Ex-VOLBEAT Guitarist ROB CAGGIANO On His Departure: 'Sometimes Relationships Simply Run Their Course'

Ex-VOLBEAT guitarist Rob Caggiano says that he is "extremely proud" of everything he and his former bandmates accomplished over the course of the last 10 years.

Caggiano's exit from VOLBEAT was officially announced on June 5. He has since been replaced on the road by Flemming C. Lund (THE ARCANE ORDER).

Earlier today (Monday, June 12),Rob — who played on VOLBEAT's last four studio albums: 2013's "Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies", 2016's "Seal the Deal & Let's Boogie", 2019's "Rewind, Replay, Rebound" and 2021's "Servant Of The Mind" — released the following statement via social media: "Hello everyone. I'm sorry if this is a bit overdue but now that I've had ample time to process everything going on around me, I have a few things I'd like to say publicly...

"First off, I want to say thank you to everyone out there for all the amazing messages and support I've gotten over the last few days. It's been very powerful and humbling for me to say the least. It's reassurance that I'm on the right path and it means so much to me right now.

"To all the amazing fans and friends I've met all over the world throughout the years... I love and cherish each and every one of you. Thank you for sticking with me through hell or high water. The world seems to be getting weirder and weirder with each passing day and life never stops throwing twists and turns at us but you guys always keep me driven, focused and inspired to create music, follow my heart at all costs and chase my dreams wherever they may take me. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart!

"I also want to wish Michael, Jon, Kaspar, (Anders too) and the entire VOLBEAT camp the best of luck moving forward. I'm extremely proud of everything we accomplished together over the last 10 years.

"Sometimes relationships simply run their course. Sometimes certain obstacles, people or circumstances get in the way of the greater good. Sometimes people change and priorities shift. Sometimes it's unavoidable. We had a very special undeniable magic together as a band. It's not something that comes around too often in this life and it's not something to be taken lightly. I certainly do not. However, while this is really a very emotional time for me I'm also extremely excited about what lies ahead in the future. Lots of exciting things happening right now. I really couldn't be more fired up!! Stay tuned".

An acclaimed musician, songwriter and producer, Caggiano joined ANTHRAX as lead guitarist in 2001, appearing on 2003 album "We've Come For You All" and 2004's "The Greater Of Two Evils". He was onstage with the band during the famous 2010-2011 "Big Four" tour alongside SLAYER, MEGADETH and METALLICA, and he played on and produced ANTHRAX's 2011 critically acclaimed album "Worship Music".

Over the years, Caggiano has also garnered five Grammy nominations as a record producer/guitarist and has worked with a very wide range of artists including CRADLE OF FILTH, ANTHRAX, VOLBEAT, THE DAMNED THINGS, H20, Jesse Malin and even Bruce Springsteen.

When Caggiano was enlisted as producer for Danish heavy rock quartet VOLBEAT in early 2013, the collaboration was so phenomenally successful that he was quickly invited to join the band as well. The resulting album, "Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies", achieved major chart success on both sides of the Atlantic, as did "Seal The Deal & Let's Boogie".

In a 2022 interview with Metalshop TV, Caggiano spoke about how he went from his previous gig with ANTHRAX to producing the VOLBEAT album "Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies" to joining the Danish band as their guitarist. He said: "I decided to leave ANTHRAX back then because I kind of felt like… At that point I had been in the band for a long time, and I kind of felt like my role in the band ran its course, so to speak. And I just kind of felt like I was hitting my head up against a glass ceiling a long time. And it just felt like I needed a change. I wasn't feeling inspired. Don't get me wrong — I love those guys and I loved every minute of my time with them. It was such an amazing, wild ride. But I just felt like I needed to do something else at that time. And the VOLBEAT thing just happened, and it was organic, and it felt right. So, here I am."

Regarding what it was about VOLBEAT's music that appealed to him, Rob said" "I think for me, the thing with VOLBEAT, it's like a mixture of all the sounds that I like. [Laughs] It's a lot of stuff that I grew up listening to all wrapped into one package. When I first VOLBEAT, I heard the MISFITS, I heard METALLICA, I heard a little bit of the RAMONES… There's some SLAYER-vibe riffs. There's just a lot of different stuff. And it's all fun — it's a lot of fun; the music is a lot of fun. And it definitely connects with a lot of people. That's why I do it."

Photo credit: Ross Halfin