Rings Of Saturn's list of ex-members has been growing pretty steadily ever since the band's inception in 2009, and this year is no different. Rings Of Saturn has announced guitarist Miles Dimitri Baker and drummer Aaron Stechauner, both of whom joined the band in 2014, have quit. The split overall seems fairly amicable from the perspective of Rings Of Saturn, but Baker and Stechauner have a few accusations to make against founding guitarist Lucas Mann.
Here's Rings Of Saturn's statement.
“We wish both Aaron and Miles the best with their departure from Rings of Saturn and all their endeavors with Interloper. Interloper will be releasing an album in the future so we urge everyone to check them out!
For Ragefest we will be bringing back our good friend, and past Rings of Saturn guitarist, Joel Omans on guitar, along with the super shredder Yo Onityan from Japan! We feel that having two amazing guitarists shred up the stage will greatly add to the live performance of the band moving forward. Mike Caputo (Desecrate the Faith) will be tearing up the kit for Ragefest so please give him a warm welcome as well!
With Joel Omans back on board, working with Lucas Mann, we feel that we can really get back to our roots with the direction of the next Rings of Saturn album revisiting what made all our past albums so experimental, heavy, and unique for our listeners. We have also confirmed the following amazing musicians for guest slots on the next Rings of Saturn album so far with more to come. Charles Caswell(Berried Alive), Yo Onityan, Marco Pitruzzella (Lord Marco), and Dan Watson. In working with all these amazing musicians, we strongly feel that our next album will not only impress new and old fans alike, but will be our best album we put forth yet. Lastly, Lucas Mann will also be coming back on tour with the band on select tours playing either guitar or bass, so stay tuned for future announcements regarding that as they are made available. Most importantly, show some love to all the musicians showing off their incredible talents in the video below that were mentioned in this post!
Big thanks to all of our fans for their continued support of the band, and we look forward to the future.”
Here's what Baker and Stechauner had to say about the split. Baker specifically cites having written quite a lot of Rings Of Saturn's 2017 album Ultu Ulla without being credited for most of it, which Stechauner says he's "in a similar boat" to Baker and "There is so much I could say in regards to why I have to remove myself from this situation." Stechauner also ends his statement by wishing "success for Ian Bearer and the band’s front of house Alex Kendrick," and not Mann. So clearly there's a bit of animosity here.
Baker
“I will no longer be playing with Rings of Saturn.
I would like to start off by saying thank you to all the fans, friends, and great people who have come into my life the past 3 1/2 years. It has been truly a wonderful and humbling experience. I have been so lucky to have seen so many places and learned so much, all because of the people who believed in me and supported me. For that I will always be beyond grateful.
Among a list of things I could touch on involving this situation, there is only one thing I will touch on in this post. The simple fact of the matter is that I wrote the vast majority of Ultu Ulla and that is something I cannot be silent about publicly anymore. Sadly, the amount of writing I did was not made clear or accurate by any means online, in the credits in the booklet itself, or in the form of royalties. Seeing so many people enjoy Ultu Ulla, share it, be stoked on it, and come out to our shows all over the world to hear us play it means the world to me. Each and every one of you made the hundreds of hours of writing, recording, filming, stress, sleepless nights, and emotion put into this record more worth it than I could have ever imagined. From the fans, my friends, my family, the people behind the scenes at Nuclear Blast, to the companies who have been with me from the beginning, you guys all rule!!! Lastly, it is now time for Interloper to finish this record and get out on the road for you all. This album is going to be killer! We have grown so much as individuals and as a band that this album is going to have been absolutely worth the wait. It won’t be long until I see all the awesome fans and friends again out on the road. I will be continuing to put out new videos, teaching Skype lessons, and interacting with all the fans. I am also very much looking forward to touring with Interloper as well as myself touring in other bands too if anyone is interested.
The wheels are in motion and when one chapter ends, another begins.
I love you all. Again, thank you for positively changing my life forever. See you all soon!”
Stechauner
“Hello everyone! I am also announcing that I will no longer be a member of Rings of Saturn. A lot of what I would have to say is along the same lines as what Miles has said, but hey! We’re in a similar boat. I’m happy to have spent the last four and a half years of my life meeting a lot of amazing fans and making some of the best friends I could ever say I have. There is so much I could say in regards to why I have to remove myself from this situation. What I will say, though, is that as much as I have enjoyed playing shows and ripping it on stage with the band, the amount of mental health deterioration I’ve experienced in my time with the band has simply come too far. I don’t need to go on about the specifics of what happens behind closed doors; needless to say, the reputation of the band precedes itself. You all know how things go, and you all have your own experiences to rely on in judging how you feel about Rings of Saturn.
Moving forward, expect to continue to see me flipping sticks and fucking shit up on the kit. You’re going to be hearing a lot of new @interloperofficialgram and @brazentide, as well as a lot of music and videos from myself as an individual, and any band that I end up finding myself working with.
Thank you all for your continual support ❤ I hope nothing but success for Ian Bearer and the band’s front of house Alex Kendrick.”
