Lamb of God front man Randy Blythe is still in custody in a prison in Prague over the death of a fan, as luminaries from the world of metal rush to support him on Twitter. The incident in question is the now much-publicised fracas in a 2010 Prague venue that saw Blythe push a 19 year-old fan who'd made it onto the stage during a Lamb Of God show onto the concrete floor below. The teenager knocked his head against the concrete, allegedly, and died from his injuries two weeks later. Lamb Of God arrived in Prague over the weekend for a show this Thursday but Blythe was arrested as soon as he touched ground.
Bbc reports that there had been rumours Czech officials had released Blythe on bail, but that is not the case, with the Czech legal system allowing for appeal on any bail posted, which means that the singer remains in jail. Blythe's plight is being recognised on Twitter and specifically the metal community. "He didn't 'slaughter' anyone," Disturbed frontman David Draiman wrote, according to The Stool Pigeon. "The kid jumped on stage and started a brawl, and Randy defended himself. That his life was lost in the process is truly unfortunate, but Randy is my friend and he's no murderer."
Referencing a 2004 incident where Pantera guitarist Dimebag Darrell was shot dead on stage, Draiman continued "You have to understand that ever since Dimebag Darrell was assaulted, shot, and murdered on stage by a 'fan,' all of us have been very defensive/cautious of anyone jumping up on stage. I'm not saying that it's OK, or justified, or anything like that, only that it's an unfortunate/tragic set of circumstances. I know Randy's intention was not to kill the kid." It was a point supported by Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian, who said "Now fans can see firsthand why there's no stage diving anymore. Especially in the post-Darrell world we live in. It's all fun and games until people get murdered, die and get arrested. Randy didn't cause that fan's death. That fan chose his path. People need to take responsibility for their actions no matter what the consequence. Of course it's sad that this person died, it's a tragedy, but it's not Randy's fault." Slash and ex-Skid Row man Sebastian Bach were among others to lend their support to Blythe.