Wolfmother’s bassist and drummer have left the threepiece outfit, saying the band’s artistic vision had strayed from the original vision for the band that Jimmy Page and Robert Plant formulated in 1968. Stockdale says the pair have broken an agreement that members could only leave the band in the manner pioneered by former Zeppelin drummer John Bonham – choking to death on your own vomit.

“When we started, Wolfmother was supposed to sound like Led Zeppelin crossed with Black Sabbath,” bassist Chris Ross said. “But Andrew was making us sound like Sabbath crossed with Led Zep. It was a matter of
principle, and we had to take a stand.”

Matters came to a head when the band realised it had recorded an album that was identical in every way to Led Zeppelin III, when they had instead been trying to record an album that sounded identical to Led Zeppelin IV.

Due to the phenomenal success of Wolfmother’s first album, Heskett and Ross expect to keep earning money from the small proportion of their royalties not already due to other bands. The duo has announced its intention to keep creating music together, and have already booked some studio time to record some Zeppelin karaoke backing tracks.

Stockdale has vowed to keep the band going under its original name, and will recruit replacements for Heskett and Ross. “I don’t need those guys. There are a lot of other musos out there in covers bands who have more than enough experience to join Wolfmother,” Stockdale said. “Or, I suppose I should say, in other covers bands.”

The band’s remaining member plans to channel the negativity of the breakup into an epic rock anthem. “I’m
thinking of putting something together involving two warring sides, fighting over a common border,” he said. “Kind of like I’m India, and Myles and Chris are sort of like a breakaway province, let’s say Pakistan, and then there’s a violent dispute over the territory between us. I haven’t entirely decided on a name yet, but it’ll rock.”

Stockdale plans to use the song on Wolfmother’s second album, which he has provisionally entitled Led Zeppelin II II.

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