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Death To All (Sick Drummer fucked everyone over?)
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Posts: 31,548 master of ceremonies
Last week, we were the only site to report on the outrage being expressed online by Death fans and Death’s manager, Eric Greif, over unfilled VIP merch orders from the Death To All Tour.
That led to Greif getting in touch to fill us in on some of the details. He also promised to release a statement exclusively to Gun Shy Assassin, providing more detail on the matter and outlining Sick Drummer magazine’s involvement.
Sick Drummer Magazine organized the Death To All Tour and took the VIP merch orders. We’ve emailed the site for comment, but have yet to hear back.
Since our reports, a lot of Death fans have taken to the official Death Facebook page as well as the pages of the Death To All Tour and the late Chuck Schuldiner, to express their anger over the situation. That anger’s squarely focused on Sick Drummer.
Some fans have also contacted Gun Shy, to say they’ve yet to receive their VIP refunds from the two shows Sick Drummer cancelled. In some instances, fans are owed between $400 and $600.
Rumors are also flying that nobody actually got paid by Sick Drummer — including the Sweet Relief charity that proceeds from the tour were to help support. Some rumors suggest that some of the musicians received “rubber checks.”
Alix Vallecillo from Los Angeles said online, “I am seriously upset for all of this, not because of the CD’s but because the funds had a purpose and is not right if they didn’t go to such purpose. Especially because they used Death for something like this. Not cool!”
Sarah Donahue from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, writes, “Those guys are dicks. I bought a VIP ticket for one of the cancelled shows and had to open and escalate a claim through PayPal to get my money back over a month and a half later. It was such BS and they’re unwilling to work with you or answer e-mails. The only info I got was they needed to ‘work out their finances’ before they’d give refunds and that I was on ‘a list’ for one. Open PayPal claims or call your CC company because these dicks won’t help you and they won’t do shit unless you force them.”
Death fan Peter Murphy merely quipped on Chuck’s Facebook page, “This is what happens when you leave things to drummers.”
When Gun Shy Assassin reached out to Chris Steele, Chuck Schuldiner’s nephew, about the situation, he had this to say: “I loved the Death To All show in Orlando, and I know the fans did too. There was definitely the spirit of Chuck filling The Beacham. However, the colossal screw-ups perpetrated by Sick Drummer boggle the mind. Knowing what I do about the degree of bullshit on the part of those guys from Sick Drummer Magazine makes my head spin and would be enough to enrage fans if they knew the details, which I’m sure will surface sooner or later.”
That led to Greif getting in touch to fill us in on some of the details. He also promised to release a statement exclusively to Gun Shy Assassin, providing more detail on the matter and outlining Sick Drummer magazine’s involvement.
Sick Drummer Magazine organized the Death To All Tour and took the VIP merch orders. We’ve emailed the site for comment, but have yet to hear back.
Since our reports, a lot of Death fans have taken to the official Death Facebook page as well as the pages of the Death To All Tour and the late Chuck Schuldiner, to express their anger over the situation. That anger’s squarely focused on Sick Drummer.
Some fans have also contacted Gun Shy, to say they’ve yet to receive their VIP refunds from the two shows Sick Drummer cancelled. In some instances, fans are owed between $400 and $600.
Rumors are also flying that nobody actually got paid by Sick Drummer — including the Sweet Relief charity that proceeds from the tour were to help support. Some rumors suggest that some of the musicians received “rubber checks.”
Alix Vallecillo from Los Angeles said online, “I am seriously upset for all of this, not because of the CD’s but because the funds had a purpose and is not right if they didn’t go to such purpose. Especially because they used Death for something like this. Not cool!”
Sarah Donahue from Oshkosh, Wisconsin, writes, “Those guys are dicks. I bought a VIP ticket for one of the cancelled shows and had to open and escalate a claim through PayPal to get my money back over a month and a half later. It was such BS and they’re unwilling to work with you or answer e-mails. The only info I got was they needed to ‘work out their finances’ before they’d give refunds and that I was on ‘a list’ for one. Open PayPal claims or call your CC company because these dicks won’t help you and they won’t do shit unless you force them.”
Death fan Peter Murphy merely quipped on Chuck’s Facebook page, “This is what happens when you leave things to drummers.”
When Gun Shy Assassin reached out to Chris Steele, Chuck Schuldiner’s nephew, about the situation, he had this to say: “I loved the Death To All show in Orlando, and I know the fans did too. There was definitely the spirit of Chuck filling The Beacham. However, the colossal screw-ups perpetrated by Sick Drummer boggle the mind. Knowing what I do about the degree of bullshit on the part of those guys from Sick Drummer Magazine makes my head spin and would be enough to enrage fans if they knew the details, which I’m sure will surface sooner or later.”
inb4lists
Comments
n full is a lie. Firstly, indeed I loved the tour...but that is down to the musicians & the music of Chuck Schuldiner & DEATH - it is not due to Sick Drummer Magazine. Everyone should know the fact that they never gave the charity Sweet Relief ONE PENNY, despite claiming that 20% of ticket sales & merch would go straight to Sweet Relief - they owe close to $30K to Sweet Relief and think a promise to pay somehow puts them in the clear! Or that they gave a bit of cash to the musicians and then handed them all bouncing checks in Orlando. Or that they never paid a nickel to us (the Schuldiners). Or that they haven't given ten cents to the booking agency (or bothered to communicate, even). Oh, and they owe the crew money, too. I am getting email after email from fans who purchased VIP tix and never got their money back. They refused to relinquish their 'claim' on the name DEATH TO ALL, despite this chaos. All of this is mega pathetic - and all in Chuck's name. This has been an awful time for Chuck's family & me.
Now, here’s Greif’s full response:
“It is with profound regret that I must clarify the reality of the Death To All Tour, now that rumors are in full swing and Sick Drummer Magazine has issued a statement at their zine. First, I must thank the musicians and crew for making this such a wondrous experience for the fans. The Schuldiners & I were tremendously proud of how much Chuck’s spirit was captured by these nine seasoned pros on stage. What events these five shows were! So it should be clear that, on the surface, Death To All was an awesome experience for me as a fan, as the former manager of Death, and as the person legally entrusted with guarding Chuck’s legacy.
“I was approached by Anton Hefele of Grind Percussion LLC (who go by the business name Sick Drummer Magazine) with the enticing premise of he & his partner Ian Macdonald organizing such an historic tour, and I was asked to designate the charity of our choice. The Schuldiners & I endorse Sweet Relief (sweetrelief.org), so that was simple. I was assured by others whom I trusted that Sick Drummer was a legit organization and could pull the tour off. In fact, they themselves stated clearly that they had all contingencies sorted out to handle any & all tour outcomes, like any legit folks in the metal music business would. They guaranteed musician & crew salaries, worked the gig bookings out with The Pantheon Agency, and after some wrangling did a licensing contract with us at Perseverance Holdings Ltd. that would see compensation going to the Schuldiner family for the use of Chuck’s songs & the prestige of the Death name & logo. The biggest commitment they made, however, was that 20% of every ticket and merch item sold would go straight to Sweet Relief. This was the crux of why we’d allow this tour to happen under Chuck’s name.
“I trusted in these two guys from Sick Drummer Magazine. So did Jane Schuldiner, Beth Schuldiner and Chris Steele. So did the musicians. So did the Death fans. After rocky negotiations produced an 11th hour contract, including their cancelling of shows in Atlanta and Dallas (that they had added after the first five), we still gave them the benefit of the doubt. I was on the entire tour and witnessed first hand the organizational confusion and the financial incompetence, as did every musician. Clearly I knew there was no way they would be able to afford all of what they were obligated to pay, even despite sold out venues and purchased merch flying out the door. The sharp pain of worry in my gut was only eased by the thought that they had promised they could handle any outcome. I was wrong.
“I discovered within a month of the tour finishing that each musician, beyond a bit of cash given during the five dates, was handed a worthless check in Orlando, signifying most of their pay. I found that the same applied to the crew. Perseverance Holdings Ltd. was unpaid. The booking agency was unpaid. Worst of all: Sweet Relief didn’t get a single penny of the supposed ‘20% off the top’ that Sick Drummer had been touting.
“I had to break the news to the Schuldiners of the diabolical circumstances, and they were crushed. Still, I tried to keep this from the public. I went back & forth with Ian Macdonald who seemed to throw his hands in the air in a mea culpa of ‘we didn’t mean it, dude — we’re just shitty businessmen.’ All told, I reckon they currently owe around $100,000 to everyone, including the charity.
“Fans also started writing to us en masse to complain about missing merch and costly VIP tickets never refunded. When I started writing on the Death To All Facebook page that they should press Sick Drummer for refunds, I was suddenly removed from the page as an admin. Yes indeed Sick Drummer cobbled together promissory notes to give to everyone, whilst at the same time pleading with the musicians not to take any legal action. They even agreed that they’d never again undertake anything related to Chuck or Death…but, for whatever reason, they refused to relinquish a claim to the tour name ‘Death To All,’ which added insult to injury. But by then I was just numb.
“I want to apologize to everyone for having to write such a detailed statement so that the rumors can be put to rest. Some of you might say that none of this matters because the shows were cool and you had a killer time. But promises made are promises meant to be kept, especially contractual ones. Chuck’s name was used. The charity was meant to receive immediate cash. I have never insinuated that either Anton or Ian are crooks, but the truth of the matter is that my trust in these two guys has let a lot of folks down, and for that I am full of regret. We would like to see Death To All happen again, perhaps in different parts of the world, and next time this kind of financial fiasco will not happen on my watch.”
