Guitarists From The United States

"[Schuldiner] opened the door for many guitarists to rip open their aggression and put it all into this relentless and chaotic form of metal. Perhaps most impressive, Schuldiner essentially taught himself to play guitar."

"Chuck Shuldiner was a once-in-a-generation type of musician. He filtered his genius through his band, Death, which was, and in many ways, still is the standard bearer for Technical Death Metal. Unlike their peers, Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, Deicide, and Obituary, Death wasn’t defined by their brutality. There was an elegant regard for precision and sinewy melody that lived in harmonic minor bliss. His playing was so clean and impressive, yet he never came off as a showboat. Without Chuck Shuldiner, there wouldn’t be bands like The Faceless, Obscura, Arsis, or Necrophagist. The metal world would is much worse place without his presence. RIP."

"You will not return alive -- left to die Suffering until the end -- left to die"

"There were loads of people in the local area up for it, and I could have settled for someone who was OK, but not brilliant. That wasn’t what I wanted. To make Death as good as I believed we could be, I had to have a line-up that kicked ass on all fronts."

"Pull the plug -- let me pass away Pull the plug -- don't want to live this way"

"Cannibals practicing the art of butchery Emotions don't exist, pain you can't resist"

"I think he was a perfectionist. He really had a high standard and maybe that made it harder for some people to work with him and meet those demands. And as the band went on, the music just got more complex. It was easy to play that kind of music poorly, but it was very hard to keep up with someone like Chuck."

"(Incantation) Marduk caught some flak for some work they’ve done that references the Nazis in the context of WWII. In that same breath, you’ve recently caught fire over your association with your former singer Craig Pillard and his Nazi-related project Der Sturmer. What are your thoughts on that?(McEntee) [laughs] Well, first of all it’s kind of ridiculous because he is our former singer. I can’t have control over what any of my former members do or what they’re into. That was probably about 2 years after he left the band when he got into some of his controversial stuff. I mean it’s so just ridiculous because this Nazi stuff never even slightly came up when we were in a band. So it’s just totally insane. For many years, I barely even talked to Craig so to have any affiliation with whatever he’s doing, regardless of what it is… Yeah, we have a connection because he played in Incantation and he did an amazing job while he was in the band, but that’s really as far as our relationship goes.The thing with that… I think that it’s really ignorant because they’re not really getting proper information and trying to go for low hanging fruit. If they really wanted to do the right thing in pushing their agenda I think they need to find the right way to do it where they’re not going to get too much push back. The way they’re doing it is almost fueling more problems. If they really feel that us and Marduk are racist, they should know for sure before making those accusations. But to try to say that the people coming to a show are being Nazi sympathizers is just absolutely insane. I mean especially in Austin [where protestors showed up]– 80% of the crowd is probably Mexican or Latino. And the way they’re dealing with things is actually causing more push back in the opposite direction than they would if they didn’t do anything at all. Now there’s people that are just pissed off at them. They’re gonna do antagonizing stuff to them– I have seen Mexican people giving them the “Hail Hitler” sign at the show and they were doing it to piss them off, not because they’re racist.They’re going about it is just wrong. I mean especially stopping shows– you’re not gonna make more fans by stopping shows. They stopped the show in Oakland, California– I think they made some threats and the show didn’t go on. All that did was really piss off a lot of people, and it totally doesn’t help anything. Drunken metal heads want to go to a show and have a good time, you know?The thing that really drives me up a wall is that we are metalheads­– we’re supposed to be rebellious and on the edge­– we’re supposed to be kind of assholes to some extent. That’s the only reason why I got into metal. I don’t feel like I need to prove to people anything really. I shouldn’t have to. We play all around the world to different people of all different nationalities and the thing that we have in common is that we all like metal. We’re really appreciative of that. I would say the same for Marduk. They play all around the world for people, and if they were really racist they’d only be playing in Europe and certain places where there’s white people. So it’s just absurd.That’s what kills me. We need to work together to build our scene, not work apart. And the thing is that people go to our shows… we don’t have a litmus test. They could be Nazis or they could be ANTIFA or whatever­– just go and enjoy the show. The show is our getaway from everything. It’s not a test to be one thing or the other– it has no relevance to our show whatsoever [laughs]. We don’t do anything that’s political in anyway. We have no interest in it. If you’re religious you’ll get a little offended but I mean everyone is allowed at our shows. Whatever they believe is none of our business."

"Any conversation about Hop Along that doesn’t center on Frances Quinlan’s vocals would seem to be fooling itself. Frances’ voice can climb from a whisper to a playful croon to a raspy splinter within a minute. Even better, [they're] not afraid to go for it, often singing outside of [their] range, like [they're] throwing a ball into the air to see where it lands, convinced that whatever the result is, it will be worth hearing."

"Strange to be shaped by such strange men"

"I don’t know why I’m so mean each time I come to visit."

"At the door came a knock The witness just wants to talk to you"

"Don’t worry, we will both find out, just not together"

"Remember seeing Shirley dancing in the oil fountain? [...] We have a great wanting in common but none of this is gonna happen to me within my lifetime"

"I don’t ever want to get away from talking about death. I don’t want to be a drag either but I think the only way you can speak honestly is to have it in your mind."

"Father gets up at 4AM to post a motivational video on Youtube again: ‘People of the world, nobody loves you half as much as I am trying to.'"

"I’ve come to understand (better) why I felt so compelled to start going by my middle name when I turned 18 and went away to college. I needed distance from a role that I have never understood or felt agency within. Sixteen years later, it still confounds me. I know this, because for so long I thought I had to be desired to gain true worth as a person. Perhaps a lot of us have felt this way. For so long I thought I had to be a “correct” version of a woman. This is a falsehood I no longer buy. Honestly, I STILL don’t know what being a woman is. No one has been able to tell me. [...] I am embarrassed to say I did not realize how much space there has always been. It’s humans who have created these roles and strange rules. I am inspired and humbled witnessing so many who’ve taken great risk to be their true selves outside of these uneasy, fearful constructs."

"I'm basically a rhythm guitarist at the end of the day, but I play odd forms of chords, and only in the last three years started using a pick. I wanted something kind of thick but somehow still angular and capable of dimension. I'm still figuring it out, but as I get better it gets more fun."

"8:45 a.m. The dream just escaped me again."

"We were covered in each other’s snot in my childhood bed"

"The world’s gotten so small and embarrassing"

"Think I should stop checking myself out in the windows of cars When I could see my future in pictures of relatives"

"I cannot stress enough how imperative it is to encourage children, even if they stink. I wasn't good, I've seen my drawings from when I was little and despite my mom's strong opinions, I think they look like a kid's drawing. I'm not going to get down on myself, but they certainly weren't those of a prodigy by any means. She told me, "You are an artist." She didn't try to turn me into a prodigy, she just encouraged me and I was very lucky to get that."

"There's an anger at realizing the language that I lacked, the tools that I lacked to express myself and see value and power in my expression, rather than deferring to men for my value and worth."

"I love bands that have thrown the book out the window and do exactly what feels right to them."

"Lenker isn’t the room-swallowing presence that [Frances] Quinlan is, but she more than makes up for it in commanding songcraft, which skews dynamic, dissonant, and placid without ever changing its sepia tone."

"There's only so much letting go you can ask someone to do."

"It doesn't feel like it's just originating from my brain. It feels like I'm following an invisible thread of intuition, from one choice to the next... maybe I don't even fully understand once I've written it, but it just feels right. And I just trust that. And then over time, it reveals its layers of meaning to me. That's a mark of what I feel is a good song. It keeps me wanting to play it."

"I think I’m learning how to release every day. Recognizing that everything you encounter, touch, or love can become part of you, and in essence never disappears, as long as you can recall it to memory or heart. It’s all so connected that we lose everything, but also, we never lose anything."

"Real love makes your lungs black Real love is a heart attack"

"This place smells like piss and beer."

"I drove in circles 'round the freight train yard and he turned the headlights off Then he pulled the bottle out then he showed me what was love"

"I see all parallels."

