Zero Hour Saved Christmas!!!

Dustin · December 15th, 2002, 11:29 PM

"The Bands That Saved Christmas"
(The edited version…)

What began as a true nightmare of epic proportions turned into a full-fledged fantasy!

I got a call from our friend Bear Thursday night while at the studio, and he mentioned that the Blind Guardian/Symphony X show was cancelled. WHAT!?!? It seemed that BG's tour bus took a big shit on them 90 miles outside Seattle and were stuck there.
Needless to say Sheri & me were very disappointed, as we had already paid for the trip and couldn't back out now. The good news at this point was that we were going to see our boys in the Bay area hood (Bear, Mark & Henry)!

This trip was a sort of "Christmas present" for Sheri & me to each other… and knowing we weren't going to see this concert made things a bit of a bummer. We got up the next morning and caught our flight out. It was only slightly delayed, but we were told that it was going to rain the whole weekend in the bay, and sure enough… it did.

While we were at the hotel on Friday, I had talked to bear 2 or 3 times, both of us were trying to figure out what we all could do now that the concert was cancelled. About 3:30 he called back with some really exciting news…Symphony X was going on anyway!!!! The only way they could perform was to play a free show, and they were determined to deliver! But that wasn't the end of it… a band that I had meet online under the name "Man Called Machine" was set to open the show! These guys told me they would be handing out flyers to an upcoming gig and to look out for them… but we got to see them live instead!

And to put the icing on the cake… Zero Hour was also going to play the gig! YYEESSSSS!!!! This was already turning out than the original plan! After getting a few beers and grub at a brewpub in the city with the whole S.F. crew in tow, we headed out to the Pound.

It was a night I'll never forget… Man called Machine tore things up; they got the stone-faced crowd going by the end of their set. I am defiantly looking forward to hearing these guys's recorded material soon! Zero Hour climbed on stage and tweaked out a few mind blowing warm-up licks and then pummeled the pound crowd with their tech metal assault and threw in two new tunes, I was in total heaven now! Then…Symphony X made the stage…. And yes my friends, they stomped my hairy ass into the ground! They punched out a few classics and some of the new goodies as well; they're an absolutely amazing live band!

And to top off the night of great beer, good friends & killer metal… Bear introduced me to one of his ol' buddies…and one of my all time bass guitar hero's, Steve "yes… I am a bass god" DiGiorgio!!!! Hell YEAH!!! It was a total high to chum up and have a beer to a guy I have idolized for years! A totally down-to-earth dude… Okay… I'll stop being a fanboy… Thanks Bear!

At the end of the night, I had stuffed a good wad of cash into Symphony X's pockets in way of merchandise (they needed it!) and was able yak it up with Lepond and Russ (and got a few candid snap shots on the side!) Sheri & me also had a blast chatting with Troy & Jasun from Zero Hour! I want to add that me & Sheri was so damn excited that these guys played the show (they are her FAVORITE band!) we couldn't contain our excitement once we heard the news. It was good to meet these guys outside the Internet finally and talk shop… I wish I could have had a chance to have an on going B.S. session through out the night with these guys… but the club decided to boot us all out. I defiantly plan on keeping in contact with these kats (as they would say!); they are helluva good guys and an incredible band! … Maybe a possible gig together one day? hhhmmm??? LOL!!!

We returned to the hotel via Bear & his lady Liz, puked a few times and were out like a candle. We woke up the next morning and I swear to god the whole night seemed like a dream, in fact as I am home now typing this… I still can't believe it.

These bands saved Christmas!!!

RAWK!!!!!
\m/
Dustin

I wanna thank Bear & his woman Liz, Mark (imajikafan), Henry (Imajika), Ramone (ex-Total Eclipse), the Tipton brothers (you kats rawk my hairy arse!), Steve DiGiorgio, Symphony X and Man Called Machine For making it totally worth the flight out to Frisco!
I know I meet a schlode of other people out there... sorry if I have forgoten anyone!

