Every Time I Die's Keith Buckley
Image: Miikka Skaffari/Getty

Keith Buckley Shares Statement After Every Time I Die Split: “This Is My Truth”

After all members of Buffalo metalcore outfit Every Time I Die besides frontman Keith Buckley announced they were exiting the band earlier this week, prompting its dissolution, Buckley has responded to his former bandmates’ claims with a lengthy statement.

The four other members – guitarists Jordan Buckley and Andy Williams bassist Stephen Micciche and drummer Clayton “Goose” Holyoak – shared a joint statement on Monday revealing that their final shows as part of ETID was their annual ‘Tid the Season Christmas shows in December.

It came after a public feud between Buckley and his former bandmates in December. At the time, Buckley accused his bandmates of attempting to replace him, and indicated that his sobriety had been a source of tension between them. “Being ostracized from a band I have built for 20 years because I made a decision to do whatever it took to be a good Human Being hurts me deeply,” he wrote. “This decision was made to protect myself from my own sibling.”

“While we hoped to come to an agreed upon legal statement that outlined the truth, we were informed today of something planned to be released not mutually agreed upon that consists of inaccuracies and controls a narrative to benefit one,” the band’s statement read earlier this week.

“There has been no direct communication with Keith, because it’s either impossible for direct communication with him solely or we’ve been cut off to any and all communication by him himself. Every Time I Die was these 5 members, and we were never budging or accepting any changes. Simply, there is zero truth about the band continuing on with a new singer.”

Now, Buckley has shared a lengthy public statement on social media. “There is absolutely no hate in my heart when I say that whatever is going on with the guys from now on is between them and their God,” the statement opens. “Any emotional/mental connection I had to them was thoroughly severed when I got that letter on Dec. 20th. That was where our paths finally diverged completely.”

The letter Buckley’s referring to is one he shared a screenshot of earlier this week, from a law firm, dated 20th December, saying the rest of the band had retained them “for legal representation in connection with a separation agreement” between them and Buckley.

The letter also requested Buckley cease from “making any statements… that defame, disparage or in any way criticize” the band, along with stopping “all usage of the Band name, logo or other intellectual property” until an agreement had been reached.

Buckley goes on to say that he overheard the rest of the band “talking about their plans to replace me” while backstage at one of the band’s shows on December 3rd, saying he performed the gig and left the tour, tweeting that he was taking a break “to protect [his] mental health.” Buckley and the band would reunite a week later to perform the two ‘Tid the Season shows.

Buckley then claims that on December 5th, the rest of the band offered to let Buckley continue the band without them, allowing him to use the Every Time I Die name “with the condition that they receive payments for using the name and all likenesses while I toured.” He says he declined the offer the following day.

Buckley says he attempted to open communication on January 17th by having his lawyer send the rest of the band a proposed statement announcing he had been fired from the group, saying he would release it within 24 hours unless they responded with an alternate statement or expressed interest in writing a collaborative one. Later that night the band released their own aforementioned statement.

“That is how I found out that the band I started when I was 19 years old was publicly over,” Buckley writes. “In posting that without prior conversation, without legal consultation, without any personal sense of honor for the band we built, these men took away my ability to say goodbye to 20 years worth of sacrifice.”

Buckley goes on to elaborate on some of the band’s internal issues in recent years, saying that after becoming sober, he “acknowledged to the band the pain I had caused them” and asked for forgiveness, and that he “would allow the pain they caused [him] to heal completely.”

“In return, my mental health was thrown into question when it suited them,” Buckley adds. “Or instead, it was used as a weapon against me when my boundaries offended the consciences of those repeatedly trying to cross them.

“There are a lot of reasons this break up happened, but it could not have resulted in any other conclusion.”

Read Buckley’s statement in full below.

https://twitter.com/deathoftheparty/status/1483721043562975233

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