KALEN CHASE Explains Why VIMIC Won’t Continue Without JOEY JORDISON: 'There Are No Plans for Future Stuff'

Summary

• VIMIC will reunite for a one-night tribute concert to honor Joey Jordison and release the long-delayed album Open Your Omen.
• Frontman Kalen Chase confirms there are no plans for VIMIC to continue after the event, this is the final chapter.
• Funds raised will support the Joey Jordison Charitable Fund, providing drums to students through Iowa-based nonprofit Broken Strings.

VIMIC, the metal project formed by late Slipknot drummer Joey Jordison, is set to take the stage one last time. On October 3, the band will reunite for a tribute concert in Los Angeles. The show, hosted at the Teragram Ballroom, will honor Jordison’s legacy and celebrate the long-overdue release of VIMIC’s album, Open Your Omen.

The event will feature support from Wednesday 13, who played with Jordison in Murderdolls, and several unnamed special guests. All proceeds will benefit the Joey Jordison Charitable Fund, which has partnered with Iowa-based non-profit Broken Strings to provide musical instruments to students.

In Joey’s memory, this initiative will focus on getting drums into schools.

In a new interview with Loaded Radio (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH), Kalen Chase, VIMIC’s lead vocalist, made one thing clear: the band has no plans to continue after the concert. For him and the rest of the group, the focus is on honoring Jordison, not restarting a career.

“We are making no plans,” Chase said. “The only focus that the family and the five of us have right now is to get the record out and to play this show and to honor Joey with that.”

The show, along with the album release, will serve as both a tribute and a goodbye. According to Chase, the band agreed early on that this was not the beginning of a comeback. It’s a final chapter.

“There are no plans for future stuff,” he continued. “We’re not even broaching it. We’re not talking about it.”

For fans hoping this might spark a full reunion or new music, this isn’t it. Chase described the reunion as “an unspoken agreement” to give Jordison the send-off he deserves and offer fans one last experience with the band’s material.

VIMIC’s album, Open Your Omen, was originally expected back in 2018. At the time, it was being produced by Jordison and the late Kato Khandwala. Several singles were released in 2016 and 2017, including Simple Skeletons and Fail Me (My Temple), which featured a guest solo by Megadeth’s Dave Mustaine.

Progress came to a halt in 2018 after Khandwala died in a motorcycle accident. Around the same time, several members shifted focus to other bands, including Sinsaenum, Bad Wolves, and Imonolith. Jordison’s unexpected death in 2021 put the project on hold indefinitely.

When a Kickstarter campaign was launched to finally fund the album’s release, the response was overwhelming. Fans raised money to print CDs, vinyl, and merchandise Joey helped design before his passing. The campaign also helped fund the tribute concert.

Chase admitted the positive reception took him by surprise.

“It was shocking and surprising and wonderful,” he said. “You haven’t really done all your healing yet.”

Revisiting the songs brought up emotions he thought he had already processed. But despite the bittersweet feeling, he’s thankful the album is finally being shared.

“At the end of the day, we are thrilled and excited mostly to give the fans what they want.”

As for whether the concert will be filmed or livestreamed for fans who can’t make it, that’s still undecided. Chase said they only recently secured the venue, and technical details are still being worked out.

“Can we do this? Can we film? How big is the stage?” he asked. “I can tell you that I would very much like to.”

At the very least, he joked, there’s always his “old camcorder with a VHS tape” as backup.

VIMIC was formed in 2016 after Jordison ended his previous project, Scar the Martyr. The group featured Kalen Chase on vocals, Jed Simon and Kris Norris on guitars (later joined by Steve Marshall), Kyle Konkiel on bass, and Matt Tarach on keyboards.

Chase said being part of the band, and especially working with Jordison, was one of the highlights of his career.

“Getting to be the frontman of VIMIC with one of my closest friends, Joey, that was such a pleasure,” he said. “Those shows were so much fun, and I’m so glad I got to do that.”

Although Open Your Omen marks the end of VIMIC, fans will finally get the chance to hear the full vision that Joey Jordison helped build. And for one night in Los Angeles, the songs will come to life on stage.

There won’t be a follow-up, a tour, or another comeback. Just one album, one show, and a final thank you.

About Joey Jordison

Joey Jordison was best known as the founding drummer of Slipknot, where his aggressive style, precision, and showmanship helped shape the band’s early sound and image.

Born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1975, he joined Slipknot in 1995 and remained with the band through their rise to international fame, performing on albums like Slipknot (1999), Iowa (2001), and Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses) (2004). He also contributed to much of the band’s songwriting and was a key creative force in its early years.

Beyond Slipknot, Jordison was involved in several other musical projects. He played guitar in the horror punk band Murderdolls, collaborated with Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson, and filled in on drums for bands like Metallica, Korn, and Ministry.

After his time in Slipknot ended in 2013, he went on to form Scar the Martyr, VIMIC, and later joined the extreme metal band Sinsaenum.

In 2016, Jordison revealed he had been diagnosed with transverse myelitis, a neurological disorder that temporarily left him unable to play drums.

He spent years in recovery, relearning how to walk and play. He credited music, and specifically the creation of Open Your Omen, as part of what pulled him through that difficult time.

Jordison passed away on July 26, 2021, at the age of 46. His family described him as a “prolific drummer, musician and artist with a gentle soul.”

His death sent shockwaves through the music world, with tributes pouring in from fans and fellow musicians alike. Even today, he’s remembered as one of the most influential metal drummers of his generation.

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