JOEY JORDISON's SCAR THE MARTYR: Singer HENRY DEREK BONNER Was Fired From Band

SCAR THE MARTYR, the new band led by former SLIPKNOT drummer Joey Jordison, has released the following statement:

"To address the recent SCAR THE MARTYR news out there and make sure all the facts are straight, SCAR THE MARTYR has parted ways with [singer] Henry [Derek Bonner], not the other way around.

"With all that's been going on of late, we have been forced to take a very careful look at how we are moving forward, and with there being some creative and personal differences, it made sense to move on without Henry.

"We have been very focused on new SCAR THE MARTYR material and we couldn't be more excited with how the music is coming out.

"We are in the process of looking for a new singer and will have news on the search very soon.

"We appreciate all the support from our fans and we can't wait to share the next phase of SCAR THE MARTYR with all of you.

"We wish Henry best of luck going forward."

Bonner released a statement earlier today claiming that he was leaving SCAR THE MARTYR "due to personal differences, artistic direction and a slew of business decisions that I cannot simply ignore." He added: "I've given it a year of my life and now it's time to move on. I will continue making music in many forms as well as pursuing a new band with King (GOD SEED) and Jeff Friedl (A PERFECT CIRCLE)."

SCAR THE MARTYR's self-titled debut album sold around 3,300 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 129 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was made available on October 1, 2013 via Roadrunner Records.

In addition to Jordison and Henry Derek, SCAR THE MARTYR's most recent touring lineup included guitarists Jed Simon (STRAPPING YOUNG LAD) and Kris Norris (DARKEST HOUR),keyboardist Joey Blush and bassist Kyle Konkiel (IN THIS MOMENT).

"With this project, I focused my efforts on writing for the better of the song," Jordison said last year. "I wasn't worried about flash or persona... It's all about writing a good solid song. I'm writing music that people can grasp and hold on to...something that resonates. If you don't have that, then you have nothing."

"I'd been working on new SLIPKNOT material since the end of the 'All Hope Is Gone' tour cycle, but I ended up with so much stuff I had to take a step back and stop working on it," he explained to Metal Hammer magazine. "The time wasn't right. But I came up with a bunch of material that was really killer and heavy and started taking some of it in a different direction. I started focusing on a lot of the post-punk and industrial stuff that I've always loved and started putting super heavy and brutal guitars over the top of it. That's how it started. It's taken me a couple of years to get to this point, but I can honestly say this is the most satisfied I've ever been in the studio."

SLIPKNOT announced in December 2013 that it had parted ways with Jordison, one of the band's founding members and key songwriters. The group posted a statement at its web site which read, "It is with great pain but quiet respect that, for personal reasons, Joey Jordison and SLIPKNOT are parting ways. We all wish Joey the best in whatever his future holds. We understand that many of you will want to know how and why this has come to be, and we will do our best to respond to these questions in the near future."

The statement added, "It is our love for all of you, as well as for the music we create, that spurs us to continue on and move forward with our plans for releasing new material in the next year. We hope that all of you will come to understand this, and we appreciate your continued support while we plan the next phase of the future of SLIPKNOT."

SLIPKNOT is working on a new album, the band's first since the 2010 death of bassist Paul Gray.