The ongoing saga of Kyuss Lives! took another turn recently when the band announced they were changing their name to Vista Chino, and that on-again/off-again bassist Nick Oliveri is replacing Billy Cordell, who replaced Oliveri in the first place.
Court Rules on Kyuss Lives! Lawsuit
The final performance of the group as Kyuss Lives! will take place early next year, when the band performs as part of Australia's Soundwave Festival. The band is also working a new album they hope to release in 2013 to coincide with what a press release calls "major touring plans."
Kyuss Lives! are changing their name for legal reasons, after a U.S. District Court judge ruled in August that the group – which also includes singer John Garcia, guitarist Bruno Fevery, and drummer Brant Bjork – can use the name for concerts, but not for for albums. Former Kyuss members Josh Homme (now head of Queens of the Stone Age) and Scott Reeder had sued their ex-bandmates over the name earlier this year.
Garcia told Rolling Stone earlier this year that the group had no intention of stopping any time soon. "Win or lose, we believe that the name Kyuss Lives! is worth fighting for, and regardless of the outcome of this foolish lawsuit Josh Homme and Scott Reeder have filed against us, we will continue conducting business as usual and connecting with our amazing loyal fans."
He continued, "It is our God-given right to play any and every Kyuss song anywhere and anyhow we see fit, no matter who wrote what, and we will continue to do so for as long as we are alive. Because of this, we have already won."
Kyuss is often credited with being one of the trailblazers of the stoner-rock movement, on the strength of underground metal classics such as 1992's Blues for the Red Sun and 1994's Welcome to Sky Valley.
