Cool:
Nile - Karl Sanders is a really nice guy. He really seems to love what he's doing and always interacts with the fans.

Skeletonwitch - Some of the coolest guys you'll ever meet.

Decrepit Birth - Bill Robinson is just awesome, period. He loves discussing his experiences onstage and always fills us in on upcoming tours that haven't even been announced yet.

Dreaming Dead - Elizabeth Elliot is really down to earth and was really cool about everything, not to mention really hot >_>

Vital Remains - Tony signed my receipt from Pizza Hut >_>. Not to mention being a really chill person.

Psycroptic - The vocalist who had to fill in for Peppiatt was very humble about filling in.

Immolation - Vigna and Dolan were pretty cool, even though they didn't speak much.

Dicks:
Rose Funeral - Their bassist was laughing at me the whole time when they tried to get me to buy their album. Even though he isn't really in the band, their merch guy is a huge douche. They deserved everything that happened to them.

I think it's been well discussed how big of pussies that RF are.

Everyone that I have meet has been nice or pleasant.

Stop...


I still saved this quote, for one day I will use it.

As for me, I guess the guys in Blackguard, mostly. Too pushy and douchey for their own good, forcing me to like their music when I clearly was trying to ignore them. If I didn't respond well the first time, then maybe I won't the 20th time.

I've also met Karl Sanders in person, very cool guy indeed. Apparently a big fan of Sinister, as he complimented more than once on the Creative Killings shirt I wore. Also, Alex from Krisiun is very down to earth and really shows genuine gratitude with the fans. Debbie Gunn from Sentinel Beast = coolest chick I've ever met. It was a real honor getting to see her & the band live after being a fan for 20+ years.

Online I've also met a few cool people, most notable is Vinny DiBianca who plays guitar in Vicious Circle (long-time fan as well). We met on Myspace and eventually exchanged phone #s...He had some great stories to tell me, and also a very humble guy.

Douches...Can't think of any I've met yet.

King ov Hell was the biggest douche I've ever had the misfortune of talking with. It was over AOL messenger and he was just so arrogant. I about told him to piss off.

All the people I've met in person have been really cool guys. All of Immortal, Xaphan from Kult ov Azazel, Richard Mills from GBK, Tom G. Warrior, Kerry King (believe it or not), the guys from CoF etc. Still pissed I got fucked out of meeting Emperor twice though.

Byron from Strapping Young Lad was a pretty cool guy, we were standing around after the show and he just strolled out and started shooting the shit with us. Pretty damn cool I thought.

I also met Soilwork once (shut up), and those guys were really nice. I went with my friend who is a massive Soilwork fan, and he about shat himself when he met the dudes. It was pretty funny

Mark Osegueda(Death Angel) is a real cool guy. He was friendly with everyone in the croud, and after the show he was standing out back smokin a cigarette. so I went up to him, and he was pretty cool. we shared a few beers

Decrepit Birth - All really chill dudes. All completely burnt-out potheads, haha. I chilled with them after Summer Slaughter '08, smoked some bowls and drank some beer.

Scott Wily (Vital Remains) - Came up to me randomly as Summer Slaughter '10, and started talking. I met him at a show in Worcester, Mass and it turns out he's a cousin of one of my friends. He's a pretty damn cool guy.

Ben Falgoust II (Goatwhore) - Saw him standing by the merch table at one of the show, and didn't even recognize him. He seemed to be keeping to himself pretty much, hood up, standing off to the side.

Chris Grigg (Woe) - Cool dude. Let me do vocals for the intro of a song.

Eddy Hoffman (Vital Remains) - Hung out with him a bit at Summer Slaughter '10, but he was really pissed off because he just wanted in my friend's pants and this other kid and I were getting in his way. haha

Is the Palladium as shitty as I imagine it to be? I've never had a reason to trek to the shithole that is Worcester, save for the Saint Vitus/TON show a year ago (which I missed).

The Palladium is pretty shitty. It's still better than the Webster (in Hartford, CT). It's the closest major venue to me, so I put up with it. Maybe once I get my own car, I'll make the trek to NY for shows. The show in Worcester that I was referring to, though, was at Ralph's Diner. They have (usually) cool metal shows every Thursday.

Back in May I went on the road with my good buddies in Black Moor for a small tour through Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. This included such bands as Metalian, Skull Fist and Diemonds.

