Madina Lake April 23, 2011

On April 23, Matthew Leone will walk onto the Metro stage and do something that many worried he might not ever again – join his band Madina Lake onstage for a show in their hometown.

Last summer, Madina Lake bassist Matthew Leone was hospitalized with severe brain trauma after intervening to stop a woman he passed on the street from being beaten by her husband. Even though the attacker was twice his size, Matthew immediately intervened and managed to subdue the attacker, but as he waited for police to arrive, the attacker suddenly turned on Matthew, beating him severely. Metro hosted a benefit concert for Matthew last summer with the Smashing Pumpkins and Kill Hannah, and the Chicago music community rallied around Matthew and the Leone family. Gradually, in the intervening months, Matthew began to get better, his spirits lifted by the outpouring of love from fans and the music community.

Having not performed together in 10 months, Madina Lake have picked themselves up, dusted off and are ready for battle. Before them lies the release of the new record, Dresden Codex, and the news that two new songs will appear in the final edition of the award winning Guitar Hero franchise. Most of all, the band looks forward to a moment that seemed so far away last summer - their first stateside show back with Matthew, a celebratory performance at their home, the Metro in Chicago on April 23rd.

http://metrochicago.com/shows