Coal Chamber originally existed between 1993 and 2003, and then had a brief reunion between 2011 and 2016. Coal Chamber signed to Napalm Records and put out their comeback record Rivals in 2015, but went on indefinite hiatus in 2016. Frontman Dez Fafara would perform Coal Chamber songs with DevilDriver live, and eventually in 2018 stated that he believed the band was "done, and I think it's done forever."
Then in 2023, Coal Chamber reunited. All the band's members seemed pretty ecstatic about the whole thing, and Fafara later revealed that they all started talking when he was on his deathbed due to a bout with COVID-19. Now in an interview with Blabbermouth, Fafara said he feels Coal Chamber's 2002 album Dark Days and Rivals are the band's best, and that their attempt at a reunion in 2011 was premature.
"I said this to the label: We were ten years too early. If Rivals came out now, not only would the band have had their shit together more — including the other guys. And I'm sober now, off alcohol since 2016 and we'd be releasing that now behind a tour with Mudvayne. Oh fuck. That record would go through the roof. We were ten years too early on that. I think it's perfect timing to get back to it.
"I certainly don't want to try it in my '70s. I want to do it now while we look good. We feel good. If you look at those guys, they haven't aged. If you look at Nadja [Peulen, bass], she's as beautiful as ever and an amazing bass player. In two weeks, I get in the room with them to jam.
"Look, Sick New World is only a 30-minute set. I told them, 'You better break a sweat in the first minute and a half. We better kill.' That's the thing I've always had and Coal Chamber, specifically, is 'go after it.' Go after the band that goes on before you and the band that goes after you must pay the dues. Meegs [Miguel Rascon, guitar], Mike [Cox, drums] and Nadja still have it.
"Mike wrote me this morning when he found out it was a 30-minute set, it was 14 pages of 'Ha-ha-ha-ha, kill it! Ha-ha-ha-ha, destroy!' I started laughing when Anahstasia showed it to me. It's on. I'm excited about playing music with both of my bands. I'm excited to be alive. I'm excited to release an autobiography, and I'm excited to be here still. I'm humbled to be able to have this long of a career.
"I wake up every day, before I grab my phone and take my first breath, I say, 'Thank you. This is great. I could have died in my sleep last night.' That's where I'm coming from right now."
Coal Chamber is set for Sick New World on May 13 and then a tour with Mudvayne, Gwar, Nonpoint, and Butcher Babies. Get your tickets here.
7/20 West Palm Beach, FL @iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
7/21 Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
7/23 Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion
7/25 Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live
7/26 Scranton, PA @ The Pavilion at Montage Mountain
7/28 Wantagh, NY @ Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
7/29 Camden, NJ @ Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
7/30 Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center
8/1 Syracuse, NY @ St Joseph's Health Amphitheater at Lakeview
8/2 Burgettstown, PA @ The Pavilion at Star Lake
8/4 Cuyahoga Falls, OH @ Blossom Music Center
8/5 Tinley Park, IL @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
8/6 Clarkston, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre
8/8 Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
8/9 Peoria, IL @ Peoria Civic Center
8/12 Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
8/13 The Woodlands, TX @The Cynthia Woods Pavilion
8/15 Albuquerque, NM @ Isleta Amphitheater
8/16 Phoenix, AZ @Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
8/17 Irvine, CA @ FivePoint Amphitheatre
8/19 Concord, CA @ Concord Pavillion
8/20 Reno,NV @ Grand Theatre
8/22 Auburn, WA @ White River Amphitheatre
8/23 Ridgefield, WA @ RV Inn Style Resort Amphitheater
8/25 Salt Lake City, UT @USANA Amphitheatre
8/26 Englewood, CO @ Fiddler's Green Amphitheatre
