LAMB OF GOD frontman Randy Blythe, who revealed yesterday he had been attacked on Dublin’s quays not far from his hotel on Sunday night, has been giving more details of his experience on Ryan Tubridy’s show this morning.
The singer – in Dublin ahead of a gig with Megadeth and a number of other metal groups at the 3Arena on Monday night - revealed on Instagram how he had been attacked by a gang of teenage youths near the Samuel Beckett Bridge.
Blythe posted details of the apparent attempted mugging online late on Monday, after performing as normal on stage with his band earlier that evening.
He had felt safe walking the streets as he took photos of the area around the Docklands close to midnight on Sunday, he told the host.
“There was nobody out on the streets so I didn’t think ‘oh, I’m going to get jumped’. But foolishly I got distracted looking at my camera in a dark city street in a little bad spot and that’s what happened.”
Asked if the gang of youths had taken anything from him, he replied “no”.
“That’s what depressed me almost. Because I had a brand new Sony A7 2 camera in my hand on a tripod and they didn’t even try and snatch it from me.”
“I think they were just out to kick someone’s head in… Either that or they were just crappy thieves, because I’d think if you were going to mug someone for something you’d grab the expensive camera before you smash them in the head.”
Blythe said the gang that attacked him were “teenage kids”. He said he hadn’t managed to throw any punches to defend himself saying “I wish I had, which is a terrible thing to say”.
The singer added that the gang who carried out the attack “did not look nervous”.
“They looked calm. They spread out around me.”
In his initial Instagram post Blythe explained how a taxi driver had intervened and chased the attackers away.
His online comment that parents need to “neuter & spay your feral children” drew some comment yesterday.
Speaking this morning, he described it as an attempt at black humour, but questioned why the teenagers were allowed to wander the streets causing trouble at such a late hour. “Where are their parents?” he asked.
Of his decision to play Monday’s gig as normal despite being hit on the head with a weapon and (as he described it online) having his “bell rung” badly, Blythe said “in a rock band you don’t call in sick to work”.
“It’s not like we’re in Ireland every week,” he added.
Attempted theft
The singer also revealed someone had attempted to pickpocket him on the Ha’penny Bridge on a previous visit to Dublin, but that he had shooed the perpetrator away.
Despite his experiences, he reiterated that he had no problem with the country and said there were bad elements everywhere.
“I just love Ireland in general,” Blythe told the RTÉ presenter, saying he wanted to “come back and surf” next time.
A number of listeners contacted the show to apologise to Blythe on behalf of the city. Others noted how disconcerting it was to hear the groove metal singer on mid-morning Radio 1 – particularly when a clip of one of his songs was played.
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