Gonna go off the radar later today for an extended Labor Day weekend. It’s the last hurrah weekend at the lake house. Actually it’s kinda cool. There’s a tradition they’ve done for years, “The Ring Of Fire,” along the lake. Everyone builds bonfires on the night before Labor Day on the shore. Then those with boats travel around the lake to catch the view. And, BTW, did I mention we have seen three bald eagles recently? Seems like they love our lake!…..But I digress. Here’s news: Pulse of Radio reports Korn singer Jonathan Davis recently spoke with Metal Hammer magazine’s British radio show about the stresses he was dealing with just before the band began making its new album, The Paradigm Shift, including his struggle to get off anti-anxiety drugs and his son’s Zepellin (“Zeppy“) diabetes diagnosis. Speaking about his addiction to benzodiazepines, Davis said, “I stopped writing and listening to music and a lot of stuff that I love because I was really battling with this detox off of benzos . . . I was fighting having seizures, I was shaking all the time, I couldn’t think.” Davis said that his son’s medical problems added to his own problems, adding, “I had one foot in reality and one foot out. I was freaking out. My baby had diabetes and I was like, ‘Oh my god, he’s going to lose his feet and go blind.’ Music has always been my savior, but I wasn’t having . . . I don’t know where I was, honestly.” Davis told me he had to get clear of his addiction before he could begin working on music again: “There was some music being written, but during that time when I kicked it, up until the point I got in the studio with the guys, no, I was just totally — I couldn’t even function. The thing about benzos are they wire your brain differently, so once you stop, your brain has to rewire itself back to normal and it takes time. So I couldn’t even concentrate to do that.” Jon is doing just fine now, and Zeppy is receiving treatment and is also doing well. When I saw Jon back last November on Shiprocked, it was when Zeppy had been diagnosed and he was beside himself with fear. So I am glad all this has happened and glad he is in a much better place. The single “Never Never” is doing better than anyone had imagined and I know these shows with Head back are gonna bring fans new and old together again. Can’t wait to see them on their tour later this month!…..Pop Evil‘s new video for “Deal With the Devil” is outstanding! It was done in Sweden by the same director who did clips for Avatar. Check it out here….. Nine Inch Nails have begun streaming the band’s new album, Hesitation Marks, at iTunes a week before its release next Tuesday (September 3rd). The follow-up to 2008’s The Slip is coming out on Columbia Records, marking NIN’s return to a major label six years after leaving Interscope. The band has already shared singles “Copy of A” and “Came Back Haunted” off the album, in addition to behind-the-scenes videos and photos. (Rolling Stone)…..Yesterday was a big day for Avenged Sevenfold. Monday night they absolutely KILLED at a free show in Hollywood at the Palladium and then they followed it up with a live interview yesterday afternoon at the Warner Bros Records headquarters in Burbank in front of an audience. (See the band’s website for more!) Their new album Hail To The King dropped yesterday and if you bought it, you know how great it is!….Happy 44th today to Jack Black of Tenacious D and Happy 51st to the awesome director David Fincher.