ZHJ&T · December 16th, 2002, 12:48 AM

Dustin & Sheri,
YOU TWO RULE!!!!.. It was so cool chatting with two of the nicest people we've met. We were so STOKED to do the show and it really means alot to hear that we helped make your trip to SF worth it.. To hear ZH is Sheri's favorite band totally floors us.. I have to say the highlight for me was running into Steve Digiorgio at the bar and hearing him say how stoked he was to see us play and how much he dug our performance. Steve is one of my all-time-favorite bass player's and his positive response made my night and even bought me a beer!!!.. So I'm so with you on that bro, Steve's a cool kat!!!!.. And you and your wife RULE as well!!!... Let us know when you're in the area again and we'll all have to get together with our brother Bear and the rest of the gang.

Thanks again,
Troy/ZH

Bear · December 16th, 2002, 10:30 AM

Had a great weekend too Dustin, it was our pleasure to hang out and have a cool time with you and Sherri!! I am glad you got to come out , meet Steve D and Symphony X and rock bay area style!!! we will be seeing you guys again before to long I am sure, RAWK!!!

Bear

prog2112 · December 16th, 2002, 11:13 AM

I had such a great time this weekend. As I've said before, having ZH play was the best XMAS surprise!! Sorry I was bothering you guys so much that night (Jasun and Troy). I must apologize for my public drunkeness!! I was having so much fun I didn't keep track of my alcohol consumption. Next time, I will. Thanks for taking all of those pictures with me!
Thanks so much to Bear and Liz for "carting" us around all weekend. Liz is great!! You better hang on to her!! (Your great too Bear!). Thanks to Henry, Mark, and all of the other awesome people I met this weekend. I think Dustin's favorite XMAS present was Steve D. He was so happy to have met him!

Have a great XMAS everyone!! It's people like all of you that make these trips/adventures worth every penny and makes us look forward to the next. Hopefully we'll be in SF in the new year...maybe for a ZH cd release party!!?????

Take Care,

sheri

ZHJ&T · December 16th, 2002, 12:52 PM

Sheri,

We had such a great time hanging out with you and Dustin, you two kick serious ass. It was a pleasure and we look foward to hanging out with you two when you get back out our way or at a festival somewhere. Again, we look foward to the next hangout and you both have a great Christmas.

WHO RULES, SHERI & DUSTIN RULES!!!!!
Jasun/ZH \m/

P.S. Everyone please check out Dustin's band as well and I can't wait for the new disc. www.katagory5.com

ProgMetalFan · December 16th, 2002, 01:16 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ZHJ&T

P.S. Everyone please check out Dustin's band as well and I can't wait for the new disc. www.katagory5.com

Yeah! Katagory V kicks ass!

rhavin2112 · December 16th, 2002, 01:31 PM

no one invited me

Squeak · December 16th, 2002, 02:50 PM

I think I'm the only one that didn't get to meet Dustin and Sheri. Or maybe you were sitting near where I was and I don't know it?

ZHJ&T · December 16th, 2002, 03:07 PM

Adam is my brotha and he can kick it with ZH anytime cause he'a a ZH member in my book.

YOU RULE,
Jay/ZH

Demonspell · December 16th, 2002, 08:51 PM

Dustin and others interested: www.mp3.com/machine_called_man Symphony X and Zero Hour deserve massive praise for helping transform a potentially devastating cancellation into a triumphant event.

Dustin · December 17th, 2002, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by ZHJ&T

WHO RULES, SHERI & DUSTIN RULES!!!!!
Jasun/ZH \m/

P.S. Everyone please check out Dustin's band as well and I can't wait for the new disc. www.katagory5.com

DUDES! Right On! Me & Sheri are totaly looking forward to hangin' with you kats again (now look what you guys got me sayin'!) It should actually be "who rules? ZERO HOUR RULES!!!!"

...and thanks for that plug! That deserves three big \m/\m/\m/ in a row!!!

