Wayne Static Cause of Death Confirmed

Months after the death of former Static-X frontman Wayne Static (Wayne Richard Wells), the official cause of death has been revealed.

According to a recently released coroner’s report, obtained by Blabbermouth, the cause of death was due to a mix of prescription drugs and alcohol and has been listed as “mixed prescription drug (oxycodone, hydromorphone, alprazolam) with alcohol toxicity, hours, due to chronic prescription drug and alcohol abuse, years.”

Initially, Wells’ publicist and widow, Tera Wray, had claimed his death was not caused by drugs, but tests have shown otherwise.

The report states Wells had taken Oxycoden which was prescribed to his wife as well as an unknown amount of alcohol before going to bed at 7:00 a.m. on the day of his death. The hourly timeline from the coroner confirms the timeline Wells’ widow had given officials.

“On November 1, at approximately 0700 hours, [Wayne] and his wife went to bed. His wife stated that just prior to going to bed, he crushed one-half of a 30 mg oxycodone pill and consumed it. The oxycodone had been prescribed to his wife. He also drank an unknown amount of alcohol. His wife awoke at around 1530 hours. She found the decedent dead in the bed and called 911 at 1547 hours. Paramedics arrived and confirmed death at 1600 hours, noting rigor mortis and lividity. There was no evidence of foul play or any indication a struggle had taken place.”

According to Wells’ mother, he was a self-admitted alcoholic and had been battling the bottle for the past two years. Both his mother and widow had said he was not suicidal at the time of his death.

Wells’ passed away on Nov. 1, just three days shy of his 49 birthday on Nov. 4.

Sum 41 Frontman Admitted into Hospital for Kidney and Liver Failure

In what has come as surprising news to fans and casual listeners of Sum 41, frontman Deryck Whibley has released an open letter revealing that he was admitted to the hospital to deal with some serious health concerns. In the letter, he reveals that he was admitted into the hospital over a month ago to get treatment for both kidney and liver failure after collapsing in his home and being sedated at the hospital for a week. 

By his own account, Whibley had admitted that years of serious alcohol abuse had led to the situation that he is currently in; laid up in a hospital with serious health conditions. He also reveals that he understand that after the bad has passed, he would never be able to drink again. The only upside, he says? The fact that his musical muse had finally returned and that he is currently writing music. 

You can read his letter (and see a picture straight from the hospital) below and just remember guys, drink with responsibly. It might sound like a clichéd, alcohol commercial disclaimer, but no one wants to one day be admitted into the hospital with such serious health problems at such a young age. 

“hey everyone, it’s deryck here. sorry i’ve been so m.i.a. lately, but i’ve been very sick in the hospital for a month and was pretty sick for a few weeks leading up to my trip to the hospital. the reason i got so sick is from all the hard boozing i’ve been doing over the years. it finally caught up to me. i was drinking hard every day. until one night. i was sitting at home, poured myself another drink around mid night and was about to watch a movie when all of a sudden i didn’t feel so good.

i then collapsed to the ground unconscious. my fiancé got me rushed to the hospital where they put me into the intensive care unit. i was stuck with needles and i.v.’s all over. i was completely sedated the FIRST WEEK. when i finally woke up the next day i had no idea where i was. my mum and step dad were standing over me. i was so freaked out. my liver and kidney’s collapsed on me. needless to say it scared me straight. i finally realized i can’t drink anymore. if i have one drink the doc’s say i will die. i’m not preaching or anything but just always drink responsibly. i didn’t, and look where that got me. (i never thought i would ever say that! haha) anyway i have my passion and inspiration back for writing music. i already have a few song ideas for new songs. soon it will be time to start making an album and getting back to touring again. see you all sometime! there will be more posts again so say up to date friends.

DERYCK WHIBLEY”

Panic! at the Disco Drummer Reveals Addiction Problems

For fans of Panic! at the Disco, we can all say that the band went from being a little unknown Las Vegas band, to scoring hits on MTV really fast. But apparently things haven’t been all fine for one member of the band that has been there since the beginning, drummer Spencer Smith.

Last night, the sticksman released a message to fans where he explained about his drug and alcohol addiction that was pretty much unknown to anyone except himself. In the message he reveals that he had an addiction to pain medication and when he wasn’t int he public eye, things would get worse. He also confirms that he is indeed clean and sober as their new album is slated to be released in a few months.

