DAVID ELLEFSON talks upcoming NICK MENZA documentary
25-01-202
The official trailer for the documentary film “This Was My Life: The Story Of Nick Menza” will premiere on Saturday January 27 at 12 p.m. PST at the Ellefson Coffee Co. booth the NAMM show inside the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California.
The premiere will be hosted by David Ellefson and Nick Menza‘s sister Donia Menza Ontiveros, and will be open to any NAMM attendees and media at the show. A question-and-answer session will follow the premiere and will include OHM:/ KINGS OF THRASH guitarist Chris Poland and close friend Dr. Randall Kertz, who was Ellefson‘s bass tech from 1989 to 1990.
The Ellefson Coffee Co. booth number 5030 will be located inside Hall D and will feature the VIP Rock & Roll Lounge Experience.
In a new interview with Francisco Zamudio of KNAC.COM, Ellefson stated about his involvement in the film: “So I got asked to narrate this movie called ‘This Was My Life: The Story Of Nick Menza’. And it’s his life story, from birth until he passed. And obviously, 10 years in there was with MEGADETH, which is certainly one of the more public parts of his life as a professional drummer. So getting asked to narrate it, and then, like I always do — look, I’ve lived with Nick on the road; I spent 10 years in the yellow submarine with him, so I know a lot of that. I know a lot of people, obviously, to connect it. So when we did the interviews, reached out to people… (Former MEGADETH guitarist) Jeff Young actually really stepped in, too; he helped us get the facility where we filmed a lot of the interview footage. We were able to get with our other fallen brother, Bob Nalbandian, to get him to comment before he passed from cancer last year. Some crew members, tour managers — really, I think, a nice spread. His family, his mom, his dad. Nick‘s dad, Don Menza, is a very, very well, highly esteemed woodwind player. I mean, first chair tenor sax for Buddy Rich, Louie Bellson. So when Nick was a kid, I think he was born in Munich, he was at these jazz festivals in Europe with his dad, and guys like Buddy Rich and Louie Bellson were handing him the drumsticks, going, ‘Have at it, kid. Hit the kit.’ So, Nick‘s story is super colorful and very cool.”
Ellefson added that it was “a lot of work” putting the Menza movie together. “It’s an independent film. We’re all kind of pitching in to make it happen,” he said. “We set a deadline to get the thing finished now and to get it out. We, of course, will go to some of the film festivals. Most of this stuff now ends up digitally on the Netflix, Tubi, these kind of platforms. So I thought this is a good time to sort of roll out another little clip of it and show everybody kind of the spirit of what the movie’s going to look like and some of the people that are in it and do a little Q&A after for the fans and some of the media that are there.”
He continued: “It’s a really heartfelt story. Nick sister, Donia, who’s kind of the ambassador for all things Nick as far as his career and professionally from back in the day… I mean, it’s her brother, so she has a real passion for this film and keeping Nick‘s story alive. Like she said, it’s her way to stay connected to Nick since he left the planet clearly too early.”
The “This Was My Life: The Story Of Nick Menza” documentary soundtrack will deliver a very diverse posthumous album worth of heavy music. The LP will consist of 12 tracks from unearthed and previously unreleased drum riffs the late MEGADETH drummer recorded for a project he assembled in 2013 called THE ATOMIC DISINTEGRATORS and is believed to be some of the final studio drum recordings of Menza before he tragically passed away 2016. Former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson played on a few of the tracks and is also served as executive producer for the project.