Now I know Diemonds are...well...if you know who they are, I don't think I need to say anything further. But, they legitimately put on a good show and they were really cool. Alan let us crash at his house after the first show.

Metalian are just fucking awesome dudes. Ian and Dru are from Halifax originally so they come back here all the time. Dru and I especially got along quite well.

Skull Fist were awesome. Didn't get the chance to talk to Shred or Johnny too much. Jackie Slaughter is a fucking maniac in the best possible way. He's ridiculously competitive and pretty much shit his pants when I beat him in a chug off. Shooting fireworks out his corn hole. Just watch their Ride the East tour video. I filmed quite a bit of it. Alison was super cool too. She really got a kick out of the crowd at the all ages show chanting "More Black Moor!" I couldn't help but think she was in at least a handful of wet dreams after that show hahah. Best part was how Jackie usually introduces a song by saying "This one is for the ladies" but since it was all ages, he says "Normally I say this one is for the ladies, but since they're all underage here...I guess this one's for the...dudes...It's called Get Fisted!"

Smoked up with a couple of the Rammer dudes when I was like 17 and again 2 or 3 years later. They were awesome.

Totally got off the wrong foot with Cam Pipes from 3IOB. My buddy takes me back stage and gives me some dope to roll. Without even realizing it, I'm rolling on Pipes' laptop and he didn't take kindly to that. I apologized and told him I've been a fan of 3IOB for a few years now and he was just sort of like "Yeah, cool" I'd been told he was sort of like that. Doesn't say too much. Justin Hagberg is apparently the coolest dude ever. Well, he did give my buddy a wah pedal, so...yeah.

Would have been nice is Megadeth did more than sign a few things, get a picture and throw in a few nicknacks for the VIP package. I shook their hands, exchanged pleasantries and that was it. Best $300 I ever spent? Right....

I spoke to Joel Grind briefly a couple years ago. He seemed really cool.

Al Biddle (Rammer, Toxic Holocaust, Diemonds) was always really cool. I'd met him a few times before and on the mini tour he came up to me and said "Man, I feel bad because I know I've met you before but I can't remember your name"

Might be a few more I'm forgetting.

I once had the opportunity to talk to the fellows of Moonspell, this was back when they were touring with Danzig on the Blackest of the black tour in 2008. The band had just finished their set and I saw Fernando reading a book by Goethe, and we had a conversation about Nietzsche and German philosophy, though he didn't answer my question about another duet with Rotting Christ, he is an extremely intelligent individual though a bit withdrawn.

Back in 06 when I had a myspace, I had Gunther added on his personal myspace, and he always wrote blogs on personal issues, history, and philosophy as well as the Ancient Rites past. He gave me a lot of insight into Old Rome, and introduced me to many books I've read about Eastern Europe.

At Sounds of the Underground Goatwhore had opened up after 2 cents, and I spoke with Ben Falgoust about the band, and he complimented me about my Bathory shirt. He was a bit withdrawn along with Sammy, but they were very cordial and welcoming.

For the dicks I had a very angering and horrible experience with Tony Lazaro, my fiance and I were in Houston for Summer of Slaughter when we went to the merch set. She was wearing a tanktop and Tony kept staring at her, when I tried to talk to him and he just brushed me aside, and out of nowhere came out with Vital Remains panties. He said: "You should buy these", and I tried to ask him if they had Icons of Evil in stock, he ignored me so Scott answered my question. He basically spent the entire time checking my girl out, and was very rude and didn't even acknowledge I was there until I asked him to get me a shirt by them.

Another incident was when I tried to say hello to Terrence Hobbes, he was walking from the stage of the Marquee theater and was obviously inebriated. But he just kind of looked and brushed me aside, great guitarist but I obviously got him at the wrong time.

I've talked to Morgan from Marduk about ten to twenty times. Very cool guy, always gives me info on releases and the availability of their rarities. Even though we got off on the wrong foot, I apparently misquoted him from an interview.

Met Behemoth a couple times. Orion I've talked to the most, mainly to massage his ego about how great Vesania is. Nergal gave me some free and discounted merch because a venue wouldn't let him sell their stuff inside. Purchased like two hundred bucks worth since he was such a cool guy. Laughed at the way he says 'hoodie'.

