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And Finally Artist News
Every Time I Die bassist comments on split
By Andy Malt | Published on Friday 21 January 2022
As the fallout from Every Time I Die’s split earlier this week continues, bassist Stephen Micciche has given his side of the story, filling in some gaps left in frontman Keith Buckley’s version of events.
The band, of course, officially came to an end at the beginning of this week, after Michiche, guitarists Jordan Buckley and Andy Williams, and drummer Clayton Holyoak released a statement saying that they had all left the group. This followed Keith Buckley claiming in December that he had learned that the band were plotting behind his back to replace him.
In a lengthy statement on Wednesday, Keith Buckley said that much of what has happened in recent days and weeks came as a surprise to him. He then suggested that he was forced out of the band after making changes to his lifestyle during lockdown, including stopping drinking alcohol. He also said that his bandmates had refused to communicate with him directly (something they had accused him of in an earlier statement) and that he had become concerned about business decisions being taken about the band after their manager “unexpectedly quit” in mid-December.
In a long series of tweets, Micciche speaks of tensions in the band going back to last summer, saying that Keith Buckley had repeatedly tried to force his brother Jordan out of the outfit. He also claims that their manager’s decision to quit was as a result of Keith’s treatment of her, and denies that the rest of the band had any issue with Keith quitting drinking, insisting that there was almost no drinking at recent shows by any of the band’s members.
As for Keith Buckley’s claims that he overheard his brother saying that the band were planning to find a new vocalist before a show on 3 Dec – after which he announced he would not complete the band’s current tour – Micciche says: “I have zero clue what Keith claims to have heard. But there was zero conversation, I mean, zero, about replacing Keith as the singer of ETID. Keith knows that cause I’ve told him that personally and via text numerous times recently and over the years. He stormed off the stage after the show and refused to talk to Andy and myself”.
In his comments on the split, Keith Buckley has cited legal letters from his bandmates calling for an agreement on how to end the band. Addressing this, Micciche says: “Guess what? I know some people don’t want the fairytale ruined, but the band is a business. And the four of us, rightfully so, were setting boundaries and protecting our interests. That’s it. That’s all that is. And for this to have even gotten to where it is is soooo sad”.
“I have nothing to lose band-wise by posting this other than to stick up for a band member undeservingly slandered and ourselves”, he goes on. “The band was already ripped away. I hope everyone understands how much this hurts every single one of us. Our manager quit management completely because of this. Take a guess why”.
It remains to be seen if there is yet more to come from this story. Keith Buckley said in his statement that he would not comment further. However, he has a series of on-stage interviews lined up around the UK next month where it seems likely that the topic will come up.
