Donna Vickroy of SouthtownStar recently conducted an interview with former Korn guitarist Brian “Head” Welch. Asked how his reunion with Korn came about, Welch said: “I had walked away from all that and started a new band. It was complete, but I when I went to a Korn show last year, they asked me to jam with them. We got such a positive reaction. A few months later, they asked me about a reunion. At first I said no, then I thought about it. Finally I asked them what about my other band and they said, bring it with [you]. Everything went so peacefully, so positive I knew it was meant to be.”
Regarding how his recovery has affected his music, Welch said: “Some say the music is still dark and heavy metal, but I think it has a way deeper meaning. It has more melody in it. I also feel like I’ve gotten to a higher level of writing. That was something I’d lost when I was partying like crazy. It seems like in the past few years, my writing has more passion and creativity.”
On the topic of whether it is possible to hit the big time in rock and roll without getting mixed up in drigs, Welch said: “Drugs became big on the music scene in the ’60s and just kept going through the ’70s and ’80s. But I’m meeting a lot of younger bands on the road who are not into that scene. This generation is so creative, it blows my mind. A great number of bands are not ruining their life with drugs. I think it’s very possible to make music without drugs. It’s really cool to see. The thing about doing drugs, it ruins your relationships. Every relationship I had was ruined to some degree. Most got repaired, but they were greatly harmed.”
Welch also spoke about hitting rock bottom during his drug addiction, saying, “My meth addiction was so bad I had two dealers. I was piling up all kinds of mess on trips. I’d have a dealer ship me meth overseas. Having drugs delivered to a foreign country, I could have gone to jail. It was the biggest loser life. Here I had this perfect little 5-year-old girl, and I was a complete mess. I tried to quit a couple of times but couldn’t. I was so afraid of confronting my issues, so I just kept doing drugs, avoiding it. I believe a lot of addicts have a hole in their heart or their soul. It’s something only God can fill. So I tried church. I thought I’ll just try it. I started reading the Bible, praying, talking to God. And I just felt this strength come into me. Christ filled that emptiness, and that was it for me.”
Read the entire interview with ‘Brian’ here: SouthtownStar.
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Korn will reunite with founding guitarist Brian “Head” Welch for a number of shows this spring/summer, including two dates in Germany, one concert in the United Kingdom and at the upcoming Rock On The Range festival in Columbus, Ohio. All dates & locations are listed below.
Welch joined Korn onstage for the song Blind May 2012 at the Carolina Rebellion festival in Rockingham, North Carolina, marking the first time in eight years that Korn played with Welch.
Welch left Korn in 2005 to become a born-again Christian. The band never officially replaced him and stayed a four-piece, although they’ve used several touring guitarists for live work.
Love And Death, the new band of Brian “Head” Welch have released their debut album, Between Here & Lostearlier this week [Jan. 22] via Tooth & Nail Records.
Between Here & Lost was recorded in Nashville with producer Jasen Rauch [RED, Breaking Benjamin] and mixed by Paul Pavao, Ben Grosse [Marilyn Manson, Disturbed]and Jim Monti [Korn], the CD consists of 11 tracks, ranging from songs about personal struggle and triumph [“Chemicals”, “My Disaster”, “Paralyzed“] to emotionally charged anthems [“Fading Away”, “Watching The Bottom Fall”] to a riff-heavy rendition of DEVO‘s 1980 hit “Whip It”.
Our album review of Between Here & Lost can be read here
Upcoming Shows – Korn + Brian “Head” Welch
May 15 – Belle Vernon, PA @ Rostraver Ice Garden
May 17 – Columbus, OH @ Rock On The Range
May 18 – Big Flats, NY @ The Summer Stage at Tag’s
May 21 – Silver Springs, MD @ The Fillmore
May 22 – Montclair, NJ @ The Wellmont Theatre
May 23 – Bethlehem, PA @ Sands Bethlehem Event Center
May 24-26 – Pryor, OK @ Rocklahoma
May 25 – St. Louis, MO @ Peabody
June 07 Rock Im Park, Nürnberg, Germany
June 09 Rock Am Ring, Nürburgring, Germany
June 11 Atak, Enschede, Netherlands
June 12 013, Tilburg, Netherlands
June 14 Download Festival 2013, United Kingdom
Jul. 19 – Cadott, WI @ Rock Fest
Love And Death:
Jul 11 Richlands High School Richlands, VA
Jul 19 Willmar Civic Center Grounds, Willmar, MN
Jul 21 Memorial Park, Rapid City, SD
Aug 09 Enumclaw Expo Center, Enumclaw, WA
Aug 16 Montana Expo Park, Great Falls, MT
Video below for: “The Abandoning”
Related articles:
Metal Bible’ finally available in English [August 2011]
‘Brian “Head” Welch’ Talks About Finding Christ And ‘I Am Second’ Campaign [Video] [April 2012]
Love And Death – Chemicals [EP review]
‘Brian “Head” Welch’ ‘My Favorite Thing To Do Is Talk About The Lord’ [July 2012]
‘Munky’ Optimistic About Permanent Reunion With ‘Brian “Head” Welch’ [Dec. 2012]
Love And Death – Between Here & Lost [Album Review]
‘Brian “Head” Welch’ Is ‘Really Excited’ About Reuniting With ‘Korn’ [Jan. 2013]
‘Love And Death’ ‘The Abandoning’ Music Video Released [Jan. 2013]
‘Brian “Head” Welch’ On Reunion With ‘Korn’: ‘It’s So Cool To Feel So Welcome’ [Video] [Feb. 2013]
‘Brian “Head” Welch’ Says “Pornography ‘Sucks You In Like A Drug” [Video Interview] [March 2013]
‘Brian “Head” Welch’ With ‘Korn’ More U.S. Tour Dates Announced [April 2013]