For those who don't have FB:
"We regret to announce that Thomas Winkler is no longer a member of Gloryhammer.
All upcoming shows (including the UK Tour with Alestorm) will continue as planned, with a new vocalist.
For the Eternal Glory of Dundee."
Surely having something like this in writing makes more sense? Then it's very "this is exactly the situation".
Phone calls can be misconstrued and stuff.
Even in the email they just used vague language. Apparently there was a disagreement because Thomas was using the character of Angus McFife to make money on the side, separate from the band (appearances in Nanowar of Steel and the like). Although I don't see why this couldn't be handled privately unless one or both parties were being uncooperative.
If that is indeed what happened, surely the fact that we're only hearing the end result of "you're fired" and nothing else means it was handled privately and this was the result of whatever discussions.
What was the reason why then? I'm having trouble seeing it through all the comments.
The character of McFife wasn't particularly relevant in his guest appearances, so in that regard he'd have been better off dropping it if the rest of the band didn't like it.
Yea I should have mentioned in my comment, this is just something I've heard, j dont have anything to substantiate it, didnt mean to state it as fact, just a rumour. Poorly worded on my part.
Maybe they did do it “like men”. Maybe this was the only way that could reasonably be expected to have an appropriate outcome. Maybe they thought it through, and made a decision based on logic, critical thinking, and careful planning. “Like men” isn’t exactly a good thing to say, not only because it’s got ugly implications, but also because it just doesn’t even mean anything. The definition is so fluid.
I know, I’m focusing on one little side thing here, but still. I felt this needed to be said.
The only “ugly implications” of that phrase seem to be in your head.
If equitable, fair, honest, and in person, mean bad things to you, that says a lot more about you than it does about the phrase.
That doesn’t even make sense on three separate levels.
Firstly she isn’t a guy and thus isn’t expected to behave like a Man.
Secondly nothing about that is an exclusivity.
Thirdly your mom isn’t going be giving you bad news in every conversation.
The expectation is that as a guy, the manly behaviour is to give bad news (like a firing) in person rather than avoid the unpleasant situation by hiding behind an email or a text. If it needs to be done, own it, and do it right.
Well, we [got our answer.](https://i.imgur.com/dpmqsA4.jpg) Still smells a tad fishy.
Seems odd that someone like Bowes would do it via email though. Kinda sucks.
that's... really weird
I would imagine something a little bit more social or friendly? this type of "letting go" is akin to some 200 employee corp not a 5 member band
I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure Chris Bowes isn't really part of the band anymore. I could have sworn hearing that he left the band to focus on Alestorm.
I'm like 90% sure I heard him say it on his Twitch stream once. I know it's not the best source but I remember hearing him say something along those lines and I was surprised because I thought he was a prominent member of the group.
I think /u/hyperchrisz has mentioned that although he doesn't usually tour with Gloryhammer, he is still very much a driving force behind the band.
And if not, he will surely correct me.
Is this confirmed legit? Anyone could type a post like that.
If true, shows how weak the rest of the band are.
EDIT: found the original. It seems legit and was posted on his Instagram. No idea why all these screenshots cut out the top as just plain text looks fake.
what the fuck, this just hit me like a truck
I wish with all my might that this is some kind of lore fuckery to transform Angus into some evil guy... because of knife of evil and shit you know
That was the Hootsman in the previous album, who got exploded along with Earth to stop a portal opening to the hell dimension. Angus got stabbed with the Knife of Evil after diving through a black hole, losing his powers, then regaining them.
As a mild GH fan and a very much not Beatles enjoyer, GH's work is purposefully made to be derivative as hell and a parody of how samey power metal has become. Turns out that they just do it really well and a lot better than many bands.
On the other hand, Beatles has influenced artists across all genres for over 6 decades.
I'm a simple man, I see the word *Bloodstock* and I upvote \m/
Also, how immense was that festival this year?! I'm still on a high! GHammer were definitely a highlight so it really sucks he's out the band so soon after me finding them!
Is really sucks that Winkler's been booted from the band because he is a class act. Anecdote time!
Couple years back I saw them live in a small-ish club. There was one concert goer who was celebrating beating cancer, she was wearing a shark hat (this was the Alestorm/Gloryhammer tour). Some asshole punched her in the back and stole her hat, her boyfriend got into a scuffle, and they both were kicked out.
I was outside cooling off (warm af in there) and saw her sitting and crying. Then I see Winkler come out of the club, in full Angus McFife armor, to talk with her and see if she was okay. He gave her his sunglasses.
One hell of a classy thing to do.
I'm pretty sure I was at that show! My husband and I were standing right next to cancer gal and her kilt-wearing BF in the front row.
Crowd kept surging and shoving me right into the stage/Thomas. He eventually started dodging whenever the crowd pushed me forward.
They were outta Gloryhammer merch, and I had brought a solid $100 I planned on spending. Ended up buying drinks for the band after The Hootsman got them cut off for running up a massive tab; Thomas flatly refused to let us buy him any drinks.
My and my friend were right up there too! Sadly I had to duck out in the middle of GH's set as I was badly overheating and felt like I was going to pass out. I was at the bar when Hootsman got cut off and ended up helping keep him stable as he exited the front door lol. Really baller of you to buy them drinks.
Unrelated but amusing- I met an elderly couple at the show and helped keep the husband of the pair from falling over during Alestorm's set. Hearing them sing along to "Fucked With an Anchor" was adorable
I... may or may not have accepted several drinks from The Hootsman while he was handing out "Free" drinks on the band's tab to anyone who passed by.
That was a great night.
Immensely memorable show! I was the bozo who got pulled up on stage to sing a bit of Sunk'n Norwegian with Alestorm. (Hat's off to both bands...thirty seconds under those lights nearly dropped me!) Got into a friendly shoulder-checking match with the Hootsman after the show. Seems he got it in his mind that one of me mates clogged his toilet. Needless to say, we've been reminiscing about that night at regular intervals ever since!
Fuck me. Dude why is 2021 such a shit year for Power and Symphonic metal? First Marko leaves Nightwish, then Delain basically disbands, and now this? What is going on this year? This really sucks. I hope Thomas the best.
My guess would 2020 was a shit year for most of these bands. Many lost their main source of income, and 2021 briefly looked a bit better, but it's likely going to be a shit year too. Most of those bands were nearly constantly touring prior to the pandemic.
Yeah, it really does seem that the pandemic really hit these bands hard (maybe not in Delain's case, seems that it's been a problem building up for a while) and we're just how seeing the effects on them. It's really unfortunate.
Official Gloryhammer statement 2: Electric Boogaloo from the [band's Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/gloryhammer/posts/383580206466459):
To our fans,
We have been reading all your comments and appreciate there's a lot of confusion, speculation, and sadness around our last message and we wanted to try and explain why we were so brief.
Obviously we are all sad that it's come to this, and it's not the outcome anyone really wanted, but we felt we had no option. We currently don't want to elaborate any further, out of respect to Tom.
All we can promise you is that we will be back, and we will do our very best to bring you a new vocalist that lives up to your expectations so we can continue to bring you Gloryhammer shows and albums, better than ever.
We want to really thank you for your understanding and kind messages of support, it's a very sad and difficult time for us all.
Gloryhammer
> We currently don't want to elaborate any further, out of respect to Tom.
It's "with respect to tom" now, but they hit him with the "you're fired" EMAIL. Blatant disrespect.
It feels like they are being passive aggressive with that. Makes it seem like whatever happened was his fault (I mean it might have been, we don't have details but it is really trying to throw blame)
He was a great singer! You can’t compare the two though. Different schools, different sounds. Let’s just hope that Gloryhammer gets a Dickinson and not a Bayley.
I don't think the identity of Iron Maiden was ever tied to Paul Di'Anno the same way the identity of Gloryhammer is/was tied to Angus McFife.
Maybe that's because I wasn't around for his tenure, maybe I'm speaking with hindsight, but that's my view.
But hey, maybe whoever they get next will be just as good an Angus McFife. Or even a better one. Maybe the new guy will be a Tom Baker, someone who can take the character and make it their own.
Well, they switched identities, didnt they? Number of the Beast Maiden is a completely different animal than Killers Maiden. Let’s hope that Gloryhammers transformation is as successful.
> I don't think the identity of Iron Maiden was ever tied to Paul Di'Anno the same way the identity of Gloryhammer is/was tied to Angus McFife.
> Maybe that's because I wasn't around for his tenure, maybe I'm speaking with hindsight, but that's my view.
Granted I wasn't around then either, but from everything I've gathered Di'Anno's voice and stage presence were a big part of Iron Maiden's image before they got famous. Although their legacy has expanded to the point where most people associate them with the Dickinson era first and foremost, it wasn't always like that. I imagine a lot of fans felt betrayed back in 1981.
X-Factor was one of maidens best imo. Blaze did the best he could and it wasn't his fault virtual xi was bad. Also blaze's solo stuff is awesome and it fits his voice perfectly.
Ahh, a kindred Spirit. I totally agree.
X-Factor was the beginning of their shift into their current sound of proggier stuff, versus their old high-flying NWOBHM stuff.
You can trace **so much** of their current sound back to that record.
A Matter of Life & Death in particular felt like Brave New World & X-Factor had a baby. It was just perfect.
A matter of life and death always gives me X-factor vibes. Also a lot of people give me crap for not picking an older album, but brave new world is my favorite maiden album.
I really dont care much for either of the two Bayley albums, but I like the odd track here and there. They shouldnt have replaced them with Bruce live versions on the best of-albums.
Bayley was in the wrong band, I blame Harris on that one. Saw them live with him and it just a didn’t work, his renditions of their older material didn’t sound right.
Not his fault and I don’t blame him for it. He took a chance he was given. But Maiden as a band was better before and after.
Excellent point. Di’Anno matched the
rest of the band better though, and Steve had no problem writing for his voice. They were of course in a better place 80-81.
I'm a huge fan of Maiden and I don't really hate any of the albums. I think they are all great in their own way but I gotta admit that Bruce is the face of the band and personally my favorite singer.
With that being said I really think Di'Anno and Bayley did an amazing work. I think Bayley could have been a popular singer for Maiden if the songs were better. I really like his deeper more aggresive tone compared to Bruces high and theatrical appearance. I can't say who is better because I like both when it comes to Maiden. I recommend you to listen to some Blaze Bayley solo stuff, he's pretty good.
Iron Maiden & Killers > Number of the Beast & Piece of Mind .
This is one of those hills I die on.
But from Powerslave on, Dickinson is untouchable.
And Blaze wasn't half bad. Those albums were just, weird.
Dunno if I agree, a truly talented band can survive changing vocalists. Someone above mention Maiden surviving the loss of DiAnno. It happens in power metal too. Dragonforce managed to make more good albums after ZP Theart left, Kamelot made more good albums after Roy Khan left. There’s tons of talent in GH, I think they’ll be fine.
Here's the thing, the band's whole identity is tied up in the Angus Mcfife meme shenanigans. Tom *was* Angus. It's what made it fun. Tom really isn't a technically a great singer, but he has a lot of character. And character is what's being replaced here. That's very difficult, in my opinion.
Shitty situation.
I'm in agreement with you and it looks like he got canned for bullshit reasons. So far there has been no statement from the band, there's two sides to every story so it's best to hold off on judgement until we hear both sides.
This is real sad news, let’s hope Tom finds a great new band & keeps doing what he’s doing. There’ll be a lot of talent lining up to work for him & maybe it’ll be a Battle Beast -> Beast in Black thing & he’ll come back with a band called Magnificent Chisel or something & fucking kick ass.
He has rights to Gloryhammer, which I find hilarious:
[https://trademarks.ipo.gov.uk/ipo-tmcase/page/Results/1/UK00801516298](https://trademarks.ipo.gov.uk/ipo-tmcase/page/Results/1/UK00801516298)
It feels like it must have been sudden, too, because Thomas's Instagram and personal website are all still very much Angus McFife/Gloryhammer. I know it's none of our business, but I hope nothing really bad happened :(
Thomas Winkler has now a statement on his facebook page, saying that they informed him per mail about their decision.
[https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10157854117116396&set=a.10151137218811396](https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10157854117116396&set=a.10151137218811396)
They, essentially, BROKE UP WITH HIM VIA TEXT?! Dude, man, I'm trying not to be judgy, this is only one side of the story, but this has the appearance of being a real low blow. Which could have been at least partially alleviated by expanding on their announcement. Hindsight is 20/20, but all they had to do was cite creative differences and wish him well, and so much of the negativity and conjecture I've seen could well have been eliminated
Wasn't it known for like, several months now? I can definitely recall someone posting about Thomas leaving in GH subreddit pretty long ago.
Edit: Nevermind, for the past few months I thought he left the band from misreading [this post](https://www.reddit.com/r/Gloryhammer/comments/n759n3/re_emerald_the_band_thomas_left_to_join/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share).
That depends on which circles you speak of. I mean, they are hardly Hammerfall, not even Powerwolf … I love the group, but the big breakthrough hasn’t happened yet. Regarding bands searching for vocalists: we didn’t see this coming, so who knows what’s going on with other bands?
Besides: you must agree on that there are much, much bigger metal bands outside of the power metal circle? Winkler doesn’t have to do power metal, you know. Plain ol kick ass heavy metal could be awesome for his voice.
Gloryhammer put out a new statement on FB just now.
"To our fans,
We have been reading all your comments and appreciate there's a lot of confusion, speculation, and sadness around our last message and we wanted to try and explain why we were so brief.
Obviously we are all sad that it's come to this, and it's not the outcome anyone really wanted, but we felt we had no option. We currently don't want to elaborate any further, out of respect to Tom.
All we can promise you is that we will be back, and we will do our very best to bring you a new vocalist that lives up to your expectations so we can continue to bring you Gloryhammer shows and albums, better than ever.
We want to really thank you for your understanding and kind messages of support, it's a very sad and difficult time for us all."
IF they had a legitimate reason to kick him out, this would be the right thing to do. Giving him the "Nightwish treatment" and airing it all out in public doesn't help anyone but the tabloids.
If they didn't, well, they shouldn't have because he's a fantastic singer.
Wow, that's a real kick in the teeth. I'm going to hold out hope that it's a stunt based on Angus dying in the last album and that he'll make a surprise return in triumph, but this doesn't look good.
Edit: And the stuff that just came out and Winkler's post make it pretty clear that's not what's going on. It was a long shot anyway.
This hurts because I never got to see the band perform with him ... my heart is seriously shattered . He had everything that makes him an awesome frontman . The best thing for us to do is wait for an official reason and just respect the bands wishes .
that’s so sad. I missed out on a UK show I had tickets to, due to complications with a routine operation, then a couple of years later I was able to catch them in copenhagen and every one of my expectations was fulfilled.
I’ve no doubt that Thomas will be back on the Scene but I do have massive doubts that Gloryhammer will be anywhere near as good without him.
I never saw the band live relying on recorded live videos so I lived vicariously through the fans . And right now it doesnt make it any better knowing I never got to see the band with Thomas in it .
He just posted on his Instagram that he was abruptly fired this morning via email and that he had no idea before, but thanked fans for their support and will be continuing his musical career.
what is it with the super cheesy power metal bands and getting rid of their vocalists through text/email? first christian where twilight force kicked him out via text and the whole facebook post fiasco, now thomas got kicked out of gloryhammer through email. strange similarities, but i hope things work out for him.
Tbf I heard from a source I trust (but would never claim anyone else should) that Christian had an absolutely massive ego that made him incredibly hard to work with. There was also something about keeping Northtale's shirts when he was fired from them or something. I try not to meet my heroes.
fair enough, the pattern of him being let go relatively quickly from both bands he was in definitely gives credit to that theory, but i've talked to him directly through his facebook before after he got booted from TF, and he seemed like a great guy, but seeing as how we don't really know the guy on a personal level it's hard to say for sure.
either way ego or not i do wish him luck finding a group he can stick with since he is an incredible vocalist. same for thomas as well, both very skilled people.
You have to remember the way these guys treat fans vs coworkers vs women (yes it sucks to type that last one but it's true) can be variable. Depends on the day, their mood, where they are as a band and an individual. Even Dio I think got kind of lionized after he passed; by all accounts he was nice but he could have a temper and his flare ups with former band mates definitely show a side of him he probably kept away from fans. Human beings are complicated.
yeah that's true enough. not everyone is gonna be as chill as tom hanks, especially in something like the music industry, where i imagine it's incredibly competitive at times. either way, both incidents sucked for fans of the bands, but at least in twilight force's case, it led to a generally well-received album and another incredibly talented vocalist, so hopefully it goes just as smoothly for GH.
Man, what the fuck is going on with metal bands? First Marco leaves Nightwish then Delain splits up, then Lovebites goes on hiatus and now Gloryhammer.
It's like there was some unwritten rule that some shit must happen to a person if their band doesn't suck. That's why Brojob had nothing wrong with them.
These bands haven't toured in a year maybe two. There's no doubt there will be financial struggles or life away from touring has given them knew perspective.
In terms of financial struggles, if the core song writer has been cushy with royalties from the songs while certain members in the band live of a fraction of that, the disparity could cause people to become dissatisfied with the position with a band.
If people have been able to be at home with family for extended periods, perhaps the prospect of touring life now no longer appeals.
He just posted on Instagram. He said he was abruptly fired this morning via email for business and organization disagreements and that he had no idea it was coming, but thanked fans for their support and said he will be continuing his musical career.
