STATIC-X bassist Tony Campos spoke to Keen Eye 4 Concerts about the band's massively successful "Wisconsin Death Trip 20th Anniversary" tour, which celebrates the 20th anniversary of STATIC-X's platinum-certified "Wisconsin Death Trip" album and pays homage to the group's late frontman Wayne Static. Asked how Static's passing affected him and his bandmates on a personal level, Campos said (hear audio below): "Obviously, it affected all of us deeply, particularly [since we] knew him for as long as we have. I was in the band with the guy for 15 years, and Kenny [drummer Ken Jay], he knew Wayne for almost 10 years prior to when I met him. So, yeah, it was definitely a deep, affecting moment when he passed. I felt like he never got the proper send-off. So what we're doing here is trying to do that for him and remembering him for the guy he was and all the good times we had with him." Regarding how it feels to be performing STATIC-X's classic songs without Wayne, Campos said: "It's definitely a bittersweet moment, obviously, 'cause we're missing a pretty important guy. When the three of us got together for the first time in the same room after all these years had passed, it felt really good. Everything is sounding really killer, and the energy is there. It was funny — the stuff we're playing off that first record, that stuff just came back automatically, like riding a bicycle. It was the later stuff that we were, like, 'How does that go again?' But it's been a really cool experience." While the identity of STATIC-X's touring singer has not been officially revealed, strong rumors suggest that DOPE frontman Edsel Dope is performing with Jay, Campos and guitarist Koichi Fukuda. A new STATIC-X album, "Project Regeneration", featuring the last recordings of Static, will be released later this year. The rest of the group's original lineup will also be featured on the album and in the music videos. Wayne Static died in November 2014 after mixing Xanax and other powerful prescription drugs with alcohol, according to the coroner's report. The 48-year-old, whose real name was Wayne Richard Wells, was found dead in his Landers, California home. Static founded STATIC-X in 1994 and achieved commercial success with "Wisconsin Death Trip", which included the rock radio hit "Push It". The group issued five more studio albums before disbanding permanently in June 2013. Static had been pursuing a solo career at the time of his death.
Continue reading...
Continue reading...