The full message could be read below and believe us, it’s a powerful read, so get some tissues:

For the past 4 and a half years I’ve been battling addiction. Well, to be honest, I’ve really been battling it for the last two years. Those first 2 and a half years were spent in a place where I thought I had finally found the correct dosage of my personally prescribed medicine to feel “normal”…..In reality, I was mostly stumbling through my life hoping no one noticed I was high. 

Growing up I never used drugs or alcohol. I smoked weed and had my first drink in the same night when I was 19. I loved it, and from that point on I made sure to make up for all those years I had spent abstaining. I’d think to myself… “What have I been doing? This is it! This is what I’ve needed”. I didn’t know it then, but it would be the identical reaction to the way I felt while using that would later lead my drug use dominating my life. For the first few years, my life in a band afforded me the ability to maintain a drinking habit that wouldn’t have lasted a week at a day job. Being on tour left me with a very distorted view of what drinking habits are considered “normal”. But, unlike most of the other musicians I spent time with on tour, when I got home my drinking increased. My anxiety and depression became much worse, and I used alcohol to attempt to numb it. It can be a shock to the system when you go from being on tour for 18 months, almost never being alone, always having somewhere to be and a show to play, to waking up alone having no clue what your gonna do for months on end. Now, if that sounds like it should be on the top of the list of first world problems, you’re right. No one deserves any sympathy for having too much free time. But for someone like me, an addict and alcoholic, free time can be dangerous. I need structure, and when I don’t put it in place for myself, I suffer the consequences. 

Then, a little over 2 years ago, something traumatic happened in regards to the health of a loved one. It was around this time that I started taking Vicodin and Xanax on a daily basis. It was an intoxicating mix. At the time, I honestly thought that I had figured it all out. That I could self medicate my way to always being happy and never having to deal with any underlying issues causing my depression. I quickly became a serious addict. As crazy as it seems to me now, when I was high, I felt like the person I wanted to be. I liked myself, and I thought that everyone else must like me more too. I’d become so used to functioning when I was drinking and taking pills that, in my mind, everyone else must think I’m not only acting “normal”, but happy! outgoing! and content. On tour, It became a balancing act between taking enough so I didn’t start feeling withdrawal symptoms and not taking too much that I couldn’t function. 

When we got off the tour we were doing for our last record, I slipped further into my addiction. With a lot more alone time and no worry of being presentable at an interview or a meet & greet, my life began to revolve around my addiction. Wake up: Take a pill to have the energy to get out of bed. Leaving the house: Make sure I have enough pills to last till I get back. I had back up pills in my car, my backpack, all over the place incase something happened to the ones I had on me. I couldn’t go more than 8 hours without feeling painkiller withdrawals. I was taking a dangerous amount of pills while drinking to chase that high, and just like with any other substance, the higher the high is, the lower the low is. What started out as a way for me to numb anxiety and depression had become the major cause of it.

Last fall, after months of trying to quit and only making it 2 or 3 weeks, I entered treatment. I was extremely lucky to have the support of my family, bandmates, friends and my girlfriend. I’ve met too many people who have lost everything and burned every bridge they have due to their addiction. I can honestly say that without the love and support of those closest to me, I wouldn’t be here, sober, and able to write this today. The thought of putting this on paper and out into the world is scary. Since I’m still so fresh in my recovery, I was questioning whether or not I should. But, as anyone who has dealt with this personally knows, recovery is not possible without honesty. I spent years hiding and lying about my addiction. A huge weight was lifted from me when I could look at my friends, family and band in the eye and tell them what was really going on. It didn’t feel like I had some sort of double life anymore. I don’t want that feeling in any aspect of my life again. 

Wow, now that I’ve put this down all my nerves have gonna away and it just feels freeing. My goal in releasing this is to try and relate to anyone who has experienced addiction personally or with a loved one, and to be honest with everyone else. To let people know that anxiety, depression, and addiction are not picky. They plague people of all ages from all walks of life. But, you can recover!! So, please seek help if you’re suffering personally, and urge anyone you know to get help if they are suffering. It gets better one day at a time.

Looking forward to seeing all of you on tour,

Spencer