http://www.oleantimesherald.com/articles/2010/02/05/editorial/doc4b6c8983e3e87653476521.txt
Living, loving the music
“The way I see it, all music is there to entertain us, and like I read in a letter in a guitar magazine once, the music may be here forever, but we won’t. So I plan on checking out as much of it as I can while I’m here, because music is my life.”
- Will Hall, 1999
There are some people who like music. There are others who love it.
And then there are the very rare people who live music. Not living for the scene, the fashion or clout associated with music, but actually living for the songs. Will Hall was one of those people.
Will died Jan. 28 at his home in Buffalo at the age of 38 of an apparent heart attack. He had been living in Buffalo over the past few years after moving away from the Olean area.
Certain corners of the Internet have been abuzz since Will’s passing as friends have gathered to share memories. Buffalonians and fans of The Rabies - Will’s Buffalo-based goth punk band - have left kind words. People like myself from the Olean area, who remember Will as a multi-instrumentalist in bands like Hesher and Ambulance Drunk, have shared their thoughts.
And then there are the very rare people who live music. Not living for the scene, the fashion or clout associated with music, but actually living for the songs. Will Hall was one of those people.
Will died Jan. 28 at his home in Buffalo at the age of 38 of an apparent heart attack. He had been living in Buffalo over the past few years after moving away from the Olean area.
Certain corners of the Internet have been abuzz since Will’s passing as friends have gathered to share memories. Buffalonians and fans of The Rabies - Will’s Buffalo-based goth punk band - have left kind words. People like myself from the Olean area, who remember Will as a multi-instrumentalist in bands like Hesher and Ambulance Drunk, have shared their thoughts.
His friends from high school in Hinsdale and college at Fredonia have had a lot of great things to say. And there has been an outpour of emotion from Will’s friends on an online heavy metal message board called Metal Sludge.
This was a side of Will I knew nothing about. I did know about his epic record collection and his equally stunning knowledge of music and musicianship, but I wasn’t privy to his lofty position on this heavy metal message board.
At Metal Sludge, Will was known by his handle of IggyPopWillEatItself, and by the memories that are being shared on a Facebook group titled, “In Loving Memory of Will Hall (1972-2010), it is clear that he was high on the totem pole on the message board.
Dozens of Metal Sludge posters have shared some very touching thoughts on someone they didn’t know in person.
“I used to joke that you could name demos that bands did that the bands themselves didnt even know they did ...Your knowledge on music was amazing. RIP Iggy!” one Metal Sludger wrote. Messages like this from in-person friends and Internet friends go on and on.
For once, the beauty of technology and social networking is on display.
Without them, it’s safe to say that hundreds of people would have missed out on Will.
I was first introduced to Will as a teenager. At the time, Olean had a growing punk music scene, and Will, then in his late-20s, was clearly seen as an elder among the mostly teenage crowd.
Rather than snub all the new kids who started to arrive at the shows, Will was a source of guidance and encouragement.
I can recall talking to Will about the music I was into back then. I told Will I was into California punk bands like Bad Religion, Lagwagon and NOFX. The next time I saw Will, he had mixed me a tape of bands who had influenced the bands I liked - groups like D.I., the Adolescents and Youth Brigade.
I remember looking at the tape in my hand and wondering what Will wanted in return. To my surprise, he didn’t want anything, he just wanted to share his love of music with everyone. And I played the heck out of that tape.
As much fun as I had in the Olean scene, it was still fraught with infighting and scene politics. A lot was made out of people’s musical preferences and whether those preferences were “punk.”
Will spoke out against the perceived importance of labels in a column he wrote for the short-lived Punks Before Profits ’zine in 1999.
“There’s a whole lot of music out there, and it seems a shame to not check out as much of it as you can. And don’t worry about labels. Punk? Metal? Alternative? Goth? Classic rock? Jazz? Blues? Who cares? If you like it, you like it, and that’s all that matters. Music is meant to touch your soul, not impress your friends,” Will wrote.
