The Kiss Kasket is an item of merchandise licensed by the rock band Kiss. It is a casket decorated with a Kiss logo and pictures of the band members. In introducing the Kiss Kasket, Gene Simmons said, "I love livin', but this makes the alternative look pretty damn good." [1] The Kiss Kasket went on sale in 2001; as of 2008, the original incarnation was no longer available from Kiss's website. [2] As of February 2011, the second-generation models of the Kiss Kasket became available on Kiss's website. [3]
Dimebag Darrell, the guitarist of Pantera and Damageplan, was buried in a Kiss Kasket donated by Simmons at Darrell’s funeral in 2004. His only brother, Vinnie Paul—the drummer of Pantera, Damageplan, and Hellyeah—was also buried in a Kiss Kasket at his funeral in 2018. [4] [5]
On December 1, 2010, Kissonline.com announced a new licensing agreement between Kiss and Eternal Image Inc. (a public company engaged in the designing, manufacturing, and marketing of officially licensed memorial products) to design, manufacture, and market a limited-edition line of official KISS-branded memorial products. The line will reportedly include caskets, cremation urns, bronze memorials, memorial prayer cards, registry books, memorial candles, and pet cremation urns—-all designed after the famous rock band's iconic images. [6]
Wrap Wizard, a division of Sign & Graphic Solutions, Inc. located in Newnan, Georgia produced the first mock-up of the New and improved Kiss Kasket for Gene Simmons of Kiss on December 10, 2010. [7] Five days later, on December 15, Kissonline.com provided a sneak peek and announced that the newest second generation Kiss Kaskets are in production. [8]
On the final day of December, 2010, Eternal Image, Inc. announced on its website that the latest Kiss Kaskets will be available for purchase by the end of February 2011. [9] On February 14, 2011, Eternal Image, Inc. announced that two models of the Kiss Kasket (a premium model and a standard model) are now available, [10] including images and details of the two second-generation caskets. [3]
Pantera is an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas, formed in 1981 by the Abbott brothers, and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-known lineup consisted of the Abbott brothers along with Brown and Anselmo, who joined in 1982 and 1986, respectively. The band is credited for developing and popularizing the subgenre of groove metal in the 1990s. Regarded as one of the most successful and influential bands in heavy metal history, Pantera has sold around 20 million records worldwide and has received four Grammy nominations.
Cowboys from Hell is the fifth studio album and major label debut by American heavy metal band Pantera, released on July 24, 1990, by Atco Records. It marked the first of many collaborations with producer Terry Date. This was also the album where Pantera fully abandoned the glam metal style of their previous albums in favor of a heavier sound. It has been recognized as one of the first ever groove metal albums.
A coffin is a funerary box used for viewing or keeping a corpse, for either burial or cremation.
Vulgar Display of Power is the sixth studio album by American heavy metal band Pantera. Released on February 25, 1992, through Atco Records, it was the band's second collaboration with producer Terry Date, after having worked with him on their breakthrough album Cowboys from Hell (1990).
Darrell Lance Abbott, best known by his stage name Dimebag Darrell, was an American musician. He was the guitarist of the heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan, both of which he co-founded alongside his brother Vinnie Paul. He is considered by many to be one of the greatest metal guitarists of all time.
Damageplan was an American heavy metal band from Dallas, Texas, formed in 2003. Following the demise of their previous group Pantera, brothers Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul Abbott wanted to start a new band. The pair recruited former Halford guitarist Patrick Lachman on vocals, and later Bob Zilla on bass. Damageplan released New Found Power, their only album, in February 2004. New Found Power debuted at number 38 on the Billboard 200, selling 44,676 copies in its first week.
Vincent Paul Abbott was an American musician best known for being the drummer and co-founder of the heavy metal band Pantera. He also co-founded Damageplan in 2003 with his younger brother, "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, and was a member of Hellyeah for 12 years from 2006 until his death in 2018.
New Found Power is the only studio album released by the American heavy metal supergroup Damageplan. The group was formed by brothers "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott (guitar) and Vinnie Paul Abbott (drums) after the breakup of their previous band, Pantera. This is the final album that was released during Darrell's lifetime, before his death less than 10 months after the release.
