SUMMARY
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Slapshock bassist Lee Nadela confirmed that the band has disbanded after 23 years of making music.
In a statement published by the Daily Tribune on October 21, Nadela said that the band’s relationship had already been testy, and the pandemic challenged that even more.
“Honestly, the friction among [the band’s] members had been brewing for years,” he said.
“The pandemic brought a lot of challenges and taught us a lot of lessons. Friendships, loyalty, intentions, and our sense of brotherhood were tested,” he added.
Nadela said that the band’s song “Sana Pag Gising,” released in May, was the first one the band released without him and Jerry Basco playing.
“I understood, because I thought maybe, it was because of the pandemic,” he said, adding that he and Jerry even appeared in the song’s music video.
“I did not suspect that Jamir Garcia (vocalist), Lean Ansing (guitarist) and Chi Evora (drummer) were laying the ground for total control of the band,” he continued.
The 3 members allegedly finished recording a new EP without even informing Nadela and Basco, despite the band having “shared everything equally” from income, royalties, and album credits from the beginnung.
Garcia, Ansing, and Evora also apparently made “the grave mistake” of withdrawing band royalties from their account on digital music platform Tunecore without Nadela and Basco’s permission.
The 3 members said that Basco and Nadela were not entitled to royalties because they were not part of the songwriting and recording.
“But how can we be part of the songwriting if they did not inform us at all that they were doing new songs? So, it was crystal clear that Jamir, Lean, and Chi wanted full control of Slapshock, and if Jerry and I disagree with their ‘new rules,’ then we can leave the band,” Nadela said.
He said that they discovered the withdrawal of royalties on September 14, and he and Basco met with Ansing the next day proposing a disbandment.
Ansing initially hesitated because they still had a one-year commitment to a corporate sponsor, but they eventually agreed to sign a disbandment agreement taking effect in August 2021.
The disbandment agreement, also published on Daily Tribune, showed signatures from each of the members.
Nadela said he released the statement to clear rumors that he quit the band and influenced Basco to join him.
“Jamir, Lean, and Chi are trying to put the blame of the disbandment of Slapshock on me and Jerry – when, in fact, Jamir, Lean, and Chi instigated this whole thing. When they took the royalties for themselves, it was like they pressed the disbandment button,” he said.
Basco, Garcia, Ansing, and Evora have yet to respond to Nadela’s statement, as of this writing.
Ansing and Evora, however, did post photos on their Instagram accounts on October 19, in support of each other.
“Solidarity in adversity! You can never put a good man down,” Ansing wrote in the caption of a photo of him with Evora and Garcia.
Meanwhile, Evora posted a photo of Garcia, writing in the caption: “You are the most SELFLESS person I know. NO ONE can DESTROY YOU! I’m with you all the way till the END my brother!”
Slapshock first came together in 1997 and have since become heavy metal icons. They have released 10 studio albums, containing songs like “Carino Brutal,” “Agent Orange” and “Langit.” – Rappler.com
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