Hung out(ate pizza) with Children of Bodom twice in one day. With the exception of Warman the second time because he was in the hospital. Alexi looks like a twelve year old goth chick. Roope was the coolest.

Met Amon Amarth twice, once after a show in which we laughed at Trivium afterwards. Then ran into them at a mall two or three years later.

Never had a bad experience really. But I generally avoid band members who seem like they might be real cocky. I annoyed the shit out of Flo from Cryptopsy though. That was a good one. Vader and Cryptopsy's merch was at the same table, so when Flo was watching the booth I went and bought three Vader shirts and an album. Then went to the next booth and got an Aborted shirt.

K.K. from D666 comes off as really standoffish.

There's more, but those come off as the most memorable/biggest names.

I think the greatest guy I ever talked to was Martin van Drunen when he was performing a Bolt Thrower gig back in 1995 or 1996. Really nice and friendly guy who doesn't take himself too seriously and made a lot of fun.
Another nice experiences were Peter Tägtgren and Maniac at a Mayhem gig in 1997.

Out of interest, where do you even meet these people? I mean, even at small clubs here, the international acts will just go on, play, and leave.

Talked to pretty much everyone in dark fortress I think.
Mostly V.Santura, seriously one of my fave guitarists ever. Seeing "like a sonambulist in daylights fire" performed live is one of the best moments of my life. 5 minutes after hearing that godly godly solo on a depressing song about suicide he chatted to me and my dad for like 20 minutes, he was really cool, he kept on apologizing to my dad for not answering his email. Shook hands with all the rest, except the keyboardist who was too ill to come over, according to V.Santura, and spoke briefly to the drummer, but he didn't really seem that interested, and went offstage quite quickly. Morean was talking to a group of people for ages, so I gace up waiting and went home. Good times.

I've met some really cool guys over the years. Here's some of them that stick out the most:

Peter of Hatesphere is a great guy, got to interview him and he reminded me a lot of one of my old highschool buddies.

Ben of Goatwhore is a very cordial guy. Had an interview with him, hung out in the back and waited for him as he put stuff away. Kept trying to get me to go inside and watch The Red Chord, but my fiancee and I had our reasons to stay outside. Sammy of Goatwhore is also a pretty cool guy to talk.

All the member of Amon Amarth are very fan oriented. Got some great photos with them, and the set I saw them perform in Allentown, they threw in a song not in their set list because one of their fans asked them to play it at a previous show int he area. I'll also never forget the one member towering over my fiancee, looking down, seeing her cleavage and having the face of a 13 year old boy who just saw his first set of knockers, and then enarly breaking her camera with a firm handshake with me haha. Priceless.

Paul Ryan of Origin is kick ass guy to talk to. Met him at a small ass venue in bumblefuck nowhere behind a magic shop for a show of 7 people. He hung out with us most of the time outside waiting for the show, as well as them and Dying Fetus to go on stage. Also hung out with James Lee, who was with them at the time, and he talked with us the entire time. We even bumped into him at Summer Slaughter and he stopped us and talked with us for a while. Of course, I don't blame him or Paul for remembering us considering the location haha.

I didn't "meet" him, but I did a phoner with Chris Caffery. Another swell guy, very down to earth, very comical, seems like a very approachable guy. Also, phoner with Jon Oliva, and he's just a great guy. Met him in person in Allentown too and he's such appreciative to his fans. I also got his Playstation 3 gamertag duringt he interview and challenged him to some madden, but I had to sell the system for rent

Erik Rutain of Morbid Angel. VERY energetic guy, friends with one of my buddies, came outside to chill with him and the crowd prior to a Hate Eternal concert. Got a photo with him. Big smile, laughing and joking with all of us.

The Absence. All the guys in the band are awesome. The one venue they played at, just a week before it closed, was charging a re-entry fee. I was with the press doing interviews for WSFX, and they took a good chunk of time to do the interview, joking around, smiling, it went very well. When I told them that, they went right up to the security guards and said not to charge me, as I was with the band. Oh man, that kicked EPIC ass haha.

