BRMC Presses On, With Or Without Drummer
Despite rumors to the contrary, rock act Black Rebel Motorcycle Club has not split up and is at work on its third studio album, according to bassist/vocalist Robert Turner. However, drummer Nick Jago's status with BRMC is on shaky ground, stemming from an argument with guitarist Peter Hayes during the band's summer European tour.
"It was rough but that's rock'n'roll bands on the road," Turner wrote subscribers to the band's E-mail list. "It happens. We decided to cancel the last two gigs on the tour because of this."
"But of course at the last minute me and Peter had an attack of consciousness and decided to play the shows," he continued. "The show in Spain ... went really well and we found a Spanish fan named Romero who knew all our songs by heart and played the drums that night. We missed Nick back behind the drums but there's too many beautiful girls in Spain to pass up playing there."
Turner did not specifically confirm Jago has left the band, and did not address whether he'll be behind the drum kit for future recording sessions. "Nick might take some time off and even play drums in other groups here and there, but the doors always open for him to play with BRMC," he said.
BRMC's as-yet-untitled new release will include several tunes debuted live earlier this year, including "Gospel," "Complicated Situation" and "Shuffle Your Feet." It will be the group's first album since splitting with Virgin in April.
"We want to finish the album soon and get it out sometime early next year," Turner said. "As for record label news, we've been meeting with a lot of labels in the U.S. and Europe but I think we'll make a final decision like next month. There's been such a strong reaction to the new songs we've recorded we're kind of surprised actually and we've had to rethink our plans a little bit."
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