It was confirmed today that guitarist Casey Calvert passed away from a pulmonary embolism while in his sleep. A potential clot of the pulmonary artery is virtually unnoticeable, and when gone undetected, can result in sudden death. This was the unfortunate case for the musician found incapacitated Saturday.Calvert was a member of rock group, Hawthorne Heights, on tour at the time of his death. The tragic news came during a barrage of legal issues with the band. During October 2006, Hawthorne Heights filed suit against Victory Records citing abuse, breach of contract, copyright infringement, and fraud. The label filed a countersuit, but was dumbfounded when a judge later ruled in May 2007 that Victory Records has no exclusive rights to the group (Doh!); however, the band must deliver two more albums as part of their 4-album contract.
It doesn't stop there.
On October 16, Wild Justice Records sued Hawthorne Heights asking for $138,000 in damages from breach of contract. In addition, the management team demanded 1/6 of all profit from the band's previous tour and sponsorship. Greedy fuckers!
I recently ventured to the band's fan forum and, to my surprise, all the threads had been locked. Apparently, in the wake of Casey Calvert's death, fans from other bands began spamming the message board so bad that the moderators of the site closed the forum. How pathetic. Show some respect people!
Hawthorne Heights has been working on their third album, the follow-up to 2006's If Only You Were Lonely. Because of the confrontation with Victory Records, don't expect the disc to drop anytime soon. As well, the band has cancelled their current tour; the same tour which they were trying to raise money in order to pay their legal fees. I hope the band comes out of all this victorious and with their heads up.
Rest in Peace
