METAL HAMMER Issues Statement In Response To CARCASS' 'Inspiration Award' Controversy

Metal Hammer magazine has issued a statement in regards to the removal of the "Inspiration Award" from the running order of this year's Metal Hammer Golden Gods ceremony, which was held Monday night (June 16) at London, England's state-of-the-art Indigo2 complex. The award was supposed to be presented to reactivated British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS, whose drummer, Ken Owen, charged in an online posting yesterday (June 18) that "I'd have been proud and glad to pick up the award on everybody's behalf, but didn't make the ceremony due to the fact that Metal Hammer messed me around so much. In the end, they didn't even have the decency to admit that they either couldn't or wouldn't get transport for me. They just kept me hanging on with promises to get back to me to the point where it was too late for me to organize my own transport to London."

Metal Hammer's official statement regarding CARCASS' "Inspiration Award" reads as follows:

"Metal Hammer magazine is deeply saddened by any disappointment caused to Ken Owen and CARCASS by the events surrounding the Golden Gods awards on Monday 16th June. It appears that there have been a number of misunderstandings that have led to this situation that Metal Hammer would like to clarify to assure Ken, CARCASS and fans of the band worldwide of their commitment to legends such as CARCASS.

"Contrary to Internet speculation, Metal Hammer would like to reassure Ken and CARCASS that at no point was the award cancelled. CARCASS' receipt of the Inspiration Award is very much still in place and we are keen to be able to present them with it in person, at a suitable and convenient time for the band. As the organisers of a big awards event, Metal Hammer magazine has to put a lot of consideration into the artist being represented on the night. With up to 1500 metal fans attending, as well as the vast majority of the UK's rock and metal industry, Metal Hammer felt that with nobody from CARCASS able to attend the event (please refer to the next paragraph) and an unsuitable amount of time available to source a recorded acceptance message, that it would be more appropriate to drop the Inspiration Award from the running order of the show. Metal Hammer would like to state categorically that at no point did this mean that CARCASS' Inspiration Award had been cancelled.

"Over the course of the Download weekend (June 13th to June 15th) numerous conversations were had with Ken with regards to his attendance of the awards. It was initially planned that Jeff Walker [CARCASS bassist/vocalist] would attend the event to receive his award but, due to personal circumstances, was unable to do so. On the Monday morning of the event we were informed by Ken that he was unable to attend due to a college exam that afternoon. Several members of the Golden Gods team had been informed that Ken would be unable to attend and so the decision was taken to remove the Inspiration Award from the event's running order.

"Metal Hammer would like to assure the metal community that there are few bands in the world that the magazine holds in higher regard than CARCASS. The band have been responsible for shaping a vast proportion of the metal we hear today and for that very reason, have always been among the top candidates for the Inspiration Award. At no point did Metal Hammer mean any disrespect to Ken or to CARCASS and the Inspiration Award will continue to be awarded to the band. We apologise for any miscommunication that may have occurred but stress that we were only acting on the information received by a number of award organisers. The Inspiration Award will still be represented in the magazine's coverage of the Golden Gods and, if a time convenient to the band can be arranged, we will do our best to ensure that the award and its acceptance by the band is included in MTV Two's official Golden Gods programme."

Low-quality fan-filmed video footage of Ken Owen being cheered by the audience at CARCASS' first-ever "reunion" show, which took place on June 6, 2008 at the Sweden Rock Festival in Slvesborg, Sweden can be viewed below (courtesy of YouTube user "rfkohndk").

In February of 1999, Owen suffered a near-fatal brain hemorrhage, leaving him in a coma for over 10 months. As a result, he is not taking part in CARCASS' current reunion run (ARCH ENEMY skinsman Daniel Erlandsson is filling in),but will reportedly be traveling with the band whenever possible and making brief appearances at select shows.

Martin Carlsson of the Swedish newspaper Expressen, who witnessed CARCASS' first reunion show, told BLABBERMOUTH.NET, "The most touching moment was when Ken was brought up on stage. Few knew that [he] was in such a bad condition. Someone described it as 'shocking' to see one of the greatest blastbeats drummers ever being helped up to the drum podium. Ken fiddled around on the drums for about a minute before he left the stage. Jeff [Walker, bass/vocals] urged him to come out again to say a few words and Ken thanked the audience for supporting CARCASS. The entire audience chanted 'Ken, Ken, Ken!' and afterwards people couldn't stop taking about this touching moment."

Photos of CARCASS's Sweden Rock Festival performance can be found on the band's official MySpace blog.