Question: What could possibly be more fun than a good old rock and roll lawsuit between band members?
Answer: A Norwegian black metal band lawsuit.
Blabbermouth is one of my sources for news concerning Norwegian black metal bands and, that’s where I found info about the outcome of the recent litigation between members of the band, GORGOROTH.
Evidently, King ov Hell (bass player) went behind the back of Infernus (guitar player) and secretly applied for trademark protection of the band name and logo.
Logo…
Infernus then filed suit against King ov Hell who, it seems was in cahoots with Gaahl (singer).
At the end of the day, the court decided in favor of Infernus, who released this statement.
“The court has decided that King ov Hell’s trademark registration of the band name GORGOROTH is NOT valid and shall therefore be deleted. The court states that King ov Hell and Gaahl excluded themselves from the band GORGOROTH when they tried to fire Infernus in October 2007. The court further states that Infernus cannot be excluded from GORGOROTH, unless he himself decides to quit.”
Props to Infernus for sparing us the legalese.
King ov Hell and Gaahl have released their own statement…
“Regarding the recent court case over the use of the name GORGOROTH, Gaahl and King confirm that parts of the verdict have been decided and went in favor of Infernus. This is only a partial verdict on the case. Because of the complexity of this case, there will be further court hearings and the final verdict will be announced within a few weeks.
“The judge came to the conclusion that it is impossible to kick out an original member even if he doesn’t contribute musically or lyrically. The judge also states that one can’t kick an original member out of a band even if that member performs actions which are viewed as disrespectful towards promoters, session members and other working partners.
“Gaahl and King wish Infernus the best of luck using the banner of GORGOROTH on his art.
“Gaahl and King will still present the art they are known for creating in GORGOROTH albeit under another banner. The new name will be announced shortly.”
Well, all in all it seems like King ov Hell and Gaahl are accepting the decision like the grown-ups that they are. Reading in to it, I sense that there may be just a tad of lingering bitterness. But, after all, that’s to be expected in such a complex case.
The important thing is that it looks like Infernus, King ov Hell and Gaahl have, at least, taken the right steps here and allowed the court to reach an agreement which was obviously outside the realm of what they would be able to settle on their own. And now, all parties can move forward.
So, as the sun sets on another day, and despite a bit of turmoil, once again all is well and once again Norwegian black metal band Land, is a happy place.
Last week, we discussed the eminent lawsuit between Joe Satriani and Coldplay. Music Radar has a piece where Joe speaks out. Just the quotes, Mam…
“I felt like a dagger went right through my heart. It hurt so much,” Satriani says. “The second I heard it, I knew it was [my own] If I Could Fly.”…
“Almost immediately, from the minute their song came out, my e-mail box flooded with people going, ‘Have you heard this song by Coldplay? They ripped you off man.’ I mean, I couldn’t tell you how many e-mails I received.
“Everybody noticed the similarities between the songs. It’s pretty obvious. It’s as simple as that – when you listen to a song and you say, ‘Wow, that’s a real rip-off.’”…
“I started writing it on the Flying In A Blue Dream tour back in 1990. But because of the way I write, sometimes songs take a while, as this one did. In 2003 I started demoing it in earnest. I played it on the acoustic guitar on a demo so I could sing the melody, then I demoed it on electric to get the sound. And the performance turned out to be so spontaneous, so right and so emotional, that it wound up being a keeper.”…
“That was the intent all along,” he says. “It was a love letter to my wife, Rubina – a simple, direct expression of feeling.
“That’s what really hurts about this whole thing. That I spent so long writing the song, thinking about it, loving it, nursing it, and then finally recording it and standing on stages the world over playing it – and then somebody comes along and plays the exact same song and calls it their own.”…
“Everybody’s assumes I’m trying to go after these guys in Coldplay, as if I’m doing this with malice,” he says “That’s the furthest thing from my mind. I’m just doing what I need to do as an artist, to protect what’s mine, to protect those feelings I put down in song.
“I did everything I could to avoid a court case with this situation. But Coldplay didn’t want to talk about it. They just wanted this whole thing to go away. Maybe they figured this little guitar player guy will leave them alone after a while, I don’t know.
“But we’re talking about a piece of art that I created, and that’s something I feel is important. I think everybody should feel that way.”
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