Quote:

December 15th, 2002, 11:29 PM	#1 (permalink)
Dustin lord of the low-end thump Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Salt Lake City, UTAH, USA Posts: 1,232	Zero Hour Saved Christmas!!! "The Bands That Saved Christmas" (The edited version…) What began as a true nightmare of epic proportions turned into a full-fledged fantasy! I got a call from our friend Bear Thursday night while at the studio, and he mentioned that the Blind Guardian/Symphony X show was cancelled. WHAT!?!? It seemed that BG's tour bus took a big shit on them 90 miles outside Seattle and were stuck there. Needless to say Sheri & me were very disappointed, as we had already paid for the trip and couldn't back out now. The good news at this point was that we were going to see our boys in the Bay area hood (Bear, Mark & Henry)! This trip was a sort of "Christmas present" for Sheri & me to each other… and knowing we weren't going to see this concert made things a bit of a bummer. We got up the next morning and caught our flight out. It was only slightly delayed, but we were told that it was going to rain the whole weekend in the bay, and sure enough… it did. While we were at the hotel on Friday, I had talked to bear 2 or 3 times, both of us were trying to figure out what we all could do now that the concert was cancelled. About 3:30 he called back with some really exciting news…Symphony X was going on anyway!!!! The only way they could perform was to play a free show, and they were determined to deliver! But that wasn't the end of it… a band that I had meet online under the name "Man Called Machine" was set to open the show! These guys told me they would be handing out flyers to an upcoming gig and to look out for them… but we got to see them live instead! And to put the icing on the cake… Zero Hour was also going to play the gig! YYEESSSSS!!!! This was already turning out than the original plan! After getting a few beers and grub at a brewpub in the city with the whole S.F. crew in tow, we headed out to the Pound. It was a night I'll never forget… Man called Machine tore things up; they got the stone-faced crowd going by the end of their set. I am defiantly looking forward to hearing these guys's recorded material soon! Zero Hour climbed on stage and tweaked out a few mind blowing warm-up licks and then pummeled the pound crowd with their tech metal assault and threw in two new tunes, I was in total heaven now! Then…Symphony X made the stage…. And yes my friends, they stomped my hairy ass into the ground! They punched out a few classics and some of the new goodies as well; they're an absolutely amazing live band! And to top off the night of great beer, good friends & killer metal… Bear introduced me to one of his ol' buddies…and one of my all time bass guitar hero's, Steve "yes… I am a bass god" DiGiorgio!!!! Hell YEAH!!! It was a total high to chum up and have a beer to a guy I have idolized for years! A totally down-to-earth dude… Okay… I'll stop being a fanboy… Thanks Bear! At the end of the night, I had stuffed a good wad of cash into Symphony X's pockets in way of merchandise (they needed it!) and was able yak it up with Lepond and Russ (and got a few candid snap shots on the side!) Sheri & me also had a blast chatting with Troy & Jasun from Zero Hour! I want to add that me & Sheri was so damn excited that these guys played the show (they are her FAVORITE band!) we couldn't contain our excitement once we heard the news. It was good to meet these guys outside the Internet finally and talk shop… I wish I could have had a chance to have an on going B.S. session through out the night with these guys… but the club decided to boot us all out. I defiantly plan on keeping in contact with these kats (as they would say!); they are helluva good guys and an incredible band! … Maybe a possible gig together one day? hhhmmm??? LOL!!! We returned to the hotel via Bear & his lady Liz, puked a few times and were out like a candle. We woke up the next morning and I swear to god the whole night seemed like a dream, in fact as I am home now typing this… I still can't believe it. These bands saved Christmas!!! RAWK!!!!! \m/ Dustin I wanna thank Bear & his woman Liz, Mark (imajikafan), Henry (Imajika), Ramone (ex-Total Eclipse), the Tipton brothers (you kats rawk my hairy arse!), Steve DiGiorgio, Symphony X and Man Called Machine For making it totally worth the flight out to Frisco! I know I meet a schlode of other people out there... sorry if I have forgoten anyone! __________________ www.Katagory5.com www.Myspace.com/KatagoryV Katagory V on ULTIMATE METAL.com

