As we learned earlier this week, Lamb Of God will be releasing a brand new EP on December 2nd. The Duke EP was inspired by the plight of a fan who recently lost his battle against leukemia, and now the band is doing everything they can to raise awareness for those suffering from cancer. Randy Blythe has decided to go one step further in the fight against cancer by auctioning off his Ashes Of The Wake gold record for cancer research.
Here’s what he posted on his Instagram account: “This is my copy of the Ashes of the Wake gold record- soon it will be available in a charity auction being organized to benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (WWW.LLS.ORG). This auction will coincide with an EP release later this year- the five song EP of two new tracks & 3 live songs is named “The Duke”, after the title track of the record. I wrote the song “The Duke” in honor of a fan named Wayne Ford that I briefly got to be friends with during the recording sessions for VII: Sturm und Drang. I had met Wayne a few years previously in AZ- he was battling leukemia. While I was recording our last album, word got to me that Wayne was terminal & would be leaving this world soon. I reached out & we became friends- I found his stoic demeanor in the face of his own imminent death extremely inspiring- he was an amazingly grounded man. When Wayne died, I wrote the lyrics to “The Duke” in his honor. If you want to know the whole story of “The Duke”, go to our website, WWW.LAMB-OF-GOD.COM, or our Facebook page. More details about the charity auction & how you can own my gold record (& other items donated by the band) will be released soon. Also you can go to WWW.BETHEMATCH.ORG to get on the bone marrow registry- it’s easy, free, & you might save someone’s life. Thanks for reading. RIP Wayne Ford, 9/30/1981- 02/03/2015. #fuckcancer #ripwayneford.”