David Wayne, 1958-2005

By John Larson
Tacoma Weekly Staff Writer


As a kid growing up in this state in the 1980s, I started listening to Metal Church soon after the release of their debut album. They helped turn me on the heavy metal, and gave me a sense of pride to be a Washington resident similar to how I felt cheering for the Seahawks during their glory years.

Therefore it was with great shock when I learned that David Wayne, original vocalist for Metal Church, passed away on May 10 due to complications from an automobile accident last year. He was 47.

Metal Church was formed in the early 1980s in Aberdeen and soon relocated to the Seattle area. Wayne sang on the band's first two albums, Metal Church in 1984 and The Dark in 1986. He then left the band to form Reverend. In 1999 he rejoined his old band mates for the album Masterpeace. He left the group again and recorded an album under the banner Wayne.

I had the unexpected pleasure of meeting Wayne at a Pioneer Square club last December, when we were standing in line to get into a Dokken show. He was quite friendly, and came and sat down at a table with me and my two buddies discussed details of his career, both good and bad, and the state of rock music in general.

He clearly had some issues with some of his former band mates, including some legal wrangling over the rights to the Metal Church name, but was respectful of the current lineup and their efforts.

He discussed his recent auto accident, and had a definite limp, but it didn't appear he was in poor health.

He and his current band were writing new material, and Wayne was looking forward to touring in Europe later this year. He said metal was more popular in Europe than the U.S., in part because grunge and rap never took hold over there like they did in the states.

Long before Nirvana and Pearl Jam, Metal Church and Queensryche brought international attention to the Seattle music scene. However, Metal Church never achieved the fame and fortune of some of the bands that followed. The guys in Metal Church had lives, and financial status, closer in line to their blue-collar fan base than big time rock stars....