It was back in May that Shins frontman James Mercer announced that drummer Jesse Sandoval and keyboardist Marty Crandall were leaving the band. At the time, Mercer said it was an "aesthetic decision," whatever that means. Mercer went on to say, "I'm on good terms with those guys, I hope to maintain that. I wouldn't say I'd never work with them again. I love working with those guys." According to Sandoval, that ain't the exact truth.
In an interview with the Portland Mercury newspaper, Sandoval broke his silence and gave his version and let's just say it's not the same story as Mercer's. In the Mercury interview, Sandoval shared feelings about leaving the band-- or, as he puts it, getting fired. "I unequivocally got fired," he said. "And it kind of confuses me why [Mercer] has a hard time saying that. I understand he's probably doing it out of respect for me reading interviews. It might be hard for him to say it, but I got fired. There's no other way of looking at it."
Sandoval said that he knew it was coming. "James had mentioned that he wanted to blow up this band a long time ago; he was frustrated. And I don't know if it was him being creatively frustrated or where he was in his space and mindset to say that, but when I reflect, the fact that I wasn't a slick drummer played a huge part in it. I did my fair share of beating myself up over whether or not I was a good drummer-- and of course I have people on my side saying, 'You're a great drummer!' and I know James has people on his side, probably saying, 'It's a good decision for your career.'"
"When I think about this, probably if James really had complete say in it, he would have killed the Shins. I definitely believe management's like, 'You know, you can't start over, you built a name, people recognize you--why would you want to start all over?' And so, the only thing he had left to do was to really make a drastic change. "
However, Sandoval doesn't want fans to take out their frustrations on the music. He said, "A lot of people have been saying, 'I'm never going to buy another Shins album again! How can James Mercer do that?' And I have my reasons to be angry at James, but I don't want to be a part of any sort of movement where everybody's against the Shins."
Sandoval hasn't gone on to join or form any other band since, he's actually started up a Mexican food cart business in Portland called Nuevo Mexico. Now that's what we call a 'drastic change'.
To read the whole interview click here
In an interview with the Portland Mercury newspaper, Sandoval broke his silence and gave his version and let's just say it's not the same story as Mercer's. In the Mercury interview, Sandoval shared feelings about leaving the band-- or, as he puts it, getting fired. "I unequivocally got fired," he said. "And it kind of confuses me why [Mercer] has a hard time saying that. I understand he's probably doing it out of respect for me reading interviews. It might be hard for him to say it, but I got fired. There's no other way of looking at it."
Sandoval said that he knew it was coming. "James had mentioned that he wanted to blow up this band a long time ago; he was frustrated. And I don't know if it was him being creatively frustrated or where he was in his space and mindset to say that, but when I reflect, the fact that I wasn't a slick drummer played a huge part in it. I did my fair share of beating myself up over whether or not I was a good drummer-- and of course I have people on my side saying, 'You're a great drummer!' and I know James has people on his side, probably saying, 'It's a good decision for your career.'"
"When I think about this, probably if James really had complete say in it, he would have killed the Shins. I definitely believe management's like, 'You know, you can't start over, you built a name, people recognize you--why would you want to start all over?' And so, the only thing he had left to do was to really make a drastic change. "
However, Sandoval doesn't want fans to take out their frustrations on the music. He said, "A lot of people have been saying, 'I'm never going to buy another Shins album again! How can James Mercer do that?' And I have my reasons to be angry at James, but I don't want to be a part of any sort of movement where everybody's against the Shins."
Sandoval hasn't gone on to join or form any other band since, he's actually started up a Mexican food cart business in Portland called Nuevo Mexico. Now that's what we call a 'drastic change'.
To read the whole interview click here