DOUCHEBAGS. Oh man, I met a number of them...
Trevor of Black Dahlia Murder. Had an interview with the guy. VERY nice. Practically a carbon copy of me. Bumped into him a few times (was hard to go to a show WITHOUT seeing them on the tab, around the time of Nocturnal). He somehow managed to track down my fiancee's myspace, and began harassing her by hitting on her, and finally sent a nude picture of himself (saw it. buuh and lol), all just to piss me off, and I didn't do a damned thing to the guy. Apparently he feels I'm arrogant, guess because she gave me his AIM sn and I said hey to him. Whatever. Douche.

I forget when it was, but a while back I got the opportunity to see Six Feet Under. Now, I normally hear that Chris Barnes is a decent man to the fans. I saw him after their performance and I said "Hey, great job man" and all I got in response was "Fuck off!" I have NO idea if he heard me wrong, but that just pissed me off. Still a fan though haha.

DevilDriver is another band that kinda ticked me off. Saw 'em a few times and waited outside the venue. One of the members walked up to the bus and some of us were waiting to meet him. I wanted to see if I could get an autograph or an interview for my site. They booked it onto the tour bus after the show, and that one member walking around signed something for a girl and got on the bus. Two hours later, it's two of us waiting, and no one came out. I mean, two of us. I know they just put on a show and are tired but, seriously, the one guy who was outside didn't even acknowledge any of us, just the one girl. I was on Thrash and Burn, so I'm going to ASSUME they just didn't want to get there, considering the "No one should be on this bus except DevilDriver and their road crew!" signs all over the windows of the bus...

The Red Chord. Holy fuck, Not only did they have the venue ask us to leave (was backstage with the press for WSFX), but prior to that the guitarist was bragging to the owner about his guitar. Of course, I'm standing against the wall with my lady waiting for their set to start, near the front of the stage, and he nearly HITS HER WITH THE GUITAR! IN THE HEAD! And then has the nerve to look at her and go "Well get the fuck out of the way!" Suffice it to say I sold all my Red Chord shit, and didn't bother with the interview. Fuck 'em.

And fuck em hard, I can't stand arrogant cunts like that.
Sounds like you did the right thing .

Oh, the irony...

I don't make any claims to a false sense of importance, nor do I have an overbearing sense of pride, if we could chat in real life, I'm sure we'd get along just fine, you and me Johnny

Seconding (or well, thirding I guess) this. Went to thank him for the great show, and he thanked me and gave me a hug. Was really nice and seem to enjoy chatting with the fans.

The members of Blackguard and Warbringer that I've talked with have all been very, very nice. Didn't seem to mind chatting for I don't know how long it was after the show. I always look forward to chatting with them after their shows.

Mikko of Swallow the Sun was also incredibly friendly and kept talking to me every time I ran into him, haha. Didn't get to talk to the rest of StS, though, since they were busy talking to other fans. Two of Orphaned Land (Kobi and I can't remember who the other was..) I talked with were also friendly and seemed pleased that someone was at the show taking photos and that I enjoyed the show.

David of Woods of Ypres was also very nice. Chatted with him about the show, about photos, traded cards with him, and then he later came back to ask me about how Dallas is and all that. Seemed really interested in Dallas/Texas.

So far I haven't met any band members who were douches or anything. Hope it stays that way.

Hmm well let's see:

James Malone of Arsis is just a REALLY nice, surprisingly quiet guy. We had some nice chats about just life in general, music and influences. He's pretty much one of my idols so it was VERY neat to just be able to talk to him on that kind of level because he really treats you with alot of respect and gratitude. Very modest.

Nick Cordle of Arsis is another really cool guy. We had a nice long conversation about different guitar playing tricks and other amazing guitarists (like Amott of Arch Enemy/Carcass/Spiritual Beggars). He even put my stuff at their merch booth for me so i could go mosh and shit, really chill guy and we actually have each other on facebook now and talk fairly often.

Noah Martin of (again) Arsis is a really nice guy aswell...I didn't get to talk to him as much but he seemed really nice and like a fun loving guy.

John Gallagher of Dying Fetus is a very chilled out and mellow guy. He seems very modest of his work and really appreciates when the crowd has a fun night. After meeting him it actually gave me even more appreciation for their music.

Scott Hedrick of Skeletonwitch is cool as hell, very hyper seeming guy and I had about a half hour long talk to him while TBDM stunk the place up at the concert I was at. We talked about touring experiences and stuff and he seems like he would be a really cool guy to chill with.

