Fear Factory’s Dino Cazares Blasts Burton C. Bell, Says He Was “Phoning Things In”
Things may be different in Fear Factory now that they’ve found their new full-time vocalist in Milo Silvestro, but that doesn’t necessarily mean things between the band and their former vocalist Burton C. Bell is now water under the bridge.
During a recent interview with Brutal Planet Magazine (transcribed by Blabbermouth), guitarist Dino Cazares dropped a bomb on his former bandmate while chatting about Silvestro’s contributions and the new energy he brings to the band. According to him, Bell wasn’t giving the band his best for a while before things finally came to a head.
“Yes and no. I’ve always had the fire. I don’t need anybody to bring me new energy, but it does feel good when you have somebody who can match the energy that you have. Because for a while there, I just felt that — and I’m speaking off the cuff here — that [original Fear Factory singer] Burton C. Bell was just kind of phoning things in; he was just kind of going through the motions, and it just felt like he didn’t wanna be there. And so it was kind of lacking. The band was going down for a little while. And as soon as Milo came in, it was a breath of fresh air to play with somebody who wanted to be there. And that felt really good. And, of course, all the trolls are gonna come after me for saying that, but it is what it is. I mean, I lived through it. I was there.”
Depending on who you ask, Bell was either fired from or he quit Fear Factory back in September 2020. In his initial statement following his departure, Bell said there was a ton of “toxic drama” within the band and that “greed” among the rest of the band “dragged me through the unjust, judicial system, resulting in the legal attrition that has financially crippled me.” The legal attrition he was talking about was the fight over who owns the rights to the Fear Factory name, of which Cazares is now the sole owner.
Who knows if Bell will have anything to say about Cazares’ comment? The last time he was asked about Fear Factory and Silvestro, the singer said his his replacement “doesn’t affect me at all.” It really just seems like the dude just wants to put out his own solo work and showcase his art.
