I'd Sure Like to See Shotgun Messiah Reunite...

"Heartbreak Blvd." is one of my favorite "rare" Glam tunes. Shotgun Messiah were pretty underrated during the 80s Glam days. I was out and about doing a million Saturday errands when "Heartbreak Blvd." came on Hair Nation. I was one happy lady for the next three and a half minutes.

I don't know if there will ever be a Shotgun Messiah reunion...but I sure hope so!

Breaking News: Kix Opens for Judas Priest!

Earlier this week, Whitesnake officially left the Judas Priest tour. Whitesnake front man David Coverdale is dealing with some serious throat issues and doctors told him not to sing for at least two weeks.

I can't say who will replace Whitesnake on all the remaining shows, but I can confirm Kix will open for Judas Priest on Saturday, August 22 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Baltimore, Maryland. If you are a fan of both Kix and Priest, this is an exceptionally rare chance to see both bands in action.

Pop Evil performs before Kix. Tickets are still available via Ticketmaster.

Digging Deeper: Rock Gone Wild Unfolds (Part 6)

Rob Rogers has provided Bring Back Glam! with documents that prove he was was bought-out of his stake in Rock Gone Wild. Festival manager Nathalie Faghihi and her husband, Bruce Rage, purchased Mr. Rogers 33.3% stake in the company for one dollar. Click to view the documents:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

Attorney Austin Kennedy of Brick Gentry P.C. in Des Moines, Iowa drafted the agreement. He also created the original LLC document.

Rogers tells Bring Back Glam! he took the buy out to be“...free and clear of the mess they [RGW promoters] had created of what they were doing. It was a mess because Nathalie didn’t have the money she originally said she had to do the show when it started months and months earlier."

Rock Gone Wild attorney Ted Sporer plans to file suit against Diamond Jo casino for fraud in the coming days. 

Story developing...

Missed a part of this large story? Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

Digging Deeper: Rock Gone Wild Unfolds (Part 5)

Rock Gone Wild’s official website is once again operational, asking ticket holders to enter their name and date of ticket purchase. The site does not specifically guarantee refunds.

Yesterday, Rock Gone Wild attorney Ted Sporer announced to media that the event is “officially canceled.” He also told the Globe Gazette of Mason City, Iowa that he is planning to pursue fraud charges against Diamond Jo casino in Northwood, Iowa. Promoters for Rock Gone Wild allege the casino reneged on their agreement to host the festival.

This may not be the only legal battle surrounding the festival’s cancellation. Phil McCormick is the state coordinator for ABATE of Iowa. He worked closely with Rock Gone Wild organizers for a year. Now he’s working with lawyers.

“Our attorney is still working on it. He had sent her a letter, saying we’ll take X number of dollars for a settlement or we’re gonna have to go to court. I called and emailed to ask her [Natahlie Faghihi, festival manager] if she was going to go with the settlement or what and that’s when she said she was bankrupt and she gave the whole business over to Donnie Frizzell [promoter].”

After Rock Gone Wild officially canceled the event via their attorney yesterday, officials with ABATE of Iowa released a statement that reads in part:

ABATE of Iowa would like to express our empathy for the many people who had hoped to enjoy a mega rock concert in Iowa. Our only part in the concert was a contract dated August 26th 2008 to lease out our land called Freedom Park to Jpot Entertainment for a fee. The promoters were to provide everything else including Bands, security, food, tickets, restroom facilities, vendors, insurance, etc. They breached their contract with ABATE on July 17th 2009 when instead of sending a portion of the payment originally promised and over due; they publicly announced that Rock Gone Wild had been moved to the Diamond Jo Casino. A few of the reasons we were given included worries about flooding, roads not large enough for tour buses, airport concerns, and not enough hotels in the area.

ABATE, on advice of legal council (sic), sent an offer by email on July 22nd to Nazli Faghihi* whom the contract was with. We followed that with a registered letter; allowing ten days to respond or face legal proceedings for breach of contract. That email and letter have both gone unanswered. Jpot Entertainment has yet to fulfill their original obligation with us.

“I feel sorry for the ticketholders,” McCormick continues. “The ticketholders are the victims. They are being stuck with a lot of money put out, thinking they were going to go to a good concert. We were looking forward to it too. The whole city of Algona. We have a lot of fences to mend I guess, trying to keep our name above water. We worked hard to get a good reputation in that area.”

McCormick thinks money issues may have caused the move from Freedom Park to the casino.

“...There were some bills that were not getting paid I think, and we had an inkling they were downsizing a bit. Early on, when they first organized they were talking of a 220 foot wide stage and a big production. Over the Fourth of July weekend, Donnie Frizzell and his logistics team came up to our park during our motorcycle rally and looked things over and they decided they were going to downsize and use our stage as the “A” stage. Ours is only a 40 x 50 – a permanent stage – so I figured there must be some sort of financial difficulty going on at the time.”

In the midst of the apparent cancellation, Ms. Faghihi contacted Mr. McCormick to try and move the festival back to Freedom Park.

