Lorna Shore’s New Album to Be Released With Vocals by Fired Frontman CJ McCreery
When Lorna Shore recently fired their vocalist, CJ McCreery, in the wake of accusations of sexual and emotional abuse levied against the frontman by multiple women, many of us assumed that the band’s forthcoming Century Media debut and first album with McCreery, Immortal, would be scrapped, despite being set for a January 31 release date. The band’s announcement that they’ve cancelled some upcoming tour dates in Asia only seemed to reinforce this assumption. And, hey, it made sense: who the hell wants to listen to, or support, a record with McCreepy on it, right?
Well, the band and Century assume someone does, because they now say they’re going to go ahead and release Immortal at the end of the month as planned, without re-recording McCreery’s vocals:
“The decision was something we did not take lightly. We have already begun the search for a new vocalist, and we have EVERY INTENTION to continue Lorna Shore stronger than ever. Our fans and the metal community have been extremely patient through multiple delays surrounding this album. You’ve waited long enough. It makes no sense to scrap or revise the record with new vocals, which was a feeling shared by both the band and label.“
Oy. Look, I feel for the remaining members of the band, truly — McCreery’s toxic behavior isn’t their fault, after all. Still, this decision seems, well, icky. It’s not clear right now how much writing McCreery did for Immortal — maybe he’s a Joey Belladonna/Vince Neil-type who traditionally doesn’t even write his own lyrics or melodies! — but regardless, he will presumably be owed royalties from any sales of Immortal. And, as I said, I suspect a good chunk of the metal community won’t be thrilled by the idea of putting money in that dude’s pocket right now.
The band and Century clearly think there are enough fans out there who won’t care about tacitly supporting McCreery to make releasing Immortal as it worth their while. And maybe they’re right. Everyone will have to decide for themselves to what degree McCreery’s presence on Immortal does or does not bother them. But the album will always — ALWAYS — have a big fat asterisk next to it. McCreery’s shadow will loom over it. Blech.
