PREJUDICE! SHAME OF ALL NATIONS!!!!

We first met Benji in 1995, when Nailbomb played the Dynamo Festival with his band, Dubwar. Dana first told us about them and insisted we watch their set. How fortunate we were!! Little did we realize, that in 2 short years, in 1997, Benji would bring his troupe to perform at the first D-LOW Show. Looking back, after 20 tears of Memorial Shows for Dana, that first one was the show that struck me and stayed with me forever. Maybe it was the first year and our wounds were all fresh? Maybe it was the fact we played outdoors in the club, Boston's, and our friends at that painful time were all there? I am not sure but I remember when Dubwar hit the stage, Benji's voice surely wound its way to the gates of Heaven.

When it was time to record Soufly 1, it was natural that Max would invite Benji to perform. He wrote the immaculate, now relevant track, Prejudice. Benji is a manipulator of vocal patterns, with a range to the horizon and back. His voice is a beacon, drawing you in to him like a lighthouse! And who can forget Benji's lyrical blast on Bumba, Max's anthem for the raw, forgotten people of Brazil?

When it was time to Record Soulfly 1, it was natural that Max would invite Benji to perform. Max and he wrote the immaculate, now relevant track, Prejudice. Benji is a manipulator of vocal patterns, with a range to the horizon and back. His voice is a beacon, drawing you in like a lighthouse! And who can forget Benji's lyrical blast on Quilombo, Max's anthem to the resistor, Zumbi, who lead the slaves away from the clutches of the save plantations to the idyllic north?


We recently had the opportunity ...and honor!...to share the stage in Australia, with Beni and his band of warriors, Skindred. What a show they gave us, bouncing rhythms and THAT VOICE!! THAT PRESENCE!!! Time has passed for us all, and life's events have given us all more knowledge, but some things never change. Things that matter, like friendship and thankfulness and memories...they last through distance, through time and through the ages. "Our roots you can never erase!"


Class dismissed....

FINNISH CLASSICAL METAL BAND....APOCALYPTICA!!!!

I can't recall when I first met Apocalyptica, but I do know I had acts on many Metal shows with them, through the years! In case you aren't familiar with them, they are a Finnish cello band that plays classical music and Metal! They formed in 1993 and all hail from Helsinki, Finland. Some of them graduated from the acclaimed Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and soon after began performing as a Metallica cover cello band! I was quite amazed when I first saw them perform. They are so unique!



Besides being unique musically, they are super cool and fun to hang with! They can party like madmen and still keep their ultra cool aura! It is always rad to get to know rockers who waived the snobby attitude and kept their mojo level with their fans!
In 2006, Max was invited to guest on their LP titled Amplified. He collaborated with them on their track titled Repressed. The recording was done in Berlin, Germany. Check it out sometime!!

Recently Return to Roots shared the stage at Lokerse Festival in Belgium, with Apocalyptica. I was lucky to not have press to handle, so I caught their entire set. I admit, I have a personal fondness for them because they are just too damn cool; they don't fit the Metal mold and hell, let's admit it...they are gentleman. And yes, Girls, they are eye candy for you......did I really say that?



Back in the day when they played Metallica tunes exclusively, they also slid some Sepultura covers in their set. The crowd goes wild singing along and somehow it all just works! I advise all Metalheads to check them out if you hear they are heading your way!

Class dismissed......

SCAVANGER HUNT FOR PRINCESS DI!!!

In 1997, Max had written all year and put it all on a cd. I made a trip to W=Europe...more meetings and after, some leisure time. Princess Diana had been killed two weeks earlier and we were following it on the news. We decided to go to Paris and stay at the same Ritz Carlton she was at, that fateful night.

When we arrived, the hotel reception had a heart attack! Green hair and a dreaded man!!! WTF!! We apparently weren't the usual clientele, but our reservation was there and they honored. The hotel was crawling with investigators and press and us!
Damn, what a swank room they gave us!!! It was amazing to be honest. All golden and peachy and elaborate! We dabbed the high society!



Next, we went to London to see the memorial in Harrods and even got to sign the sympathy book. I must say, this Princess was a G!! Besides being a tremendously charitable and beautiful person, she went after arms' dealers of landmines!! For God's sake! What courage and insight to do this! Going after them had to be as dangerous as trying to avoid stepping on a landmine in a field! If you think about it, what douche invented such carnivorous devices?



