Jeff Plate Splits From Metal Church

http://www.metalunderground.com/news/details.cfm?newsid=133601




Jeff Plate, longtime drummer for Metal Church, announced his departure from the band citing time and time management issues. The band announced that it is withdrawing from the AlterBridge/In Flames tour scheduled for this May.

In a post on Facebook, Plate stated: "Hello everyone. It is with a heavy heart that I am announcing my departure from Metal Church. I came to this conclusion 2 weeks ago, and agreed to hold off on the announcement until Metal Church had made some decisions on what they were going to do.

"This is obviously not an easy decision. After many conversations with myself, my wife, my family, my management and Kurdt Vanderoof and Mike Howe, I know I am doing the right thing for my future.

"I know there will be questions and speculation. The bottom line is time, my time, and how best I manage it. I had to come to terms with the fact that time is just blowing by at the speed of light and there is no time for me to second guess or regret anything I'm doing. At this point in my life I need to be in more control of my time and career. I have a number of things I’d like to do and try, and to do these I have to give up something I truly love and am very proud of.

"I cannot thank Kurdt Vanderhoof enough for inviting me into Metal Church. For the past 12 years I have had the honor and privilege of playing some of the best, truly iconic Hard Rock/ Heavy Metal songs ever written. I have recorded 4 records with the band. The latest, 'XI', is not only one of my favorite Metal Church records, but I feel it is the one of the best, if not the best records I have recorded throughout my career.

"Also, I cannot thank the Metal Church fan base enough for the tremendous support. I have met thousands of you over the years and you, fans old and new, are simply the best. You have kept this band alive for the past 33 years, and I am sure there is more great music to come.

"Metal Church is in a good place, and there are a number of shows and good things coming up this year. This decision is made now to not only let me prepare for the year to come, but also to let Metal Church do the same. Kurdt Vanderhoof(g), Mike Howe(v), Steve Unger(b), Rick VanZandt(g), Tim Harding(sound and production), and Joe Obrien(President @ Rat Pak Records) have been a tremendous team, and they are also very good friends of mine. I wish them nothing but the best.

"I hope to see you all again somewhere down the road. I will keep you posted on my activities. Trust me, I will not sit still for very long. Thank you, take care."

Just prior to Plate's announcement, the band issued the following statement: "Due to unforeseen personnel changes within the Metal Church organization, regretfully we have to pull off the five Alter Bridge/In Flames show dates in May. We are grateful to everyone in the Alter Bridge camp for having offered us the opportunity, and would like to extend our deepest apologies to both bands, their management, and all the fans for the last minute cancellation. We had hoped we could make something work out, but that is no longer a possibility. We will be back on the road in June for all the European shows and we look forward to introducing you to our new drummer! Thank you for your understanding!"



Well this kind of sucks. They had some really good chemistry going. Now to find a capable replacement.

Hope they don't end up breaking up!

Does he still drum for Trans Siberian Orchestra?

He's making it sound like he's taking a break from music in general.

007 wrote:

He's making it sound like he's taking a break from music in general.

Yeah totally, I got that too.


Why is it that musicians always feel the same way about their new record? Haha, like everyone seems to think their most recent record is the best ever, even when they are leaving or it being their last record. I guess it's just marketing.

Stender wrote:

007 wrote:

He's making it sound like he's taking a break from music in general.

Yeah totally, I got that too.


Why is it that musicians always feel the same way about their new record? Haha, like everyone seems to think their most recent record is the best ever, even when they are leaving or it being their last record. I guess it's just marketing.

I dunno, he seems rather sincere with that statement. I mean, you're right, it's an overused quip, but XI really brought these guys out of hiding. Their touring has been more intense than with Munroe, there's a lot more recognition, more press, more marketing (especially with the live album coming). But even more than all that, it really is their best album for many (including myself) since Human Factor. You can tell their heart and soul was really thrown in those songs, partly because I believe Mike brought back the energy they needed. The dude still has his original attack and range, and onstage he's even more in beast mode than before. I saw them live last year and they were on fire, especially with the new material.

Too bad about Plate, he laid down some great stuff on XI.

I was going to see them at Chicago Open Air Festival in July. They were the only band on Saturday that I had any interest it...I wonder if they'll replace him before then, or just call off all of their tour dates.

I mean no disrespect to Plate, but they can easily replace him. Mike Howe is back and they're gonna make the most of it.

If Scott Travis wasn't in Judas priest, he would be the perfect choice for Metal Church!

He was awesome to watch in concert. I will always think kindly of him for throwing me a stick after the show. I actually have two, one from the last tour, and one from generation nothing tour. The first one I had to jump and grab it, the second one he pretty much handed to me.

Whatever he ends up doing, I hope it's a success for him, and he's happy. Seems like a really cool down to earth dude.

I saw him standing in the crowd when they played a small club for the Generation Nothing tour. He was checking out one of the opening bands. He was a solid player and a good fit for the band, but there is plenty of other guys even better like Richard Christy. He tore it up when he was in Iced Earth.

I agree with you guys about it being relatively easy to replace him. But that's why the decision to withdraw from the May tour with Alter Bridge and In Flames seems a bit puzzling.

I understand why he did this but it's terrible timing. I think the slot with Alter Bridge and In Flames would have exposed them to a new crop of fans. I wonder if something else is going on? GP is right, it's puzzling they pulled out of that tour.

MetalGuy71 wrote:

Does he still drum for Trans Siberian Orchestra?

I think he does.

They still have their future festival dates and even added a few, so most likely they have a replacement in queue.

METAL CHURCH has recruited Stet Howland (ex-W.A.S.P.) to play drums for the band on all its summer shows. He joins the group as the replacement for Jeff Plate, who announced his departure from METAL CHURCH last month.

Howland commented: "I was contacted by my good friend METAL CHURCH bass player Steve Unger recently after their drummer Jeff Plate stepped down after 12 years of dedicated service. The band has a bunch of summer festival dates as well as other touring for the year.
"When Steve called, the first thing he said was, 'How busy are you right now?' I laughed and asked him to get to the point, 'cause anyone who knows me knows that I'm constantly busy. Steve confided that Jeff had given his notice and that they needed a drummer immediately. He said that their new CD is going through the roof and that they have a ton of summer dates. I was very excited, to say the least.

"I became a hardcore fan of METAL CHURCH when they toured with W.A.S.P. on our 2005 'Metal Blast' tour. Our then-guitar player Darrell Roberts and I would stand in the wings watching every show; they kicked ass every single night! Their drummer at the time was Kirk Arrington, a great drummer and guy. We became friends immediately. And as it happens, I'm also old friends with Jeff Plate, METAL CHURCH's most recent drummer of 12 years. Jeff is a monster drummer and one of the nicest guys you could ever hope to meet. It will be an honor and a privilege to step into his gig.

"I flew to Seattle and jammed with the band last week. We clicked immediately — nothing but big smiles from the first song to the last. It was great!
"It's a great band, great guys, and they have an excellent aggressive record label behind them. They are still making fresh and relevant music. This is an honor indeed."

Bummer about Jeff leaving. Glad I got to see Metal Church last fall

Cool news about Howland.

Howland will fit right in.

Stet Howland has cancer...

Former W.A.S.P. and current Metal Church drummer Stet Howland was recently sidelined with a “mystery illness” for which he finally shed more light on publicly today.

The following message was posted on Metal Church‘s Facebook page earlier today:

“MESSAGE FROM STET: Hello friends. It’s me, “Mr. Mystery Illness”. Three hospitals and almost 2 weeks later we have a diagnosis. I have “Diffuse Large B-cell Lymphoma”. In layman’s terms, its essentially a form of cancer in my blood. And while it is a very aggressive form of cancer, it is also very treatable with an 80% cure rate. In my case I’m one of the lucky ones whom my doctors are confident of knocking this shit completely out of me!

I have gone from actually feeling like death, to feeling fairly strong, all in just under one week of treatment. It’s been a rigorous and constant IV fusion cocktail that hasn’t been exactly fun. But if this is what it takes to get back to my family, and to get back to my routine, I find it well worth it.

I want to publicly thank my love Heidi for giving the best updates possible given the info she had to work with. I have been too weak to do this myself until now.

We started treatment based on the doctors initial diagnosis, as they were confident of what they were dealing with. They knew I had a form of Lymphoma but the actual details didn’t rear their head until the other day, as we had to await test results.

I’m once again blown away and thankful for all the positivity, love and well wishes from family, friends and fans worldwide. I have heard from some people that I never knew I would ever hear from again. Friends from school and all walks of life have reached out. The outpouring of love has been overwhelming to say the least. I have been feeling like crap off & on for over a year now wondering why, now we all know.

I will be discharged next week and heading back to Vegas, were I will begin tracking the new Metal Church record with a vigor and thankfulness that I don’t know if I’ve ever felt in my life. The 2018 Metal Church calendar is already starting to fill up, and I’m going to be out there whooping ass at every single one of them!

I consider myself a very lucky man who has done many great things in my life. I have been blessed to play in several iconic bands in my career. But my current Metal Church gig is the unrivaled pinnacle of it all.

Thanks again to you all for your love and support. And one more thing, if it is your prerogative to open your heart to a higher power and pray, please feel free to do so, don’t ever let anyone tell you what to do.

Big love to all. “Carry on” ~ Stet Howland / Stet Howland“

Saw that, glad he seems better already.

Great to hear he's doing better.

Good news indeed.