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courtneyyloves's review
5.0
Im not really religious but I love Korn, and work in mental health. I loved the book. It went over the real struggles and I finished it in one day.
rennegade's review
1.0
I almost feel bad for reading a book that I know is going to irritate me, but my nostalgia goggles were firmly on when I saw that Head had released another book. Even though I haven't closely followed Korn for years, I still feel compelled to pick up these books. (I am also noticing the trend of wanting to bash my head against the wall after reading said books.)
I read Head's first book back in undergrad. I remember hearing that he had left Korn, but I didn't care enough to know why. After seeing that book, I realized it was one of those born-again things. (Full disclosure: I am a lifelong atheist with no interest in finding Jesus.) I read it anyway out of pure curiosity. Both Head and Fieldy's first books had an annoying theme: "I acted like an asshole and did terrible things because I did not have God in my life." I can assure you that I have never acted the way they did, and religion has never been a part of my life. You don't need religion to be a good person. I left both books feeling irritated but also happy enough for them because whether I agree with it or not, religion brought them peace.
Then Head went back to Korn. That certainly led to some eyebrow-raising, since Head seemed happy to blame Korn for all of his pre-Jesus terrible ways. The description also mentioned the emotional issues of his daughter. I decided to read it to see what led him back to Korn and if his daughter was okay.
First, this guy's ridiculous newfound and unwavering devotion to God allowed him to become a gullible fool. He got taken by so many people because they basically told him, "I feel God in the room right now, and he wants you to invest a million dollars in my clearly fraudulent business." Come on, dude. You might be born-again, but you weren't born yesterday. Coming from the music industry, where people are routinely taken advantage of, how could you fall for that?
He ends up with lawsuits galore and people chasing him down for owed monies. Spoiler alert: He rejoins Korn shortly after filing for bankruptcy. Of course, there are several chapters of him praying to God for guidance and missing his old bandmates and feeling that he could bring Jesus to the metal world, but it is thoroughly unsurprising that his decision to rejoin the cash cow falls in line with bankruptcy.
While I am sure he meant well, his talent for poor decision-making clearly had an effect on his daughter. At least he has enough self-awareness to admit as much in the book. He moved her around, took her away from her friends, pulled her out of traditional school to have her homeschooled, etc. What gets me is that he seems quick to blame her self-mutilation and suicidal thoughts on the amount of time she spent on social media and the friends she talked to there. Umm, no. Maybe that had something to do with it, but I believe that the choices he made also had a strong hand in it. While he didn't go into specifics, he did say that Jennea was saying "inappropriate things" on Facebook. Was she cursing? Making sexual innuendos? Complaining about her father? I realize she was only 14, but none of the things are beyond the realm of normal teen things.
After reading that his daughter seemed to be doing better (though I am still suspicious of a Christian-based boarding school for girls due to the misogynistic nature of a lot of Christian teachings, but I digress...), I pretty much skimmed the rest of the book. Summed up: Head and Fieldy pray with kids at Korn shows. They apparently used the power of God to make someone's leg grow an inch longer (yeah, okay). God, God, Jesus, holy, God, etc. There was a whole lot of proselytizing right there at the end. Again, I should have expected as much, but still. Yawn.
I'd like a book from Jonathan Davis and Munky. And lord help me, I'd actually read a book from David even though his nonsensical postings on Facebook have proven that he is basically a fedora-wearing right wing asshole. Reddit personified, if you will. I just can't help myself.
I read Head's first book back in undergrad. I remember hearing that he had left Korn, but I didn't care enough to know why. After seeing that book, I realized it was one of those born-again things. (Full disclosure: I am a lifelong atheist with no interest in finding Jesus.) I read it anyway out of pure curiosity. Both Head and Fieldy's first books had an annoying theme: "I acted like an asshole and did terrible things because I did not have God in my life." I can assure you that I have never acted the way they did, and religion has never been a part of my life. You don't need religion to be a good person. I left both books feeling irritated but also happy enough for them because whether I agree with it or not, religion brought them peace.
Then Head went back to Korn. That certainly led to some eyebrow-raising, since Head seemed happy to blame Korn for all of his pre-Jesus terrible ways. The description also mentioned the emotional issues of his daughter. I decided to read it to see what led him back to Korn and if his daughter was okay.
First, this guy's ridiculous newfound and unwavering devotion to God allowed him to become a gullible fool. He got taken by so many people because they basically told him, "I feel God in the room right now, and he wants you to invest a million dollars in my clearly fraudulent business." Come on, dude. You might be born-again, but you weren't born yesterday. Coming from the music industry, where people are routinely taken advantage of, how could you fall for that?
