EVERY TIME I DIE frontman Keith Buckley has accused his bandmates of secretly plotting to replace him.
Earlier today, EVERY TIME I DIE announced that it will play the last three concerts of its current tour without Buckley, explaining that the singer was taking time off from the road to "rest and prepare" for the band's upcoming holiday shows, the annual events dubbed "'TID The Season".
Buckley himself issued a statement on social media earlier today saying that caring for his own mental health "has taken priority over EVERYTHING else" in his life. "the Love it has brought to everything I do has been clear to everyone that has seen me and I value my progress way too much to allow a setback," he added in a tweet. "I am taking a hiatus from ETID to prepare for TTS."
But after seeing EVERY TIME I DIE's official statement regarding his absence from the road, Buckley returned to his Twitter to offer more insight into his decision to step back from touring. He wrote: "Now that I have seen the 'official statement' indicating that ETID is finishing the tour without their singer, I think I'm ready to tell you all a little bit about exactly WHY my mental health has had to become a priority over ETID. and trust I have receipts.
"While meditating in a side room yesterday I overheard my own brother tell an outsider that ETID had been in talks to replace me this entire time," he continued, referencing EVERY TIME I DIE guitarist Jordan Buckley. "I thought they were my biggest supporters. but Jordan had lied. his concern was a cruel trick. their statement is proof.
"Traveling separately, away from alcohol and the behaviors of those who choose to drink, has brought me peace of mind and has made me the best performer I have ever been. I love the ETID community and finally felt like I was giving back in a meaningful way. And I will continue to.
"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, but trust me when I say I am the most mentally fit I have ever been," Keith added. "This decision was made to protect myself from my own sibling."
This past July, Buckley revealed that he was nine months sober after separating from his wife of over a decade and starting a new relationship. He talked about his decision to get clean during the pandemic in a recent interview with Alternative Press. He said: "One of the first things I realized was that I really liked who I was when I was drunk. That's a very strange thing to say for a lot of people because there's such negative connotations to it. But I always felt like my day-to-day was so overrun by other people's shit, their energy, their words, their requests, their needs. Drinking just helped center me and get me back to my own vibe. I was, like, 'Okay, that's a feeling that I cherish. What do I need to do to get to that without drinking?' I stopped drinking, and then I really just chased it, like, 'What do I love, and what don't I love?'
"The cool thing about the pandemic was clocks didn't matter," he continued. "Daylight didn't matter. It was a perfect chance to just sit and be with yourself and understand how you worked. I actually liked being that vulnerable person that I was when I was drunk. Why don't I just be vulnerable all the time? So I'll stream, and I'll do a Patreon where there's literally a camera in my house. How much more vulnerable could I get?
"It works well because, aside from being a social experiment in vulnerability, it is also a way that I found to make it financially stable to where I don't have to actually go get a job and risk my health or my daughter's health. I could stay here surrounded by the people I love. I could be vulnerable as long as I want to, and then if I feel like I'm starting to get uncomfortable, I can just shut it down. I'm learning how to be truthful in what I say and making sure that if I am vulnerable, I don't mentally check everything that I'm saying."
EVERY TIME I DIE's ninth studio album, "Radical", was released in October via Epitaph.
"'TID The Season" will take place in EVERY TIME I DIE's hometown of Buffalo, on December 10 and December 11. The band will also support post-hardcore act UNDEROATH on the road early next year.