Alrosa Villa, the Ohio nightclub where legendary Pantera and Damageplan guitarist Dimebag Darrell was killed in 2004, has been demolished.
The venue – which had been active for 45 years prior to its closure in June of this year, and had hosted a huge range of acts from Slipknot and Dream Theater to Dio in that time – was the scene of a mass shooting on December 8, 2004.
25-year-old Nathan Gale opened fire on Dimebag as he performed with Damageplan, killing him instantly. The band's head of security Jeffrey "Mayhem" Thompson and Alrosa employee Erin Halk were killed as they tried to restrain Gale, and 23-year-old Nathan Bray was gunned down as he attempted to resuscitate Dimebag and Thompson.
In the years following the shooting, Dimebag's brother and Pantera/Damageplan bandmate Vinnie Paul sued the Alrosa Villa, saying that had Gale been denied entry the tragedy could have been avoided. The suit was settled out of court in 2007.
In a Facebook post announcing the venue's closure earlier this year, staff wrote: “We've seen stars born here, unfortunately we've had stars pass away here, but the one thing that can never be taken away from us is the amazing memories we've all created along the way with magical people inside of this magical place.”
The statement went on to address the negativity associated with the venue regarding the killing of Dimebag Darrell.
“I don't personally like how the media always chose to portray the venue when talking about it because they always chose to drag it down with negativity because of the unfortunate passing of Dimebag Darrell.
“But that shouldn't be what defines Alrosa as a music venue. [It] provided so many people with so many amazing opportunities throughout the years and we are happy to say that a lot of the best musicians in the country got their start right here.”
Footage of the demolition site has been uploaded to YouTube – you can check it out below. The uploader says that “The Dime Rock” – a large rock outside the venue painted with “RIP Dime” has “either been replaced with a different rock, or they buffed the artwork off”.
Earlier this week, Guitar World met Nick Norton, a local shredder who became the last person to play Pantera's Walk solo on Dimebag Darrell's guitar, less than 24 hours before the guitarist's tragic death.
