Devil in the Details

"10 Years without Dick," a November 11 Casbah tribute to the late Dan McLain (a.k.a. Country Dick Montana), will feature a reunion of Montana's pioneering punk band, the Penetrators.

Montana died during a Beat Farmers gig in Whistler, British Columbia, on November 8, 1995. At the end of the set's third song (his second behind the drum kit), "Girl I Almost Married," Montana slumped over. Guitarist Jerry Raney began to play Hank Williams's "Setting the Woods on Fire," but all Montana managed to do was hit a cymbal, look at bassist Rolle Love, and then lie slowly across his kit.

Road manager Tom Ames rushed out from the wings and lowered Montana to the stage as bandmembers kicked the drums out of the way. He was breathing but unable to move or speak. When paramedics arrived ten minutes later, the 40-year-old was dead.

Montana's cause of death was ruled an acute aneurysm. He had cysts on his kidneys, and it has since been revealed by road manager Ames that Montana knew he had a blood clot in his leg but hadn't gone to a doctor for treatment. On the day of the gig, a Whistler, B.C., paper described Montana as "a man who already has one foot in the grave."

A version of the Beat Farmers -- without Dick, now "the Farmers" -- released a new album, Loaded, on September 2. (The band uses half of the old Beat Farmers logo designed by Montana.) They appear tomorrow, September 16, at the Belly Up Tavern.