Skeletonwitch fans might have been surprised to see earlier this week that the thrash band would be returning to the road with a new vocalist, and not Chance Garnette, the frontman of the last decade-plus. Garnette himself was himself surprised to find out that he had been fired from the group (from Loudwire).
Your correspondent was attending the first show where Garnette failed to appear with the group, opening for Amon Amarth in Columbus, OH. According to Skeletonwitch, the vocalist had returned home to nearby Athens, OH to deal with "serious personal issues." The band would continue to play as an instrumental group for the rest of the tour. Those "personal issues," which recently came to light, was a serious drinking problem. According to a statement that he released this weekend, he wasn't aware that the hiatus would be permanent, although he admits a good deal of fault and avoids accusing his former bandmates of wrong, although he lamented that he found out from his own girlfriend, not the band, that they would be continuing on without him.
"I mean, I've poured everything into this band for 11 years," he said in a statement. "It's been the first thing I think of when I wake up and last thing I think of before bed for that long. You know, the last person to see who's being an a-hole is the person being the asshole. That was me, Guilty. I should have been able to recognize my own mistakes and faults and be able to fix my own sh*t."
The band is heading back on the road with Andy Horn, former vocalist for the quasi-comical metal act Cannabis Corpse, although that situation has not been described as permanent. Garnette is currently undergoing treatment for his issues and we can only hope to see his return to Skeletonwitch soon enough.
Garnette's brother Nate is one of the founding members of the band and is still a guitarist with the group.
Check out our exclusive with Skeletonwitch from 2013.
