RIP, Dimebag Darrell

[Updates below.]

Associated Press via ABCNews: Former Pantera Guitarist Killed on Stage

A gunman charged onstage at a packed nightclub and opened fire on the band and the crowd, killing top heavy metal guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott and three other people before a police officer shot him to death, authorities and witnesses said.

Columbus police department spokeswoman Sherry Mercurio identified three of the victims of Wednesday's shooting as Abbott, guitarist with the heavy metal rock band Damageplan, and two other men, Nathan Bray and Erin Halk.

Damageplan had just begun their first song at the Alrosa Villa when the man opened fire, first targeting Abbott, shooting him multiple times at point-blank range, a witness said.

Abbott, 38, one of metal's top guitarists, and his brother, Damageplan drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, were original members of Grammy-nominated thrash rock pioneers Pantera, one of the most popular metal bands of the early 1990s.

Copyright 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

I first got into Pantera when, of all places, I read a positive review of their Far Beyond Driven album in USA Today. That, combined with excellent word-of-mouth opinion, convinced me to take the plunge. I immediately got hooked on their style: raw, hard, and uncompromising. In short order I bought their Vulgar Display of Power and Cowboys from Hell and then The Great Southern Trendkill. I haven't kept up with them in a few years and missed many opportunities to see them live.

Dimebag's guitars were amazing. His recorded work was detailed and different and always screamed "metal!"

I'm at a loss for words. The world of music has lost one hell of a good musician. My condolences go out to all the families involved.

UPDATE 12/10/2004 12:50pm
Associated Press via ABCNews: Shooting Suspect Obsessed With Pantera

The man who shot former Pantera guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott and three other men to death at a nightclub was obsessed with the popular heavy metal band and made bizarre accusations against it, a onetime friend said in reports published Friday.

Jeramie Brey said gunman Nathan Gale once showed up at a friend's house saying he wanted to share songs he had written. The pages of lyrics were copied from Pantera, but Gale claimed he had written them, Brey said.

"He was off his rocker," Brey told The Columbus Dispatch. "He said they were his songs, that Pantera stole them from him and that he was going to sue them."

He later told Brey that he planned to sue Pantera for stealing his identity. Brey and friend Dave Johnson said Gale's behavior frightened them and they distanced themselves from him several years ago. But other friends said they never considered Gale capable of violence.

I was talking about this with some of my friends. Some people often dream about making it big in the world and becoming household names. One of the primary reasons why I neer want to be popular in that sense or anything approaching that sense is a case like this. Some guy loses it and tries to hurt or kill you. Family kidnappings, extortion, and the loss of privacy also factor in.

On Wednesday night, the 25-year-old former Marine charged the stage at a show by Abbott's new band, Damageplan, and gunned down four people including Abbott before a policeman fatally shot him.

Police said Friday they still didn't know Gale's motive, and they may never find out. Some witnesses said Gale yelled accusations that the revered guitarist broke up Pantera, but police had not verified those reports.

I take the music I listen to seriously. At work I have gigabytes of MP3s at any given time and unless I'm away or on the phone, something is playing. I rarely listen to the radio in my car because I'd rather pick what I want to hear. If I were to win a large lottery, I'd immediately spend a few thousand bucks on CDs.

But I'd never kill a musician over a decision they made with their music that I opposed. I abandoned Smashing Pumpkins after Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness when Billy Corgan started getting too experimental for my tastes. I dumped Metallica after the Black Album once it became apparent they were not going to sound like they had in the past. Even though I loathe Rage Against the Machine's politics and a lot of what they advocate, I still enjoy their music and their style.

Gale had served with the 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina until November 2003, when he was discharged after less than half of the typical four-year stint, Marine spokeswoman Gunnery Sgt. Kristine Scarber said. She declined to explain the discharge, citing privacy rules.

I haven't see them yet, but I have no doubt there will be commentary on the necessity for stricter gun laws, the corrosive moral impact violent music has on society, and the degenerative effect the military has on soldiers during wartime.

The violence at the smoke-filled Alrosa Villa club came just after the opening notes by Damageplan, the band formed by Abbott and his brother, drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, after they left Pantera. Gale dodged two band members, grabbed Darrell Abbott and shot him at least five times in the head, witnesses and police said.

In less than five minutes, Gale had also killed Erin Halk, 29, a club employee who loaded band equipment; fan Nathan Bray, 23, of nearby Grove City; and band bodyguard Jeff Thompson, 40.

Two other band employees, Chris Paluska and John Brooks, remained in a hospital Friday morning with undisclosed injuries. Paluska was listed in good condition and Brooks in serious condition.

Copyright 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Jesus. Five times in the head. And three people killed who were unrelated to the music aspect of Gale's alleged complaint. How completely senseless.

WFTV: Nightclub Shooter Said Pantera Stole His Lyrics

Police said Officer James Niggemeyer, a five-year veteran of the force, was the first at the scene within two minutes of the first call. He went inside and shot Gale, who at that point had a hostage.

"The community has a hero," said Columbus police Sgt. Brent Mull.

According to police and eyewitnesses, another police officer from out of town who was at the concert got the gunman's attention. A security guard led Niggemeyer to a side entrance by the stage, by the gunman who was holding the hostage.

Niggemeyer, who was about 20 feet away, fired one shot, which contained nine slugs from his 12-gauge shotgun, and shot Gale in the right side of his head and upper body. The shooting happened within seconds, less than one minute after the officer arrived at the scene.

© 2004, WFTV.

Officer Niggemeyer, you did the right thing. As often as I denigrate government, I will never dismiss the good things it and its agents do. Someone had to stop that psycho before he killed again and you stood up to the challenge.

Posted by Drizzten at December 09, 2004 08:31 AM