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Destruction - Brand U.K. Booking Agent 'An Insult To True Metal Fans'


German thrash gods Destruction have released the following statement after the recent tour of the U.K. and Ireland.

"All three bands really want to thank all of the fans who turned out to support us on our recent Tour of the UK., but we also wish with hindsight, to apologise to some of you that you had to see us in circumstances that were not ideal, at some venues which sometimes should not have even been included on the schedule. This is solely down to the work undertaken by the booking agent we opted to use, Jon Knight of HAGP Music and we would like to draw the attention of all other bands and the fans to this person because we are most disappointed that charlatans like this continue to be in positions of power in the industry we all love - that of Metal!"

Destruction frontman Schmier adds - "After 24 years of playing Metal on a professional level, working with this Concert agency was the worst and most unprofessional experience we've ever had in Europe! I wanna thank all the faithful fans that made this tour a success. Our loyal crew & our brothers in Onslaught and Amenti who suffered the same circumstances as well, (Sorry mates!!) but, we all really deserve better than this HAGP Music guy, surely?! No catering on most of the gigs, no posters & advertisement for the shows and the technical rider, which we did send to the UK several months ago, all just seemed to have evaporated or been ignored!"

"Some of this tour was an insult to METAL! A bloody fuckin´ shame, but because the fans had waited so fuckin´ long, we did not want to disappoint any of you. I really hope that the of the lack of professional equipment at some of the venues will not harm any of the bands in the future or take away from the fact that we know many of you supported us to the hilt on this tour. WE found solutions to go on and did not lose a single show on this chaotic horror trip! The replacement gig (Nottingham, Old Angel) for the cancelled show (in Liverpool) came with local assistance and from within the touring family, not from HAGP Music, who then decided also to stop talking to our management and ignoring our email requests for assistance?"

Realistically, several shows on this tour should never have been booked in the first place. HAGP Music didn't care about contracts, venues, the fans, the bands, not even his local guys who were making the best of it sometimes. To have shows announced as being cancelled without our knowledge, to not have the right equipment or have even researched the venues at all etc., caused dreadful tumult to everyone on the tour and required us ourselves to go on to Metal Forums telling people that the gigs would go ahead. How unprofessional is that? Without the long held experience of our combined band and crew and the great support shown by the Onslaught and Amenti blokes, this tour wouldn't have survived! I publicly thank every single one!"

"It's scary how losers like this guy, Jon Knight, can be in charge of representing us to the fans. I'm posting this, to WARN OTHER BANDS, DO NOT work with this liar! He calls himself a concert agent, but he is no more than a shady amateur!"

"Thanks again to the fantastic UK & Irish FANS; Onslaught, Amenti and the locals that made the gigs possible! METAL doesn't need this guy, and I can only discourage everybody to not work with him if you don't wanna lose your ass! