In a new interview with Robb Chavez of Robbs MetalWorks, Vio-Lence vocalist Sean Killian spoke candidly about the 2024 departure of founding guitarist Phil Demmel, making it clear that shelving the legendary Bay Area thrash band was never an option.
Demmel played his final show with Vio-Lence in February 2024 at Carioca Club in São Paulo, Brazil, ending a reunion run that had reignited interest in the band after decades of relative inactivity.
Asked whether he was adamant about continuing Vio-Lence following Demmel‘s exit, Killian didn’t mince words: “[Phil] wanted me to shelve the band. And then we sold out the Whisky [A Go Go in February 2023] in L.A., and he brought it up in the green room after we played. And I was, like, ‘No, I’m not shelving anything.’
“‘Cause we never really toured back in the day, so there’s so many places around the world that haven’t seen Vio-Lence or heard it live. For him, it’s a garage thing that — I don’t know… He’s kind of a selfish guy. And if you’ve seen some of his interviews. he even brings it up himself.”
He then offered a blunt assessment of Demmel‘s perspective: “For him, it’s a garage thing that — I don’t know… He’s kind of a selfish guy. And if you’ve seen some of his interviews, he even brings it up himself.”
Killian was also asked why the band’s 2001 reunion didn’t last. According to him, momentum was building — until Machine Head entered the picture: “We actually were writing music at the time… And then Robb [Flynn] came to Phil and tapped him and said, ‘You wanna play [with Machine Head]?'”
Killian stressed that he has always supported Demmel‘s career moves, including his later filling in with Lamb Of God, but the request to completely shelve Vio-Lence crossed a line: “I’ve never told him, ‘You can’t do this’ or ‘you can’t do that’… But when he told me that he wanted me to shelve it [two and a half years ago], that’s when I was just kind of, like… ‘This relationship is over.'”
Things escalated further around the time of Mystic Festival 2024 in Poland, where Vio-Lence and Machine Head were both on the bill. Killian invited Robb Flynn to join Vio-Lence onstage for a performance of “World In A World” — an idea Flynn enthusiastically accepted.
Shortly afterward, Killian says Demmel gave an interview criticizing Vio-Lence, which proved to be the breaking point: “It’s just nothing but him talking bad about Vio-Lence. And I just finally had it with him and told him, ‘Man, you got issues. And I don’t want any part of it.'”
For his part, Phil Demmel has said his decision to leave came down to Vio-Lence no longer feeling like home, citing lineup turnover and a changing dynamic. Since leaving, Demmel has remained busy with Kerry King‘s solo band, Category 7, and as a highly in-demand touring guitarist.
Despite the fallout, Demmel has praised the band’s 2022 EP Let The World Burn — a release he co-wrote with Killian — calling it something he’s still proud of.
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