Robert Kakaha, also known as Bob Zilla, is an American musician who is the bassist for rock band Hush Money. He is best known as the former bassist of heavy metal bands Damageplan and Hellyeah.
Groove metal, sometimes also called neo-thrash or post-thrash, is a subgenre of heavy metal music that began in the early 1990s. Heavily influenced by thrash metal, groove metal features raspy singing and screaming, down-tuned guitars, heavy guitar riffs, and syncopated rhythms. Groove metal is usually slower than thrash. Pantera are often considered the pioneers of groove metal, and the genre expanded in the 1990s with bands including White Zombie, Machine Head, and Sepultura. Successful groove metal acts of the 2000s include Lamb of God, DevilDriver, and Five Finger Death Punch.
Chad Gray is an American singer, best known as the lead vocalist of heavy metal bands Mudvayne and Hellyeah.
"In This River" is a song by American heavy metal band Black Label Society, a power ballad featured on their 2005 sixth studio album Mafia. Performed entirely by guitarist, vocalist and pianist Zakk Wylde, it was released as the third single from the album and reached number 32 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.
Rebel Meets Rebel is a country metal album by David Allan Coe and Pantera members Dimebag Darrell, Rex Brown, and Vinnie Paul. The music was written and recorded by the band when the musicians had time aside from their other projects, including Pantera's world tour supporting Reinventing the Steel.
Jerry Bob Abbott was an American country music songwriter and record producer. He was the father of heavy metal musicians Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell, both formerly of Pantera and Damageplan.
Big Vin Records was an American record label based in Arlington, Texas. The company was formed in February 2006 by former Pantera, Damageplan and Hellyeah drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott and had a distribution deal with Fontana Records, which in turn is owned by Universal Music Group.
Dimevision is a series of videos that document "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott's career as a musician. The series' first installment, Dimevision Vol. One - "That's The Fun I Have...", was released on May 2, 2006, containing video clips of Darrell during his stints with Pantera and Damageplan, as well as earlier material. The series was produced by his brother, Vinnie Paul. The sequel, Roll with It or Get Rolled Over, was expected to be released in 2008, but would not become available until December 15, 2017.
The American rock band Kiss has licensed a large amount of merchandising throughout their career. According to Sandra O'Loughlin in an article for Brandweek magazine, "Kiss has licensed its name to more than 3,000 product categories, from lunch boxes and comic books to credit cards and condoms to become nearly a one-billion-dollar brand."
Hellyeah, stylized as HELLYEAH, was an American heavy metal supergroup formed in Dallas, Texas, in 2006. The band's last lineup consisted of lead vocalist Chad Gray, guitarists Christian Brady and Tom Maxwell, bassist Kyle Sanders, and drummer Roy Mayorga. The idea to form a supergroup originated in 2000 on the Tattoo the Earth tour, although plans were constantly put on hold due to scheduling conflicts. The summer of 2006 allowed the band to take the project seriously and record its first album. Recorded at Chasin' Jason studio in Dimebag Darrell's backyard, their self-titled album entered the Billboard 200 at number 9, selling 45,000 copies. They went on to release five more studio albums between 2010 and 2019. As of 2021, the band is on hiatus.
Hellyeah is the debut album by American heavy metal band Hellyeah, featuring various members of Pantera, Mudvayne, Damageplan, and Nothingface. According to MusicMight, the band finished album recordings in January 2007, and the single "You Wouldn't Know" went to U.S. radio in late February. This is the only album to feature original bassist Jerry Montano.
On December 8, 2004, four people were murdered and three others were wounded in a mass shooting at the Alrosa Villa nightclub in Columbus, Ohio, United States. The main target of the attack was "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, who was on stage performing with his band Damageplan at the time of the shooting. During the opening song, 25-year-old Nathan Gale rushed the stage and fired his gun several times, killing Abbott. Three minutes after opening fire, Gale was shot and killed by police officer James Niggemeyer.