Brian ‘Head’ Welch Doesn’t Want to Watch Korn ‘Grow Old and Go Downhill’

Korn guitarist Brian “Head” Welch is well aware of the challenges that await the band in the not-so-far-off future. Chief among those, of course, is the simple matter of how long the members of Korn will continue writing, recording and performing together as they advance into old age.

Have Korn given any indication that they plan to retire soon? Not by a long shot. Yet, Welch couldn’t help but ponder the possibility in an interview with Metal Hammer on Friday (April 23) ahead of the Jonathan Davis-led groups’ livestream concert event, Monumental.

Asked what Korn’s future holds beyond the virtual event, Welch offered a clearheaded assessment of the road that lies ahead.

“You know, I was talking to [fellow Korn guitarist James] “Munky” [Shaffer] the other day,” the musician mused, “like, ‘Munky, how long are you planning to go, man? Are we gonna be Rolling Stones wannabes, or do we wanna retire at some point and do something else?’

“The truth is… we don’t know,” Welch explained. “We left it knowing it’s gotta be the fans’ decision in the end. So long as they want us, we could just keep going.”

Still, “at the same time,” the rocker continued, “I was sat thinking how cool it’d be to go out on arena level rather than getting bumped back down to clubs or whatever. Smaller venues are fun because of how intimate you can get, but we don’t just wanna watch the band grow old and go downhill. I’d love to go out on top, man. But again, we could probably achieve that by maybe playing more sparingly, go out and only do special events so it’s more of an event. I don’t really see us doing full tours into our 80s, you know?”

But there must be plenty left to accomplish before the gentlemen in Korn become octogenarians — not to mention the significant anniversaries the band’s classic albums are now approaching. This year, Life Is Peachy turns 25. Is the group doing anything for it?

“You know, we’ve been so focused on this, we haven’t really talked about [that],” Welch responded, though he added that it “might be worth going back to the guys to do something for that!”

As for a new Korn album, Welch revealed earlier this year that the act had been throwing around song ideas. Then, just this week, Davis confirmed that a new albums’ worth of writing had been completed.

Monumental goes live on April 24 at 4PM ET. Get tickets and merch at kornlive.com.