Everyone knows the feeling: a band you've adored for years announces that they're splitting up because of "creative differences" or personal issues. Sometimes it's easy to get over it: you just buy a pint of mint chocolate chip ice cream, eat it and cry for a few days then find another band to like for a few more years - until they break up, of course. But sometimes, getting over a band breaking up can be hell.
Take, for instance, my favorite band Chiodos, they've gone through at least a million and a half lineup changes, which left the main fan base worried that the band would just split up. Eventually, though, the original line-up basically returned with front man Craig Owens rejoining the band in 2013. After much excitement and anticipation, the band released a new album - Devil - in 2014, which probably killed a few people due to how amazing and exciting it was to have the original Chiodos back (an album with the original members of the band was last released in 2007).
So what happened between 2014 and now?
I'm so glad you asked - and if you didn't, you can just skip to the end of this article like I'm sure 98% of the people that read this will do - because I have a great answer! My answer is: honestly, I don't know. Obviously, band members are people too and prefer to keep some things quiet, which Craig Owens even said in his Facebook livestream under BadXchannels that the band went through a "silent hiatus" to not cause more pain and heartbreak for the fans. But then again, was that really helping us or causing us to lose our minds? I would argue the latter. But I digress, Chiodos is a band that has always kept its fans on their toes, just like giving the fans false hope with the release of Devil in 2014 and breaking up two years later.
Of course, no one likes being thrown into an emotional rollercoaster when it comes to anything they love, even me, and I love adrenaline (most of the time). My issue with Chiodos finally breaking up is exactly that. Not one band I've ever liked has called it quits a million times and came back a million and one times like Chiodos did. I've kept up with this band for nearly ten years and this past April got a tattoo of Craig's signature to signify how much the band and Craig's lyrics meant to me...then they broke up. Basically, all I can do now is sigh and cry every time I look at my tattoo.
So here's a short note to anyone suffering from severe depression or anxiety about their favorite band (i.e. My Chemical Romance, the Jonas Brothers, Mudvayne) breaking up: don't stress about it, plenty of other fans are going through it as well! And if you have a tattoo of the band's logo, a band member's signature, etc., don't get upset every time you see it, use it as an amazing reminder of how awesome the band was and how it impacted your life. On the bright side, there are thousands of bands out there just waiting for you to discover them! And hey, maybe one of the band members - like the keyboardist of Chiodos - will end up as an insurance agent and can help you get insurance quotes.
