CHRIS ADLER On Being Asked To Speak At VINNIE PAUL Memorial: 'That Was The Moment That I Realized I'm An Adult'

In a brand new Facebook Live chat with Mapex Drums USA, former LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler reflected on his participation in the July 2018 public memorial for late PANTERA drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, who passed away a week earlier at age of 54.

"I met Dime [late PANTERA guitarist 'Dimebag' Darrell Abbott] several times, but I became close with Vinnie, and they asked me to speak at his funeral," Chris said (see video below). "To be honest with you, that was the moment that I realized I'm an adult. This whole rock and roll experience that I've had has been almost a fantasy, because my hero, my friend is dead, and I'm asked by everyone close to him to please speak about him at his funeral. And I was not without words; I was ready to go. But it was a very difficult thing to accept, because I had to kind of eat it. And that was one of the moments in my life where I realized, like, 'Fuck! I'm an adult now. People are dying at my age, people are dying very close to my age. This is happening.'

"I know Vinnie, and we all know stories of Vinnie," he continued. "He probably didn't eat his greens every morning. I wish he had, but at the same time, if he did, it may not have been the same. I loved him as a person, and I also love the legacy. And he loved me too. It was a sad moment, but I was very proud to be a part of that."

LAMB OF GOD officially parted ways with Chris last July. His replacement is Art Cruz, who has previously played with PRONG and WINDS OF PLAGUE, and filled in for Adler on several LAMB OF GOD tours in 2018 and 2019.

When Adler's absence from LAMB OF GOD's summer 2018 tour was first announced, he released a statement saying that he had been undergoing physical and occupational therapy for injuries he sustained in a motorcycle accident in late 2017. Chris later said that he was "unwilling to paint by numbers," explaining in an interview: "I had a dream when I was 14 years old, and I've been very fortunate to go around the world several times, and we've played the arenas, we've had the headline slots, we've kind of done everything there is to do, and I just don't really feel the need to continue to do it and miss time from my family."

In addition to LAMB OF GOD, Adler has played drums with a number of metal artists, including MEGADETH, NITRO, BLOTTED SCIENCE and PROTEST THE HERO.