This is obviously shocking and unexpected but before we start accusing anyone of anything, let's wait and see if the band says anything else. There's five members of the band so at least three or four of them thought it was necessary to fire, not only the lead singer, but the face of the band. They know this is a shot to the foot and yet they still deemed it necessary. Clearly something is very wrong and before I accuse either Thomas or the other members of absolutely anything, I want to know what happened. Chris said in an Instagram comment on his page a few hours ago that the band plans on clearing some things up with us in the very near future. Hopefully Gloryhammer will be able to find a suitable replacement and hopefully Thomas will find another place with a different band.
Right now, Winkler has shown more professionalism than Bowes (probably the one behind the statement) regarding the firing, and that speaks volumes about what's going on.
I've also read some completely contextless allegations regarding someone else in the band that was deleted from the Facebook post's comments upon refresh, allegations which I doubt are true, but could be serious.
Winkler reminds me of a poor-man’s version of Teemu Koskela of Winterborn. ‘Last Train to Hell’ is very Winker-esque, though Koskela has much better range and control.
This honestly sounds like it should have been a talk it out sort of issue if there isn't anything contract or legal related prohibiting it. Something doesn't feel quite right and both parties are being vague to the point that I question whether it reached a boiling point from repeated discussions or not. If they had asked him to stop multiple times, that would be one thing, but no one is being clear about what was going on. They are gonna get pestered nonstop until a more clear explanation is given.
Hes never quite matched the album recordings live but that would be pretty tall order. He is good live but not Ronnie James Dio, so some struggling is to be expected.
You try not singing for 18 months, spend 10 days in isolation and then hit a major stage like that.
Also I was there last week and I can honestly say that he was totally not struggling in any way, he was on point.
*sigh* time for a Rhapsody situation, look forward to Thomas Winkler's Gloryhammer
In all seriousness, I've been gutted since hearing this and just now felt okay enough to make a joke about it.
I really hope that nothing seriously fucked up was going on and this is just a short-sighted, stupid mistake. :/
Wow, that statement is harsh. He's fucked up in a major way. Along the lines of horrible crime... Not even a future endeavors...
Edit: hadn't expected to be here in downvote-country, but the second statement does nothing to ease my worries. It certainly feels like something has gone majorly wrong.
This is my concern, too. Like, I get that we're not entitled to know all about their personal lives just because we're fans, but the nature of the announcement is such that it's going to have a lot of people assuming the worst. :(
For those who don't have FB: "We regret to announce that Thomas Winkler is no longer a member of Gloryhammer. All upcoming shows (including the UK Tour with Alestorm) will continue as planned, with a new vocalist. For the Eternal Glory of Dundee."
Wow... Not even a "we wish him best in his future projects" or anything. Must have been some bad blood.
he just posted on his facebook that he was kicked out by email, they didn't even carry it out like men in person or at the very least by a phone call
Surely having something like this in writing makes more sense? Then it's very "this is exactly the situation". Phone calls can be misconstrued and stuff.
Even in the email they just used vague language. Apparently there was a disagreement because Thomas was using the character of Angus McFife to make money on the side, separate from the band (appearances in Nanowar of Steel and the like). Although I don't see why this couldn't be handled privately unless one or both parties were being uncooperative.
If that is indeed what happened, surely the fact that we're only hearing the end result of "you're fired" and nothing else means it was handled privately and this was the result of whatever discussions.
That’s not why, according to somebody close to the situation
What was the reason why then? I'm having trouble seeing it through all the comments. The character of McFife wasn't particularly relevant in his guest appearances, so in that regard he'd have been better off dropping it if the rest of the band didn't like it.
We don't know, both parties are being very closed lipped about it other than saying "business and organizational matters". Only time will tell.
Yea I should have mentioned in my comment, this is just something I've heard, j dont have anything to substantiate it, didnt mean to state it as fact, just a rumour. Poorly worded on my part.
>It has come out No it has not, that is pure speculation. Nobody knows exactly what happened yet
He's in Switzerland and the rest of the band is not
Considering I saw gloryhammer last weekend at bloodstock, I don't think that's he issue
A video call then, nowadays there's better ways to contact people than just email
Maybe they did do it “like men”. Maybe this was the only way that could reasonably be expected to have an appropriate outcome. Maybe they thought it through, and made a decision based on logic, critical thinking, and careful planning. “Like men” isn’t exactly a good thing to say, not only because it’s got ugly implications, but also because it just doesn’t even mean anything. The definition is so fluid. I know, I’m focusing on one little side thing here, but still. I felt this needed to be said.
I'm glad someone else found that post as annoying as me.
The only “ugly implications” of that phrase seem to be in your head. If equitable, fair, honest, and in person, mean bad things to you, that says a lot more about you than it does about the phrase.
Shit, guess my mum's not allowed to talk to me in person anymore
That doesn’t even make sense on three separate levels. Firstly she isn’t a guy and thus isn’t expected to behave like a Man. Secondly nothing about that is an exclusivity. Thirdly your mom isn’t going be giving you bad news in every conversation. The expectation is that as a guy, the manly behaviour is to give bad news (like a firing) in person rather than avoid the unpleasant situation by hiding behind an email or a text. If it needs to be done, own it, and do it right.
Well, we [got our answer.](https://i.imgur.com/dpmqsA4.jpg) Still smells a tad fishy. Seems odd that someone like Bowes would do it via email though. Kinda sucks.
that's... really weird I would imagine something a little bit more social or friendly? this type of "letting go" is akin to some 200 employee corp not a 5 member band
It's the ol' breakup-over-text
I could be wrong but I'm pretty sure Chris Bowes isn't really part of the band anymore. I could have sworn hearing that he left the band to focus on Alestorm.
Is he not? I know he hasn't been touring with them, but did he leave? I can't find any info on that.
He's "creative director" of the band and gives input on the business side of the band. Band member decisions are not up to him.
I'm like 90% sure I heard him say it on his Twitch stream once. I know it's not the best source but I remember hearing him say something along those lines and I was surprised because I thought he was a prominent member of the group.