That statement fit Will perfectly. He liked Megadeth, but he also appreciated The Cure. Isn’t that against the rules? Not in Will’s world - a much less judgmental and probably a more enjoyable world than the one most of us live in.
Will once told me he had done an interview with heavy metal legend Glenn Danzig while working at the college radio station in Fredonia.
This notion blew my 16-year-old mind since I was and still am a big Danzig fan. I felt lucky just to talk to Will about talking with Danzig - I couldn’t believe that someone I knew had spoken to my favorite singer and songwriter.
Apparently, as the years went by, Danzig himself learned to appreciate Will the way so many others did, although I’m not quite sure how they connected.
A photo was recently taken outside the brooding rocker’s home in California and posted online. Attached to the big black gate that surrounds Danzig’s home was a note.
“RIP IPWEI (IggyPopWillEatHimself) Will Hall 1972-2010,” the note says.
Thank you, Will Hall, for your music, your knowledge and your friendship.
This was a side of Will I knew nothing about. I did know about his epic record collection and his equally stunning knowledge of music and musicianship, but I wasn’t privy to his lofty position on this heavy metal message board.
At Metal Sludge, Will was known by his handle of IggyPopWillEatItself, and by the memories that are being shared on a Facebook group titled, “In Loving Memory of Will Hall (1972-2010), it is clear that he was high on the totem pole on the message board.
Dozens of Metal Sludge posters have shared some very touching thoughts on someone they didn’t know in person.
“I used to joke that you could name demos that bands did that the bands themselves didnt even know they did ...Your knowledge on music was amazing. RIP Iggy!” one Metal Sludger wrote. Messages like this from in-person friends and Internet friends go on and on.
For once, the beauty of technology and social networking is on display.
Without them, it’s safe to say that hundreds of people would have missed out on Will.
I was first introduced to Will as a teenager. At the time, Olean had a growing punk music scene, and Will, then in his late-20s, was clearly seen as an elder among the mostly teenage crowd.
Rather than snub all the new kids who started to arrive at the shows, Will was a source of guidance and encouragement.
I can recall talking to Will about the music I was into back then. I told Will I was into California punk bands like Bad Religion, Lagwagon and NOFX. The next time I saw Will, he had mixed me a tape of bands who had influenced the bands I liked - groups like D.I., the Adolescents and Youth Brigade.
I remember looking at the tape in my hand and wondering what Will wanted in return. To my surprise, he didn’t want anything, he just wanted to share his love of music with everyone. And I played the heck out of that tape.
As much fun as I had in the Olean scene, it was still fraught with infighting and scene politics. A lot was made out of people’s musical preferences and whether those preferences were “punk.”
Will spoke out against the perceived importance of labels in a column he wrote for the short-lived Punks Before Profits ’zine in 1999.
“There’s a whole lot of music out there, and it seems a shame to not check out as much of it as you can. And don’t worry about labels. Punk? Metal? Alternative? Goth? Classic rock? Jazz? Blues? Who cares? If you like it, you like it, and that’s all that matters. Music is meant to touch your soul, not impress your friends,” Will wrote.
That statement fit Will perfectly. He liked Megadeth, but he also appreciated The Cure. Isn’t that against the rules? Not in Will’s world - a much less judgmental and probably a more enjoyable world than the one most of us live in.
Will once told me he had done an interview with heavy metal legend Glenn Danzig while working at the college radio station in Fredonia.
This notion blew my 16-year-old mind since I was and still am a big Danzig fan. I felt lucky just to talk to Will about talking with Danzig - I couldn’t believe that someone I knew had spoken to my favorite singer and songwriter.
Apparently, as the years went by, Danzig himself learned to appreciate Will the way so many others did, although I’m not quite sure how they connected.
A photo was recently taken outside the brooding rocker’s home in California and posted online. Attached to the big black gate that surrounds Danzig’s home was a note.
“RIP IPWEI (IggyPopWillEatHimself) Will Hall 1972-2010,” the note says.
Thank you, Will Hall, for your music, your knowledge and your friendship.
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