Tribute To Dimebag

[Matt White]

Hella Kewl SnowHo!!!

[Matt White]

New DIME Korg ad, GUITAR WORLD Feb 2005:

[Matt White]

New DIME ad for Krank Amps, GUITAR WORLD Feb 2005:

[Matt White]

From GuitarOne.com:

Smokin' Riffer

A Private Lesson with Dimebag Darrell

by Dale Turner


For almost two years, Pantera was put on the skids while frontman Phil Anselmo dabbled in side projects Down and Superjoint Ritual. By late 2003 an accumulation of public badmouthing had finally taken its toll: Pantera was put to rest, and Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul's long-rumored new band, Damageplan, was officially declared.

With their recent debut, New Found Power (Elektra), the Abbott brothers not only prove that the pulse of Pantera lives on but also promise to dish out sounds Pantera fans have been denied for years. With Dimebag pulling no punches, an appearance by Slipknot's Corey Taylor (on a track called "Fuck You!"), some guest leads by Zakk Wylde, and Pat Lachman's "powerhouse" pipes, New Found Power provides many mosh-worthy moments.

"I never wanted to quit doing Pantera in the first place," Dime divulges. "I'm just carrying on with what I do best, what I love most, and what the fans miss. When you've been beat down to the ground, and you really reach deep inside and pull from down low, that's when your best shit comes out. I'm real happy with this new stuff." We caught up with Dime to discuss Damageplan and get the lowdown on the licks that have made him a metal legend.

You and Vinnie formed the musical centerpiece of Pantera. Did the creative process change for New Found Power?
Well, when you got two trademark dudes like me and Vinnie playing, you're gonna hear some of the thunder from Pantera. But you gotta keep moving into the future, growing, keeping it fresh. There are plenty of things on this record that would have never been allowed on a Pantera record. [With Pantera] a lot of good shit got thrown in the trash—chucked, canned on the spot. There's none of that now. I forgot how good it feels to create something new. It's all painting the canvas—you start off with nothing but white, throw down on it, and the end result is the final payoff.

Let's examine some of the exotic sounds that pop up in your leads?
That's the "Dime scale"—blues pentatonic/chromatic [laughs]. That's my whole thing, in a nutshell. I'm not a big "scale dude"; I don't know all that shit inside and out. I like that frightening feeling of saying, "I'm stepping out there now—hope this motherfucker lands cool!"

Eddie Van Halen uses a similar frame of reference—hybrid scale types that are hard to explain in terms of basic music theory. I think those weird hybrid scales come together because of what's most comfortable for each player. For me, every finger on my left hand is equal in its own right, but certain combinations work better. My index, middle, and pinky fingers work real good on a long stretch. And my index, middle, and ring fingers seem to be the most comfortable in that little pentatonic or blues scale box.

Can you play some licks using that last finger combination?
Sure. That would go for anything in the standard blues box [Figs. 1–2]. And here's some of the early Dime stuff [Fig. 3]. That first pattern was probably the first lick I ever learned. I started with this old lick [Fig. 4A], then turned into this [Fig. 4B], then to just cookin' it [Fig. 4C]!

I use the index, middle, and ring fingers on "Cowboys from Hell" [Fig. 5]; that's another "Dime hybrid scale." Maybe it's not proper—maybe maybe it's minor, maybe it's major. I call it chromatic, and, fuck it, every note works. Once your fingers start flying, and you can feel the wind coming off your fretboard, you don't go, "That note's wrong!" If it sounds kick-ass, it is kick-ass!

Are there certain runs where you use all four fingers of your left hand?
"Broken" has some of that [Fig. 6]; I do that on quite a few things. Try taking something like this [Fig. 7A], add another note to it [Fig. 7B], then bring more notes in there [Figs. 7C–D]. If you catch yourself playing a lick, and one finger's getting left out, add that finger into the equation and see what it does [Figs. 8–10].

