Former Lamb of God drummer Chris Adler reflected on the reasons for his dismissal from the band in 2019, chalking it up to a combination of illness and jealousy from his ex-bandmates.
On a new episode of Loaded Radio, which you can hear below, Adler discussed his diagnosis with musician’s focal dystonia, a neurological condition that affects the muscles in a specific part of the body during certain activities or repetitive movements.
This, along with his concurrent work with Megadeth, led to Adler’s firing, in his eyes.
How Musician’s Focal Dystonia Affected Chris Adler
“I haven’t talked about this before, but I had — at the same time [as my Megadeth work], in like 2016 or 2017, right at the end of ’16 — I was diagnosed with something called musician’s dystonia,” Adler said. “I didn’t want to talk about it at the time because I felt like it would really hinder my career. But I’ve gone through an incredible amount of work to be able to come back from it.”
“What it is — and I’ve heard [Cannibal Corpse bassist] Alex Webster talk about this before, and I’m buddies with him — and recently I saw the Nickelback documentary,” Adler continued. “I’m not the biggest Nickelback fan, but it’s a great documentary if you haven’t seen it. Their drummer, Daniel [Adair], went through the same thing. It may have been with his arm or his hand, but he was diagnosed with dystonia. For a drummer, or really anybody that plays an instrument, it’s kind of a death sentence.
READ MORE: How Cannibal Corpse Bassist Overcame Neurological Disorder
Adler explained that the condition affected his right foot. “Dystonia is basically a neurological condition where the nerve that controls the movement of any particular body part deteriorates to the point where that motion becomes impossible,” he explained. “People that repeat the same motion for decades at a time, this happens to them. It happens a lot to golfers, quarterbacks, first-chair violinists, people that just practice the hell out of what they’re doing. And this happened to me with my right foot.”
Needless to say, this made it difficult for Adler to pull off his lightning-fast double-bass footwork on Lamb of God songs. “I would be playing a song and my foot, when I intended it to depress the pedal, would shoot off to the side or shoot back,” he said. “That was at the point where I was coming off stage just so depressed with my performance. I think the band was very frustrated with my performance. I did give them the medical paperwork: ‘Here’s what it is, here’s what we can do. There’s just a couple of songs that are really aggravating this. The rest I can get through if you’re willing to change them.'”
How Adler’s Stint in Megadeth Strained His Lamb of God Relationships
Adler also suggested that his performances on Protest the Hero’s 2013 album Volition and Megadeth’s Grammy-winning 2016 album Dystopia strained his relationships within Lamb of God.
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“At the time, I had also joined Megadeth. Tensions were really high,” he said. “We were never the most functional group of people traveling around the world, if you know anything about the band. Whoever was not in the room was basically getting picked on. And I think the combination of things got to the point where they didn’t want to deal with it, and I wasn’t happy with my performances. So that kind of stopped the train. It was one of those emails: ‘Your services are no longer required’ kind of thing. And that was devastating, because it really was, I felt like it was my baby. It was my project, and I put my life into it. It was my identity.”
Adler’s Got ‘Nothing but Love’ for Ex-Lamb of God Bandmates
After being dismissed from Lamb of God, Adler underwent several years of intensive physical therapy to rebuild his drumming abilities. He teamed up with Megadeth bassist James LoMenzo to form the thrash band Firstborne, releasing their self-titled debut EP in 2020 and their debut full-length, Gods of Fire, in 2023.
READ MORE: 10 Times Chris Adler Was the Best Drummer on Earth
“I knew that it would be stupid for me to try to compete with what I had done before, because [Lamb of God] really did way more than anybody — including ourselves — thought we could have done,” Adler said. “Twenty-two years of traveling the world. And I don’t really count the awards or accolades, but there really wasn’t a whole lot more to achieve, other than just proving that we were still around. So it wasn’t like a total death sentence. I think I got off the train at a very good time.”
Adler also said he no longer has any ill will toward his ex-bandmates. “I did take it hard. I did take it personally,” he confessed. “And it sent me spiraling for a little while. But I’ve worked through those resentments, and I’ve got nothing but love for them.”
Hear Chris Adler Discuss His Firing From Lamb of God
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