Two days ago (Jan, 4), Killswitch Engage announced that they had parted ways with vocalist Howard Jones. The announcement came as a shock to many due to the spotlight Jones’ voice was able to put on the band, but now Jones has released the reasoning for the departure via the official Killswitch Engage website.

The original Killswitch announcement of Jones’ departure painted a blurry picture of why the singer was no longer in the band. It seemed like we wouldn’t get a full answer anytime soon, but earlier today Jones offered reasons far more insightful than the average departure statement:

Well, I guess I will shed a little light without going too deep. As some of you may know, I’ve had a pretty interesting couple of years to say the least battling with some personal issues. One of the low points being diagnosed with type 2 diabetes that went unchecked for years.

The rest of the band stuck with me through it, and to be honest they are the ones that kept me going. The whole experience definitely put a scare in me.

Recently we’ve all been in writing mode but somehow I couldn’t get excited about the new album and all the touring that would go with it. The guys saw it before I did. In hindsight I now realize that my heart wasn’t in it.

I have had an amazing decade with KSE. I love Justin, MikeD, Joel and Adam for hanging in there and standing by me no matter how bad it was. I have so many good memories, and those are the ones that I will keep.

Will I be involved in music again? Sure, I have been in bands for a little over half my life, can’t stop now. Until then, get the new KsE album, it’s going to be good. Thanks everyone for letting me try to entertain you, and I wish myself well in my future endeavors. Gone fishin’ Howard

Killswitch Engage are currently in the process of writing their sixth studio album without Jones. The band plans to begin recording in February or March of this year.

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