To act as if Bolt Thrower's demise is shocking would be a little silly. The band's drummer Matt "Kiddie" Kearns, who drummed for the band between 1994 and 1997, and then again in 1999 onward, passed away in 2015, and Bolt Thrower went on hiatus. It's also worth noting that Bolt Thrower's most recent output was 2005's Those Once Loyal, and the band hasn't quite come up with a proper followup that it felt was adequate.
However, despite reports of Bolt Thrower breaking up, I'm not 100% sure that that's what the band is implying with the below statement.
On behalf of ourselves and Kiddie’s family, we would like to thank everyone for their thoughts and support over the last 12 months. Together with Kiddie’s family we made the conscious decision to keep his unexpected death a private matter, and to take time out to deal with it all.
When Kiddie joined us back in 1994, although he was only 17, he instantly improved Bolt Thrower as a live band, and no one was more loyal to, and prouder to be in Bolt Thrower than him.
We spent over 20 years together, touring the world, with 3 different vocalists, but he was so much more than just a drummer to us. So when we carried his coffin to his final resting place, the Bolt Thrower drummer position was buried with him. He was, and will now forever remain THE Bolt Thrower drummer, our Powerhouse and friend Martin “Kiddie” Kearns.
As for the rest of us, Bolt Thrower has been our way of life for 30 years, never driven by money, fame or ego, but by our own personal principles and values that have guided us through life, and which bonded us as friends long before Bolt Thrower was even formed…
The post sounds more like a tribute to Kiddie more than anything else. It's been about one year since his passing, and yes, Bolt Thrower says that the permanent drummer position has been laid to rest as well, but nowhere in this statement does it say Bolt Thrower is over.
So why bother with this post? Well, mainly to get the counter-conversation going against the news that Bolt Thrower has broken up. Nothing concrete has been announced or alluded to, so as far as I'm concerned, the band is still on hiatus as it has been since 2015.
