Machine Head’s debut album Burn My Eyes celebrated its 26th anniversary over the weekend, and the band have reflected on what the record means to them and their anniversary tour.
Robb Flynn, Logan Mader, Chris Kontos and Jared MacEachern had been on the road to mark the album's quarter century, but were forced to halt the live run due to coronavirus.
Frontman Robb Flynn says: “26 years ago… crazy. That you still care about this record is humbling. This album changed my life in so many ways, I can’t even begin to explain.
“It was quite special to participate in the 25th anniversary alongside Chris Kontos, Logan Mader and Jared MacEachern. We put on a helluva show for those who got to see it.
“It’s crazy to think we would have been doing tour dates until the end of the year. The US and European dates we were fortunate enough to perform for you, were nothing short of life-affirming. We shall see each other in the future Head cases, we love you all, stay strong through the craziness!”
Drummer Kontos adds: “One year after the 25th anniversary of Burn My Eyes, things could not be more different. It was amazing and an honour to be able to perform the record in its entirety over the past year and a half with Robb, Logan and Jared. It was truly an experience I will never forget."
Guitarist Mader says he’s missing all his bandmates, the crew and fans, and adds: “As an optimist, I use this downtime to the best of my abilities and hope that the rest of us will do the same. Positive thoughts and efforts, especially in dark times, have an exponential positive effect on the co-creative consciousness of our entire species on earth.”
Bassist MacEachern, who joined Machine Head in 2013, reports that looking back at Burn My Eyes has been an “emotionally poignant exercise on its own under any normal circumstance… but times are not normal.”
He adds: “The issues within the scope of this record may have altered and aged, yet they still remain. It is a personal and relevant call to arms, then and now. It was such an honour and a privilege for us to share that rage with you, to let it wash over us all, and to be able to release it in a way that we all could feel together. Go back and listen. Let it spur us to action in our own lives, let it fuel the rage to overcome!”
Flynn is one of the cover stars of the new issue of Metal Hammer magazine, which is on sale now.
In an exclusive interview, the vocalist and guitarist talks to us about what life has been like for him in lockdown, how he’s shut down the moaners, releasing surprising new songs such as Stop The Bleeding, his collaboration with Killswitch Engage’s Jesse Leach and attending Black Lives Matter protests.
