Alien Ant Farm’s Dryden Mitchell has said CKY have been sent home from their joint UK and European tour after the band’s Chad I Ginsburg punched him in the face.
The two bands announced the tour back in April and a string of shows on the continent began last month, with the opening night of the UK leg set to take place in Margate’s Dreamland tonight (November 9).
But in a post on Instagram earlier today, Mitchell has confirmed that CKY will play no further part in the tour after a physical altercation between the two frontmen.
“Sadly, Chad from CKY hasn’t figured out how to cohabitate with others after all these years,” Mitchell began his message. “They will no longer be on the Alien Ant Farm Tour through the rest of the UK shows after Chad punched me in the face earlier today.”
“I’ve watched him treat multiple crew members and opening band members like trash through the Europe shows and cause general drama around our camp. Before the last Europe shows I went to Chad and asked if he had any issues with anyone specifically and if he wanted to have a meeting with the whole crew and bands to discuss what’s going on, he up ended the table in the dressing room and threw his phone, and then cancelled their show.”
“Well he punched me in the face and pretty much ran away like I imagine he’ll do for all of his future problems,” he continued. “I’m grateful for my sobriety and grateful that I didn’t retaliate physically in any way whatsoever. I would love these shows to continue and apologize to all the CKY fans for Chad’s behavior. We have zero hard feelings for Jess and Elvis in CKY and are gutted to see them go, but I will never knowingly put myself in volatile situations so this had to end.”
The remaining Alien Ant Farm dates are set to go ahead as planned – you can see the full list of dates here and you can find any remaining tickets here.
Mitchell clarified that for any fans who want a refund in light of the news, they will “be issued accordingly”
“Stay safe everybody. And Chad, Go To The Gym… After That, Find A Therapist, And Maybe In 25 Years… We Can Shake Hands. Until Then Though…. GET HELP, Love Dryden,” he concluded.
The tour is also one of the first to adopt the Music Venue Trust’s proposal to include a £1 donation from every ticket to support grassroots music venues. The organisation will distribute donations to small, local, grassroots music venues across the country to ensure the music ecosystem continues to support new and developing artists.
“We’ve always loved our UK tours! For over 20 years we have been able to play shows all around our “home away from home” and we’re excited to see old friends and fans on this run. We’ve watched CKY as fans through the years but have never had the pleasure to meet and tour with them. We think this is a proper nice fit,” said Mitchell.
Alien Ant Farm released their album ‘~mAntras~’ in April, their first new album in nearly a decade and their sixth in total.
CKY, meanwhile, are scheduled to play Tool’s new Dominican Republic festival Tool In The Sand in March next year.