Ready To Go Without Lethal

What happened to Lethal?

Earlier today, the music video for Ready To Go was released. The video consists of a mix between live footage from the recent US tour as well as the unreleased "old" Ready To Go music video which was filmed with Lethal last November. In this video, it looks like Lethal has been edited out. Sam most likely played the bass in the original video and was later digitally removed during post production. A new Sam Rivers behind DJ decks has been slapped in front of Lethal for this video. It appears that Fred and Wes are carrying out a damnatio memoriae against Lethal.

You will notice Lethal right behind Sam in the bottom left

This isn't all bad news. With Sam behind the DJ decks instead of DJ Sk3l3tor, that still leaves the door open for Lethal's possible return. Lethal, if you are reading this, please get together with Fred and work out your differences. All of us fans miss you.

You can watch the new music video on YouTube below. Skip to 1:37 to see a glimpse of Lethal.

Moving Forward Post Lethal

Why is DJ Sk3l3tor present at a Limp Bizkit press conference?

Earlier today, Fred, Wes, and surprisingly DJ Sk3l3tor held a press conference in Russia. They announced an upcoming 16 city Russian tour and discussed DJ Lethal's status in the band. Lethal is out and the door is now closed for his return. Fred has made it clear that he has chosen to move forward without him and has no intention to reconcile.

Which brings up the question of why DJ Sk3l3tor was at the press conference. Is he now Lethal's permanent replacement? It looks that way. He is much more involved in the band than before. He is now taking pictures with LB fans and even signing "DJ SK3L3TOR" on their CDs. Yes, I know, it's ridiculous because he isn't on any of those albums. In addition, DJ Sk3l3tor has been playing a much larger role in the recent live shows. He is no longer confined behind John Otto. He is still in the back but much closer to Lethal's spot on the stage. He is now doing back up vocals as well as adding in his own sound effects on songs like Boiler. Lastly, he is no longer wearing his skeleton mask and as mentioned before, attending Limp Bizkit press conferences.

Perhaps, Fred brought DJ Sk3l3tor along to the press conference as another snide jab against Lethal. The announcement of a Lethal-less Russian tour could also be interpreted as Fred severing his ties to Lethal. Lethal is originally from Russia and for Fred to do a tour in Lee's home country without him, is a new low.

You can watch the full press conference on YouTube below. Skip to 51:30 for the discussion regarding Lethal.

X Limp Bizkit?

Will Lethal ever be back in LB?

Earlier today, DJ Lethal changed the "OG Limp Bizkit" in his twitter description to "X Limp Bizkit?" As to why he did this is unclear.

It now says "X Limp Bizkit" instead of "OG Limp Bizkit"

A few days ago, Wes did an interview for ultimateguitar.com and was asked a few questions about DJ Lethal. Surprisingly he didn't badmouth Lethal. Instead he said,

DJ Lethal has left the band? 

We've had a lot of differences with him and we're not incredibly in a place to talk about all the ins and outs and whys just out of respect for him and personal things. We're in communication with him and we are talking with him and everything isn't completely severed. We're speaking to him but right now we have some issues we're working on and trying to work out. 

My point was really more about his musical contribution—has his absence impacted the sound of the album? 

No, he is not on the new album as of yet or is not going to be. It's still up in the air. I don't really feel like it's impacted it at all. A lot of the stuff that is sort of the icing on top, I've kind of taken over doing some of that and Sam (Rivers), our bass player has taken over doing some of that. I dunno, I don't feel like it's changed the sound that much because at our core we're a drums/bass/guitar band. 

There is still a chance that Lethal will be a part of the new LB album. The perfect time for Lethal and the rest of LB to make amends would be right after the European leg of the tour. Fred, Wes, John, and Sam should fly to Vegas after their June 29th show in Saint Petersburg, Russia and pay Lethal a visit. Fred, Wes, and Lethal would finally be able to sit face to face and resolve their issues. It's highly unlikely that this will happen however this is most likely the only way to put an end to all the band drama.

You can read the full interview on ultimate guitar here.

Cash Money or DJ Lethal?

The first band pic without Lethal since 1996

It's no secret that the Cash Money record deal has created problems for Lethal while presenting opportunities for Fred. Now that Fred and Wes have Cash Money producers at their disposal, they feel that Lethal outlived his usefulness and decided to shrug him off. It's like throwing away your old television when you get a new one. Wes, Polow Da Don, and Detailz provided the samples and sound effects on Lightz and Ready To Go. Why Fred and Wes would sacrifice a 16 year friendship for an opportunity to work with various Cash Money artists and producers (who are the worst hip hop has to offer) is beyond me. Perhaps Fred and Wes were only pretending to be Lethal's friend since 1996 in an effort to advance their careers.

As of now, it looks like the door is closed for Lethal's return. Wes has been badmouthing Lethal in recent interviews and Fred recently made a few immature jabs against Lethal on twitter. The band also recently posed for their first band picture without Lethal since he joined the band in 1996. Further indicating that they have no intention to reconcile with Lethal. DJ Skeletor, who plays Lethal's parts live, has been seen taking part in autograph sessions. He's actually signing DJ Skeletor on people's LB CDs, which is flat out disrespectful because Lethal was the DJ on those albums. It doesn't sound like he will step down.

DJ Lethal > All the Cash Money DJs and Producers combined

DJ Lethal joined Limp Bizkit back when they were a bunch of nobodies. He was a well respected DJ for House of Pain while Fred, Wes, Sam and John were just starting their careers. They must have felt honored when H.O.P.'s DJ Lethal agreed to join their band. Lethal was the missing piece of the puzzle. His unique samples, sound effects and scratching completed Limp Bizkit's sound. In addition, Lethal brought hip hop credibility to Limp Bizkit, introduced Fred to many of the biggest names in hip hop at the time, and did a few tours for free out of his own pocket. This man put his heart and soul into Limp Bizkit. He was there when Fred and Wes needed him. They should be grateful to have met a friend like him.

Where were Fred and Wes when Lethal needed them? Probably busy hanging out with Lil Wayne.