He ends up with lawsuits galore and people chasing him down for owed monies. Spoiler alert: He rejoins Korn shortly after filing for bankruptcy. Of course, there are several chapters of him praying to God for guidance and missing his old bandmates and feeling that he could bring Jesus to the metal world, but it is thoroughly unsurprising that his decision to rejoin the cash cow falls in line with bankruptcy.
While I am sure he meant well, his talent for poor decision-making clearly had an effect on his daughter. At least he has enough self-awareness to admit as much in the book. He moved her around, took her away from her friends, pulled her out of traditional school to have her homeschooled, etc. What gets me is that he seems quick to blame her self-mutilation and suicidal thoughts on the amount of time she spent on social media and the friends she talked to there. Umm, no. Maybe that had something to do with it, but I believe that the choices he made also had a strong hand in it. While he didn't go into specifics, he did say that Jennea was saying "inappropriate things" on Facebook. Was she cursing? Making sexual innuendos? Complaining about her father? I realize she was only 14, but none of the things are beyond the realm of normal teen things.
After reading that his daughter seemed to be doing better (though I am still suspicious of a Christian-based boarding school for girls due to the misogynistic nature of a lot of Christian teachings, but I digress...), I pretty much skimmed the rest of the book. Summed up: Head and Fieldy pray with kids at Korn shows. They apparently used the power of God to make someone's leg grow an inch longer (yeah, okay). God, God, Jesus, holy, God, etc. There was a whole lot of proselytizing right there at the end. Again, I should have expected as much, but still. Yawn.
I'd like a book from Jonathan Davis and Munky. And lord help me, I'd actually read a book from David even though his nonsensical postings on Facebook have proven that he is basically a fedora-wearing right wing asshole. Reddit personified, if you will. I just can't help myself.
byashleylamar's review
2.0
After I decided to consider Luck, Love, and Lemon Pie a DNF (did not finish) I moved on to reading With My Eyes Wide Open by Brian “Head” Welch. I’ve always been a big fan of KoRn and I remember when Head first made the announcement that he was leaving KoRn to focus on raising his daughter as a single dad. I knew that he’d devoted his life to following Jesus and religion played a major role in his new life. I also remember when he rejoined KoRn. This book shares his life as a single dad, his tense relationship with his daughter, and the struggles he faced between leaving KoRn and their reunion. I love KoRn and I love Brian “Head” Welch but, unfortunately, I did not love this book.
I read it start to finish in 2 days. Admittedly, I stuck with it because I was stunned by the terrible decisions Head was making. It had nothing to do with this being a book that was capturing my attention. As a Christian myself I understand following where you feel God is leading you. I just couldn’t believe that Head allowed religion to blind him to the con artists that continually manipulated him and drove him into bankruptcy. The entire time I was reading it I kept thinking that surely he couldn’t be that blind to what was happening. He was with KoRn for years, surely he knew the importance of contracts and the risk of shady business deals. Just…damn Head. Really?!?
He was well-intentioned with his daughter, Jennea, but I was stunned at poor decision after poor decision. He left KoRn to spend more time with her then rips her out of school, continues to move her around, gets her a dog just to give it away, and continues to make terrible decisions that drive his family into bankruptcy. Over and over again I found myself wanting to like the book but feeling annoyed and frustrated. I hate to say it, but it almost succeeded in making me less of a fan. Just…really Head? I mean, every single decision was horrible.
It also irritated me that he fell back on religion as the reason for everything. I get it. I share his faith but personal accountability goes a long way and God did grant us free will. Head struck me as one of those people that discovers faith and then uses it as an excuse to justify everything in his life – good and bad. It doesn’t work like that. You have free will. You’re responsible for your behavior and decisions, even the shitty ones. You can’t claim you’re under attack for your faith when things are bad and claim that God is blessing you when things are good and use religion as a way of avoiding taking responsibility for your own life.
As a last note – this book desperately needs a good editor. I feel like it could have been a million times better if an editor went through it and cleaned it up. I received an early copy of it through NetGalley and I know it’s not a final edition but damn. I mean…I just…I’m so disappointed in this. It could have and should have been fantastic but it fell very short of being anything better than fair.
