Kerns first experienced eye trouble last month while on tour in Europe: his eye had been bothering him for a few weeks before “going blind” en route from a show in Belgium to the Glastonbury Festival in Bristol, England. Todd went straight to the emergency room in Bristol and was told he “had suffered a vitreous hemorrhage in my right eye. It is a tear in the retina. It’s all gross stuff involving the jelly within the eye and blood from a retinal tear mixing to cloud the vision in the eye. You would never notice looking at my eye. It’s all behind the pupil. The good news was that my retina had not detached. The bad news is that a vitreous hemorrhage is often the predecessor to a retinal detachment.”
Ever the rock ‘n roll trooper, Kerns played Glastonbury: “I was told that I wouldn’t be allowed to run around or rock out too hard that night or there was a risk of detaching my retina. Me not rock out? Eesh. I don’t know if that’s possible. I did my best. If you see the footage from Glastonbury it is amongst my most subdued performances. With good reason, I suppose.”
Check out a few songs from Slash’s Glastonbury set here.
Slash’s tour then hit Ireland, where Kerns was checked out again and played a show in Dublin, while waiting for his eye to clear up or his retina to detach - either meant immediate surgery and a way to address the issue. More shows across Europe followed (if you can believe it) with Kerns playing on only one good eye.
Following surgery, Kerns will be laid up for a few weeks while he recovers. “I will see you soon. I have been playing almost every night for God knows how many years now and the idea of not doing so for a while is a bit unnerving. I plan to make the best of it. There’s always a new song to write.”
Kerns’s bass slot for Slash’s Asia and Australian tours will be filled by Tony Montana (ex-Great White).
Kerns hooking up with Slash is no coincidence: Todd was originally in the running for the Velvet Revolver gig before Scott Weiland was given the nod.
Guns ‘N Roses - Nightrain - Appetite for Destruction Slash – Nightrain
Rock AM Ring – Germany – June 4, 2010
Kerns is also a member of Sin City Sinners, one of Las Vegas’ hottest rock acts; the band usually plays shows featuring 80’s rock songs and are often joined by celebrity guests passing through town. The band released their debut, “Exile On Fremont Street,” earlier this year and have an acoustic ep, “Broken Record,” coming out later this month.
Sin City Sinners - Goin' To Vegas - Exile On Fremont Street Sin City Sinners - Going To Vegas (2010)
From “Exile On Fremont Street”
Historically, Kerns came to be known to rock fans, especially in Canada, as the frontman for The Age Of Electric, who released some cool stuff during the 90s.
Ugly - The Age of Electric The Age Of Electric – Ugly (1994)
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