Dallas Cowboys will trade gridiron for guitars at show in Mission
Free Reign is the biggest band in rock.
Sure, a lot of bands have sold more albums and played for larger crowds. And most music fans can name dozens of other more popular groups.
Free Reign, however, can crush the competition. The heavy metal outfit features three Dallas Cowboy football players, and these guys aren’t light-weight kickers or back up quarterbacks -- these big fellas are full-fledged linemen.
Cowboys tackle Marc Colombo plays rhythm guitar and sings vocals. He also weighs 318 pounds and stands 6 feet 8 inches tall. Center Cory Proctor drums, and he weighs 311 pounds and stands 6 feet 4 inches tall. Guard Leonard Davis plays bass, and he is 6 feet 6 inches tall and 353 pounds. Justin Chapman, who doesn’t play professional football for the Cowboys, is on lead guitar. Due to his assumed inability to play professional sports, his dimensions are not readily available on the NFL’s Web site, but he looks pretty big in the group’s band photos.
That’s more than 1,000 pounds of rock in these dudes. Colombo could probably thrash all of Coldplay, Radiohead and U2 with one bicep, even if Thom Yorke had nun chucks and Chris Martin spent the preceding week in the gym.
But Colombo probably wouldn’t fight those guys, not yet anyway. Colombo and the gang have plans for rock glory.
They have signed a record deal with Australia-based heavy metal label Riot Entertainment. Tragedy, the group’s debut album, is now available at Wal-Mart, Target and major online retailers such as Amazon and iTunes.
The band is currently supporting Drowning Pool and Sevendust at a number of spring gigs, including March 22 at Las Palmas Race Park in Mission. Concert security is probably taking the night off.
>> CLICK HERE TO WIN TICKETS TO THE SHOW AND READ MORE ABOUT SEVENDUST AND DROWNIGN POOL
Free Reign
- WHERE: Las Palmas Race Park, 7509 Taylor Road, Mission
- WHEN: 7 p.m. Monday, March 22
- COST: $25
- BUY TICKETS: www.ez-tixx.com
The Top 5 Athletes Who Tried To Be Rock Stars
5). Bronson Arroyo – Arroyo was a pitcher on the Boston Red Sox team that won the World Series in 2004. A year later, he released his debut album, which featured a bunch of his teammates. Red Sox players, which at the time included Johnny Damon, Kevin Youkilis and Lenny DiNardo, sing “Dirty Water” by The Standells, which has played for years whenever the Red Sox win a home game.
4). Deion Sanders – Of course flashy football player Deion Sanders made music. How could he not? When he was playing defensive back for the Dallas Cowboys and other football teams, he showed his versatility. The colorful player, known as Prime Time or Neon Deion, played more than defense.
He occasionally lined up at wide receiver and returned kicks and punts. He almost always sported a bandana. Sanders also played professional baseball. He was all over the early ‘90s. So of course he had to make an album as Prime Time, and of course he had to make a music video where he wore one of his trademark flashy suits.
The video for “Must Be the Money” is pure Deion Sanders. He literally spends the first 30 seconds of the video looking at himself in a mirror and touching up his hair. The chorus repeats “must be the money” as Sanders describes how good he looks, how rich he is and, at one point, how his library card has inexplicably turned into a credit card.
3). Oscar De La Hoya – Oscar De La Hoya has won an Olympic Gold Medal, boxing world championships and a Grammy nomination. No, the Grammys have not added a boxing segment. De La Hoya actually recorded an album of Latin pop music, mixing English and Spanish songs. The album was called Oscar De La Hoya, and while the name wasn’t so great, fans really loved the catchy dance tunes.
His album really shows his love for music. He covered a pre-disco Bee Gees song, and he worked with Diane Warren, who has written many classic love songs. Critics seemed to enjoy the album, too. Of course, it’s tough to give a bad review to a man who can so thoroughly dismantle you with his hands. Not that Oscar De La Hoya would do that -- by all rights he seems like one of the nicest men in sports.
2). The 1985 Chicago Bears Super Bowl Shuffle – Ah, the ‘80s. A song like this could only exist in the Me Decade. Rap was new, and all kinds of inappropriate artists, commercials and professional football teams were trying it. The 1985 Chicago Bears, who were armed with one of the best defenses and running backs of all time, decided they should let the rest of the league know they were headed for the Super Bowl.
The Bears players shuffled back and forth as an awesomely ‘80s beat pumped in the background. They trash-talked the other teams and guaranteed a Super Bowl victory. A few weeks later their prediction came true. The song also, somehow, received a Grammy nomination for best rhythm and blues vocal performance. Yeah, it was a dark day for R&B.
1). Shaq – Shaquille O’Neal, who has played center on four NBA Championship teams, is also a rapper, kind of.
No one can dispute his commercial success. Editor’s note: If you’re a struggling musician, you might not want to read this next part. It’s not pretty. Shaq is a platinum-selling musician, meaning he has sold millions of CDs. Yes, you read that right. Critical opinion is not always favorable to the big man.
And a couple years ago he came under fire for mocking former teammate Kobe Bryant during a freestyle rap. The video surfaced online shortly after Bryant’s Lakers lost to the Boston Celtics in the 2008 NBA Championship. Shaq said Bryant couldn’t win a championship without him.
Then he repeatedly asked Bryant how a certain part of his anatomy tasted. Sounds goofy, but a packed club cheered and sang along. You know you would have too.
Zack Quaintance covers live music and the occasional sports story for Festiva. You can reach him at (956) 683-4447 or zquaintance@themonitor.com.