Collaborating musicians who participated in writing and recording process for the “This Was My Life: The Story Of Nick Menza” documentary soundtrack are as follows:
* David Ellefson (MEGADETH)
* Steve DiGiorgio (TESTAMENT)
* Rob Cavestany (DEATH ANGEL)
* Lars Frederiksen (RANCID)
* Andy Martongelli (ELLEFSON-SOTO)
* Dino Jelusick (TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA)
* Dave Linsk (OVERKILL)
* Michael Gilbert (FLOTSAM AND JETSAM)
* John Howard (THREAT SIGNAL)
* James MacDonough (ICED EARTH)
* Ilias Papadakis (MEMORAIN)
* Chris Valagao (ZIMMERS HOLE)
* Davor Garasic (SUFOSIA)
* David Corral (L.A. CALLING)
* Stephanie Jayne (Solo Artist)
* Marialena Trikoglou (Solo Artist)
12 songs have since been completed and will be available in the upcoming feature-length documentary film and to be later released under THE ATOMIC DISINTEGRATORS moniker.
Ellefson recently successfully completed the narration for “This Was My Life: The Story of Nick Menza”.
Executive producer, director and editor Holly Mollohan from the West Virginia-based Screaming Butterfly Entertainment is currently in the studio editing the film’s official trailer.
Menza‘s longtime personal manager Robert Bolger stated: “Going through all of Nick‘s personal and private VHS tape collection, photos and audio files was by far the best part of making this documentary. There’s so much material I went through, listening to all the unreleased drum tracks, gathering all the footage from the live shows, backstage, on the tour bus, in the studio, fans and the interviews was an absolute amazing task piecing everything together. What amazing life Nick lived and a legacy he left behind.”
Ellefson previously stated about his involvement with the film: “The making of the Nick Menza documentary has been such a joy for all of us, like a sort of MEGA family reunion where we shared stories, laughs and even a few tears around Nick and what he meant to so many of us. I think this film and soundtrack will touch the hearts of the fans and viewers in the same way, as we remember his larger-than-life character behind the drum kit, but also his lovable charm and warmth that made him the beloved one of a treasured musical legacy.”
The Menza family previously stated: “We are excited for the fans to see the life Nick lived before, during, and after MEGADETH, it was quite the journey. Stay tuned for an epic documentary. As Nick would say, ‘It’s gonna be RAD.”
“This Was My Life” will be the first-ever film to memorialize Menza‘s legacy and celebrate his life exactly how it was. It is described in a press release as “an unflinching exploration into the life of one of the most successful thrash-metal drummers of all time, authorized by the Menza family. From his childhood all the way through to the end of his life including a true blow-by-blow account of the repeated failed attempts of the classic ‘Rust In Peace’ lineup.”
“This Was My Life” will feature rare and never-before-seen photos and video footage from Nick’s archived VHS tape collection, personally filmed by Menza himself from 1988 through 1991. Included will be exclusive content showcasing Nick working at the studio, personal home movies, casual time and party time with his fellow bandmembers, as well as other well-known artists of the era that Nick toured with.
“This Was My Life” will include interviews with the Menza family and close friends, and former MEGADETH members Chris Poland, Jeff Young, former LAMB OF GOD/MEGADETH drummer Chris Adler, former MEGADETH tour manager Skip Rickert, Nick‘s drum tech Rob Corsie, legendary rock and roll photographer Gene Kirkland, film director, late metal historian, journalist and filmmaker Bob Nalbandian, James Rota and Emily Burton of FIREBALL MINISTRY, Terri Evans, Peter Flyn, John “Gumby” Goodwin, Bert Wolf, David Randi, Rob Schaefer, Juan “Nico” Alvarez, Robertino “Pag” Pagliari, Iki Levy of Soultone cymbals, and David Corral of L.A. CALLING.
Late in the evening on May 21, 2016, Nick collapsed behind his drum kit after suffering a heart attack during a concert with Chris Poland and Robertino “Pag” Pagliari in their band OHM: at The Baked Potato in Studio City, California and was pronounced dead upon arrival at the hospital. The Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner-Coroner said Menza died of hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Menza rightfully earned his place as heavy metal’s fiercest drummer during MEGADETH‘s 10-year peak at the top. The highlight of his career, Nick said, was playing Rock In Rio before more than 100,000 people. The lowest point was being fired by MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine while he was still in a hospital bed after surgery to remove what doctors feared was a cancerous growth.
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