“Mike is the perfect person to capture the spirit of Dime,” says Haney, “with his rebellious ‘stand up for your family and by your friends’ attitude and always shooting straight from the heart. Mike and Dime are two peas in a pod—rock stars and legends in two different realms, but not so different…entwined with the same ferocious intensity and presence in each of their performances and, at the same time, they both bear the most genuine of gentle hearts… I am very honored to have Elephant Brand Skateboards represent another passion of Darrell’s—skating!”

Officially licensed and paying tribute to one of the greatest guitar players of all time, Dimebag Darrell, the Dimebag board comes in a sick mid-’80s-inspired shape but has the concave and pop of any modern-day board. “What’s important to know is that this is not just a piece of merch. This is a skateboard meant to be skated—something that Dime did and loved,” says Vallely. The board is available at dimebaghardware.com

The video features skaters Mike Vallely and Stone Hendrikx at Darrell and Rita’s home in Texas, AKA “The Fortress.” Also in the video are appearances by Rita Haney, Eric Hendrikx, and characters from the Pantera home videos and Dimevision video including Jeff “Outlaw the Redneck Landscaper” Thull and Jason “Blackey” Lackey. The video was filmed and edited by Eric Hendrikx (co-author of Zakk Wylde’s Bringing Metal to the Children) and Stone Hendrikx, a competitive street skater, with edits and animation by Andrew Parker of Elephant Brand Skateboards.

“Dime’s life and legacy is something I value,” states Vallely. “As a Pantera fan and as a fan of Dimebag, to share his life, music and legacy through skateboarding… Man, it’s just too cool.”

The video soundtrack “Twisted,” a previously unreleased song, was written and performed by Dimebag and available on CDBaby (cdbaby.com/cd/dimebag1) and iTunes. “It’s a real testament to Dime’s talent as a writer and singer,” says Vallely. “I love the song. It’s really incredible. And what an honor to have this never-before-heard song accompany the video for the Dimebag board.”

Haney provided the music from her collection of Darrell’s personal archives. “This little ditty is one Dime created after we moved into the hut in DWG, Texas–Darrell triumphantly referred our home as ‘The Fortress.’ It was just before his 30th birthday in July of ’96–hence the line, ‘I lived the lives of a million men/Yet I ain’t even 30 years old.’ When we were selecting a song for the video, ‘Twisted’ was the first that came to mind and, after seeing what Eric and Stone Hendrikx captured on video, it was the perfect song and vibe—100 percent Dime-style!”

“One of my fondest memories was when Darrell played me the song for the first time and he said, ‘Did ya catch it? You went Gold!’” states Haney. “He was referring to the last chorus where he sings, ‘Can you feel me in your soul? I’ve been by your side for 10 long years and I ain’t even 30 years old, no!’ I still have the biggest smile on my face every time I hear it!!!”

About Dimebag Hardware
Dimebag Hardware is the vision of Dimebag Darrell Abbott to produce products that he actually used and loved. Owned and operated with Dime’s vision at heart, Rita Haney continues to support the music and career that Darrell loved. dimebaghardware.com

About Elephant Brand Skateboards
Elephant Brand Skateboards, founded by professional skateboarder Mike Vallely, is a brand that is not framed by someone else’s ideas of cool, or what they think skateboarding is from moment to moment. “It’s a brand that simply represents what I have always represented: 100 percent skateboarding for love—for fun. No rules, no divisions, no schools… Just a skateboard as a paintbrush and the world as an empty canvas.” elephandbrandskateboards.com

About Eric Hendrikx
Writer and photographer Eric Hendrikx is co-author of Zakk Wylde’s Bringing Metal to the Children (HarperCollins, 2012). A notable contributor to more than a dozen books including Forrest Griffin’s New York Times bestsellers Got Fight? and Be Ready When the Sh*t Goes Down, Hendrikx is also editor of Revolt in Style magazine. He currently lives in Southern California with his son, Stone. For additional updates, follow on twitter and Instagram @EricHendrikx. erichendrikx.com

The full list of winners and presenters for the 3^rd ANNUAL REVOLVER GOLDEN GODS AWARDS is as follows:

• Hunted: The Demon’s Forge^® Golden God Award: Alice Cooper (presented by Rob Zombie)
• Ronnie James Dio Lifetime Achievement Award: Mötley Crüe (presented by Corey Taylor of Slipknot/Stone Sour.)
• Honorary Headbanger Award: William Shatner (presented by Scott Ian of Anthrax and The Damned Things and comedian Brian Posehn)
• Epiphone^® Best Guitarists Award: Synyster Gates and Zacky Vengeance of Avenged Sevenfold (presented by Robb Flynn of Machine Head and Wayne Static of Static X)
• Drum Workshop^® Best Drummer Award: Mike Portnoy for his work with Avenged Sevenfold (presented by Vinnie Paul of Pantera/HellYeah)
• Best New Band Award: Black Veil Brides (presented by Duff McKagan of Loaded/Velvet Revolver/Guns N’ Roses)
• Most Metal Athlete Award: Skateboarder Mike Vallely (presented by Chino Moreno of Deftones)
• Rockstar Energy^® Best Vocalist Award: M. Shadows of Avenged Sevenfold (presented by Taylor Momsen of The Pretty Reckless and Sebastian Bach)
• Samson/Zoom^® Best Live Band Award: Rammstein (presented by Charlie Benante of Anthrax and Mike Portnoy)
• Eagle Rock^® Comeback of the Year Award: Murderdolls (presented by David Coverdale of Whitesnake)
• Affliction^® Album of the Year Award: Avenged Sevenfold (presented by Jerry Cantrell and Mike Inez of Alice in Chains)

Presented by REVOLVER, America’s leading hard-rock and metal magazine, and hosted by CHRIS JERICHO (WWE, Fozzy, Dancing With the Stars), the award show featured special appearances by ALICE COOPER, MÖTLEY CRÜE, ROB ZOMBIE, actor WILLIAM SHATNER, GEEZER BUTLER (Black Sabbath/Heaven & Hell), DUFF McKAGAN (Loaded/Velvet Revolver/Guns N’ Roses), COREY TAYLOR (Slipknot/Stone Sour), STEVE JONES (Sex Pistols), DAVE NAVARRO (Jane’s Addiction), CHINO MORENO (Deftones), VINNIE PAUL (Pantera/HellYeah), SCOTT IAN (Anthrax/The Damned Things), DAVID COVERDALE (Whitesnake/Deep Purple), STEVEN ADLER (Guns N’ Roses), MAX CAVALERA (Soulfly/Cavalera Conspiracy/Sepultura), JAMEY JASTA (Hatebreed/Kingdom of Sorrow), TAYLOR MOMSEN (The Pretty Reckless, TV’s Gossip Girl), MIKE PORTNOY (Dream Theater/Avenged Sevenfold), GILBY CLARKE (Guns N’ Roses), and members of ALICE IN CHAINS, FOO FIGHTERS, MEGADETH, STATIC-X, DETHKLOK, FEAR FACTORY, MACHINE HEAD, WE ARE THE FALLEN, MURDERDOLLS, SUICIDE SILENCE, and WINDS OF PLAGUE. The evening also featured appearances from comedian BRIAN POSEHN, skateboarders MIKE VALLELY and CHRIS COLE, MMA fighters DAN HARDY and JOSH BARNETT, WENDY DIO (wife of Ronnie James Dio) and many more.

Live performances for the 2011 REVOLVER GOLDEN GODS AWARDS included musical sets by ALICE COOPER (their first LA appearance in 40 years, fresh off their induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame), LOADED (featuring DUFF McKAGAN of GUNS N’ ROSES and VELVET REVOLVER), Elvis Presley/Johnny Cash-inspired metal group VOLBEAT, host CHRIS JERICHO’s band FOZZY, fast-rising metalcore newcomers ASKING ALEXANDRIA, and hometown heroes AVENGED SEVENFOLD who closed out the night with a blistering set.

Special collaborations last night included: AVENGED SEVENFOLD performing PANTERA’s “Mouth for War” with Vinnie Paul and GUNS N’ ROSES’ “It’s So Easy” with DUFF McKAGAN, STEVE JONES and COREY TAYLOR performing JUDAS PRIEST’s “Electric Eye” with LOADED. SEBASTIAN BACH performing SKID ROW’s “Youth Gone Wild” with ASKING ALEXANDRIA. SCOTT IAN of ANTHRAX performing DUSTY SPRINGFIELD’s “I Only Want To Be With You” with VOLBEAT. MAX CALAVERA, JAMEY JASTA, and MIKE VALLELY joining DEVILDRIVER for a salute to BLACK FLAG.

“Lady Gaga tweets about it. James Durbin brings it on American Idol. And our host Chris Jericho represents it on Dancing With the Stars. Metal is taking over the mainstream, and the Revolver Golden Gods is its biggest, baddest celebration. If you missed the party, punch yourself in the balls… Or pick up the Golden Gods issue of Revolver on May 24, tune in to VH1 Classic on May 28, and we’ll see you next year!”

–Revolver magazine Editor-in-Chief Brandon Geist

Mike Vallely Wants You to Vote for the Revolver Golden Gods from Revolver Magazine on Vimeo.