Free Randy Blythe!

     Seriously, Czech Republic. What the fuck?

     So I'm traversing the internet the other day, minding my own business, when scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed I see a post from Darkest Hour sending their love out to Lamb of God and Company in the wake of vocalist Randy Blythe's arrest for manslaughter (!) in the Czech Republic.

     Say what?

     I've got a few other posts in the works, but all of that has to go on the back burner for a second because I would tremendously fucking remiss if I didn't comment on what has to be one of the biggest stories in metal right now.

     First off, the facts as far as I know them, with credit and thanks for the info going to the good people over at Metal Sucks (here's the link I've been following, in case you'd rather read it from someone other than me). The situation stands thus: Lamb of God was in the Czech Republic this week, specifically in Prague for a show, when Randy Blythe was arrested on charges of manslaughter connected to a concert in May of 2010. At this concert, a fan apparently leapt on stage (repeatedly, according to a statement from Lamb of God's publicist) and became engaged in some kind of physical altercation with Randy, which ended with Randy pushing the fan off the stage and back into the crowd where he hit his head. This fan later died from his injuries. Randy was taken into custody on either Wednesday or Thursday, but was released on bail yesterday (June 30), and will be in Prague until at least tomorrow (July 2).

     Let me preface the following by saying that if Randy is guilty of something, he should be held accountable. Money, fame, being from a different country, even being the lead singer for an internationally renowned metal band --  none of these things should protect a person from culpability for their actions, especially if those actions are illegal, or worse, lead to the injury or death of another person. As much as I love Lamb of God, if authorities in Prague have evidence that can prove Randy  responsible for this fan's death, then unfortunately Randy should be made to face the music*.

     That said, there are a few things about this story/situation that give rise to my reaction from above (serisouly Czech Republic, what the fuck?), the first of which being the timing of the whole thing. I admit my complete ignorance of Czech laws, meaning I have no idea whether or not there might be some sort of statute of limitations on a crime like manslaughter, but I would think that if there was any evidence at all to suggest Randy's being more than superficially responsible, it would not take two years to bring charges against him. I realize police investigations don't happen overnight, and that various forms of evidence take time to assemble and analyze, but come on. This incident  occurred at a show, presumably in full view of hundreds or even thousands of witnesses, with footage from the show supposedly being up on Youtube, and yet it would seem that authorities have needed two years to build enough of a case again Randy?

     Again, I profess legal ignorance; maybe the wheels of justice simply turn slowly. But the fact that this happened at a metal show brings me to my second point: this happened at a metal show. Metal shows are inherently dangerous. Hell,  any concert where people are crammed together, hot and sweaty, possibly crowdsurfing, possibly with a few beers in them, can get a little rowdy, and as a result attendance at any big concert, not just a metal show, can carry with it a certain level of bodily risk. Now take into account the fact that metal can be an aggressive, high energy style of music, and you have a situation in which any reasonable-minded person realizes there is at least the potential for injury. Anyone who tells you otherwise has clearly never been to a metal show.

     To say that you take your life in your own hands when you attend a metal show would of course be overly dramatic, but there is a kernel of truth there. You as an autonomous attendee do have a measure of control over your own safety at a concert. If you don't want to risk being dropped (or having your wallet, shoes, etc, stolen...), you don't go crowdsurfing. Simple. If you don't want to get slammed by that scary-looking guy in the circle pit, you hang back more toward the edge of the crowd. And if you aren't prepared to jump off the stage and into the crowd, or be "helped" off by security, with all the ensuing risks to your safety that leaving a stage in such a manner entails, you don't fucking climb onstage in the first place. Again, simple, no?

     But let's leave that responsibility on the part of the fan aside for now and move to the other thing I want to comment on, the responsibility Randy and the other guys in Lamb of God have for their safety. Every metal fan worth his or her salt knows that on December 8, 2004, Dimebag Darrell was shot and killed by a fan at a Damageplan show in Columbus, Ohio. Now I'm not saying this Czech fan had any ill intentions whatsoever, or that he even had the appearance of having any, but then I wasn't there. I don't know how threatened Randy or anyone else felt or didn't feel, and while it is terrible that this situation ended with the death of the fan, I would like to think that if Randy, or any member of any band, felt threatened by a fan, they should have at least some recourse to defend themselves other than politely asking said fan to vacate the stage in a timely fashion. This seems like a case where this recourse, maybe a shove and a "back the fuck up, buddy" might simply have led to the accidental death of the fan in question, which I suppose is why these are charges of manslaughter and not murder. I guess from where I sit there's just something not quite right about looking to assign blame for a tragic accident at an inherently (somewhat) dangerous recreational event more than two years after the fact

     OK, rant over. I'll close by saying that I just hope this situation gets resolved quickly and fairly. If Randy is guilty of something, he should be held responsible, and if he's not, let him get back on the fucking road already.

     And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.








* I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself.