It looks like Godsmack fans won’t be starting off the New Year in the most ideal way.

In a recent interview with ArtistDirect.com, singer Sully Erna announced that the group is taking a break in 2013. The frontman states that the band wants to avoid overplaying after nearly two straight years of touring.

He explains, “We’re taking 2013 off. Maybe towards then end of the year or early 2014, we may start getting into the studio and writing. Now, we’re going to lay low. We may pop up once in a while to do a radio festival or something.”

Many groups tend to disband for good after becoming burned out from touring and recording, so perhaps a brief break will give the guys of Godsmack just the right amount of rest to prevent that from happening.

In the meantime, Erna says that he’s going to be focusing on his solo career. The singer recently released Avalon, a limited edition box set which features five DVDs that capture his concert, Avalon Live at Boston’s Wilbur Theatre. They include a documentary about the concert, a disc of outtakes, the actual live show and more.

Sully’s solo work is vastly different from Godsmack’s heavy sound, and he says he embraces those differences when exploring a different side to himself musically:

“Over the years, we've identified Godsmack to be a powerhouse rock band, which it should be, but there's also this other side of me. I can't keep it trapped inside. I have to explore it and release this other kind of music that I love playing.”

For Sully Erna’s entire interview with ArtistDirect.com, click here, and keep up with all Godsmack updates at their official website.