Crazy bends are another aspect of your style. What are some typical ways you push your strings around?
I love grabbing that shit! Take your normal bending, but give it that little extra [Fig. 11]. It makes you hear the fuckin' struggle! It's an emotional thing when you bend it as far as it can go [Fig. 12]. There I tried to "Stevie Ray" it down, vibratoing it as I gradually release the bend.

Another of your trademarks is screaming harmonics with the vibrato bar, like at the end of "Cemetery Gates."
I do those in both the proper whammy bar position and what I call the "back position," where you point the bar toward the tailpiece. It gives you a different kind of control. This one's based on the G string [Fig. 13]—using no pick at all. I'm holding the bar to start with, and I've got my thumb wrapped over the top of the E, A, and D strings, and my little fingers over the B and E strings. My middle finger's on the G string, and I just flick it to make it ring and then drop the bar. While it's down, I touch a harmonic, then let the bar up. You definitely gotta have some kick-ass gain, kick-ass pickups, and your guitar's gotta have good harmonics to really make it happen. You can do it on a pile of shit, but it ain't gonna ring as sweet.

What's your rig consist of these days?
On this new record, I used Randall's "Dimebag" Warhead. I also used Randall Titans and RM4 preamp along with the RG250 power amp. I used my Washburn Dime 3 and Dime Stealth guitars. For all those, I use Seymour Duncan Dimebucker pickups and DR strings. I got the Dime Cry Baby From Hell wah, which is totally cool and adjustable. For a lot of stuff [on the album] I eased off on the amp distortion and used the new Jim Dunlop Dime Distortion. I'm using all sorts of Dunlop stuff, including my Dunlop green picks. But I still use my old MXR Flanger/ Doubler and the Digitech Whammy pedal's a necessity; it's become part of certain songs that wouldn't be the same without it.

[Sarge's Little Helper]

From GuitarOne.com:

Smokin' Riffer

A Private Lesson with Dimebag Darrell

by Dale Turner


For almost two years, Pantera was put on the skids while frontman Phil Anselmo dabbled in side projects Down and Superjoint Ritual. By late 2003 an accumulation of public badmouthing had finally taken its toll: Pantera was put to rest, and Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul's long-rumored new band, Damageplan, was officially declared.

With their recent debut, New Found Power (Elektra), the Abbott brothers not only prove that the pulse of Pantera lives on but also promise to dish out sounds Pantera fans have been denied for years. With Dimebag pulling no punches, an appearance by Slipknot's Corey Taylor (on a track called "Fuck You!"), some guest leads by Zakk Wylde, and Pat Lachman's "powerhouse" pipes, New Found Power provides many mosh-worthy moments.

"I never wanted to quit doing Pantera in the first place," Dime divulges. "I'm just carrying on with what I do best, what I love most, and what the fans miss. When you've been beat down to the ground, and you really reach deep inside and pull from down low, that's when your best shit comes out. I'm real happy with this new stuff." We caught up with Dime to discuss Damageplan and get the lowdown on the licks that have made him a metal legend.

You and Vinnie formed the musical centerpiece of Pantera. Did the creative process change for New Found Power?
Well, when you got two trademark dudes like me and Vinnie playing, you're gonna hear some of the thunder from Pantera. But you gotta keep moving into the future, growing, keeping it fresh. There are plenty of things on this record that would have never been allowed on a Pantera record. [With Pantera] a lot of good shit got thrown in the trash—chucked, canned on the spot. There's none of that now. I forgot how good it feels to create something new. It's all painting the canvas—you start off with nothing but white, throw down on it, and the end result is the final payoff.

Let's examine some of the exotic sounds that pop up in your leads?
That's the "Dime scale"—blues pentatonic/chromatic [laughs]. That's my whole thing, in a nutshell. I'm not a big "scale dude"; I don't know all that shit inside and out. I like that frightening feeling of saying, "I'm stepping out there now—hope this motherfucker lands cool!"

