Well, every band has a different situation. All those bands you brought up are either younger, haven't maintained the level of success Disturbed has or have themselves gone on hiatus. The only band you mentioned that would be mildly comparable would be A7X, except they were pretty obscure early in their career and only started getting popular after City of Evil; they haven't been on top of the world (or suffered its backlashes) quite as long.

No matter the band, the world does eventually have to get bored of them. Fads in the music industry fluctuates in waves; Disturbed just happens to have been a particularly big wave.

As for their touring exhaustion, keep in mind that as a touring act, everything you do is multiplied as you become a stronger draw. This means better production, longer tours, huger venues, bigger sponsors, bigger audiences/ticket sales and ultimately longer distances to travel and more money to potentially lose, which in turn leads to multiplied stress. The only other bands that deal with this on a similar level are veterans like AC/DC and Iron Maiden (who themselves have taken quite a few breaks). For their age, Disturbed has held up pretty well.

Creatively speaking, even when the four of them know what sort of music they want to create, that may entail what they agree on would best suit Disturbed, but it may not necessarily entail what they'd like to do. Mike has been into thrash drumming for much of his life while John is more of a hard rock guy. Dan's influences are mainly in 80's metal guitarists like Randy Rhoads and Eddie Van Halen; he hasn't been able to practice in that style since his days in Vandal and Loudmouth. David meanwhile listens to everything from classical to reggae to funk to new wave; Disturbed has prevented him from acting on any of those musical interests for over 15-20 years. Basically their creative pursuits have been uniquely engulfed by Disturbed; most other bands have a side-project to switch to if they tire of their main band's creative headspace.

They've been pouring themselves entirely into Disturbed nonstop for longer than nearly any of their peers, and have been at the forefront the entire time. I'd say that more-than warrants a break.

If I could throw in my own .02US, when a band has achieved the level of success that Disturbed has, who has been going strong for going on 16 years now (1996-2000 when they were making their name, and 2000-forward being signed to a record deal and releasing 5 albums and a B-sides record), and travel as much as they do, a break in there somewhere was bound to happen.

Now, if you think about it, some of the bands in the OP are either new (Halestorm, who tour constantly), or well established and have taken a break here and there (I honestly thought Slipknot was done, TBH). And the record industry isn't in the best shape, with labels being sold off (most recently, the apparent demise of Roadrunner), and the big wigs in charge are only looking to see what's more profitable. Metal and Hard Rock have been dissed left, right and center for years, yet they consistantly bring in the bigger crowds at shows. Does this translate in to big buckss? Hell, no! The bigg bucks are in pop and rap, because that's what the 18-25 demographic wants to listen to. A lot of metal fans tend to be older or younger than the 18-25 demographic. I think that's what David meant when he said the industry was in bad shape. And, though they are trying, they haven't completely embraced technology the way other industries have.

On a more personal level, remember that David is still a newlywed, and he really wants to have kids. His side projects (the book, the music the businesses he has on the side) are to keep his mind sharp and his hand in the industry even while on hiatus. He does not do "idle" well; he always has to keep busy (my late father was the same way, so that's how I know David is like that).

John has Natural Ear Music School to keep him busy when Adrenaline Mob isn't touring; Danny is producing something for someone I'm sure. Maybe Mike is up to something as well but wants to keep it to hiself for a bit. I don't think for a second that this is the last we'll hear from Disturbed. Hell, I think System is STILL on a hiatus. So Disturbed will be back when THEY are ready and not one second before. And if they're not, then they had a hell of a run. I'll always be a Disturbed One, you can count on that!

The way I see it, I guess they do not want to be a Metallica. Metallica was on top for years just like Disturbed, then made a few shitty albums and basically died off. Death Magnetic was shit in my opinion. I'd rather Disturbed not do that. Hard rock and metal have never been at the forefront of the music world but they constantly bring in the largest and most devoted crowds. I completely understand why they need a break, everyone gets tired of the same thing over and over. Whether it's touring, or being married. You gotta get away from the ol' lady once in a while ya know? (I'm only 19 so dont think Im some 50 yr old single male creep on here ) I just hope they come back sooner than later. The world needs that band.

but...but...Death Magnetic was awesome.....

I agree though, what you mentioned doesn't seem to ad up at all, but all we can do is wait and see.