Last April, Andrew Stockdale had finally put the speculation to rest and retired Wolfmother and its members as he geared up for the release of Keep Moving, his solo debut under his own name, while speaking of his regrets at not ditching the band name earlier. “Wolfmother came with a lot of expectations,” he said. “It’s been exciting to get out of that headspace.”
Now not less than three months on from stating Wolfmother was behind him following the as-advertised “last ever” show on 28th April, opening for Aerosmith in Melbourne, Andrew Stockdale has seemingly done a one-eighty on focussing on his solo material and announced a series of US dates as Wolfmother, as The Vine reports.
Several US shows advertised as Wolfmother gigs have been scheduled at the Troubadour in LA, as revealed in a post on the band’s official Facebook page announcing yesterday:
Hello Everyone, We are ecstatic to announce we (Wolfmother) will be playing at The Troubadour on Monday night in Los Angeles California USA! Come one come all ! This is our first show in the USA in 3 years, it will be a spectacular…”
The show Monday 15th July has already sold out with the band booking a second date at the LA club that also sold out “in seconds” with the resurrected Wolfmother deciding to “spread the love” across California with The Observatory Santa Ana in the O.C third date at Orange County venue The Observatory Santa Ana.
Adding to the bizarre twist, fan site wolfmother.net points out that the new Wolfmother dates follow speculation that Stockdale’s forthcoming solo dates, under his own name in support of Keep Moving, were unable to shift tickets, suggesting that the name flip-flop was to help the show avoid stiffing.
Confused yet? Well don’t be, as Stockdale reveals in a response to a befuddled fan on twitter that the entire Wolfmother demise was a lie.
Those looking for the origins of said ‘fib’ need only look as far back as March, when Stockdale confirmed that Keep Moving – originally thought to be Wolfmother’s third album – was to be his solo debut, “I’m putting this record as Andrew Stockdale….. It’s a different trip now and I need to be true to myself.” A decision he talked more in-depth about in a scatty video interview with Tone Deaf in May.
Though seemingly positive about leaving Wolfmother behind, and his relocation to Byron Bay to be closer to his family, come early June, Stockdale cancelled his 2013 Australian Tour to launch Keep Moving. Axing the entire 14-date run just one day before it’s kick-off – save for the Sydney Metro Theatre gig on the day of the album’s launch.
“Wolfmother may be on the back burner, but the heart and soul of it thrives in Stockdale and his merry men,” wrote our Tone Deaf reviewer of Andrew Stockdale’s sole Sydney show for the “postponed” Keep Moving Tour, which blamed “international commitments” for the scuppered Australian dates; namely a North American tour that was to star in Dallas on 26th July.