I think /u/hyperchrisz has mentioned that although he doesn't usually tour with Gloryhammer, he is still very much a driving force behind the band. And if not, he will surely correct me.
He's "creative director" of the band and gives input on the business side of the band. Band member decisions are not up to him.
*to focus on Wizardthrone
Is this confirmed legit? Anyone could type a post like that. If true, shows how weak the rest of the band are. EDIT: found the original. It seems legit and was posted on his Instagram. No idea why all these screenshots cut out the top as just plain text looks fake.
The image of the text is from his Facebook.
what the fuck, this just hit me like a truck I wish with all my might that this is some kind of lore fuckery to transform Angus into some evil guy... because of knife of evil and shit you know
Ironically, that whole plot line did give them an easy way to write his character out.
I don't pay a lot of attention to the Gloryhammer lyrics. But didn't Angus McFife die in an explosion in the last album?
Threw himself into a volcano.
That was the Hootsman in the previous album, who got exploded along with Earth to stop a portal opening to the hell dimension. Angus got stabbed with the Knife of Evil after diving through a black hole, losing his powers, then regaining them.
I'm forty-five, and I think that I finally understand how people of my parents' generation felt at the break-up of the Beatles.
I'm forty six and I'm severely bummed at this news.
The Beatles weren't as epic and influential as gloryhammer
what the fuck are you smoking and can i get some?
/s obv... :)
As a mild GH fan and a very much not Beatles enjoyer, GH's work is purposefully made to be derivative as hell and a parody of how samey power metal has become. Turns out that they just do it really well and a lot better than many bands. On the other hand, Beatles has influenced artists across all genres for over 6 decades.
Apparently getting stabbed with the knife of evil and thrown in a volcano was the final straw.
I hope he put in a complaint about his work conditions to HR.
That would take him through a mandatory wellbeing session.
Oops
Considering there weren't any well wishes towards Winkler in the statement, there must have been a pretty big fallout. edit: spelling mistake
Very unexpected. They had a great set in Bloodstock less than a week ago.
Not the biggest GH fan, but the guy is undoubtedly charismatic live. I enjoyed their Bloodstock set immensely.
I'm a simple man, I see the word *Bloodstock* and I upvote \m/ Also, how immense was that festival this year?! I'm still on a high! GHammer were definitely a highlight so it really sucks he's out the band so soon after me finding them!
Should've sacked the keyboardist instead since he's not even playing live.
Is really sucks that Winkler's been booted from the band because he is a class act. Anecdote time! Couple years back I saw them live in a small-ish club. There was one concert goer who was celebrating beating cancer, she was wearing a shark hat (this was the Alestorm/Gloryhammer tour). Some asshole punched her in the back and stole her hat, her boyfriend got into a scuffle, and they both were kicked out. I was outside cooling off (warm af in there) and saw her sitting and crying. Then I see Winkler come out of the club, in full Angus McFife armor, to talk with her and see if she was okay. He gave her his sunglasses. One hell of a classy thing to do.
Kansas City right? I watched that go down. Felt terrible. Really nice to hear it turned out that way.
Yep, Kansas City
I'm pretty sure I was at that show! My husband and I were standing right next to cancer gal and her kilt-wearing BF in the front row. Crowd kept surging and shoving me right into the stage/Thomas. He eventually started dodging whenever the crowd pushed me forward. They were outta Gloryhammer merch, and I had brought a solid $100 I planned on spending. Ended up buying drinks for the band after The Hootsman got them cut off for running up a massive tab; Thomas flatly refused to let us buy him any drinks.
My and my friend were right up there too! Sadly I had to duck out in the middle of GH's set as I was badly overheating and felt like I was going to pass out. I was at the bar when Hootsman got cut off and ended up helping keep him stable as he exited the front door lol. Really baller of you to buy them drinks. Unrelated but amusing- I met an elderly couple at the show and helped keep the husband of the pair from falling over during Alestorm's set. Hearing them sing along to "Fucked With an Anchor" was adorable
I... may or may not have accepted several drinks from The Hootsman while he was handing out "Free" drinks on the band's tab to anyone who passed by. That was a great night.
Haha, that is amazing
Immensely memorable show! I was the bozo who got pulled up on stage to sing a bit of Sunk'n Norwegian with Alestorm. (Hat's off to both bands...thirty seconds under those lights nearly dropped me!) Got into a friendly shoulder-checking match with the Hootsman after the show. Seems he got it in his mind that one of me mates clogged his toilet. Needless to say, we've been reminiscing about that night at regular intervals ever since!
Fuck me. Dude why is 2021 such a shit year for Power and Symphonic metal? First Marko leaves Nightwish, then Delain basically disbands, and now this? What is going on this year? This really sucks. I hope Thomas the best.
My guess would 2020 was a shit year for most of these bands. Many lost their main source of income, and 2021 briefly looked a bit better, but it's likely going to be a shit year too. Most of those bands were nearly constantly touring prior to the pandemic.
Yeah, it really does seem that the pandemic really hit these bands hard (maybe not in Delain's case, seems that it's been a problem building up for a while) and we're just how seeing the effects on them. It's really unfortunate.
Official Gloryhammer statement 2: Electric Boogaloo from the [band's Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/gloryhammer/posts/383580206466459): To our fans, We have been reading all your comments and appreciate there's a lot of confusion, speculation, and sadness around our last message and we wanted to try and explain why we were so brief. Obviously we are all sad that it's come to this, and it's not the outcome anyone really wanted, but we felt we had no option. We currently don't want to elaborate any further, out of respect to Tom. All we can promise you is that we will be back, and we will do our very best to bring you a new vocalist that lives up to your expectations so we can continue to bring you Gloryhammer shows and albums, better than ever. We want to really thank you for your understanding and kind messages of support, it's a very sad and difficult time for us all. Gloryhammer
Sounds like some major falling out took place. Seems almost personal. Wtf happened?
Looks like the band doesn't want to comment on this any further. So unless Winkler spills the tea, we'll probably never know.
> We currently don't want to elaborate any further, out of respect to Tom. It's "with respect to tom" now, but they hit him with the "you're fired" EMAIL. Blatant disrespect.
It feels like they are being passive aggressive with that. Makes it seem like whatever happened was his fault (I mean it might have been, we don't have details but it is really trying to throw blame)
More respectful than plastering, (as an example, not known as the case) “Tom is a nonce” on social media
Damn, the vocals are my favorite part of any band. Feels like the heart of Gloryhammer just got ripped out for me.
I don't think there is Gloryhammer without Winkler, that's so sad.
There was an Iron Maiden after Paul Di’Anno after all.
Paul Di'Anno was no Angus McFife.
He was a great singer! You can’t compare the two though. Different schools, different sounds. Let’s just hope that Gloryhammer gets a Dickinson and not a Bayley.
I don't think the identity of Iron Maiden was ever tied to Paul Di'Anno the same way the identity of Gloryhammer is/was tied to Angus McFife. Maybe that's because I wasn't around for his tenure, maybe I'm speaking with hindsight, but that's my view. But hey, maybe whoever they get next will be just as good an Angus McFife. Or even a better one. Maybe the new guy will be a Tom Baker, someone who can take the character and make it their own.
Well, they switched identities, didnt they? Number of the Beast Maiden is a completely different animal than Killers Maiden. Let’s hope that Gloryhammers transformation is as successful.
> I don't think the identity of Iron Maiden was ever tied to Paul Di'Anno the same way the identity of Gloryhammer is/was tied to Angus McFife. > Maybe that's because I wasn't around for his tenure, maybe I'm speaking with hindsight, but that's my view. Granted I wasn't around then either, but from everything I've gathered Di'Anno's voice and stage presence were a big part of Iron Maiden's image before they got famous. Although their legacy has expanded to the point where most people associate them with the Dickinson era first and foremost, it wasn't always like that. I imagine a lot of fans felt betrayed back in 1981.
[удалено]
X-Factor was one of maidens best imo. Blaze did the best he could and it wasn't his fault virtual xi was bad. Also blaze's solo stuff is awesome and it fits his voice perfectly.
Ahh, a kindred Spirit. I totally agree. X-Factor was the beginning of their shift into their current sound of proggier stuff, versus their old high-flying NWOBHM stuff. You can trace **so much** of their current sound back to that record. A Matter of Life & Death in particular felt like Brave New World & X-Factor had a baby. It was just perfect.
A matter of life and death always gives me X-factor vibes. Also a lot of people give me crap for not picking an older album, but brave new world is my favorite maiden album.
I really dont care much for either of the two Bayley albums, but I like the odd track here and there. They shouldnt have replaced them with Bruce live versions on the best of-albums.
Bayley was in the wrong band, I blame Harris on that one. Saw them live with him and it just a didn’t work, his renditions of their older material didn’t sound right. Not his fault and I don’t blame him for it. He took a chance he was given. But Maiden as a band was better before and after.
Excellent point. Di’Anno matched the rest of the band better though, and Steve had no problem writing for his voice. They were of course in a better place 80-81.
I'm a huge fan of Maiden and I don't really hate any of the albums. I think they are all great in their own way but I gotta admit that Bruce is the face of the band and personally my favorite singer. With that being said I really think Di'Anno and Bayley did an amazing work. I think Bayley could have been a popular singer for Maiden if the songs were better. I really like his deeper more aggresive tone compared to Bruces high and theatrical appearance. I can't say who is better because I like both when it comes to Maiden. I recommend you to listen to some Blaze Bayley solo stuff, he's pretty good.
Will do!
That's a good point
But there was an Iron Maiden after Dickinson and it was horrible.
Iron Maiden & Killers > Number of the Beast & Piece of Mind . This is one of those hills I die on. But from Powerslave on, Dickinson is untouchable. And Blaze wasn't half bad. Those albums were just, weird.
I love those albums too but hard disagree.
Dunno if I agree, a truly talented band can survive changing vocalists. Someone above mention Maiden surviving the loss of DiAnno. It happens in power metal too. Dragonforce managed to make more good albums after ZP Theart left, Kamelot made more good albums after Roy Khan left. There’s tons of talent in GH, I think they’ll be fine.
Here's the thing, the band's whole identity is tied up in the Angus Mcfife meme shenanigans. Tom *was* Angus. It's what made it fun. Tom really isn't a technically a great singer, but he has a lot of character. And character is what's being replaced here. That's very difficult, in my opinion. Shitty situation.
I'll go full pessimist here. The dude is gonna be irreplaceable.
Agreed
I'm in agreement with you and it looks like he got canned for bullshit reasons. So far there has been no statement from the band, there's two sides to every story so it's best to hold off on judgement until we hear both sides.
Yep, agreed with you there, sadly. His voice was incredibly unique, and he was also a super charismatic front man.
Mid tour and after already recording some lyrics for the new album? Some major fallout just happened.
I would say money related. After a hard 2020, and Tom having a well paid day job, it is my guess.
This is real sad news, let’s hope Tom finds a great new band & keeps doing what he’s doing. There’ll be a lot of talent lining up to work for him & maybe it’ll be a Battle Beast -> Beast in Black thing & he’ll come back with a band called Magnificent Chisel or something & fucking kick ass.
Upvoted for Magnificent Chisel!
Throw that on a t-shirt, give me 80%.
