Phil Anselmo on the Late Corey Mitchell: “This Has a Special Kind of Hurt to It.”

We’re still reeling from the news that our friend and frequent contributor, Corey Mitchell, has passed away — and the outpouring of concern from readers demonstrates that Corey’s death has made a big impact on the metal community at large. A lot of people have been asking us for more details surrounding Corey’s very sudden and unexpected passing, but when we first heard the horrible news, we didn’t have many details ourselves.

Now The Austin Chronicle has filled in some of the blanks for us:

At the time of his death early Monday morning, Mitchell, 47, was apparently loading up his car with help from a fan who had spent the night nearby. According to Kate Richardson, partner of Housecore Records founder and Pantera/Down frontman Philip H. Anselmo, “[The fan] heard a thud and turned around and saw [Mitchell] on his knees. Then he fell all the way down. He got him on his side and then he called for help.”

”We’re really just still in shock,” said Anselmo, who we reached by phone. “After Danzig was done, Corey and I got up on stage and thanked all the bands and all the fans, the filmmakers, and the Texas Chainsaw people. It’s all just horrifically surreal. This one hurts, man. They all do, but this has a special kind of hurt to it. The event was such a blast, such a success, and everybody had such a great time. Nobody worked as hard as Corey. He believed in it so fucking much. He fought for it every inch of the way. It’s like lightning striking, man, you just never know.”

Heartbreaking. Just… heartbreaking.

Our thoughts continue to be with Corey’s family during this difficult time — particularly, his wife, Audra, and his daughters, Emma and Sabrina.

[via Metal Insider]