Most recently I had a stroke in Germany last June right in the middle of the song "Necroshine". It laid me up for a little while. It was right at the end of the tour so no shows were missed. I was in the hospital for a day and paralyzed for a few hours. And then there was a month of limping recovery and then soon thereafter back to a hundred percent.
It didn't hurt. I could hear everything that was going on, I could smell everything, I just couldn't talk and couldn't respond to people. I remember coming out of it and punching somebody right in the mouth who was pouring orange juice down my throat. I couldn't move and I 'm thinking "this guy is drowning me." Right then I came out of the stroke. It kinda jolted me. I couldn't move my left, but I gave him a right, right under the chin. He got up and said, "He's okay."
Do they know what caused the stroke?
They looked into it. It's possible it's what's called a focal seizure, but it appeared as if it were a stroke when they did all the tests. It's not lifestyle, it's not predisposition. It's possible it's a twisted vein (from the cancer operations). It wasn't a huge blood clot, and even if it comes back it's not going to be at a high level. An aspirin a day keeps the stroke away.
What type of music are you listening to these days, both new and old?
I like In Flames. I like Shadows Fall. I don't like much of the nu-metal. I never really understood or liked the Limp Bizkit stuff. (Sound of Bobby rummaging through his CDs) I'm holding the Motorhead record, best of 2 CD set. There's the Who over here, I've got some Savatage laying around. I liked Zakk Wylde's last record.
What was your reaction when you heard what happened at the Great White show in West Warwick, Rhode Island where nearly 200 people died in the fire?
My first reaction was "this is awful". I knew it was a tight-knit community. I know a lot of kids that were in that building. I know some that were lost. Dr. Metal from WHJY has been a huge supporter of this band and friend as far back as 1985 and was killed in the fire. That was the focus.
The afterthought was that I've done plenty of shows, and I've always looked for the exits. I like to know during sound check where it is I can get the hell outta here if something blows up. In that particular case, I don't want to assess it, because I don't know these people, but I do know that club owners know what goes on in their club. That's all I can say.
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