"Well, I had just got out from the county prison, Doin' ninety days for non-support. Tried to find me an executive position, But no matter how smooth I talked, They wouldn't listen to the fact that I was genius. The man said, "We got all that we can use," Now I got themSteadily depressin', low down mind-messin' Workin' at the carwash blues."

"Like the pine trees lining the winding road, I've got a name, I've got a name. Like the singin' bird and the croakin' toad, I've got a name, I've got a name.And I carry it with me like my daddy did, But I'm livin' the dream that he kept hid.Movin' me down the highway, rollin' me down the highway, Movin' ahead so life won't pass me by."

"Well, I know it's kinda late; I hope I didn't wake you. But what I gotta say can't wait. I know you'd understand.Every time I tried to tell you The words just came out wrong. So, I'll have to say "I love you" in a song."

"But there never seems to be enough time To do the things you want to do, once you find them. I've looked around enough to know That you're the one I want to go through time with."

"If I could save time in a bottle, The first thing that I'd like to do Is to save every day till eternity passes away Just to spend them with you."

"Operator, well could you help me place this call? Cause I can't read the number that you just gave me. There's something in my eyes, You know it happens every time I think about the love that I thought would save me.But isn't that the way they say it goes? Well let's forget all that And give me the number if you can find it So I can call just to tell 'em I'm fine, and to show I've overcome the blow, I've learned to take it well. I only wish my words could just convince myself That it just wasn't real. But that's not the way it feels."

"But tomorrow's a dream away and today has turned to dust. Your silver tongue has turned to clay and your golden rule to rust. If that's the way that you want it well that's the way I want it more, Cause there'll be one less set of footprints on your floor in the mornin'. Oh there'll be one less set of footsteps on your floor in the mornin'."

"Well, the South side of Chicago is the baddest part of town. And if you go down there, you better just beware Of a man named Leroy Brown. Now, Leroy, more than trouble, You see, he stands, about, six foot four. All the downtown ladies call him "Treetop Lover", All the men just call him "Sir" (Right on).And he's bad, bad Leroy Brown, The baddest man in the whole damn town. Badder than old King Kong, Meaner than a junkyard dog."

"You don't tug on Superman's cape. You don't spit into the wind. You don't pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger. And you don't mess around with Jim."

"But it doesn't have to be that way; What we had should never have ended. I'll be dropping by today. We could easily get it together tonight, It's only right."

"Toast is bread made delicious and useful. Un-toasted bread is okay for children's sandwiches and sopping up barbecue sauce, but for pretty much all other uses, toast is better than bread. An exception is when the bread is fresh from the oven, piping hot, with butter melting all over it. Then it's fantastic, but I would argue that bread fresh out of the oven is a kind of toast. Because I'm an asshole and I refuse to be wrong about something."

"Where are the dreams that we once had? This is the time to bring them back What were the promises Caught on the tips of our tongues? Do we forget or forgive? There's a whole other life Waiting to be lived when One day we're brave enough To talk with conviction of the heart."

"If time has taught me anything You've got to learn to be the ball And I can't keep from laughing at it all Oh, I'm going nowI'm going all the way Sooner or later gotta love somebody I don't care how long it takes Like a shot to the heart I've got news for you I may not look so smart But I'm nobody's fool."

"Bodies working overtime, It's man against man. And all that ever matters is, baby, Who's ahead in the game. Funny, But it's always the same.Playing, Playing with the boys. Staying, Playing with the boys."

"Been working so hard, I'm punching my card. Eight hours, for what? Oh, tell me what I got. I've got this feeling That time's just holding me down. I'll hit the ceiling, Or else I'll tear up this town.So now I gotta cut loose, Footloose. Kick off the Sunday shoes. Please, Louise, Pull me off of my knees. Jack, get back, Come on before we crack. Lose your blues, Everybody cut footloose."

"Does anything last forever? I don't know Maybe we're near the end. (So darlin' tell me) So darlin', oh How can we go on together? Now that we've grown apart, oh no. Well, the only way to start Is heart to heart."

"Revvin' up your engine, Listen to her howlin' roar. Metal under tension, Beggin' you to touch and go.Highway to the Danger Zone. Ride into the Danger Zone."