All Korn members have gone through a corona infection. Brian “Head” Welch tells how the musicians survived Covid-19.
For their new album, which will be released on February 4th, Korn have once again chosen a dark theme: the nu metal band’s long player bears the title “Requiem”. “We’ve lost so many people since the beginning of the pandemic that we thought it was appropriate,” guitarist Brian “Head” Welch (51) explains the choice of this name in an interview with spot on news. The musician also reveals how he deals with the subject of death and whether he believes in life afterward. He also talks about his Covid 19 disease and how the other Korn members Jonathan Davis (51), James “Munky” Shaffer (51) and Ray Luzier (51) are doing after their corona infections.
Her new album is called “Requiem”, which also means “mass for the dead” or “rest”. Why did you choose this title?
Brian “Head” Welch: We’ve been talking about the title “Requiem” for a while. It is about honoring the dead in the Catholic Mass. It is not an event but a ceremony to honor the dead. We all have a Catholic or Episcopalian background in our lives. We just loved the title, it sounded cool and we liked its meaning. We’ve lost so many people since the pandemic began that we thought it was fitting. We almost called our Korn livestream event “Requiem” during the pandemic, but I was the one who said, “Listen, that’s too good a title, let’s use that for the next record,” and we did did.
Death is part of life, but the thought of it scares many. How about you?
Welch: It’s the fear of the unknown, I think. I’m not afraid of death because I’ve found my faith and I’m in conversation with God. I gave up the things that weren’t good for me and I feel ready. Hopefully I won’t die for many decades, but I feel ready and have made my peace with it. But I’m afraid of the pain, I’m afraid of the way I’m going to die, of not being able to breathe. Will it happen suddenly, will it be slow and painful? This is a normal fear that many of us probably have.
But if you look at some children who die young – if they’re brave and can get through this, then I don’t think any of us should be afraid. We should take them as an example. When I think of people like that – those who didn’t deserve to die but who had to die – it gives me strength.
Your song “Start The Healing” is about rebirth, among other things. Do you believe in life after death?
Welch: 100 percent. The crazy thing is that there is a way you can develop an interaction with the afterlife. What I feel, what I believe, what I have learned is that Jesus Christ is the Ruler of the afterlife. A relationship with him is like a portal to the afterlife and you can interact with him. That is my experience. I know that other people have had similar or different experiences. I don’t just believe it, I know it, and I’ve proven it to myself that it’s true.
Because of the corona pandemic, you had a lot of time for the album. How did that affect your work together and the end result?
Welch: The pandemic has completely thrown our tour schedule upside down. We had absolutely nothing planned for the future and didn’t know if it would take six months, a year or two years. It was the first time in Korn’s history that we didn’t have a plan, we said, “Hey guys, what are you guys doing? I’m sitting on my couch. How about you?” – “I do the same and all my kids jump on my lap and I have to get out of the house. Can we work on some music? Here we go!” And that’s how it happened.
Honestly, we love our families. But when you’re stuck with your families in a house that feels like a prison, you want to get out. For mental stability, you have to do something you love, and that’s music. That helped us. We’ve captured a moment of positivity during what may be the darkest time in the world we’ve seen in a long time. And we are very excited to present this positivity to our fans.
In 2022 you will be on stage in Germany at the Rock im Park and Rock am Ring festivals. Are you looking forward to it?
Welch: More than I can describe to you. I remember when we were young and played in Europe for a month or two. I always felt so depressed because I was so far from home and never really had any comfort in my life. When I left the band I found my peace in life. Then when I came back, I discovered such a great love, especially for Germany, France, Great Britain and Poland. There are so many places there, so many cities, and I love going there now. I no longer feel depressed and homesick because I am strong inside. We hope that we can be there at Rock am Ring and Rock im Park. We have spent so many years in history with these festivals and the people there and we are looking forward to it more than I can describe!
In 2021, several members of the band fell ill with Covid-19. How did you survive your illness? How are you today?
Wel: I had Covid up until a week ago. So I didn’t get it on tour, just recently. I was in Los Angeles for photo shoots. The night I got there, I said, “Oh, I feel a little strange.” The next day I took a test and then I was locked up in a hotel for ten days. It wasn’t too bad, ibuprofen and paracetamol helped a lot. I was just resting. It was up and down for Jonathan. He felt very confused and weak, had no strength. He was resting and seeing a lot of doctors because he just wanted to be sure.
Munky got it too and he stayed in a hotel for ten days just like me. Ray was at a Rolling Stones concert with 50,000 people. I said, “Not a good idea, is it?” and he got it. But I think he wasn’t that bad, so it’s fine. We’re fine today, Jonathan is still having some after-effects but it’s pretty much as normal. Me, James and Ray too.
What do you have planned for your upcoming 30th anniversary?
Welch: Nothing yet, but we’ll talk about it. We would like to do something very special and I don’t know what that is yet. Maybe we could ask our fans for ideas because we always involved the fans. That might be a cool idea, so thanks for asking.
How do you look back on the years since you were founded?
Welch: It’s a rollercoaster ride with a lot of ups and downs. Mainly up, but there were a lot of downs too. It’s as if those Korn years were a walk through nature. Sometimes we are impacted by the elements like snow and wind, and sometimes we just enjoy the sun. It’s fantastic and we just keep going through very good times and very deep lows. I’m just very grateful because all of this has made us stronger and we are now stronger than ever.