All of the guys from Wolven Ancestry are cool as hell. They are fairly local so I have a couple of them on Facebook and we keep in touch about the metal scenes and ways to get our scene here (a small little town) to become bigger (We've only had like one *big* act from our city and that's Empyrean Plague). I can't wait to chill with these guys next time I see them live.

I've only really met the guys from a Finnish band Pressure Point. They are a young band who play some decent prog/melodeath, sounding a lot like later Omnium Gatherum and in some ways Opeth. Didn't talk much, I mainly talked with some guy from the venue, apparently the person who organised the gig.

I usually don't talk to band members because it's usually impossible to hear each other and I really don't like small talk. I shook Karl from Gates of Slumber's hand and waved high to Mirai from Sigh. I did chat briefly with Belladonna on his solo tour because he played the set while playing drums with a friend's kit and doing vocals at the same.

The guys in Behold... The Arctopus are actually really cool dudes. Colin's quiet at first, but he's a tremendous music nerd. You just need to speak his language to get him out of his shell. Mike's a bit more outgoing, but as you might imagine, he's the same way about the technical aspects of music.

I second Elizabeth from Dreaming Dead being really awesome. Just, really, don't be a douche and try hitting on her. Don't be that guy. She meets enough of them.

Konrad from Diamond Plate is definitely a guy to have a beer with. After DP have had their set, he can usually be found in the mosh pits and elsewise hanging around the floor. Jon and Jim are a little tougher to track down, but I can assure you that they're both nice guys.

Oddly enough I haven't met any band members who are utter dicks... well, except for J.R. from Atomize. Dude was the original Diamond Plate guitarist, and metal heads in Chicago already know about his shenanigans. He stormed the stage one night while DP were playing, unplugged Konrad's amp and started throwing around flyers for his band before security dragged him out.

My friend Ken's dad ended up talking to Belphegor after one of the shows Ken's band opened for them. Chatted them up for about a half hour before Ken came out. His dad tells him, "you know I don't like the music, but they're great guys." hahaha

Someone mentioned KK from D666 being standoffish. I met all the guys back in 06 and KK was extremely drunk, but still a nice guy. They all signed my ticket stub and KK even gave me his own personal tour shirt he was saving when he said they ran out of merch. Shrapnel was the nicest though, talked with him for roughly an hour after their set. Another reason why I highly respect that band.

Hellhammer from Mayhem was always nice when we spoke over myspace. Gave me lots of good drumming tips.

The only guy who doesnt sound like a complete coked up prick in that band is the vocalist. The bassist just comes across like the biggest fucking dick, plus he writes a column on metalsucks which is like a meeting ground for bellends.

Met Jason, Adam J, Sparky, Mark from Misery Index for a shortwhile for handshakes and autographs and I can say that they are pretty nice guys.

Here's an interesting one - Kam Lee. Now from what I've heard before he's an A-class douche in the metal world, but when I talked with him online he was surprisingly cool and appreciative each time. However, I have seen his temper in ugly mode (right after the blowout with Terry Butler & Rick Rozz forcing him to put the final nail in Massacre's coffin), and based on that behavior I can understand in a way why he's looked upon so negatively.

Everybody in Goatwhore is fucking awesome. I don't even like them that much on studio recordings (baring a few tracks here or there) but they're not only a ton of fun live but everyone in that band is just genuine and down to earth. I've had beers with Ben, he's fucking hilarious. And a friend of mine knows James, so I've actually hung out with him a few times.

I was actually at that show. Before Criminal Justice, Jon made some quip about how there were some people outside talking shit about them, but fuck 'em 'cause all these people were here to see DP, so he must be fucked in the head. Halfway through the song, J.R. and some other guy run on stage, shut off Konrad's amp, spat in Jon's face, threw a ton of flyers at the crowd, flipped us off and ran away. Jon managed a really weak one-handed shove after he got spat on and Jim whipped a drumstick at the dude. Konrad went backstage after them but returned shortly afterwards. Jon told us that those were the guys they were talking about and then picked up the song where they left off. Konrad later tells the crowd that he's got word they were out back crying. I talked to Konrad after the show to ask what was up and he explained it was the ex guitarist and he's been jealous of their recent success. I told him I'd make sure to never accidentally support his band.