I read it start to finish in 2 days. Admittedly, I stuck with it because I was stunned by the terrible decisions Head was making. It had nothing to do with this being a book that was capturing my attention. As a Christian myself I understand following where you feel God is leading you. I just couldn’t believe that Head allowed religion to blind him to the con artists that continually manipulated him and drove him into bankruptcy. The entire time I was reading it I kept thinking that surely he couldn’t be that blind to what was happening. He was with KoRn for years, surely he knew the importance of contracts and the risk of shady business deals. Just…damn Head. Really?!?
He was well-intentioned with his daughter, Jennea, but I was stunned at poor decision after poor decision. He left KoRn to spend more time with her then rips her out of school, continues to move her around, gets her a dog just to give it away, and continues to make terrible decisions that drive his family into bankruptcy. Over and over again I found myself wanting to like the book but feeling annoyed and frustrated. I hate to say it, but it almost succeeded in making me less of a fan. Just…really Head? I mean, every single decision was horrible.
It also irritated me that he fell back on religion as the reason for everything. I get it. I share his faith but personal accountability goes a long way and God did grant us free will. Head struck me as one of those people that discovers faith and then uses it as an excuse to justify everything in his life – good and bad. It doesn’t work like that. You have free will. You’re responsible for your behavior and decisions, even the shitty ones. You can’t claim you’re under attack for your faith when things are bad and claim that God is blessing you when things are good and use religion as a way of avoiding taking responsibility for your own life.
As a last note – this book desperately needs a good editor. I feel like it could have been a million times better if an editor went through it and cleaned it up. I received an early copy of it through NetGalley and I know it’s not a final edition but damn. I mean…I just…I’m so disappointed in this. It could have and should have been fantastic but it fell very short of being anything better than fair.
dannavarro's review
5.0
Always reassuring to know that you're not alone in your everyday struggles. I've read each book Brian's released and this one is a homerun. Amazing read.
bookdarling1987's review
5.0
With My Eyes Wide Open Miracles and Mistakes on My Way Back to KoRn by Brian "Head" Welch published by Thomas Nelson was amazing! So as always thank you to Netgalley Brian Welch and Thomas Nelson for my advanced copy in exchanged for an honest review. I am a very picky person when I choose my non fiction and this one was a true pleasure to read.
With My Eyes Wide Open is the biographical account by Brian "Head" Welch, guitarist for the popular metal band, KoRn. Welch describes his conversion to the Christian faith, his departure from KoRn, and the days of bitter pain which followed. I wasn't really a fan of KoRn until I read this. I finished reading this on a Thursday and I am writing my review on a Friday night because I needed a day to digest it. I think this real account of the struggles he has gone through make this book real and raw. There are moments that gave me chills there are moments that made me mad and the end made me sad it was over. I give Brian tons of credit for being so open and honest about the roller coaster that is life and the need for god makes this a must read.
With My Eyes Wide Open is the biographical account by Brian "Head" Welch, guitarist for the popular metal band, KoRn. Welch describes his conversion to the Christian faith, his departure from KoRn, and the days of bitter pain which followed. I wasn't really a fan of KoRn until I read this. I finished reading this on a Thursday and I am writing my review on a Friday night because I needed a day to digest it. I think this real account of the struggles he has gone through make this book real and raw. There are moments that gave me chills there are moments that made me mad and the end made me sad it was over. I give Brian tons of credit for being so open and honest about the roller coaster that is life and the need for god makes this a must read.
elhiwe's review
2.0
This was an odd memoir, frankly. The writing wasn't great, which I expected, but the narrative/themes were also erratic - I wasn't sure what Head was trying to get across to the reader at the end of the day. The religious advice/encouragement didn't seem to actually line up with what he was describing in his own life. He wrote about a lot of trials he went through, but never seemed to accurately identify what mistakes were made (even when obvious) or how to learn from the experience. So there was no real advice/lesson for the reader, although this clearly wasn't just an "about me" piece.
However, I always appreciate someone sharing their story that contradicts the harmful narrative that becoming a Christian magically solves all your problems. Being a Christian is hard. Head is raw and vulnerable and uncertain as he navigates life post-conversion. He admirably chooses to trust anyway. There is certainly encouragement to be found in that.
However, I always appreciate someone sharing their story that contradicts the harmful narrative that becoming a Christian magically solves all your problems. Being a Christian is hard. Head is raw and vulnerable and uncertain as he navigates life post-conversion. He admirably chooses to trust anyway. There is certainly encouragement to be found in that.
andreaguess's review
4.0
This book is basically what is contained in the documentary loud krazy love. I still thoroughly enjoyed it. I see people complaining that he is not a theologian. We do not need to be theologians to share our experience with Christ, thank God. This is his life story and he has every right to share it and hope it influences others without having been to seminary school.