3 Inches Of Blood Make Some Difficult And Not So Difficult Decisions

02/13/08 5:00pm

by Shawn Despres (CHARTattack)

It's no secret that touring in the middle of winter is bloody hard, and Vancouver's 3 Inches Of Blood can attest to it.

The Vancouver metal band were scheduled to perform several shows throughout Ontario and Quebec starting on Friday. However, late last week they announced that they were canceling the rest of their North American dates due to weather conditions. They stressed on their website and MySpace page that it wasn't an easy decision, and they promise to reschedule all their missed appearances when warmer temperatures arrive.

The gigs would have been eastern Canada's first opportunity to see the band perform since the firing of former drummer Alexei Rodriguez last fall. Ash Pearson (Sound Of The Swarm, Just Cause) has been temporarily handling drumming duties for 3 Inches Of Blood since Rodriguez was booted out, and vocalist Cam Pipes says the group aren't in any rush to find a permanent drummer.

"Ash is out with us right now, and so far he's doing very well. We don't have a permanent replacement yet. We want to make sure the eventual replacement is someone we get along with and can handle being on the road with us. It may turn out that Ash is the right guy, but we got to make sure everything fits first with him or anybody we consider for the part."

Having undergone several lineup changes since the band's 2000 inception, working in new musicians is something they're quite used to. In fact, Pipes feels that most minor hassles caused by member switches are well worth it in the long run.

"Bands change members all the time. When the desire to play is there, you'll end up finding the right people with the same desire. In our case, we've become a better band because of the changes."

Of course, it's always preferable when band personnel are able to give a bit of notice before their departure. Pipes insists that wasn't an option with Rodriguez.

"Parting ways with Alexei wasn't a difficult decision at all, considering what he did to Saxon drummer Nigel Glockler, some security guards, and the band's reputation. We can't have a band member going out and getting violent while he's supposed to be representing us. His actions set us back in several ways. We missed some shows, had to change plane tickets, and disappointed lots of fans. The whole fiasco cost us a lot of money, too."

Although these most recent cancellations aren't helping recoup lost funds, a week-long U.K. jaunt in April with Opeth, Arch Enemy and Devildriver should. The band hope to continue touring behind last year's Fire Up The Blades after that, but they'll be tearing through their vintage metal-inspired set without the services of co-vocalist Jamie Hooper. He was ordered by doctors to miss the group's appearance at Ozzfest last summer and is still resting his throat. According to Pipes, there's no definite timeline for when he'll be able to resume performing.

"He's still figuring out his voice. He's in the process of retraining himself to sing without hurting his throat. In the meantime, [guitarist] Justin Hagberg and myself are doing our best to fill in his vocal parts in our live show."