Eddie Van Halen uses a similar frame of reference—hybrid scale types that are hard to explain in terms of basic music theory. I think those weird hybrid scales come together because of what's most comfortable for each player. For me, every finger on my left hand is equal in its own right, but certain combinations work better. My index, middle, and pinky fingers work real good on a long stretch. And my index, middle, and ring fingers seem to be the most comfortable in that little pentatonic or blues scale box.

Can you play some licks using that last finger combination?
Sure. That would go for anything in the standard blues box [Figs. 1–2]. And here's some of the early Dime stuff [Fig. 3]. That first pattern was probably the first lick I ever learned. I started with this old lick [Fig. 4A], then turned into this [Fig. 4B], then to just cookin' it [Fig. 4C]!

I use the index, middle, and ring fingers on "Cowboys from Hell" [Fig. 5]; that's another "Dime hybrid scale." Maybe it's not proper—maybe maybe it's minor, maybe it's major. I call it chromatic, and, fuck it, every note works. Once your fingers start flying, and you can feel the wind coming off your fretboard, you don't go, "That note's wrong!" If it sounds kick-ass, it is kick-ass!

Are there certain runs where you use all four fingers of your left hand?
"Broken" has some of that [Fig. 6]; I do that on quite a few things. Try taking something like this [Fig. 7A], add another note to it [Fig. 7B], then bring more notes in there [Figs. 7C–D]. If you catch yourself playing a lick, and one finger's getting left out, add that finger into the equation and see what it does [Figs. 8–10].

Crazy bends are another aspect of your style. What are some typical ways you push your strings around?
I love grabbing that shit! Take your normal bending, but give it that little extra [Fig. 11]. It makes you hear the fuckin' struggle! It's an emotional thing when you bend it as far as it can go [Fig. 12]. There I tried to "Stevie Ray" it down, vibratoing it as I gradually release the bend.

Another of your trademarks is screaming harmonics with the vibrato bar, like at the end of "Cemetery Gates."
I do those in both the proper whammy bar position and what I call the "back position," where you point the bar toward the tailpiece. It gives you a different kind of control. This one's based on the G string [Fig. 13]—using no pick at all. I'm holding the bar to start with, and I've got my thumb wrapped over the top of the E, A, and D strings, and my little fingers over the B and E strings. My middle finger's on the G string, and I just flick it to make it ring and then drop the bar. While it's down, I touch a harmonic, then let the bar up. You definitely gotta have some kick-ass gain, kick-ass pickups, and your guitar's gotta have good harmonics to really make it happen. You can do it on a pile of shit, but it ain't gonna ring as sweet.

What's your rig consist of these days?
On this new record, I used Randall's "Dimebag" Warhead. I also used Randall Titans and RM4 preamp along with the RG250 power amp. I used my Washburn Dime 3 and Dime Stealth guitars. For all those, I use Seymour Duncan Dimebucker pickups and DR strings. I got the Dime Cry Baby From Hell wah, which is totally cool and adjustable. For a lot of stuff [on the album] I eased off on the amp distortion and used the new Jim Dunlop Dime Distortion. I'm using all sorts of Dunlop stuff, including my Dunlop green picks. But I still use my old MXR Flanger/ Doubler and the Digitech Whammy pedal's a necessity; it's become part of certain songs that wouldn't be the same without it.

Oops. I wasn't paying attention. Tell me again what is going on.

[Matt White]

JIMDUNLAP.COM:

[Matt White]

From GEORGELYNCH.COM:

Thoughts on Dimebag

I remember the first time I met dime was back in the mid 80”s.

Pantera played with Dokken a lot in Texas. There was a chain of hard rock venues called Cardi’s and we would frequently share the stage with Pantera. This was without Phil and they were more of a hair band and Dime wasn’t called “Dime” yet and his playing was more in the VH vein.

I remember him and his band standing right at the front of the stage during our set and rocking out. He was just a skinny kid back then. He went on after us and just tore it up. I knew he was a special player that night. We talked a lot about gear. I remember he really liked the Randall RG-100’s I was using and planned on checking them out.

