NAMM 2012

The NAMM Show is definitely one of my favorite events of the year.  For those attending, you can find this Jedi Drummer at Sabian Live then wandering around the Hilton and Mariott on Friday night and somewhere in the convention center on Saturday and Sunday. Also, Nelson and Chris from Cobra Venom are both endorsed by Spector now, so stop by their booth at 5 on Saturday and say hi to your favorite Cobras. 

Looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones.  Hope to see you at the show!

Metal MLK Weekend!

One thing about Southern California that has really impressed me is the diversity of its metal scene.  I've met great people from all over the country and all over the world on my journey here.  The musicians and fans are much more diverse than I expected when I first got here and it has been an AWESOME experience.  On this weekend of celebrating brotherhood, I'm super-excited to be playing in two different parts of LA with two different groups of great metal musicians,  metal music professionals and of course, metal fans! I hope as many of you as possible can join Cliff 'Em All and/or Cobra Venom this weekend.  Metalheads unite!

New shows in the New Year!

What's up, everyone!  I hope your 2012 is off to an awesome start.  It kinda feels like 2011 never ended but in a good way.  After spending some holiday quality time with great friends and family in New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts, I'm back in LA and busy with all three bands!

First up, Gunt returns for a show in Long Beach this Saturday night.  Check out Gunt's YouTube channel for some classic California punk tunes like this one:

Next up, Cliff 'Em All will be playing the first Peep And Destroy show of 2012 next Friday (the 13th) in Hollywood. Never thought I'd see dancing girls tear up the stage to classic Metallica songs.  Now I get to see it AND be part of the show!

Finally, the mighty Cobra Venom will be playing a huge all ages show in Santa Ana with our good buddies Internal Corrosion, Winterthrall, Abysmal Dawn and many more on Saturday January 14th.  We have tickets for sale on our site but you can also get them from me at a discount.  Email me for details.

That's all for now.  Much more to come in the very near future. Happy New Year!

Last Call For The Cobra Venom kickstarter deals!

To all those that have pledged, thank you so much.  To those that haven't yet, this is the 11th hour.  After tomorrow (Saturday Dec. 10th) our ultimate deals for the kickstarter campaign will expire.  For as little as $5 you can get the entire album and for a bit more there are t-shirts, downloads, tickets and other exclusive items to be had.  If you're strapped for cash, please REPOST so the word can spread.

Thanks again to all our backers, families, friends and fans.  This is YOUR Cobra Venom record as well as ours.

Cobra Venom's Kickstarter Is Coming To A Close...

To all those who have pledged, Cobra Venom is forever grateful.  We reached our initial goal and are now within $500 of our second goal for the band's kickstarter campaign.  The songs are in the final stages of mixing and we're now looking into the mastering, packaging, replication and digital distribution options - all of which are going to be even better now thanks to our awesome friends and fans!

On Sunday December 11th, the campaign ends. So if you still wanna get the new album for as little as $5 and a whole lot of cool extras like merch, additional recordings, CV digital media and even some free passes to our shows for a little bit more, you only have a few days left!

Here's a recent video from one of our gigs in LA.  This song, "Cold War Battle," will be one of many on  the full-length record.  Check it out and please post, facebook, blog and tweet away about this kickstarter campaign and about Cobra Venom.

Thank you!

Cobra Venom has been kickstarted!

Less than 30 days into Cobra Venom's kickstarter campaign and we have reached our initial goal!  The band is so stoked and grateful for the support of our friends, families and fans with this process.  Making an album is fun but can also be a big challenge.  For an independent underground heavy music band in any subgenre, it's almost overwhelming.  It's also a very satisfying process and it's even MORE satisfying to know that there are people who are as stoked to hear this music as we are to create it.  

We worked hard to put together great packages for each pledge level and we are still offering these deals until the campaign ends next month.  There are many cool extras that accompany the album so whether you like MP3s, CDs, tapes, live tracks, merch, videos or all of the above, let us know and PLEDGE today!

Friend us, follow us, hear us and watch us to find out more about Cobra Venom.  Thanks again to everyone already involved.  You're the best!

Do What Matters Most

"...have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." -Steve Jobs

It's obvious that the man absolutely loved what he did. The money could make anyone happy but Steve Jobs was genuinely passionate about Apple and its innovations. Jobs suffered setbacks most of us couldn't imagine but he kept doing what mattered most to him until his body literally gave out.

Many of my fellow musicians, artists and entrepreneurs are passionate in the same way. The ones who are getting the most out of it (personally, professionally and otherwise) are the ones that are completely dedicated to it the way that Jobs was completely dedicated to his vision. My people have lost money, jobs, friends, homes, relationships and more than half of their sanity doing it but because they're doing what matters most to them, they've influenced the lives of so many people and they become even more successful as they continue.  It's hard for my people to recognize their success sometimes because they're in it every day, but it's happening and it's VERY inspiring to me and many others.

I can't imagine that all Steve Jobs' days were good ones but I'm certain he was satisfied. The fact that our time is so limited is the main reason why I play the drums and pursue music as fully as I do.

Do yourself a favor and do what matters most to you. Whether it's a job, a creative calling or any other big dream, do it. Go all in. Make your life about it. You just might end up changing the world...