Dimebag Darrell/Pantera/Damageplan

Because of a pointless murder in an Ohio nightclub, the heavy metal world has lost one of its major influences. “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott, guitarist with the metal band Damageplan, was one of 4 people shot to death in a nightclub in Columbus. (The murderer was killed by police, so we’ll probably never know the motive, or if there even was one.)

Dimebag Darrell was best known for his work with Pantera, who practically defined heavy metal during the 1990s. During the ‘90s, I always thought Metal was divided into 2 categories: Pantera, and everybody else. God, such power and euphoria! Maybe this is the feeling Pentecostal Christians get when they speak in tongues and sway back and forth, etc. (Each to their own; I’ll stick with heavy metal, thank you.) If pure adrenaline could be translated into music, it would sound like “I’m Broken,” “Slaughtered,” “25 Years,” “Use My Third Arm,” “Suicide Note Part II,” “Medicine Man,” “Message In Blood,” to name just a few of their CD tracks.

I’m less in touch with who’s who in the Metal world lately, but of the groups I’ve heard, most of them have a very heavy Pantera influence. Phil Anselmo’s (Pantera’s vocalist) current group Superjoint Ritual has that same adrenalized Pantera sound. KXFX in Santa Rosa, CA has a dynamite metal program (the Mosh Pit) on Fridays, 10 p.m. to midnight. (I moved out of that area 4 months ago; I don’t know if that show is still on the air or not.) I listened to that show a lot, but I never seemed to catch the groups’ names.

Is there something about the date December 8th that brings out the wackos and sick twists? There was a rumor that right before John Lennon was killed, someone was seen camping out for several days near Joni Mitchell’s estate. Since he wasn’t trespassing or violating any laws, he was never arrested or identified, but he vanished a day or two before John Lennon’s murder. Could it be...

If somebody wants to commit a random murder, why does the victim have to be a musician who brought joy and euphoria to millions of listeners? Dimebag Darrell gets murdered and Tom DeLay lives?!?!? What kind of sick world are we living in?