I’ve run into him a few other times over the years. Lynch Mob did some dates with them in the early 90s and we partied pretty hard. I remember thinking how can he drink this much and still play his ass off like he does.

I saw Dime and Vinnie at the NAMM show last year in Anaheim and they invited my daughter Mariah and I into their limo to listen to their new project, Damageplan. That blew us me away.

I guess there was a lot of bad blood between Phil and the brothers. I wonder if there was any connection between what happened to Dime and that running feud?

Dimebag’s playing was imaginative, soulful and technical. His music was brutal and unrelenting as was the manner in which he died. There’s no use in trying to make sense of the tragedy, just appreciate what he gave us in his life.

Events like this make me long for the good old days when our rock stars just OD’d and slipped away quietly into oblivion.

George Lynch

[Matt White]

From MTVNEWS.COM:

Disturbed Frontman Felt Compelled To Do Benefit For Dimebag's Family
01.05.2005 6:50 PM EST

David Draiman knew situation was dire when he saw Dimebag's possessions up for auction.
Disturbed's David Fraiman
Photo: Warner Bros./Reprise

Within an hour of the shooting at the Alrosa Villa that left "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott and four others dead, Disturbed frontman David Draiman's phone began ringing off the hook. And it didn't stop for almost 24 hours. Right then and there, he knew



"Instead of dwelling on the facts of his death, we're trying to focus on the way he lived." — Disturbed's David Draiman




that something had to be done to pay tribute to his slain friend.

"I started making phone calls the day after I got the news. I knew that something had to be done to honor his memory. But then I was watching TV, and I saw that his family was auctioning off a bunch of his possessions on eBay," Draiman said. "I was like 'Damn, is the situation that dire?' If it had come to that, then I also knew that we had to do something to help his loved ones out."

So Draiman decided to organize a benefit concert for the Dimebag Darrell Memorial Fund, which helps Abbott's family pay funeral expenses. And it wasn't difficult to find acts to fill the bill: Dimebag was a beloved figure in the heavy metal community (see "Ozzy, Dave Mustaine, Jonathan Davis Remember Dimebag").

"We wanted anyone who was close to Dime. And it wasn't a matter of finding the biggest acts we could get. I wanted people who knew him and loved him," Draiman said. "It just turned out that we got some of the biggest acts out there."

Anthrax, Drowning Pool and Soil will join Disturbed onstage February 23 at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom (tickets go on sale Saturday). It promises to be an emotional night, and Draiman wanted the perfect venue, which is why he chose the Aragon. It's a little dark, a little dank and a little dangerous. It's someplace that Dime would've approved of.

"We ended up choosing the Aragon Ballroom in Chicago because that's where I had seen the best Pantera shows," Draiman said. "That's the place that was the stereotypical metal venue. They called it the 'brawlroom.' It's just one big floor, and it's chaos. It's beautiful. And I couldn't think of doing it any other way. We could've brought the show to a bigger building, but it wouldn't have the same vibe."

And the venue won't be the only thing having special significance that night. While most Dimebag tributes have consisted of musicians leaving a shot of liquor onstage in his honor, Draiman promises a more elaborate — though equally touching — memorial.

"There was this story told at the funeral, regarding a guitar [that was made for] Dime, a Washburn that he only played a couple of times, made in the shape of a Crown Royal bottle," Draiman said. "Dime donated it to the Hard Rock in Orlando a few years back. That guitar is going to be flown out to Chicago for the show. And [Disturbed guitarist] Danny [Donegan] is going to play a song with that guitar.

"We're also going to just reminisce about the kind of guy Dime was. There's going to be a video montage, and we'll all do a Pantera and/or Damageplan cover or two," he continued. "It's going to be a night of brotherhood and support. Instead of dwelling on the facts of his death, we're trying to focus on the way he lived."

— James Montgomery

[Matt White]

REVOLVER magazine, MARCH 2005:

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From DEAN guitars:

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From Elektra/Atlantic:

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From WASHBURN & RANDALL:

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From KRANK:

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From PEARL:

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From DUNLAP: