Former Eluveitie piper Patrick Kistler says he was fired from the band after a democratic vote – but that he didn’t want to go.
He’s denied drugs were involved in the breakdown of relations that led to his departure. And he’s suggested that some band members have forgotten the values that created their six-album legacy.
The Swiss folk metal outfit last week announced the lineup change midway through a European tour in support of latest record Origins. Matteo Sisti of Krampus has taken his place on a temporary basis.
Kistler says in a statement: “Personal issues increased within the past 12 months in my life, as well as in the Eluveitie hood. I have been going through some personal difficulties that also affected the relationship to some band members, and my ability to fulfill expectations. No addiction problem and they are solved in the meantime.
“All this got more exaggerated with the album production and intensive touring. In the end the majority of the band decided to expel me from the hood by a democratic vote – we’re still very Swiss.”
He admits he’s finding it difficult to accept that some of the people he spent the past six years with no longer wanted him around. He wishes mainman Chrigel Glanzmann the best but adds: “Some others might have forgotten that a band is not a blue-chip company with radical human resource politics – it lives through the individuals, vibes and the dedication each one provides to the greater whole.”
Kistler reports he hasn’t had time to consider what he’ll do next. “I am very grateful that I got the chance to be part of Eluveitie and to do something many people never get the chance to experience,” he says.
“In that sense I wish you all a life path full of experiences and love and light along your ways. Don’t forget, ‘Everything remains as it never was!’”
