@razorbldebutterfly on Instagram was kind enough to share some pics from the Belgrade show. I’ve put their pics in the Fan Submissions album in EDF Photo, so check ’em out when you can. Couple of super cool pics of Edsel in there – he is still absolutely KILLING it.
Please don’t repost without permission from @razorbldebutterfly.
Have YOU met Dope? Seen ’em live? If you’d like to contribute your pics of the band, please feel free to reach out!
A fan on Instagram sent me this cute story and pics from when they met Edsel in Belgrade, and gave me permission to share!
“A few years ago I made a small Edsel plushie, and it was supposed to be just something silly at first and i never actually thought about giving it to him as a gift. When I left to go see Static-X and Dope I decided to bring it with me because I wanted to try and give it to him, even if I knew it was probably unlikely. Fast forward to after the show, I met almost everyone in Dope and I also saw Edsel going towards the bus. I was kinda scared cause I didn’t want to bother him yk, but my friend told me to try and so I did, and he was the sweetest! After he signs my stuff, we chat a little and I gave him the plushie. He loved it!! He told me it was super cute and he was gonna give it to his daughter”
Thank you so much @razorbldebutterfly! Here are the pictures they shared below. Please do not repost without their permission.
Just a quick update on something I briefly mentioned in my previous post: edseldopefan.org experienced unexpected loss of service earlier this week.
As soon as I became aware of the issue, I worked closely with our hosting provider, namecheap.com, to resolve it as quickly as possible. Thankfully, we were able to bring the site back online – but we had to restore it from a backup dated May 2025.
Unfortunately, restoring from a backup dated May 2025 meant losing some of the newer content on this domain:
A few recent posts on edseldopefan.org. Luckily, we didn’t lose files or gallery additions, so a couple of posts poofing isn’t a huge deal to me.
Fanlisting updates
Member entries from fanlistings
In short, I’ve had to rebuild the fanlistings and start over from scratch in terms of members. It’s a bit disheartening, but all things considered, it could have been much worse. The data loss wasn’t too bad, and we didn’t lose anything important or irreplaceable.
Oddly enough, this might be a blessing in disguise. The gives me a chance for a fresh start – and sometimes that’s not such a bad thing.
Thanks for your patience, and as always, I appreciate the support. If you were previously listed in one of the fanlistings, please consider rejoining! I’ve had to move a few so please update your links:
No Regrets: The Edsel Dope Fanlisting
Blood Money – The Dope Fanlisting
Machine: The Static-X Fanlisting – moved
Today, the music world lost a legend, and I lost one of my heroes.
To share a personal story about how much Ozzy meant to me, we were actually born on the same day! (Dec 3) I always took it as an omen of who I (Cristina) was going to be. How can you NOT be a Lady of Darkness when you share a birthday with the Prince of Darkness?
Ozzy, I love you man. Keep on rockin’ in heaven. I’ll miss the hell out of you.
A quick note: I had some issues with my domains and needed to restore a previous backup from May. That means I lost a few posts on here and some Fanlisting updates – I apologize! I’ll get the fanlistings sorted as soon as possible. Thanks as always to the unseen stars of the show, my long time host and registrar namecheap.com. Stellar 24 hour support, quick and professional. Truly recommend if you’re in the market for a home on the net.
Hey, today is Edsel’s birthday!
edseldopefan.org wishes him an awesome day.
Dope’s been added to Sacramento’s Aftershock Festival! Looks like they’ll be on the bill with Static-X, and we’ve got Rob Zombie headlining. You can get single and four day passes right here.
As always, you can check out Dope’s tour schedule right on their official site here. I also keep up with the latest in Dope tour news right here on edseldopefan.org, so you’re always up to date.
Are you seeing Dope on tour?
Dope has been added to the Friday date of Louder than Life 2025! Looks like they’ll be joining a killer lineup of musicians that include Static-X and the almighty Avenged Sevenfold headlining.
Louder than Life is September 18th-21st, 2025 in Louisville, KY. For tickets, click here. Will you be heading out to see all these incredible acts? Looks like a kickass time, if you ask me!
At the quest to review every Dope studio album ever marches on, we get to our penultimate entry: Blood Money, Pt. 1. But before we get into it, I would like to welcome you back to the series with a little introduction!
I’ve always felt that Dope got a raw deal from critics. They were either compared to their peers too much, taken too seriously, or not seriously enough. Worse, their work is rarely judged on its own merit. Even Edsel can’t escape his own ghost – people either say, ‘This isn’t as good as his old stuff,’ or they just write it off with, ‘Life/Felons was better.’ His work is routinely judged for what it isn’t, rather than what it is. Which is why I am revisiting these amazing albums to judge them for what they are: not what they could have been, or should have been.
So let’s hop right into it.
After a seven-year hiatus, Dope returned in 2016 with Blood Money Part 1. As an album , it stays true to the band’s signature sound: aggressive, gritty, and unapologetically raw. Dope delivers a mix of pounding riffs, electronic elements, and anthemic choruses that blend seamlessly with their nihilistic lyrical themes.
The album’s production is crisp, balancing heavy guitars with electronic layers that add depth without becoming overpowering. The polished sound may be a bit too clean for fans of the band’s more raw, early work, but it’s undeniably powerful. While some songs are undoubtedly more radio friendly than previous outings, don’t make the mistake of thinking that Edsel has mellowed with age. (If anything, vocally and otherwise, he seems to be aging in reverse)
Reviewers of the time dinged this album for not reinventing the wheel. While not a direct successor to earlier outings, Blood Money Part 1 stays true to the Dope sound and aesthetic. Tracks like 1999 and Razorblade Butterfly tap into nostalgia, throwing back to the band’s early days with fast-paced riffs and gritty musicianship. Meanwhile, songs like Drug Music and Selfish embrace the hedonistic and rebellious energy that has always been central to Dope’s identity. While it’s true that this album didn’t reinvent the wheel… it didn’t need to. Not everything is about reinvention. Sometimes, an album just needs to deliver what a band does best, and Blood Money Part 1 does exactly that: giving fans the raw energy, heaviness, and hooks that made Dope stand out in the first place.
Final Verdict
Blood Money Part 1 is a strong entry for Dope, proving they still have plenty of fire. The album refines and modernizes their industrial-metal formula while delivering some of their best songwriting to date. Fans of Felons and Revolutionaries and Life will find plenty to love, while newer listeners might discover an underrated band that still knows how to bring the chaos.
Happy V-day everyone! I arrive with good news for fans in Europe: Dope’s joining Static-X for dates crisscrossing Europe and the UK! As always, you can head to dopetheband.com for more info and to snag tickets! Will you be at any of these shows?
As I mentioned in my earlier post, I’m stepping down from edseldopefan.org’s social media presence effective immediately. While the almost certain TikTok ban this Sunday feels disheartening (I’ve loved being part of that platform) it gave me a moment to reflect. I realized I’d become so invested in social media that edseldopefan.org, our flagship site, had become an afterthought.
That’s not where I want to be.
Instead of seeing this as a setback, I’m using it as an opportunity to double down on what truly excites me: improving this website for our amazing community. I’ve already started revamping EDF Photo – check it out and let me know your thoughts! I’ve improved the aesthetics and readability of EDF Photo, and I’m still not done yet. I’ve also put together a to-do list for new features and updates to the main site. Things might look a bit wonky if I’m working on them, but that’s alright. Just letting you know it’s me doing some improvements!
Another reason I’m stepping back from socials is that I’ve realized my fansite’s presence on social media may unintentionally compete with the band’s official channels. When we’re putting out the same messages from different places, it can dilute the impact. I don’t want to step on any toes, so I’m shifting gears to focus on this space – where I can really amplify their work without getting in the way. As always, I encourage you to like and follow Dope on their official channels: you can check ’em out right there in the sidebar. edseldopefan.org is an unofficial, fan made resource.
I know change isn’t always easy, but it’s often necessary to grow. I’m excited to see where this new chapter takes us and hope you’ll be part of the journey. Your feedback, ideas, and support mean the world to me. Let’s build something great together.
Thank you for being here.
Cristina xoxo