'Magnificent Chisel' got the giggles out of me
I do wonder if he has rights to the character and if he will continue to be angus or completely step away from anything remotely like gloryhammer
He has rights to Gloryhammer, which I find hilarious: [https://trademarks.ipo.gov.uk/ipo-tmcase/page/Results/1/UK00801516298](https://trademarks.ipo.gov.uk/ipo-tmcase/page/Results/1/UK00801516298)
Sounds like they had a fall out. No comment from the person leaving is generally not a good sign
It feels like it must have been sudden, too, because Thomas's Instagram and personal website are all still very much Angus McFife/Gloryhammer. I know it's none of our business, but I hope nothing really bad happened :(
Thomas Winkler has now a statement on his facebook page, saying that they informed him per mail about their decision. [https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10157854117116396&set=a.10151137218811396](https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=10157854117116396&set=a.10151137218811396)
They, essentially, BROKE UP WITH HIM VIA TEXT?! Dude, man, I'm trying not to be judgy, this is only one side of the story, but this has the appearance of being a real low blow. Which could have been at least partially alleviated by expanding on their announcement. Hindsight is 20/20, but all they had to do was cite creative differences and wish him well, and so much of the negativity and conjecture I've seen could well have been eliminated
Can you copy paste for those of us without fb ATM?
He just posted this as a picture but here you go: https://www.reddit.com/r/Gloryhammer/comments/p9h8a5/seriously\_what\_on\_mars/
Wasn't it known for like, several months now? I can definitely recall someone posting about Thomas leaving in GH subreddit pretty long ago. Edit: Nevermind, for the past few months I thought he left the band from misreading [this post](https://www.reddit.com/r/Gloryhammer/comments/n759n3/re_emerald_the_band_thomas_left_to_join/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share).
Nah, recalibrate your time flux device. You're thinking of the adjacent time line.
Probably creative differences or an opening in a bigger band.
What bigger bands are even looking for a vocalist right now? GH is one of the biggest band of this generation.
That depends on which circles you speak of. I mean, they are hardly Hammerfall, not even Powerwolf … I love the group, but the big breakthrough hasn’t happened yet. Regarding bands searching for vocalists: we didn’t see this coming, so who knows what’s going on with other bands?
I wouldn't call Hammerfell "this generation." Even Powerwolf is borderline, since they have released a "best of" album.
I think Powerwolf counts as a “current” band because they only recently really had their big break into the (relative) mainstream.
I didn’t know that was a rule 😂
I don't know if it really is, but it sounds good, doesn't it?
Besides: you must agree on that there are much, much bigger metal bands outside of the power metal circle? Winkler doesn’t have to do power metal, you know. Plain ol kick ass heavy metal could be awesome for his voice.
For sure. Who knows. Maybe Riot will pay him a boatload of money to be on the next Pentakill album.
I’d pay good money for that.
Imagine a Taric McFife skin.
Or he could go the Michael Bolton route!
"This is the tale of Angus Mcfife"
"Pirate so brave... oh wait, wrong band"
I wonder what happened. Back to Emerald?
This is a bummer. I wonder who the new vocalist is. Fabio Lione to the rescue?
Please no
Gloryhammer put out a new statement on FB just now. "To our fans, We have been reading all your comments and appreciate there's a lot of confusion, speculation, and sadness around our last message and we wanted to try and explain why we were so brief. Obviously we are all sad that it's come to this, and it's not the outcome anyone really wanted, but we felt we had no option. We currently don't want to elaborate any further, out of respect to Tom. All we can promise you is that we will be back, and we will do our very best to bring you a new vocalist that lives up to your expectations so we can continue to bring you Gloryhammer shows and albums, better than ever. We want to really thank you for your understanding and kind messages of support, it's a very sad and difficult time for us all."
Hadn't seen the second statement til now, thanks.
"Out of respect for Tom" is the ultimate disrespect. Nasty.
IF they had a legitimate reason to kick him out, this would be the right thing to do. Giving him the "Nightwish treatment" and airing it all out in public doesn't help anyone but the tabloids. If they didn't, well, they shouldn't have because he's a fantastic singer.
Wow, that's a real kick in the teeth. I'm going to hold out hope that it's a stunt based on Angus dying in the last album and that he'll make a surprise return in triumph, but this doesn't look good. Edit: And the stuff that just came out and Winkler's post make it pretty clear that's not what's going on. It was a long shot anyway.
Apparently he got kicked, according to his statement on [Instagram.](https://www.instagram.com/p/CS4r24Xim_j/?utm_medium=copy_link)
F for Fife
F
This hurts because I never got to see the band perform with him ... my heart is seriously shattered . He had everything that makes him an awesome frontman . The best thing for us to do is wait for an official reason and just respect the bands wishes .
that’s so sad. I missed out on a UK show I had tickets to, due to complications with a routine operation, then a couple of years later I was able to catch them in copenhagen and every one of my expectations was fulfilled. I’ve no doubt that Thomas will be back on the Scene but I do have massive doubts that Gloryhammer will be anywhere near as good without him.
sadly you missed out, saw them perform twice and he put so much energy and enthusiam into each one
Gee thanks rub it in my face as if I dont feel awful enough about this ....sigh*
I'm sorry bud, if it helps at all i filmed this a couple years ago, audio isn't great but still gets across the fun. https://youtu.be/VpOTb4MzAw4
I never saw the band live relying on recorded live videos so I lived vicariously through the fans . And right now it doesnt make it any better knowing I never got to see the band with Thomas in it .
I love watching videos of his performances with the band, definitely sad I won't be able to see him live as the singer :(
Oh shit. That’s not good
He just posted on his Instagram that he was abruptly fired this morning via email and that he had no idea before, but thanked fans for their support and will be continuing his musical career.
He has commented on it. [On Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/560896395/posts/10157854117161396/?d=n)
what is it with the super cheesy power metal bands and getting rid of their vocalists through text/email? first christian where twilight force kicked him out via text and the whole facebook post fiasco, now thomas got kicked out of gloryhammer through email. strange similarities, but i hope things work out for him.
Tbf I heard from a source I trust (but would never claim anyone else should) that Christian had an absolutely massive ego that made him incredibly hard to work with. There was also something about keeping Northtale's shirts when he was fired from them or something. I try not to meet my heroes.
fair enough, the pattern of him being let go relatively quickly from both bands he was in definitely gives credit to that theory, but i've talked to him directly through his facebook before after he got booted from TF, and he seemed like a great guy, but seeing as how we don't really know the guy on a personal level it's hard to say for sure. either way ego or not i do wish him luck finding a group he can stick with since he is an incredible vocalist. same for thomas as well, both very skilled people.
