Hero or lunatic?
I guess Casey, Drummer of Kamelot, is a mix of both. After the gig in the Zeche Bochum I got the chance to ask him for the real reason, that kept him from playing the whole tour. Casey: "Well, I had problems with my large toes, yes left and right. The toe nails grew into the toes which hurt not only while I was playing drums." The doc couldn´t schedule an early date for an operation, so Casey deceided to do what needed to be done to play at least the second leg of the tour. First he searched the internet for correct methods for a self-made operation. Then he bought stuff like a scalpel, disinfectant, pads etc..

Casey: "I tried to get drunk and numb as fast as I could. Thankfully my hands didn´t shake to much! My wife just asked me if I completely lost my mind, but was kind enough to bring me another bottle." Well, even wounds of smaller operations take time to heal, so Axel Holzwarth (Rhapsody) was so kind to play the first few shows as a substitute. Casey: "When I went to the doc afterwards, he was very suprised. He said that I did a very good job and he couldn´t have done it any better. This old flatterer..., hahaha!" Well, Casey didn´t told me if he´s considering a carreer as surgeon so far... Let´s wait and see ;-)