Korn’s Brian ‘Head’ Welch – ‘No Negative Vibes’ Over Fieldy Hiatus
Korn have shared their support for bassist Fieldy who has been sitting out the group's current shows after announcing in June that he would be taking a break to address some "bad habits" that had caused tension with those around him over the past six years. But beyond the group statement, Korn guitarist Brian "Head" Welch spoke about the bassist's absence during an interview at the Upheaval Festival with Grand Rapids' 97.9 WGRD host Tommy Carroll.
When asked about the bassist, Head stated, "Fieldy is good, man. He's at home, and he's with his kids. I wanna say that Fieldy's a good dad. He's a good dude, and he has his life structured. The bad habits he talked about in the press — everyone has their issues in life. But those he'll work on in his own way. But that dude is — I look up to him as a dad, actually. He's had five kids. He always says, 'I've got two thousand kids,' 'cause it feels like it some days. But he's a good dad. He's gone through a lot, man, personally, and he just needs some time off to reflect on himself and his family. That's it."
The guitarist then added, "Dude, no judgment at all to anyone. I was the worst with addiction. So, it's nothing like that. It's all good vibes. There's no negative vibes as far as no hard feelings on either side. So it's all good, man."
Head went on to state that the grind of a pretty consistent touring and recording schedule over the years has played a part and that the break is overdue. "I think [Fieldy] and Jonathan [Davis] and Munky have gone 26 years with hardly any breaks, man — with a record cycle and a tour. I got eight years off, so I'm rested. And I come back. I'm hopefully looking at Fieldy like he's just gonna take a break, man, and get recharged. So we'll see," added the guitarist.
Fans recently got to see Korn's special guest bassist - Ra Diaz of Suicidal Tendencies - play his first show with the group. Head revealed, "We need the slap — we need the slap bass, we need the finger playing, we need someone, 'cause Fieldy is unique — very unique. So it just kind of happened that way, man, where Ra, he was open because Suicidal is not going out until next year. I think Mike Muir has a back surgery or something this year. So it just worked out, man. He came down, we jammed. He's a really humble guy, and just very talented. He can play anything — from jazz to slap to anything."
Korn's touring will pick up in August with '68 and Fire From the Gods providing support. See their scheduled stops and get ticketing information here.