As for the talk of VIP merch orders not being filled or money from merch orders being held, we never held that money at all, as it was collected by a third party and all the post-tour orders have shipped. We personally made replies on the DTA facebook regarding the post-tour merch orders and when they all shipped, but are no longer able to post on that page as we have been removed, even though we created it. Regarding the CD/LP for the VIP package holders, if our recordings are never able to be released, we have another exclusive item to make it up to all of you.
The Atlanta and Dallas dates that were postponed were changed to cancelled so that general admission/VIP ticket holders could get their refunds if they wanted them, rather than wait for new dates. We always had the intent of making up those shows. If you have not received a VIP package refund for those dates, please send us a message and we will take care of you in short order.
We can assure you that everyone on the tour has received full or partial payment and we have entered into individual agreements to resolve all payments remaining. As far as Sweet Relief is concerned, they will receive the full amount that was originally pledged, based on the agreement we have in place with them. We are the only ones to walk away from this tour making nothing and that's fine with us. We lost money on the tour and to imply otherwise is simply false.
We have spent the last 4 years promoting music for next to nothing and know our true fans understand our dedication, loyalty and sacrifice. Seeing recent posts on facebook pages and other websites that have garnered physical threats of violence against us, is both shocking and sad. Were there mistakes made? yes, there are mistakes made on most tours. Do tours fail on a regular basis? yes. Was this a huge tour to put together? yes. Do we deserve to have violent threats made against us? absolutely not.
In the end we are still happy and honored to have been the ones to conceive, create and bring this tour to all the fans that were able to see it. We stand by all of our commitments/responsibilities and have never ventured from that ground.
Sick Drummer Magazine
the road to hell is paved with good intentions
As we reported last week, the musicians and crew on the tour have yet to be paid and the Sweet Relief charity (which benefits musicians in need and was promised 20% of all proceeds) has yet to receive any money. Meanwhile, accusations have been flying back and forth between Death’s manager Eric Greif and the tour’s organizers, Sick Drummer Magazine, in a very public manner (including 21 Comments).
Read Beth’s statement below:
I have to step in here. I am Beth Schuldiner, Chuck’s sister. I was at the New York show and all of the guys were UNBELIEVABLE!!!! AND, so were the fans! NO ONE can take this away from them!
Ian and Anton of Sick Drummer approached us; my family and Eric with this idea to do a small tour and aside from getting the band members together, a percentage of the proceeds would benefit the Charity, Sweet Relief; a charity which helps musicians and who did in fact help Chuck. I was initially concerned, as “benefits” have been done in Chuck’s name before, while Chuck was alive and still struggling to survive and the monies were stolen. I was assured by many that this would not and could not happen. You be the judges”
Fact-Our mother, Jane, is contacted each and every day by fans who have to this day NOT received refunds for cancelled shows.
Fact: The charity, Sweet Relief has received NOTHING!!! Not ONE CENT! And, the charity’s name was used in ALL advertising of the DTA tour; the fans, many of them, wrote to me prior to the show stating that they were thrilled to be a part of the show and that some of their money was going to help this charity.
Fact-Ian and Anton (Sick Drummer) have still given NO FULL ACCOUNTING of the tour which was required of them on their own contract signed by them!
Fact-all anyone has are promissory notes signed by them with a promise to pay the charity????!!!
Fact-None of the band members were involved in collecting money or disbursing any money-they simply played and played their asses off they did! Chuck would have been both AMAZED and so very proud of ALL of them!
Fact-Eric Greif went on the tour, but was REFUSED open access to see the accounting and OVER & OVER again was reassured by Ian and Anton that all was well. ONLY Ian and Anto had access to the money and the accounting.
Again-all of you be the judge. Sold out shows-No money for the charity. Mmmm….
I don’t know who “Project genesis” on this forum is, but I can only assume he is either mislead OR a party to Ian and Anton somehow.
There must be laws against this and I have contacted the fraud department of the New York Attorney general’s office to see what recourse we have.
With Kind Regards, Beth Schuldiner"
The latest rumor, if true, may put a smile on your face. It did mine.
The Sick Drummer dudes are now losing ad revenue because of the Death To All Tour controversy.
A source claims Eric Greif, Death’s manager, bitched that he did not want a single Relapse or Death ad to appear at Sick Drummer Magazine as part of the Blastbeat Heavy Metal Ad Network.
That request, we hear, has been honored by the MetalSucks dudes, who run Blastbeat.
So no ads for the upcoming Death reissue will be appearing at Sick Drummer Magazine’s site.
Our source claims Sick Drummer Magazine will be cut out from any ad revenue generated by Blastbeat Network for the duration of the Death campaign.
So if you lost money on unfulfilled merch orders from the Death To All Tour, at least take heart in the fact that Sick Drummer won’t be profiting from the Death reissue.
For me, that’s little solace.
I think we should all boycott anything and anyone affiliated with Sick Drummer.