Every Time I Die's Keith Buckley Denies Band's Version of Events, Claims ETID "Should Have Broken Up in 2014"

Published on: Jan 19, 2022, 9:10 AM

by The Pit

Monday night, we announced the unfortunate news that beloved metalcore act Every Time I Die had broken up, news that was met with dismay, confusion, and a chorus of “Who?” from metal bros who think they’re clever. Shortly after the breakup announcement, Every Time I Die frontman Keith Buckley posted a legal document showing that the band had officially begun the process of breaking up on December 20th. Now, Keith has posted an even lengthier statement that both refutes the band’s claims and gives some insight into the transgressions that he believes have been committed against him.

Keith’s lengthy statement can be read below via his Instagram post, but here are some pertinent facts:

Buckley claims that the letter he posted to Twitter was the only correspondence he has had with the band regarding this issue, and that their claims that they’ve tried to communicate with him are false.
Buckley says that he overheard his bandmates talking about replacing him at an Asheville show on December 3rd, after which he quit the tour.
That Every Time I Die’s original idea to continue the tour “karaoke style” was made without Keith’s input.
That on January 5th, the members of Every Time I Die offered Keith the band name and rights to use with replacement musicians, on the condition that they receive payments for its continued use.
That the band’s public statement announcing their breakup came only after he threatened to release a statement that he had been fired without previously discussing this with the band.

“There are a lot of reasons this breakup happened,” writes Buckley, “but it could not have resulted in any other conclusion. This was inevitable. In all of its ugly confusion and negativity and rumor, our own deep familial dysfunction manicured it perfectly. Our problems with each other go back decades. We should have broken up in 2014 to be honest. But we didn’t, for our own reasons. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I continued beyond that point for no other reason than to connect with other people through my lyrics and live performance. In hindsight, I’m thankful I stuck it out.”

Read Buckley’s full statement below: