Alice In Chains fans can finally breathe a bit easier. Drummer Sean Kinney has officially broken his silence after the band’s abrupt tour cancellation earlier this month, and the good news is: he’s not dead.
Kinney was hospitalised after a “non-life-threatening medical emergency” just after soundcheck at the Mohegan Sun Arena on May 8, forcing the band to pull the plug on the show just before doors. They then cancelled the next run of festival dates and headline gigs, citing Kinney’s health as the top priority. Now, the man himself has weighed in — and he’s keeping it very Kinney.
“I’m going to be fine and I’m going to live,” he wrote in a statement. “The bad news (for some of you?) is that I’m going to be fine and I’m going to live.”
Equal parts reassuring and sarcastic — exactly what you want from a drummer who’s spent over three decades making Alice In Chains sound like the end of the world.
While Kinney didn’t share exactly what the emergency was, he made it clear that doctors told him to take a step back, and he’s begrudgingly listening. “I quickly went through the five stages of grief,” he said. “But eventually realised that people with medical degrees might know more than a dude with some spray-painted records on his wall.”
Fair enough.
The band are still listed on the bill for Black Sabbath’s final ever show at Villa Park in July — a stacked, borderline absurd line-up featuring Metallica, Slayer, Tool, Pantera, Gojira, Smashing Pumpkins, KoRn and more. If Kinney’s behind the kit for that one, it’ll be a hell of a comeback.
For now, the message is simple: Kinney’s alive, resting, and definitely still sarcastic. Not a bad outcome considering how grim it could have been.
Alice in Chains, as always, endure — bloodied, battered, and ready to punch out another riff when the time’s right.
MORE IN Music
