Awww, too bad for all you Love and Theft fans out there - the trio is about to become a duo.
The group has confirmed to The Boot that Brian Bandas will be leaving the group next year.
"This is something that I've been toying with for a longer time than probably anybody realizes," Brian tells The Boot. "Love and Theft is so important to me that I really didn't want to rush into the decision. I've spent over five years with these guys working on Love and Theft. It was just an unbelievable experience. It's certainly hard to say goodbye to that, but it's also exciting to move forward into new things. It's an adventure. I certainly wouldn't be doing this if I didn't believe on many levels that this was the right step for me. It's sad to move on from something that has been so great in my life, but it's also exciting to see what the next Love and Theft in my life is going to be."
The group lost their record deal a while back when Lyric Street shut their doors and the thought of signing with another record label was one of the deciding factors in Brian's decision.
He says, "As I thought about signing a new deal with Love and Theft, I didn't feel right about that because I knew that my heart was elsewhere."
So what's in store for the parting member? Well he's got a new wife, his recently launched T-shirt business, and he will continue to work on his own music.
As for the remaining members of the group, they will continue on with Love and Theft, but with a new sense of who they are as a group. "I'm going to be 'Love' and Eric's going to be 'Theft'," Stephen Barker Liles says.
Funny. Well let's hope they don't fall into the Sugarland trap and end up highly successful and sued by their former band member.
Wait, that came out wrong. Oh well. Check out the boys' video for Don't Wake Me while you're being sad about the jumping of ship by Brian Bandas.
That's not Brian on the left... L-R: Eric Gunderson, Stephen Barker Liles, Brian Bandas.
Posted by: Amanda | December 02, 2010 at 03:36 PM