Joseph Marro Leaves Hellogoodbye + Releases Statement
Keyboardist/guitarist Joseph Marro has announced he has left Hellogoodbye to concentrate full time on The Early November.Marro released the following statement:
"Every once and a while I’ll read a post on Absolute Punk about The Early November or HelloGoodbye and someone will briefly ask or wonder what bands I’m currently a part of. Today, while browsing the daily news and gossip I saw that my friend Auggie (of Little Indians, ex-YMAEWK) broke the news that he’s been playing with HGB in my position since TEN has reactivated…in a thread about guitar flipping no less! The internet has been a buzz (14 comments & counting!) with speculation and inquiry.
In the past few months, TEN has awoke from hibernation, played a few shows, announced a new record & slowly started turning back on the necessary cogs & gears that allow a band to function. I, personally, have been dedicating a ton of time managing a few bands and, probably most important, got married. At first, we really didn’t know how much we we’re going to do with TEN so I felt I could still remain a active member of HGB. As one show turned into two and two turned into a record and so on, I felt I should assess what I could and could not commit time to. I spoke to Forrest and let him know that I just don’t think I can do all of the necessary touring that are required for two bands. Even with TEN’s modest schedule, there inevitably will be some date conflicts and the last thing I would want to do is not give him enough time to find a suitable replacement. Sure, things could have been booked to accommodate both bands and so forth, but I don’t think that would have been fair to either band or my wife. If anything, I was looking to lessen the amount of time spent on the road and focus on home life & artist management.
It was a super hard decision to come to. Forrest is one of my closest friends and I absolutely love him. I’m incredibly proud of the work we did together. “Would It Kill You?” is a brilliant record that I’m so happy I could be a part of. I feel I learned as much from Forrest and playing in that band as I did from TEN. We got to go to some of the raddest places on earth and do things I never thought I’d do. Seriously, I know I’m lucky. Also, the friends made through that band will last a lifetime. Travis, Andy, Aaron, Michale, Wiz, Ryan, Auggie, & Chris are all amazing people and players and it was my honor to share a stage with them at one time or another.
Hellooodbye’s future is limitless. I’ve heard a few new songs and they’re unbelievable. Forrest is a criminally underrated songwriter not to mention a snappy dresser and I hope nothing but the very best. Very exciting things are to come from him and HGB. If situations are different one day, and he’ll have me, I’d be honored to play with them again. But seriously, enough about me.
