Many were surprised when bassist/co-vocalist Evan Seinfeld parted ways with Biohazard. And apparently, so was guitarist/co-vocalist Billy Graziadei. The NY metal band has been moving forward without Seinfeld, performing at the UK Download Festival and the Metal Hammer Golden Gods pre-show boat concert, and will still release their new album with Seinfeld’s recorded parts in the Fall. However, in an interview with Sweden’s Metalshrine, Graziadel admitted that Seinfeld’s departure came out of nowhere.
When asked what lead to Seinfeld leaving the band, Graziadel responded by saying:
“It dropped like a bomb shell. It kind of came up from left field. We finished tracking the record in late February and really didn’t have much contact with him that much. Everything was through management and I was working on the mix with Toby and some additional overdubs and different ideas and some piano and keyboard stuff. Then a couple of weeks ago he calls up and says ‘I can’t do it anymore!’ He’s got a bunch of personal stuff and it’s mostly secret. But it’s personal between… it’s what’s going on in his life, but he made a decision and we weren’t happy about it, but we made our decision to continue and keep going. It would be great if he was here and I know he’s proud of the record and as happy as it came out as we are. We were all there and made it together and focused equally on it, but rather to let it die out, we said ‘You know what? Fuck it! We’re all psyched and happy and even though things are different it doesn’t mean much has changed!. The heart and soul of the band is still intact and we’re gonna continue!”
Previously the remaining members of Biohazard said that Scott Roberts, who has been filling in for Seinfeld, would only be a temporary replacement. However, Graziadel admits that everything is up in the air at the moment, saying:
“We don’t know what we’re gonna do right now! Yes, the answer was that Scott was just temporary, but who knows? He did a great job and the feedback from everybody was like ‘Wow!’ He looks a little like him and he sounds a little like him, but we’re not looking at this as a replacement, it´s more like a change. Something different, you know, but it’s still Biohazard. There’s opportunity to bring something new to the table and we’ll see. Right now it’s just playing and doing a lot of press. I haven’t had one second to have a crap by myself, let alone anything else. (laughs)”
So not only was he as surprised as us about Seinfeld’s departure, but Graziadel also noticed the visual similarities Roberts shares with his predecessor. You can read the rest of Graziadel’s interview over at Metalshrine.
