CHEVELLE: Firing Bassist Was 'The Hardest Decision We Ever Had To Make'

July 28, 2005

CHEVELLE drummer Sam Loeffler and singer/guitarist Pete Loeffler recently spoke to RollingStone.com about the departure of brother Joe Loeffler (bass) after a recent blowout in Kansas City.

"I love Joe — I'll always love my brother — and I'll do anything I can for him. But he hated to tour," Sam told RollingStone.com. "He was an unhappy guy on the road . . . We wanted him to take some time off to figure out what he wanted to do, but he wasn't willing to do that. He said, 'The only way I'm staying home is if you fire me.' It was the hardest decision we ever had to make.

"The way the band worked was, basically, I wrote all the music — I always have, I always will," said Pete. "Aside from being the drummer, Sam's place in the band is the business side of it. He's always talking to management and the label. Joe was always the one who just kind of played bass. He did that very well — he's a very talented bass player — but I don't think he ever really felt a passion. He was a third member. The chemistry worked as long as it could, but the fighting just got too old."

Pete and Sam haven't spoken with Joe since, and, according to the drummer, the rest of the Loeffler family is staying out of it. "He basically said he doesn't want to talk to us right now, and we want to be respectful of that," Sam said. "But we don't know what's going to happen when it comes to Thanksgiving."

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