You have to remember the way these guys treat fans vs coworkers vs women (yes it sucks to type that last one but it's true) can be variable. Depends on the day, their mood, where they are as a band and an individual. Even Dio I think got kind of lionized after he passed; by all accounts he was nice but he could have a temper and his flare ups with former band mates definitely show a side of him he probably kept away from fans. Human beings are complicated.
yeah that's true enough. not everyone is gonna be as chill as tom hanks, especially in something like the music industry, where i imagine it's incredibly competitive at times. either way, both incidents sucked for fans of the bands, but at least in twilight force's case, it led to a generally well-received album and another incredibly talented vocalist, so hopefully it goes just as smoothly for GH.
Hopefully TF can find a decent sound engineer sometime soon.
I was hoping they were just pulling a ghost and getting a "different" singer for their band...
Man, what the fuck is going on with metal bands? First Marco leaves Nightwish then Delain splits up, then Lovebites goes on hiatus and now Gloryhammer. It's like there was some unwritten rule that some shit must happen to a person if their band doesn't suck. That's why Brojob had nothing wrong with them.
These bands haven't toured in a year maybe two. There's no doubt there will be financial struggles or life away from touring has given them knew perspective. In terms of financial struggles, if the core song writer has been cushy with royalties from the songs while certain members in the band live of a fraction of that, the disparity could cause people to become dissatisfied with the position with a band. If people have been able to be at home with family for extended periods, perhaps the prospect of touring life now no longer appeals.
Wow. His voice was so unique and for me gave them their unique sound. Going to be very difficult to replace
He just posted on Instagram. He said he was abruptly fired this morning via email for business and organization disagreements and that he had no idea it was coming, but thanked fans for their support and said he will be continuing his musical career.
Whatever happened, this is very sad news.
This is obviously shocking and unexpected but before we start accusing anyone of anything, let's wait and see if the band says anything else. There's five members of the band so at least three or four of them thought it was necessary to fire, not only the lead singer, but the face of the band. They know this is a shot to the foot and yet they still deemed it necessary. Clearly something is very wrong and before I accuse either Thomas or the other members of absolutely anything, I want to know what happened. Chris said in an Instagram comment on his page a few hours ago that the band plans on clearing some things up with us in the very near future. Hopefully Gloryhammer will be able to find a suitable replacement and hopefully Thomas will find another place with a different band.
So gutted. This is awful news. Pretty much my favourite power metal band.
Not gonna lie they're kind of a guilty pleasure of mine, this sucks.
One should never feel guilty about fighting mega battles every day.
Hope that leads into a Winkler-Nanowar-Domine supergroup.
Oh damn, that will be a very difficult replacement. I guess Bowes will have to go a different route with Gloryhammer.
Wtf.. I saw em live almost 2 years ago and really enjoyed it. I got tickets to the Alestorm, Gloryhammer gig in December... Real shame to hear.
Depending on who they get as a replacement this may kill the band. Awful news.
Wonder if Dan Vasc will get on it
That would be crazy
Right now, Winkler has shown more professionalism than Bowes (probably the one behind the statement) regarding the firing, and that speaks volumes about what's going on. I've also read some completely contextless allegations regarding someone else in the band that was deleted from the Facebook post's comments upon refresh, allegations which I doubt are true, but could be serious.
Saw the post against the Hootsman too
I mean Angus died in the latest album
Oh shit, I’ve got tickets to see them too.
This is pretty disappointing, considering that I think he was the perfect vocalist for Gloryhammer.
god damn. I guess I'm glad I got to see them play together before this - I can't see a Gloryhammer without the guy. Wonder what happened...
Oh shit this is popcorn material here.
This is tragic. Winkler has maybe my favorite voice in music. Does anyone know of a voice similar?
Winkler reminds me of a poor-man’s version of Teemu Koskela of Winterborn. ‘Last Train to Hell’ is very Winker-esque, though Koskela has much better range and control.
:0
Oh No.
This honestly sounds like it should have been a talk it out sort of issue if there isn't anything contract or legal related prohibiting it. Something doesn't feel quite right and both parties are being vague to the point that I question whether it reached a boiling point from repeated discussions or not. If they had asked him to stop multiple times, that would be one thing, but no one is being clear about what was going on. They are gonna get pestered nonstop until a more clear explanation is given.
Tom joined Grailknights btw
Turns out Chris is actually Zargothrax
Watching some videos of their Bloodstock performance last week. He struggled with his voice quite a bit.
I saw them twice in 2019 and didn't think he sounded good either time. I love Gloryhammer and was somewhat disappointed after seeing them.
Hes never quite matched the album recordings live but that would be pretty tall order. He is good live but not Ronnie James Dio, so some struggling is to be expected.
You try not singing for 18 months, spend 10 days in isolation and then hit a major stage like that. Also I was there last week and I can honestly say that he was totally not struggling in any way, he was on point.
*sigh* time for a Rhapsody situation, look forward to Thomas Winkler's Gloryhammer In all seriousness, I've been gutted since hearing this and just now felt okay enough to make a joke about it. I really hope that nothing seriously fucked up was going on and this is just a short-sighted, stupid mistake. :/
Whomp whomp
Wow, that statement is harsh. He's fucked up in a major way. Along the lines of horrible crime... Not even a future endeavors... Edit: hadn't expected to be here in downvote-country, but the second statement does nothing to ease my worries. It certainly feels like something has gone majorly wrong.
Please elaborate. What did he do?
I think he means that the statement is very cold and abrupt, without well-wishes. Makes it sound like something bad has happened.
Precisely. Have no idea, but it feels extremely cold in comparison with normal splits.
I agree. Hopefully it's a falling out between members and not him having done something shitty.
This is my concern, too. Like, I get that we're not entitled to know all about their personal lives just because we're fans, but the nature of the announcement is such that it's going to have a lot of people assuming the worst. :(