“She called me around noon that day [August 7] and asked, ‘I know you guys are probably mad at me, but is there any chance we can come back to your park? I can’t afford to pay you the rent we had in the contract.’”

McCormick says he told her that the festival couldn’t move back without payment. Lawyers also advised McCormick against the move, citing the breach of contract and short time to secure insurance and prepare the venue.

“We told them that when we first signed the contract, ‘Don’t screw this up for us. We have a good reputation with the city and they love having us come there.'"

*Note: Ms. Faghihi presents herself as both Nathalie and Nazli. She also sometimes goes by the surname Tarabadi.

Digging Deeper: Rock Gone Wild Unfolds (Part 4)

“I live in California and I too had plans to attend the Rock Gone Wild festival,” says one rock fan who wishes to be identified as ScotleyCrue. “I am mad that this event is not taking place... I could scream. I’ve already cried! Some buddies and I from various states had a reunion planned where we were all going to meet up in Iowa and rock out for four days!

With fans like ScotleyCrue investing hundreds of dollars in tickets alone, the heat is on for answers.

Wednesday, Rock Gone Wild promoters met with attorney Ted Sporer to discuss refunds and if fans would be officially notified of the cancellation. Last Friday, festival organizers posted a statement online, stating that Northwood, Iowa based Diamond Jo Casino refused to honor its obligation to provide a venue for the event. Bring Back Glam! left a message with Rock Gone Wild attorney Ted Sporer late yesterday looking for resolution from that meeting. Mr. Sporer did not return the call.

“I don’t think we will ever hear from the Rock Gone Wild promoters again,” ScotleyCrue says sadly.

But what about all the other money? Ticket sales are just a small part of funds surrounding a multi-day open air event. Vendors purchased licenses to exhibit. Many of those licenses were at the thousand dollar mark. Sponsors also contributed money and time to get Rock Gone Wild off the ground. Then there’s the confusing estimation of how much volunteer work is actually worth. By all accounts, Rock Gone Wild had a stable of volunteers from the get-go, working on passing out flyers, posting on forums, making T-shirts and the like.

“There will be a chain of lawsuits,” Mr. Sporer told Bring Back Glam! earlier this week. The lawyer also said he fully expects vendors to sue Rock Gone Wild and such suits will roll-up into the bigger case Rock Gone Wild plans to wage against Diamond Jo Casino.

Auxiliary costs aside, there are still many questions about the true financial state of the festival. If things were going so well, why did promoters choose to move from Algona to Northwood at the elventh hour? If things were planned so well in advance, why did festival manager Nathalie Faghihi talk with  Rob Rogers via phone just three weeks ago, asking for help securing sound and lighting? Do festivals wait so close to the event to secure such an integral vendor?

“It doesn’t happen,” affirms Mr. Rogers. “Twenty years in this business I’ve never seen it happen. Months before...probably three months minimum because you have to have those people advance out with the artists.”

Festival promoter Donnie Frizzell granted an interview to Wyldside Radio Monday night. Station owner Cory Parkin teased the 60 minute clip for three days, until pulling the plug on the interview during his broadcast last night. It seems Rock Gone Wild organizers claimed “legal issues” with the interview. Mr. Parkin says the interview is “very, very hot,” and he couldn’t morally air it but it does contain many answers for fans. If the answers to the ticketholders main questions are in that interview, why not air it? Did Mr. Frizzell place blame unduly on innocent parties? Were trade secrets revealed? It is Mr. Parkin’s right to air the interview – he doesn’t need clearance from Rock Gone Wild if Frizzell already granted him permission. During his disclaimer, Mr. Parkin explained that the interview could cause “problems for a lot of people.” The question many now have is just which group of people? The promoters or the ticketholders?

More to come.

Digging Deeper: Rock Gone Wild Unfolds (Part 3)

With just days to go, Rock Gone Wild canceled, leaving fans confused and angered over a loss of a massive concert – and possible ticket funds. While the issue of refunds is still up in the air, I’m continuing to look backward, piecing together why the event fell apart so close to the finish line.

At the beginning stages of the festival, Nathalie Faghihi worked closely with a man named Rob Rogers. He’s spent his career running concerts and was operations director for the first Rocklahoma in 2007. He held the same position with Rock Gone Wild. Rogers left the festival in April. After his departure, Faghihi alleged Rogers made off with a large sum of money from an official Rock Gone Wild bank account. The allegation was recently corroborated online, in a statement from A.B.A.T.E. of Iowa. That statement reads, in part:

After several meetings, an agreement was made on the rent for Freedom Park, in August 2008 the contract was signed. Nat & Bruce came here to see the park with a new partner, Rob Rogers, (he since has proven to less than a desirable character) supposedly making off with a bunch of their money. Late spring 2009, they canned Rob, and brought on Donnie Frizzel (sic) as a partner...

The “Nat and Bruce” mentioned are Ms. Faghihi and Bruce Rage, her husband. Rob Rogers says he never stole any money.

