Following on from Andrew Stockdale saying that the Wolfmother split was a lie, essentially ditching gigs booked under his own name resurrecting the band for a series of American shows. One of the members of the current lineup has quit Stockdale’s band.
One of the more stable members of the Andrew Stockdale/
Wolfmother lineup, Elliott Hammond has reportedly quit the band, citing conflicting schedules with his other concern as frontman of Melbourne rock group The Delta Riggs, as reported The Music Network‘s Industrial Strength column
News of Hammond’s departure arrives just a month after drummer Hamish Rosser quit the band. Rosser, formerly of The Vines, and guitarist Vin Steele both joined the band in February 2012 (replacing Will Rockwell-Scot and Aidan Nemeth respectively) along with Hammond, who played multiple roles in the band on keys, percussion, occasional drums, and harmonica.
The Delta Riggs frontman was also on hand during the recording of what was to be the third Wolfmother album and has been a regular staple of the live lineup since. When Tone Deaf interviewed Andrew Stockdale in May this year, having just finished a secret show at Melbourne’s Ding Dong lounge, he was singing Hammond’s praises on the new, bluesier material. One of the more stable members of the Andrew Stockdale/Wolfmother lineup… has reportedly quite the band
“He’s playing a bit of harmonica on these songs… it was good hearing this thing we had going where we’re kind of feeding off each other, and some of these songs are more Texas boogie rock sort of stuff,” he said.
Stockdale also discussed how what was to be Wolfmother’s third album was, as reported in March, to become Keep Moving, the first solo release under Stockdale’s own name; “I’m putting this record as Andrew Stockdale….. It’s a different trip now and I need to be true to myself.” While also speaking of his regrets at not ditching the band name earlier. “Wolfmother came with a lot of expectations,” he said. “It’s been exciting to get out of that headspace.”
Though seemingly positive about leaving Wolfmother behind, and his relocation to Byron Bay to be closer to his family, come early June, Stockdale cancelled his 2013 Australian Tour to launch Keep Moving. Axing the entire 14-date run just one day before it’s kick-off – save for the Sydney Metro Theatre gig on the day of the album’s launch.
“Wolfmother may be on the back burner, but the heart and soul of it thrives in Stockdale and his merry men,” wrote our Tone Deaf reviewer of Andrew Stockdale’s sole Sydney show for the “postponed” Keep Moving Tour, which blamed “international commitments” for the scuppered Australian dates.
Things took a strange turn earlier this month when – not less than three months on from their “last ever” show in April opening for Aerosmith – Stockdale announced a series of American shows booked as Wolfmother gigs at the Troubadour in LA. When a fan asked Stockdale about his comments that “‘WM will be gone for good’ – is that a lie?” Stockdale simply replied ‘yes’.
Adding to the bizarre twist, fan site wolfmother.net points out that the new Wolfmother dates follow speculation that Stockdale’s forthcoming solo dates, under his own name in support of Keep Moving, were unable to shift tickets, suggesting that the name flip-flop was to help the show avoid stiffing.
Whether the current lineup is really Wolfmother or simply Andrew Stockdale’s backing band is still up in the air, but it seems that Hammond’s departure over “scheduling conflicts” is probably due to his commitments with the Delta Riggs and a current collaboration with Angus Stone. Watch this space.
