At the Drive-In Part Ways With Founding Guitarist Jim Ward

Just days before At the Drive-In is scheduled to commence another reunion tour, the band announced they have parted ways with one of the core members of the band, Jim Ward. The guitarist founded At the Drive-In with vocalist Cedric Bixler in the 90s. The band left statement on their Facebook page:

The departure of Ward does not come as a total shock – when news broke of the band’s plans to tour again this year, he stated that he was completely unaware. In an interview with the El Paso Times, he even asked the interviewer to keep him in the loop on any news of the tour.

When we spoke, I asked him about the possibility of his former band, the highly influential post-hardcore group At the Drive-In reuniting again and he seemed to be pretty sure that no other reunion was forthcoming, at least to his knowledge.

In fact, his exact quote was, “Let me know what you hear.”

I called Ward, and he seemed rather surprised, too. Ward said he knew that the band had been listed among performers at the festival, but added that he could neither confirm nor deny whether ATDI would actually be performing at this time.

Ward is an essential part of the At the Drive-In sound, providing vocal accompaniment to Bixler’s spastic, higher-register delivery. The band’s breakout single “One Armed Scissor” hinged around the alternating vocal work of the founding members, with Ward delivering the “Cut away” to Bixler’s “Send transmission from the one armed scissor!”

When the band took a hiatus following the release of Relationship of Command, Ward formed Sparta with ATDI drummer Tony Hajjar while Bixler and Omar Rodriquez went on to form The Mars Volta.

At the Drive-In Tour Dates:

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At the Drive-In 2016 Tour Dates:
03/23 – Hollywood, CA @ Fonda Theatre
03/26 – Dublin, IE @ Vicar Street ^
03/27 – London, UK @ Roundhouse ^
03/29 – Paris, FR @ Le Trianon ^
03/30 – Cologne, DE @ Palladium ^
03/31 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg ^
04/01 – Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique ^
04/02 – Luxembourg @ Den Atelier ^
04/04 – Berlin, DE @ Columbiahalle ^
04/05 – Vienna, AT @ Vienna Arena ^
04/07 – Milan, IT @ Fabrique ^
04/08 – Lausanne, CH @ Impetus Festival
04/10 – Barcelona, ES @ Razzmatazz ^
05/15 – Atlanta, GA @ Shaky Knees Music Festival
05/17 – Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works ^
05/19 – Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre ^
05/20 – Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre ^
05/21-22 – Columbus, OH @ Rock on the Range Music Festival
06/01 – Hollywood, CA @ Hollywood Palladium ^
06/02 – Hollywood, CA @ Hollywood Palladium ^
06/03 – San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield ^
06/04 – San Francisco, CA @ The Warfield ^
06/05 – Portland, OR @ McMenamin’s Crystal Ballroom ^
06/07 – Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom ^
06/08 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox Sodo ^
06/13 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore ^
06/14 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club ^
06/15 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club ^
06/17 – New York, NY @ Terminal 5 ^
06/18 – Boston, MA @ House of Blues ^
06/20 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrew’s Hall ^
06/21 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrew’s Hall ^
06/23 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Hall ^
06/24 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Hall ^
06/25 – Montebello, QC @ Amnesia RockFest
06/30-07/03 – Werchter, BE @ Rock Werchter
07/02 – Gdynia, PL @ Open’er Festival

^ = w/ Le Butcherettes