What's New

December 23 , 2004

It is with a heavy heart that I announce the passing of Feles Natas on December 8, 2004. Feles was my beloved cat of 13 years, who was the star of Melz Crazy Cathouse, and who had his own website since 1995, The Feles Page. Though not as old as a cat could be, Feles had long expended his 9 lives filling mine with joy and friendship. He was a unique and beauitful cat. The cathouse will never be the same. Feles is survived by Desmond and Molly, who are still sniffing around the house wondering where their Fee has gone.

This happened the same week that some psychopath gunned down Dimebag Darrell of Damageplan/Pantera, a senseless, needless tragedy and a huge loss of the metal community. Like the stone whose name he once bore, Dime's influence on metal guitar as we know it will be long-enduring, though the all-too-mortal flesh and blood is gone.

And that same week, my grandmother passed away. Wow, I hope 2005 brings better tidings because December was sure blue and my life was beginning to read like a country song (minus a pickup truck). :(

In the Shameless Promotion(TM) Category, I will be doing another fill-in gig with all-female AC/DC tribute Whole Lotta Rosies at Club Vodka in Hollywood on February 24. Visit the Rosies site at www.therosiesrock.com or moshking.com for the skinny!

Hangar 18 has been on a hiatus for the holidays, but expect H18 gigs to be announced soon!

October 26, 2004

Wow Part II Two updates in one week. I think the world is going to end. I put up pictures from my recent jaunt to Magic Mountain for their annual Fright Fest. Check 'em out in the gallery!

October 25 , 2004

Wow! I'm very excited about Hangar 18's upcoming gig at The Gig in Hollywood on November 18th. It seems that the show has added two bands featuring former members of Megadeth - OHM with Chris Poland and F5 with David Ellefson. Chris and David have agreed to jam a song with us that night -- what a treat to have the real Megadeth jamming with the tribute! As excited about the gig at The Gig as I am, I'm nervous as hell to be playing in front of David Ellefson, though - ack!

The Gig is a tiny venue, so if you're planning to show up, make sure you come EARLY.

And if you live in the Bay Area, come out to Rooster's Roadhouse in Alameda on 10/30; Hangar 18 is having a metal Halloween party out there with a Metallica Tribute (Brewtallica), Iron Maiden tribute (Children of the Damned), and a tribute to KISS (Destroyer). The band will be clad in proper Halloween attire!

Although he won't be attending the show, Desmond has decided to, yet again, dress up like a black cat for Halloween. Molly is dressing up like a penguin. Feles has declared that it shames his natural beauty to don a costume and will not be dressing up this year.

October 11 , 2004

More Pictures ! I've added pix from my recent jaunt to Knott's Scary Farm! Take a peek and don't get spooked!

October 6 , 2004

Wow, I'm getting worse! I haven't updated the site since April? GAWD, that's lame. So much fun has happened over the past five or six months that I haven't had much of a chance to document the adventures. I've started tho - check out my pix from my recent trip to Atlanta, GA for ProgPower V!

April 22 , 2004

MetalJam 2004: Wow, the jam was a sweeping success, raising almost three times what was raised last year! I had the honor of joining my fellow jammers on the stage for a MetalJam rendition of "Bark at the Moon", "Seek and Destroy" and Dream Theatre's "Overture 1928".

The Wrathchild reunion was well-received, with a few Wrathchild t-shirts from our previous life turning up in the crowd! We had a lot of fun performing together again and pulling out a rather different set of tunes ("Flash of the Blade", "the Wickerman", "Where Eagles Dare"), although our set was unfortunately cut short due to time constraints. Photos will be available on the MetalJam website too (and probably my site, too, when I find some time to update my aging photo galleries!)

Ohio, Here I Come!: The Brave Words and Bloody Knuckles 6-Pack fest is just over a month away, and I'm quite eagerly looking forward to it! Flotsam and Jetsam was just added to the bill!

February 24, 2004

Updates! Hey, yo! Finally re-added and majorly updated my CD collection to the newly designed page! Check it out!

MetalJam 2004: Get in on some great charity action on April 10th at Hogue Barmichael's in Newport Beach as MetalJam returns! This year, the Jam benefits the Cure Autism Now! Foundation. Sign up to jam on a song or two, find out how to make a donation, or just grab the skinny on the event at the MetalJam website.

And remember that reunion show I alluded to in my last post...

Wrathchild Reunion: Wrathchild - A Unique Tribute to Iron Maiden will be reconvening for a special performance at the MetalJam 2004 event! Steve Heiress rides again, alongside her partner in crime, Jenny "Bruce Chickinson" Warren (ex-The Iron Maidens), plus James "Dave Moore-y" Moore (Creeping Death), John "Virtual Adrian" Leighton (Prophecy), and Dave Scott Chedrick McBrain (Dreams of Damnation/Hangar 18). We'll be playing Maiden tunes spanning the band's career, including tunes I've never played before with either Wrathchild or The Iron Maidens. Don't miss this event. More info can be found on the Wrathchild webpage. Up the Irons, Baby!

February 12, 2004

Welcome to 2004! Thus far, the year has been uneventful (that's a good thing, no? sometimes?), but as the year starts to move forward, things are slowly starting to happen. First of all, band life:

What's Up with Crescent Shield?: the band appeared, did a show, launched a website, and then disappeared. And I am often asked "when is Crescent Shield playing??" The band is still alive and kicking, although we're currently on a break as guitarist Dan Delucie expects the arrival of his first baby (any day now, I hear). Then we'll be off to Bill Metoyer's studio to record a proper album. In the mean time, tracks from the demo that I'm not on are still available for download on the Crescent Shield website.

How's Hangar 18? : Hangar 18 had a quiet end-of-year, and has opened the year fairly low-key in January at TC's. As we move into March, Hangar 18 will return to Paladino's on 2/28, then up to the Bay Area (3/19 & 20) for two shows, and finally, back to TC's (3/27) for more local metal. We're incorporating some new tunes into the mix, so if you haven't checked the band out lately, come on down! Of course, all the information that you'll ever want or need can be found on the Hangar 18 website!

A Surprise Reunion? In 2004 you can expect to see a reunion of one of previous/broken-up bands. Sorry, Paul, it's not Raven Mad :( Can't give any other hints now, but keep an eyeball on this page for more info!

As for other things... tickets are bought and paid for the 2004 Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles fest in Cleveland, OH. Hope to party with you in the city of metal. I'm looking forward to seeing Primal Fear!! :)

As for the felines, Molly is still a small cat, but growing quite obese. She loves her catfood warm and soft, and has taken to eating kitty barf. Pretty gross. Isn't that the opposite of bulemic? Feles, on the other hand, is growing old and quite skinny. He's still playful as ever, however, and still pretty much owns the roost.

News from 2003 ...