5. Chimaira breaks up, Shadows Fall go on hiatus

It’s always a wake-up call when one of your favorite bands decides to call it quits or takes some time off. God Forbid did it last year, and this year, Chimaira very suddenly broke up. That was compounded by Shadows Fall announcing they were taking an indefinite hiatus following a farewell tour. It’s a testament to how popular both bands were at the peak of their careers that it’s so shocking that both bands are taking time off or splitting up. Shadows Fall’s The War Within sold over 300,000 copies, and Chimiara was one of the leaders of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. Both bands were definitely at the forefront of metal a decade ago.

There are certainly a few factors behind the splits. First of all, the music industry has changed radically in the past deacade. No one’s selling 300,000 copies of an album any more. If Slipknot is claiming they’re not making money off record sales, then that doesn’t bode well for bands that aren’t going gold. Secondly, Chimaira and Shadows Fall have been around for 16 and 19 years, respectively. They have wives and kids to support, and it gets harder and harder to jump in a van and tour for 50 weeks out of the year. Chimaira’s revolving door of musicians didn’t help things much on that front. While Shadows Fall are taking some time off, there’s nothing saying they won’t be even more popular when they come off of their hiatus, given that two of their members are in Anthrax and Flotsam and Jetsam, respectively. In addition, they’re not technically gone yet, as they’re going to be touring the U.S. for one last time. The most shocking things about the hiatus/split might not lie with the bands, and be more of a realization that we’re all getting a bit older. – by BT

4. Megadeth loses half its lineup in one fell swoop

Sure, Megadeth has gone through its fair share of lineup changes. However, since David Ellefson returned to the fold in 2010, it seemed like Dave Mustaine had found himself the most stable lineup of Megadeth in a long time. That’s why it was rather surprising that drummer Shawn Drover announced his departure after ten years of playing in the band. Yet it didn’t end there, as just a few hours later guitarist Chris Broderick announced that he too was leaving Megadeth (six years after he first joined). While Broderick would go on to claim that the timing was pure coincidence and was “simply time” to leave, the guitarist also revealed that he’s already working on a new project with Drover (and already found a singer). As for Megadeth, Ellefson has reassured fans that the group is not disbanding, while video suggests a new drummer may already have been found. However, don’t hold your breath for a Rust In Peace era lineup reunion. – by Zach Shaw