“She [Ms. Faghihi] was given complete record keeping...of all banking,” says Mr. Rogers. “I as a person with the company was allowed to take a salary, which I did take, and it’s all on record and recorded. She’s got about 30 to 40 thousand locked up in a security account – which she says I stole – but it’s actually locked up in a security insurance account for Cornerstone Merchant account, which was the merchant account that was set up.” Bring Back Glam! is contacting Cornerstone for comment.

So if everything is on the up and up, why did Rob Rogers suddenly leave the festival? “I was an owner of the company and I was a shareholder of the company before I was bought out and I was allowed to take a salary for my work,” Rogers explains. “That’s kind of the American way. Generally you do get an income for your job.”

Rogers tells Bring Back Glam! he was bought out of his contract with Rock Gone Wild for one dollar. He says he still has the check.

“As far as money goes, it’s real simple: if I had stole money, I would have been prosecuted for it,” affirms Rogers. “Not bought out. Not bought out for a dollar. Not bought out for a nickel. Not bought out for a penny. I would not have been bought out if I’d stolen money. Once you buy them out and sign a release saying they have no liability, if they did steal it, you’ve just released them from all liability. My buyout clearly states that I have no financial obligations to that festival in any way, shape or form.”

Rock Gone Wild was supposed to take place August 20-23 at Diamond Jo Casino in Northwood, Iowa.

The story continues tomorrow...

Digging Deeper: Rock Gone Wild Unfolds (Part 2)

Bring Back Glam! continues to investigate the unraveling of Rock Gone Wild, the multi-day festival originally scheduled for August 20-23 in Northwood, Iowa. The festival was canceled Friday with this statement posted online:

Rock Gone Wild, an Iowa based LLC was informed by Diamond Jo Casino, LLC legal counsel on August 5, 2009, that the event cannot take place anywhere on the licensed premises. Due to Diamond Jo Casino, LLC refusing to honor its obligation to provide the venue, we are unable to produce the event as planned. This matter has been referred to legal counsel.

The phrase “...the event cannot take place anywhere on the license premises” left ticketholders scrambling and confused. Was the event really canceled? Most presumed yes. As of this writing, no other official statement has been issued by RGW management.

An online report yesterday in the Globe Gazette (out of Mason City, IA) quotes Ted Sporer, legal counsel for Rock Gone Wild. In the article, he states “...We would very much like to save the concert. At this point, I don’t know if that’s feasible. There will be information on that in the very near future.”

I contacted both Nathalie Faghihi (festival manager) and Donnie Frizzell (promoter) for an interview. Mr. Frizzell referred me to Mr. Sporer. Ms. Faghihi did not respond. Mr. Sporer began representing Rock Gone Wild LLC Thursday, one day before the event was canceled.

The very first question I had for Mr. Sporer regarded the Globe Gazette piece and the possibility of the festival happening after all. “Over the weekend...we were still attempting to revive the event,” explains Sporer. “[It] doesn’t look very likely we will bring it back...at least not this year.”

When I followed up about the possibility of a Rock Gone Wild festival during 2010, the attorney stated that “he didn’t want to commit his clients.”

But how did it all fall apart? Rock Gone Wild was supposed to kick off next week. Some have speculated about the lack of a contract with the Diamond Jo Casino. “There was an exchange of emails,” Sporer assures me. When I inquired about the legality of even a verbal agreement, the attorney for Rock Gone Wild explained “...Even a verbal agreement is sufficient to bind an event.”

Bring Back Glam! contacted a third party for legal advice. The source, an attorney speaking on the condition of anonymity, agrees with Sporer – to a point. “A verbal contract can be binding, and as such, an agreement worked out via email could also be binding,” explains my source. “It in no way is a slam dunk win.” My source then proceeded to give me a class in Contracts 101. I soon learned contracts are made of basically six parts: Offer, Acceptance, Meeting of the Minds/mutuality of Obligation, Legal Purpose, Consideration and Competent Parties. My source concludes his lesson by explaining there is no requirement that a contract be in writing.

“[This is] no scam,” asserts Mr. Sporer. “I assure you there will be ample litigation.” Litigation because Rock Gone Wild plans to bring suit against Diamond Jo Casino. Exact terms of the suit were not disclosed, but Mr. Sporer told me the lawsuit will be filed “within the next seven to ten days.” He also promises Bring Back Glam! receive a copy of the legal documents after the filing. Other online news outlets cite possible problems with Diamond Jo and the land agreement. Calls placed with Diamond Jo Casino regarding the potential lawsuit were not returned.

While legal papers are drawn up, fans still wait for their refunds. “I can’t speak to information at this point regarding refunds,” says Sporer. The attorney promises to issue an official statement regarding refunds when all information is gathered.

“My clients are in shock,” Sporer admits. “I’ve never had a situation where anyone pulled out at this late notice on such a big event. They are up to their ears in proverbial alligators. This is a big problem...it’s a terrible time.”

Twisted Sister, Saving Abel, Candlebox, Lita Ford, Kix, Puddle of Mudd and many more were scheduled to play Rock Gone Wild.

Even more tomorrow.