Category: Uncategorized

https://youtu.be/eRZMkkJWMGI

Jason McMaster (Dangerous Toys, Watchtower), Sabrina Cruz (Seven Kingdoms), and Farhad Hossain (Shumaun) talk with SLAM’s own Jack Mangan about:

*Common perceptions of singers as lazy, ego-maniacal primadonnas.
*The pressures on the singer to perform through sickness, fatigue, insecurity, etc.
*Warmup rituals and voice care.
*Love for: Jack Frost, Todd LaTorre, Municipal Waste, Pat Benatar, Geddy Lee, Elton John, Metallica, David Lee Roth, and more
*Wait, are singers burping onstage??

Quotes from the episode:
*It looks exactly like a bong, but it’s not.
*LSD: Lead Singer Disease.
*it’s that whatever your kung fu is. It’s not going to be my kung fu right? And I’m amazed at that that there’s just not one way for each of us to get through the day and tomorrow might be different.
*I like the weirdo Metal.
*This is really awesome and therapeutic for me to talk to you guys about this shit, because obviously it’s a thing.
*People don’t reach out because it means . . . they think they failed.
*I’m very introverted, right? So when I’m on stage, it’s like a different side of me than how I am like offstage.
*I’m a woman. So I get. . . extremely sexualized.

https://watchtowerband.com/
https://dangeroustoys.us/
https://www.shumaun.com/
https://screamingmonkeysband.com/
https://www.sevenkingdomsofficial.com/

Amy Sciarretto: award-winning publicist, rescue dog goddess, Jersey Girl. From her storied history with Roadrunner Records to founding her own top-tier publicity firm, Amy is known and beloved across the music industry. She has tremendous wisdom to share about preserving your mental health – – not just in the music industry, but in everyone’s day-to-day lives.
Some quotes and topics from this episode:
~Amy’s work with bulldogs, and how it relates to mental health.
~Jack tells a college radio story involving John Bambino.
~“Artists are artists. They’re insane about their art in the best possible way, and they should be.”
~“Let’s not pretend that Rock and Roll is sanitized.”
~“Sometimes you just need somebody to pull up a chair, just pull up a chair and listen.”
~“I know time heals wounds. But what am I supposed to do with all this pain right now?”

https://atomsplitterpr.com/

Acclaimed journalist, Steve Rosen, speaks with Jack Mangan of Support Life And Music about his 2024 book, “Tonechaser,” chronicling the rise, fall, and end of his close friendship with Edward Van Halen.

Some topics/quotes from this Summit:
~Alex Van Halen’s book (SPOILER: Steve likes it)
~”But what do I do now? Do I keep writing the book? People are going to think: ‘Edward passes away, and you know you’re going to just write a book and cash in on that,’ and the thought of that made me sick in my stomach.”
~”And I will tell you that those 1st 2 albums, and the 1st 2 tours is when he was happiest, in my mind. Everything was new to him, you know, and everything was an adventure and an exploration.”
~”Without trying to be glib or anything, I knew that early on the cigarettes were were going to kill him. They’re going to kill him before the coke or the alcohol did. . . And you know, that’s sadly what happened.”
~”. . . and Blackmore was amazing, and I know I kind of say those things about him, and I write about him in the book. That’s just who Richie Blackmore was. That doesn’t take away one ounce of who he was as a guitar, player and songwriter. My God! The sound of his guitar!”
~”I’ve seen a lot of journalists who have been running for years, and I saw how blase they got. I thought, you fuckers! Do you know how lucky you are sitting in that room?”
~”And Edward would say over and over, ‘Yeah, I’ve never played sober,’ you know, and he was terrified to do it. Could he have done it? Yeah, absolutely.”
~”Could these guys have created without the drugs. I certainly think so. Did they think so? They didn’t. And so that becomes part of the process. I don’t think it’s necessarily self destructive. I don’t think that they set out to damage themselves.”

David Ellefson (ex-Megadeth, Kings of Thrash, Dieth) and Burton C. Bell (ex-Fear Factory, ex-Ministry, ex-G/Z/R, Ascension of the Watchers) make their first-ever co-panelist appearances together on this Support Life And Music SLAM Summit episode, hosted by Jack Mangan.

David and Burton both dispense wisdom and advice about the music life and the music business with smarts and humor. This may be one of our most quotable episodes yet.

Watch out for those red flags!

Check out the video and subscribe to the Support Life And Music YouTube channel while you’re there.

https://www.davidellefson.com/

https://www.burtoncbell.com/

Are comic book superstars allowed to participate in a SLAM Summit?

Absolutely.

Coffin Comics titans, Brian Pulido and Sorah Suhng talk with Jack Mangan at the Coffin Comics HQ to talk for a few minutes about their careers and about the tools and mindset to persist.

