An onstage brawl between members of The Brian Jonestown Massacre led to the cancelation of the remaining dates on the band’s current tour of Australia, a big disappointment to fans Down Under.
The ugly incident went down last week during a performance before a packed house in Melbourne when six songs into the psychedelic rock group’s set, frontman Anton Newcombe abruptly booted guitarist Ryan Van Kriedt out of the band, prompting a physical altercation between the musicians.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre show in Melbourne descended into an onstage brawl last night. The band have cancelled the remaining tour dates.
— Far Out Magazine (@FarOutMag) November 22, 2023
“Cut off this guy’s mic, put down my guitar, party’s over, captain,” Newcombe hollered at his suddenly fired bandmate in video posted to social media.“There’s no more music until you get the f**k… We actually don’t need you. Go. Put my guitar down on the stage and think about what’s happening. Unplug.”
Van Kriedt responded that Newcombe had “better think about this one, man,” adding, “because this is forever,” indicating that there would be no turning back before he stormed off the stage at the Forum Melbourne, flipping off the band’s leader when things took a turn for the worst.
Newcombe then swung his guitar at Van Kriedt, appearing to strike him in the head, engaging the just-fired guitarist who chased the band’s leader across the stage and tackled him as security and other band members rushed to break up the fracas as the concert was called off.
Dramatic end to the Brian Jonestown Massacre show in Melbourne tonight… pic.twitter.com/gQbdAVT6Tt
— Mike Alexander (@ma261065) November 21, 2023
“Undefeated, god bless this country,” Newcombe told the suddenly hostile crowd which reportedly booed and threw bottles.
Newcombe, who founded the San Francisco-based band in 1990, has been dogged by a history of bizarre behavior and Tuesdays Aussie tour finale is just the latest example.
Fans who were at the show described the ill-fated show where Newcombe was abusive to audience members.
“He called us cancerous reptiles, c***s, all manner of expletives. He said we were cancer, he didn’t want to be here, talked down to his band all night, repeatedly told us how lucky we were that he was here,” one fan told News.com.AU.
“Anyone who knows the band knows it’s gonna be a bit of a gamble knowing which version of Anton Newcombe you’re going to get on any given night,” the fan said.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre’s name is a mixture of rocker Brian Jones, the ill-fated founder of the iconic British band The Rolling Stones, and the Reverend Jim Jones, a depraved figure who lorded it over his People’s Temple religious cult in the jungles of Guyana where in 1978, he infamously convinced them to drink cyanide-laced Flavor Aid, a drink similar to Kool-Aid.
With his followers eagerly gobbling down the toxic liquid at his behest, over 900 of them were poisoned to death in what became known as the “Jonestown Massacre.”
Like Van Kriedt, Brian Jones was also kicked out of his band as Mick Jagger and Keith Richards tired of his erratic behavior and substance abuse issues. The 27-year-old drowned in his swimming pool on July 3, 1969, months before the legendary outfit released “Let It Bleed,” the first in a line of epic albums that became classics and fueled the group’s legendary status.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre informed fans that the remainder of the Australian tour was canceled in a notice that was posted to its website.
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