5 million dollar contract, were headlining Bog Day Out and booked far into the future....I needed another manager?  Wrong, I didn't.  And guess what?  I never offered to renew the contract anyway.  You see, Students, managers can manage 100 bands, but often times, bands have one shot.  That's it.

After the show's load out (that's gear taken to the truck, after a show, for all you NEWBIES..that's someone new on a tour), the tour manager told me the cargo company would deliver the gear early midday, in Phoenix.  All good, we would all meet and figure out what was going on.  A giant riot was next and it followed us all the way to the airport... but that's another blog...

When we arrived at the jam pad, surprise, surprise!!!!  The gear had been dropped off early and whisked away.  Max's lonely rack and gear he had in Europe sat shivering, next to a well worn couch...  Gone was his ramp, his cases, even a song he wrote for Sepultura... everything.  Gone.  He was left with no band, no band name, no contract, and a skeleton for gear...  It was him and me and the children..... but.... we had  no hope, no fear.  We had each other.  And faith.  Max didn't need any of those material things because he was a true artist.  I realized my favorite calling is developing bands from nothing.  This made us stronger and closer.  Soulfly was born from the ashes.

A couple years ago, noting the pile of gear getting out of control in the jam pad, Richie climbed above the ceiling of the bathroom to move Roy's Pearl kit.  What the hell was he walking on?  Piles of cloth?  He threw them down to us and we spread them in the parking lot.  Low and behold!  The Beneath the Remains back drop, the Chaos scrim, and the Roots Indian laid before us, in all their splendor.  Sometimes you have to wait for karma to come back.  Be lucky you lived long enough to see it, that's what the Teacher always says.

Class dismissed...

THE BLOG WITH NO NAME...

My Students, I have had my blog for a couple years now.  I have opened our family, our lives and sometimes a lesson for you.  Thanks to the many of you (30,000- 45,0000 a month!!) who encourage me to continue.  Yes, there are some big secrets I have not let out; somethings so dark and mystical, I am not sure what some of you will say.  There is also another reason for my blog... to teach my children their history, what they did and why they are who they are.  They were all young when their Pops was in Sepultura, when their brother was alive, when Igor didn't have diabetes stalking him. They would never know. Mom was in a concentration camp and sat in on the Nurnberg Trials. What I would give to read a couple of her blogs!! Dana has lived through the songs of Max, through the people who knew him. Because of you, Dana Lives!!

When I leave on tour, for example this run, which is nearly 7 weeks duration, I choose all the photos for the upcoming blogs, so all I have to do is type the text on tour.  I found some cool photos of Dana, that I wanted to share with you. Dana had a rich life due to the fact he loved 3 things... music, family and the sweet Mary Jane.  He had simple tastes, and never asked for things that cost a lot of money or even for money. He lived around his family; he was saturated in music and he puffed the magic dragon.  From a very early age, I knew he was different than most kids. He always hung out with me.  Now, teenagers don't really do this, but besides being a loving son, he knew that I would have music or musicians within an arm's throw, every second of our waking hour.

When Paul Booth came to our house to give Max his eyeballs, Dana leapt at the opportunity to get a shrunken head on his forearm. A short time later, Kevin Estrada came to Phoenix for a photo shoot and Dana got some individual shots done. I am sure many of you have seen our family photo. It is the only official family photo we ever took. When I looked at it a couple weeks ago, I realized I only had 7 children for one year. It's a fact.

Brazil was Dana's beloved vacation destination. He loved his Grandmother, his Uncle Iggor was his hero and his love of reptiles and birds exploded there. Andreas was his puffing partner, and the world was a dream. Andreas and Patricia's wedding gave our family the opportunity to travel throughout Brazil on a 3 week vacation. It was the trip of a lifetime! We visited the Amazon and stayed in huts with no electricity. We visited Rio, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Manaus and ended in Sao Paulo at one of the fanciest weddings I have ever been to this very day!

Dana had his video camera out always, like in the Nailbomb days. His videos are all safe in a box, waiting for Zyon to discover them one far off day. Can you imagine after he left us, I found his will?? He made it when he was 20 and glued it in his journal. The top said "In case I die in a wreck or something.." Premonition.

Class dismissed.....

YES, JASON NEWSTED, I WILL STEAL THE STUDIO TIME AND GIVE IT TO THE FLOTS...

In 1984, I was rocking in my own club, The Bootleggers, in Phoenix, Arizona.  The scene was popping and many of our bands were starting to make a mark in Metal.  Sacred Reich, Times Square, Flotsam and Jetsam, Tuff, so many garage bands!

We were setting up a Battle of the Bands and I had to find a worthy prize.  I went to a studio in Paradise Valley, called Chaton Recording.  The owner, Ed Ravenscroft, was really cool and showed me around.  His house circled a giant, indoor pool, with a branch off to the studio.  His wife was there, recording children's books.  Her voice was British and steamy!   It was addicting, listening to her recite her words.

Ed offered to give me 8 hours of recording and mix time.  It was better than nothing!  I was very excited to tell the bands about it!!

We had many entries and the contest went on, for about a month.  All the different bands each weekend, voting some off, keeping other bands, it was very emotional.

In the end, a glam rock band called Times Square, won the recording session.   I personally preferred The Flots, but the crowd spoke.  Timez Square...

About a month or two later, Jason Newsted came in to chill and asked me to go out back.  Our car was parked in the alley behind the club and we had many "meetings" in that old Lincoln!  What was up now?

Jason told me that Timez Square was fighting internally and were dividing up the recording time into one hour blocks.  I was horrified ah the thought of Ed having to shuffle 5 bands through what was supposed to be a generous and appreciated prize.  People would be arguing..  This couldn't happen!

Jason reminded me that they were the next runner up and I promised him I would get the time back and they could have it.  The deal was struck.

I called Timez Square, who admitted they had trouble internally.  They brought the certificate back and I presented it to Jason.  Thus was born Metal Shock!!  The mighty Flots recorded and mixed the demo in 8 hours!  They were so tight!  They were a great band, with a great leader!  Flots till Death!

After the city stole our club, our son Jason, was born.  Named Jason Christopher after a friend......

Class dismissed......