Kataklysm drummer Max Duhamel will be leaving the band for an indeterminable amount of time to battle some personal demons. Best of luck, Max! You can do it!
According to Max:
"It is with an a extremely heavy heart that I announce today that I will not be performing on the new Kataklysm album," says Max.
"I have been struggling with many personal issues the last year, but lately the main one has been alcohol. It’s been affecting my body in a very negative way to the point that when I came home after the Ex Deo tour we just did, I tried to stop drinking for few days and it's been very hard without having any withdrawal symptoms. I've also lost a lot of weight, as some of you noticed recently, and I'm not in good shape."
"I've heard the new material my brothers have written and it’s truly incredible stuff; it's really some of the best music the band has ever done. It's going to be a very demanding album and my state of mind and body is not ready to confront this big task right now. I need to clean my body and my mind and come back focused to Kataklysm and I don’t know how long this will take. The guys have reached out to help in any way they can, which I can't thank them enough. I'm truly blessed to have them as a family.
"So, as I start my road to recovery, I send this message to all of you and thank you for all the support. It’s time to take my life in my hands and take responsibility.
"I will not be attending the Juno Awards ceremony in two weeks for Ex Deo nominations, but I will close my contract with the shows in May that are left, Extremefest, Beastival in Germany and Metalfest Czech Republic will be my last shows until I’m ready again to come back in full form. You guys deserve the best of me."
It sucks that Duhamel won't be on the new record and has to drop off the lives shows for however long, but more power to him that he's realized he has an issue and really wants to deal with it. Plus, it's really respectable that he fels like he isn't giving his fans 100% and wants to leave until he can do so; that's just awesome. It's not clear at this time if the band already have a replacement for Duhamel lines up, or if they're still reeling from the loss of the drummer. I'd guess the latter- it goes beyond the fact that they're down a drummer and into the realm of seeing a great friend have to struggle through an insanely tough time. Replacing him has to be discussed at some point, but right now I'd assume it's just a lot of positivity and well-wishing for Duhamel. So from us to you, Max, we all wish you the best of luck and really, truly hope to see you come back full strength as soon as you can!
