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.......

DANNY TREJO.....FROM DUSK TO DAWN, HE IS A BADASS!!!!

I first met Danny Trejo when I was at the video shoot for the song, Attitude.  He was a recent acquaintance of my son, Dana, and Max and I thought it would be cool to include him in a video for this song.  Max had worked on the lyrics with Dana, and when Dana came up with the idea to use the Gracies and the director...whose name I choose not to remember.....it made sense to include Danny.

As soon as Danny arrived, he approached me and remarked on my green hair.  He was such a gentleman!  We chatted for a bit and then he went to his filming.  You can check out the video here, below, in the blog.

The next time I talked to Danny, my heart was broken.  My soul was wounded.  He called me after Dana died.  I admit, I was surprised that he took time out of his busy schedule to call me.  He said he really liked Dana a lot and expressed his sadness and shock.  Besides being an ultimate badass, he was a human.

When we were at the Archangel recording, Danny happened to be at the North Hollywood restaurant, Norm's, when we popped in to grab some grub.  He still had that fearless aura, still had the gentleman edge.  It's a nice mix...

Class dismissed....

A PICTURE SPEAKS 1000 WORDS

This week marked a milestone for our family.  Dana has now been gone for as long as he was with us.  It's a tough realization for a mother, a brother, a sister, a friend...  But it's a fact, and we must accept it.  It may be a gut punch but it's a fact.

When I had to go to the car he was in, to retrieve evidence and personal items, I certainly had no courage.  My dearest friend, Debbie Abono, went with me.  She had the courage.  She was already a member of the club I had just joined.  Neither of us wanted to join, but there we were, smack dab in the middle.  She helped me control my shock and put the events in perspective.

When this photo came out in the Phoenix New Times, it changed my thinking.  Someone out there had the vision to see something no one else could see.  It made things easier.  It made me see that from every darkest moment, the light always returns.  Dana's death was a catalyst in many ways.  That occurrence picked Max, me and our family out of our past life and threw us into the future in one quick moment.  While we couldn't see through the whirlwind engulfing us at the time, we can see it clearly now.  Our souls are as free as his.  God bless.

Class dismissed.....

WACKEN, 2017....28 YEARS OF BLEEDING METAL!!!

Wacken is always an adventure. It's so dialed in, so perfect! Why, even the shuttle vans have Wacken carpet!

After we parked the bus, and got our credentials, I wandered down to the dressing room area with Iggor, Jason, and Mike. We cruised through the horseshoe and looked for our dressing room. Shock and awe set in when we saw the sign on the door! Typical Wacken, always makes you say WHOA! Mike soon spotted Steve Harris nearby and he and Iggor took off to the sickest photo op of all time!! Jason and I went in the dressing room, admired the Marshall fridge and stole the poster!

Later in the day, after the press was done, the guys all scattered about. I love the giant Trojan deer! I got the set lists and day sheets ready and cruised around a bit. The set time was early and there wasn't much time to waste. We were beginning a marathon of 3 festival shows in 3 countries in 29 hours!

The show was a blazer!!! Many people came to me and remarked on the crowd that came outa nowhere. I smiled...our Tribe. We're big...the biggest in the world. And here was our German Tribe, along with brothers and sisters from many countries..they poured in! You could feel them, and it was the fuel for the band!!

Wacken has it so dialed in, they had a soup machine on stage! In 30 years on the road I have never, ever seen that! Wacken water, Wacken history...it keeps growing!

A big shout out to all the Wacken peops who made our day perfect!! It is so organized and dialed in, and each year gets better!! They were gracious and offered to take us to the airport to hop a private plane to the next stop in Lyoin, France! We opened the Wacken shuttle sliding door, plopped our feet on the Wacken carpet and drank the Wacken water...all in a daze work.

BUNK WARS.....2003

2003 was a busy year for the European Festivals!  So many bands were on tour that I couldn't find a bus!  Every bus I reserved would be snatched away, as soon as I was making the payment!  I finally found one that was used by the Manchester football team....the only problem was...IT HAD NO BUNKS!!  With so many people traveling with us, I had to rent 2 buses.  We were heading to Russia for Christina's wedding in our family church in Volgograd, so we had lots of friends and family with us.

Believe me, everyone was shocked to find two buses with seats picking us up at the airport!!  What started out like Shock and Awe soon turned into a creative construction project that we all called Bunk Wars!  There was a piece of plywood or an air mattress safe in Europe, once our pillaging hands went near!  People claimed property under the tables, under the seats and on top of the tables.  It looked like a gypsy squatter's ville!!

The best feature was the giant coffee area at the back of each bus!  We drank more coffee on that tour than you can imagine!  The only trouble was, the toilet was next to the coffee machine!  The heat would set in and whoa...the smell would overtake us!  One night, as we were all being gassed, Mom came out of the toilet and said "that doesn't stink!  You know what stinks?  Straw in the corner of a train car!"  Touche!  No one complained again!

We were making our way to Russia, visas intact, when I received an urgent message from the Russian government.  Our tour was cancelled  due to their discovery of a terroist attack planned for Volgagrad, the city of the wedding!  With so many Americans traveling, and the city near Chechnya, we made prime targets!

Reboot everything and we switched the wedding to Belgrade, Serbia. It was absolutely a blast!  This tour had many tales...we took my Mom to the concentration she survived; we took her to the location of the forced labor camp she worked in; we took her to the Grand Hotel in Nurnberg where she spent her first free New Years after years of enduring WW2.  We partied with Gypsies and Dad held court at the catering backstages of many festivals. He even asked if he should Pop Slayer in the nose for restricting Max's on stage water tossing! I am ever grateful that Max and the band allowed this to go down.  My parents have left this earth and those experiences are now treasures!

Thanks to Soulfly and our guests for keeping it REAL, for not whining and crybaby-ing!  Bunk Wars.....RIP, Dad, Mom and Leo...you made it righteous!!

Class dismissed.....