I wanted to check out the flower memorial at Kensington Castle. Max always is interested in everything worldly. He humored me and accompanied me on my quest. I was absorbed by the emotion and tributes that were displayed everywhere! It was a fitting bouquet for The People's Princess! I actually rescued a few flowers from the demise of certain death by wilting, and brought them home to some girls I love!

Inspiration is all around us. Sometimes it takes bravery to help others and do the right thing. If people like Princess Di weren't on this Earth, it would turn into a shizzlehole overnight. Stand up! You only have one life and it goes quickly! Make it count.

Class dismissed.......

WE ARE THE ROAD CREW!!!

People flock to band members. They credit and judge them by many hats, not realizing it takes whole slew of dedicated people to make the clock tick. Just as every football team needs it's quarterback, we have Max. In the past, some people didn't realize this fact. They struggled and climbed over bodies to all be the quarterback. They should have been grateful for the completed plays. In the same way, musicians need positive surroundings. They need the stage on point!! These are the umbilical cords of the show!!! The bloodstream that flows to the heart!! The Road Crew...the people who bring life to the show. The people who toil like no others. The people who will take a bullet, or worse, for their team.

I admit, there have been times I put the crew before the band. These people are the first ones in the venue and the last ones out. They guard the treasures on stage, each in their own world. Without their efforts, there would be sound that is shizzle, no structure on stage, no backdrop hanging, in other words...TOTAL DEVASTATION!!

I have been known to have quite a colorful army! Yes, I have seen them perform miracles and collect girlfriends. I have seen them grab crazies and cart them off. I have smelled their sweat and smelled their alcohol breath. I have cleaned their barf! And I have seen them sing happy birthday and comfort children. Without them, we are nothing!

This blog is for all the hard workers, male and female, who I have had the blessing to call my crew. You will go the extra mile and I will be there to thank you and feed you and care for you, too. And sometimes..I will hide the Jack!!

Class dismissed.....

FLYING HIGH IN THE SKY......PRIVATE PLANES 101

We have had some adventures in tiny, private planes. They sometimes don't leave from the giant airports' terminals, so it's much easier to board and clear customs. Checking in 9-18 people with bags and gear is often hours of work, but it's smooth sailing, in the little, welcoming, private airports. The planes don't fly high so you have much less turbulence, which everyone loves! You can bring food and drinks and you don't get arrested for saying the word "bomb."



The first time I was in a small plane, was when I was young child and Dad took me to some crazy backwoods' airshow and put me in a tiny plane with a kamikaze pilot. I survived somehow and went on to my next small plane adventure...heading to the Xavantes' Tribe in Brazil! It was loud in the aircraft and we had a bit of roughness in flight....just enough to make you borderline queasy! I will never forget when I looked out the window and saw the round, grassy roofs of the tribe's homes below us!! The forest seemed to go on forever, rounding over the horizon! It was magnificent!

The next trip was a somber one and happened when we were leaving Donnington in 1996. I won't elaborate, but I will send a loving shout-out to Sharon and Ozzy for this comfort.

KORN was next on the list. Soulfly toured Russian and Belorussian hockey arenas as support, and I admit, we had some deliciously nutty flights to share! Like the time the promoter drank Marc Rizzo's entire flask of moonshine! And let's not forget Marc Rizzo's famous rant! Oh, such tight quarters to laugh in!! This was one of the super nice planes and the two stewardesses were superb fun! We all bonded on this tour...in various ways...right, Kanky?

Recently we had 2 jaunts in the small as a Sharpie airplanes. We flew from Reykjavik, Iceland to Neskaupstaour, Iceland for a festival recently. It was a serene flight with the beauty of Iceland below us, like carpet. Mountains and pastures untouched, slit by icy creeks and slippery waterfalls. It was surreal!

As some of you know, one way or another, Return to Roots played 2 festivals in one day this August. It wasn't easy and the production of making it all happen perfectly took a couple weeks to design. The band was booked at Wacken in the afternoon and 30 miles outside Lyon, France, at midnight. The trouble was, there were no flights available! We eventually had to hire a private plane and flip on over to France. The flight was cool, however we didn't know that once we landed, it was 30 miles of driving through dirt roads on cornfields! The corn stalks were taller than the van we were in and it was quite dark outside. Kind of similar to a Children of theCorn episode! The crew had 17 minutes to set up, line check and start the intro, and they did it! I won't say there was no chaos, but heck, how boring would life be if every day was perfect?

Class dismissed.......