Coffin Comics have created a host of iconic characters over the years, including the iconic Lady Death.

Don’t miss it.

https://coffincomicsshop.com/

https://www.sorahsuhng.com/

Life can be hard to manage, especially for artists, and especially for those who work with artists. So we assembled another all-star panel to discuss the perils of the music life from backstage, the office, the highway rest stop – – basically everywhere but the stage.

Michael Brandvold (Blackie Lawless, KISS, Bravewords), Pamela Parks (David Ellefson, Kings of Thrash, Kill Devil Hill), and Jarvis Leatherby (Night Demon, Cirith Ungol, Midnight) join Jack Mangan to talk about how to survive, stay sane, and safely navigate the dangers of managing artists – – at all levels. And yes, with this group, you know there are some KISS tangents.

Michael Brandvold – https://michaelbrandvold.com/blog/

Jarvis Leatherby – https://theheavymetalstore.bandcamp.com/

Pamela Parks – https://headity.com/

Artist Sorah Suhng (Coffin Comics, Marvel, Valiant, Image, Vault, Karnal Sins) delivers this wonderful message of hope and support for Support Life And Music.

https://www.sorahsuhng.com

Burton C. Bell is the trailblazing founding vocalist of Fear Factory, whose powerful talent has also shone in projects with G/Z/R, Ministry, Ascension of the Watchers, and his solo material. He was inducted into the official Metal Hall of Fame in January 2025.
What follows is an excerpt of Burton’s Metal Hall acceptance speech, reposted here with his permission. It’s an inspiring explanation of what motivates great artists to navigate their difficult, treacherous, often-punishing journeys in pursuit of artistic fulfillment.
Huge shoutout and thanks to Pamela Parks.

“I have been an artist my entire life, and I have been very fortunate to live my life through creativity for the past 35 years. To choose the life of an artist is a voluntary choice toward the path of MOST RESISTANCE. Much like Sisyphus pushing his boulder up the mountain, or Icarus spreading his wax wings to fly beneath the sun, the life of an artist can be frustrating, and even disheartening. It’s the process of creativity that offers purpose to my life. 

Creation it is an addiction I have. Much like other vices, where you rise and feel the high, or when you fall to crash, and burn. Always chasing that dragon. It is not for the fame, infamy, adoration, or disdain that drives most of us, it is that spike of beautiful dopamine we feel when our creativity is blossoming into creations. 

This is what has always driven me in every medium, or media, I create with. Striving for greatness in my art, always evolving in my pursuit for a daunting perfection to reflect who I am through art, music, and words I create. To honor the artists whom I look up to, and living that reflection the reflection of their work, is what life is all about.”

Burton C. Bell, 2025

♫

(Photo from Burton C. Bell’s 2025 Metal Hall of Fame red-carpet interview with Jack Mangan. Full video available on The Metal Voice Facebook page)

This one hits Closer to the Heart. Two incredible guests joined Jack Mangan for this S.L.A.M. Summit, focused on creatives persevering through grief.

~Kevin J. Anderson. New York Times best-selling author, wonderful human, and close friend and collaborator of Neil Peart.
https://wordfire.com/series-books-in-order/

~Cathy Rankin. Musician, journalist, actress, model, spokesperson, emcee, a damn good writer, and another wonderful human.
https://www.cathyrankin.com/

Hosted by Jack Mangan, founder/Executive Director of Support Life And Music, journalist, podcaster, author, musician, owner of many nice hats.

S.L.A.M. interstitial from comics legend, Brian Pulido, of Coffin Comics https://coffincomicsshop.com/

Topics covered:
♫ Neil Peart
♫ The Bubba Bash celebration of Neil Peart (https://support.cedars-sinai.edu/fundraiser/5043373)
♫ Cathy Rankin’s “Now You’ve Gone” tribute to Neil Peart: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44RtTwgLgvY
♫ Kevin J. Anderson’s “Clockwork Angels” books, co-written with Neil Peart
♫ Rush
♫ The grief journey
♫ Loss
♫ Coping mechanisms
♫ Positive habits
♫ Kevin J. Anderson’s career
♫ Rebecca Moesta
♫ Writing
♫ You sometimes drive me crazy, but I worry about you.

“My life in sobriety is very rich and full and I feel like I can do anything. I am now becoming the person I have always wanted to be. Friends and family know that I’m reliable and responsible and they can count on me. I am here to be of good service to everyone that I meet.

“Life is still a mystery to me, though I have learned many valuable lessons along the way. And the most important lesson I have learned is to live in love and not fear. It took me a long time to get there. I know many strive for perfection, which I don’t believe exists. But what I do know is that I work on myself every day to be the best person I can be, so that I can show compassion and gratitude to everyone I encounter.”

– Michael Alago

I Am Michael Alago:
Breathing Music. Signing Metallica. Beating Death