I've met Valfar's brother and he was really nice. It was an honour to meet him and I also met Sture, Vreid's singer.

I also exchanged a few words with Swallow the Sun mastermind Juha Raivio. He seemed really nice and humble. Good times.

Cool: Kelly from Atheist was cool as hell last year. That guy was hugging everyone and signing everything. GF and I ended up with some free merch and all of it signed by every single member of the band, which Kelly actually went out and found them all and brought them all to the merch stand to sign our posters and things.

Cool: I will vouch for Mark from Death Angel being sweet as well. Mark is talking to us after the show thanking us for coming and complimenting the energy he says he saw us in the front row headbanging and said he appreciated it. Very humble guy.

Cool: Patrick from Augury is just a really cool down to earth guy.

Cool: The guys from swashbuckle are always up to some kind of antic trying to entertain the fans and they're always helping the other bands set up and sound check and then always out in the crowd showing respect for their tourmates during their set. They also made a sign that warned us not to buy Mutiny Within's merch, and I am forever grateful for that advice.

Douches: I can't really think of any right now...

Fags: These guys from the band Mutiny Within. Each and every one of them are fags and their music sucks.

I met Bill Steer outside the train station very near to where I used to live, and he was charming. Exactly how I'd expect from the interviews I've read.

I've met a lot of band members and for the most part, every one has been cool enough for me to remember.. in particular the nicest and most humble guys I've met were from;

Warbringer (John Kevill in particular), Amon Amarth, Goatwhore, The Absence, Cannibal Corpse (never heard a bad thing about these guys), Lars Larsen of Manticora, Joel Grind from Toxic Holocaust, Eluveitie and the dudes from Sabaton.

I haven't come across many assholes, but I remember seeing some small kid, barely 15 with his dad waiting outside the venue after Gigantour for Dave Mustaine to come out and get an autograph.. finally Mustaine did and told the kid to fuck off. Man, I wanted to kick the shit out of him..

Also, at Paganfest with Ensiferum headlining.. Petri Lindroos now the frontman.. they were in between songs and I was up front, yelled out "Slayer of Light!" for them to play next, he looks at me and says something along the lines of, "we're not playing that song, we're gonna play whatever I want to play". I wanted to be like, fuck you where's Jari?!

I know some people who have met King ov Hell and ICS Vortex, and from the stories I've heard, they are very, very, insanely, unbelievably arrogant. It's funny to ponder how people can become like that. I see it a lot not only in popular musicians, but also in doctors, as I work in a hospital. It's unbelievable what extreme douchebags are created by status and entitlement.

Really? Guy, their frontman, is the coolest guy ever. We talked for a while before and after they played and he gave me a discount on a shirt when he saw I was short 5 bucks. Some people think they're dicks because they're complete smartasses sometimes but they all seem really cool to me.

Valient Thorr are awesome guys. They all hung out at the merch table after their set opening for Mastodon and them and me and my friends all talked music for a while. Brann Dailor and Troy Sanders from Mastodon were also out there before they played making themselves available to fans, and this was at a huge show. I was too scared to talk to em, kinda surreal seeing guys you've idolized since 7th grade in the flesh.

The singer from Son of Aurelius was in the pit for Devourment and Cattle Decapitation's sets at the California Blood tour. All the guys in that band are awesome and I fucking love their music. I hope they get big, because they deserve it. Travis Ryan was hanging out at the merch area with his hood up, probably just wanting to take it easy.

Honorable mentions to Josh Travis of The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza. When one of my friends said "how do you get so good at guitar" he said "smoke weed every day".

Dino Cazares of Fear Factory flipped off my mate at a concert once and told him to fuck off because my mate was yelling for them to turn up the vocal mike.

In Petri's defense, I've heard his English is pretty poor. He probably didn't mean it like that, although I wasn't there so I can't tell you your wrong.

I met Anders Björler once, unknowingly. A couple of friends and I were down at a record store in center city after school, and this guy starts talking to my friend about guitar (my friend had his guitar with him). We chatted for about five minutes or so. After he left the store manager came up to us and was like "Are you guys At the Gates fans?" and I'm like "yeah why?". I was then informed that I had just talked to Anders Björler. Nice guy, a little odd though. One thing I couldn't help noticing was that his posture was pretty bad. He was always leaned over or something.