December 16th, 2002, 12:48 AM	#2 (permalink)
ZHJ&T Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 1,060	THANK YOU!!!! Dustin & Sheri, YOU TWO RULE!!!!.. It was so cool chatting with two of the nicest people we've met. We were so STOKED to do the show and it really means alot to hear that we helped make your trip to SF worth it.. To hear ZH is Sheri's favorite band totally floors us.. I have to say the highlight for me was running into Steve Digiorgio at the bar and hearing him say how stoked he was to see us play and how much he dug our performance. Steve is one of my all-time-favorite bass player's and his positive response made my night and even bought me a beer!!!.. So I'm so with you on that bro, Steve's a cool kat!!!!.. And you and your wife RULE as well!!!... Let us know when you're in the area again and we'll all have to get together with our brother Bear and the rest of the gang. Thanks again, Troy/ZH

December 16th, 2002, 10:30 AM	#3 (permalink)
Bear Got Shred?? Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: San Francisco Bay Area Posts: 2,951	You guys rule!!! Had a great weekend too Dustin, it was our pleasure to hang out and have a cool time with you and Sherri!! I am glad you got to come out , meet Steve D and Symphony X and rock bay area style!!! we will be seeing you guys again before to long I am sure, RAWK!!! Bear __________________

December 16th, 2002, 11:13 AM	#4 (permalink)
prog2112 Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Salt Lake City, UT USA Posts: 172	Thanks ZH!!!!!!!! I had such a great time this weekend. As I've said before, having ZH play was the best XMAS surprise!! Sorry I was bothering you guys so much that night (Jasun and Troy). I must apologize for my public drunkeness!! I was having so much fun I didn't keep track of my alcohol consumption. Next time, I will. Thanks for taking all of those pictures with me! Thanks so much to Bear and Liz for "carting" us around all weekend. Liz is great!! You better hang on to her!! (Your great too Bear!). Thanks to Henry, Mark, and all of the other awesome people I met this weekend. I think Dustin's favorite XMAS present was Steve D. He was so happy to have met him! Have a great XMAS everyone!! It's people like all of you that make these trips/adventures worth every penny and makes us look forward to the next. Hopefully we'll be in SF in the new year...maybe for a ZH cd release party!!????? Take Care, sheri

December 16th, 2002, 01:31 PM	#7 (permalink)
rhavin2112 Lost to Apathy Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Knoxville, TN Posts: 843	no one invited me __________________ But strength is born from weakness And this is where I fall I step up to the enemy Then rise from where I crawl

December 16th, 2002, 12:52 PM	#5 (permalink)
ZHJ&T Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 1,060	Sheri, We had such a great time hanging out with you and Dustin, you two kick serious ass. It was a pleasure and we look foward to hanging out with you two when you get back out our way or at a festival somewhere. Again, we look foward to the next hangout and you both have a great Christmas. WHO RULES, SHERI & DUSTIN RULES!!!!! Jasun/ZH \m/ P.S. Everyone please check out Dustin's band as well and I can't wait for the new disc. www.katagory5.com

December 16th, 2002, 02:50 PM	#8 (permalink)
Squeak Photo Mistress Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: In the photo pit at a concert =) Posts: 2,188	I think I'm the only one that didn't get to meet Dustin and Sheri. Or maybe you were sitting near where I was and I don't know it? __________________

December 16th, 2002, 03:07 PM	#9 (permalink)
ZHJ&T Senior Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Posts: 1,060	Adam, you're always invited!!! Adam is my brotha and he can kick it with ZH anytime cause he'a a ZH member in my book. YOU RULE, Jay/ZH

December 16th, 2002, 08:51 PM	#10 (permalink)
Demonspell cheating the polygraph Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: dead between the walls Posts: 15,515	Dustin and others interested: www.mp3.com/machine_called_man Symphony X and Zero Hour deserve massive praise for helping transform a potentially devastating cancellation into a triumphant event. __________________ "There is a concern that the Internet could be used to commit crimes and that advanced encryption could disguise such activity. However, we do not provide the government with phone jacks outside our homes for unlimited wiretaps. Why, then, should we grant government the Orwellian capability to listen at will and in real time to our communications across the Web?"" -- JOHN ASHCROFT, as a U.S. senator, from his Aug. 12, 1997 op-ed piece in the Washington Times, "Welcoming Big Brother." Last edited by Demonspell : December 16th, 2002 at 08:53 PM.