Friday evening, word began to spread that Ed Barnard, founder of Doommantia.com and a chief supporter of the doom and sludge scenes over the course of the last decade had died, and the tributes began almost immediately pouring in from around the world. Wanting to pay my respects to someone whose work I’ve admired for years and someone whom I consider an inspiring figure, I put up a post in this space paying tribute to Ed’s legacy with Doommantia and those whose lives he touched, expressing condolences at his lost. This is what I said:

There will be others I’m sure more qualified to speak to his life and legacy than me, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t stop to note the passing of Doommantia.com founder Ed Barnard, who has reportedly died following a long decline in health over the last several years. The circumstances of his death are unknown at this point — I don’t know if official word will come or when one might expect it — but it’s been publicly known that Ed has been sick for some time, and while recent updates listed him as “a dying man,” the shock of his passing is sure to send waves through the heavy underground and doom communities across the globe.

Confirmation has come through now that in fact Ed Barnard has not died, and while the news is BEYOND welcome, I feel the need to try and help spread the correction as much as the wrong info. I do not know who first said Ed had passed, but there’s no sign that it was something done with malicious intent. If anything, the outpouring of love and respect has only confirmed the special contributions Ed has made to the heavy underground over the years.

The fundraiser for his medical bills, which was also listed as a memorial fund over the weekend, is ongoing and brings official word that he’s still alive: https://www.giveforward.com/fundraiser/dxd5

Thank you for all the kind and thoughtful words posted about Ed the past few days. I don’t have a Facebook personally but I have read a lot of messages and it was very touching. Obviously the rumours were thankfully not true and we have no idea how they started.

Sadly Ed did suffered another major heart attack but he is now stable and hanging in there. Please respect Ed’s privacy and keep spread this news in a respectable and civilized manner. We don’t want another mass rumor doing the rounds.

Thanks as always to everyone who has donated to the fundraiser. We will be wrapping this up soon so if you haven’t donated, please do so. The road ahead will only get worse and more expensive from here.

Thanks for reading.

Long live Ed Barnard.

Doommantia.com

For the last couple months, we’ve followed the unfolding tale of Doommantia.com’s founder, Ed Barnard, who suffered a heart attack at the end of July and has since been left homeless. Donations have been taken over at their site, and hopefully wherever you are or whatever your situation, you’ve had a chance to give and support Ed in these tough times. On Oct. 13, the Doommantia Bash benefit show was held in his honor and by all accounts I’ve seen, that was a success, but there’s more to be done.

Word went out yesterday of the Doommantia Vol. 1 digital compilation being available. Put together and organized by the band Compel, it’s $7 on Bandcamp and there are an astounding 39 bands included. Ed‘s special lady, Sally Doomvixen, posted the news last night that Ed was back in the hospital overnight with chest pains again, and though the situation doesn’t seem as serious as last time, the bills are no less devastating.

So you haven’t taken time yet to help out Ed Barnard, I once more urge you to do so, and this time, you get over four hours’ worth of music in return from great bands. More info follows, courtesy of Doommantia:

The DOOMMANTIA Benefit Compilation Has Arrived, 39 Tracks, Over 4 Hours For Only $7…

The first ever Doommantia.Com Compilation is now available for download for only $7 from BANDCAMP. Immediate download of no less than 39 tracks of doomy goodness, over 4 hours long. Bands featured are Blackwolfgoat, At Devil Dirt, Low Gravity, Ichabod, Fister, Undersmile, Compel, Iron Man, Wizard’s Beard, Oceans Rainbow, Beelzefuzz, Conan, Lazarus Complex, Spyderbone, Order Of The Owl, Dope Flood, War Injun, Heathen Bastard, Halmos, Kriz, Bongripper, Demonaut, In The Company Of Serpents, Switchblade Jesus, Pale Divine, When The Deadbolt Breaks, Bastards Of The Skies, Gorgantherron, Screaming Mad Dee and Alex Vanderzeeuw, Chowder, War Iron, Hollow Leg, Crawl, Desolation, Ketea, Sludgethrone, Vulture, Wolfpussy and The Departure. That is some bang for your buck!!!

All proceeds go to the Ed Barnard homeless fund so it is a very worthy cause. Thanks to all the bands involved and to Tim Davis who worked so hard putting all of this together. Head to BANDCAMP now to get your download.

If you haven’t yet, head over to Doommantia and donate some cash to help Ed Barnard, the owner of that site, get back on his feet. Anyone who’s ever spoken to him, myself included, will tell you Ed‘s a great dude, and a huge supporter of this weird underground community, and it’s times like this that the community needs to come together for one of its own.

Back at the end of July, Ed suffered a heart attack and as a result of not being able to pay the ensuing nightmarish medical bills, is homeless and living in a tent. It’s pretty bleak times, and as an admirer of Ed‘s work and his dedication, I encourage you to please, please take a couple seconds and throw a couple bucks his way. I didn’t realize it at the time, but he’s apparently also giving away Wizardrone CDs to anyone who donates $20 or more.

But seriously, don’t do it for the free CD. Do it because this is a small community as compared to the outside world, and if we don’t take care of each other when we need to, we suck just as much as everyone else.

On Oct. 13, at Lallo’s in Knoxville, Maryland, they’ll be throwing a Doommantia Bash to help out Ed‘s cause. Bands are still being confirmed, but so far on the bill are War Injun, Against Nature, When the Deadbolt Breaks, Fire Faithful, Foghound, Ghutt, Akris, and Balam, with more to come.

You can keep up with the show’s lineup at the Thee Facebooks event page, and don’t forget to donate to Ed through Doommantia’s Paypal link.

Last night a link was going around on Thee Facebooks, and I shared it there, so if I’m doubling up, I apologize, but I wanted to extend get well soon wishes to certified badass Ed Barnard, who runs Doommantia.com. It was reported there yesterday that Ed suffered a second heart attack and is currently in the hospital.

If you can, please take a second to show support for Ed and his special lady Sally Doomvixen, either through a site donation or just dropping a line over that way. Doommantia is both a killer site and a much appreciated resource for this community, so here’s hoping for a speedy recovery. All the best on behalf of myself and this site.