Brant Bjork and John Garcia have finally put in their two cents on the recent lawsuit that Josh Homme and Scott Reeder filed against Kyuss Lives!. In the eighties, Homme Garcia and Bjork were all part of the band Kyuss, but the group split in 1995. Last year, Bjork and Garcia put together the band Kyuss Lives! to reprise Kyuss songs, but Homme and Reeder responded by suing the group for “trademark infringement and consumer fraud.”
After many weeks of silence, Bjork and Garcia finally responded to and email from Rolling Stones. The two admit that the suit came as a complete shock, but Bjork adds that he wasn’t as surprised about Homme’s involvement in the suit. Apparently there was some tension between the musicians when the group parted.
“They don’t want to mention that they trademarked the name Kyuss after I left the band, assuring that I had no rights in Kyuss’ future. They’re both accusing John and I of doing something that they actually did themselves. Their inner conflict is this: both Josh and Scott want control and money from Kyuss Lives!, but they don’t want to participate and they ultimately don’t want us to exist. The double standard is unbelievable.”
According to Bjork, this tension really started twenty years ago when Homme wanted to write all of Kyuss’s songs, and Bjork wouldn’t have it. He felt that Homme was trying to control the group in order to get as much money as he could.
Garcia did confirm that Homme and Reeder had met with Kyuss Lives! in January to discuss the matter peacefully. But Garcia adds that Homme and Reeder just wanted a part of the group’s profits.
When asked what they thought of the infringement claims, the two were quick to maintain their innocence. Bjork wittily asked:
“How would I steal a name that I myself found?”
Looking towards the future, Bjork commented:
“Josh basically told John to give him what he wanted and he would then pull the lawsuit. After being bullied by Josh for 20 years, we both decided to stand up for our rights. We love music and we love our band, and we want to continue on and we feel we have the right to do so.”
Garcia added one final comment:
“Win or lose, we believe that the name Kyuss Lives! is worth fighting for, and regardless of the outcome of this foolish lawsuit Josh Homme and Scott Reeder have filed against us, we will continue conducting business as usual and connecting with our amazing loyal fans.”
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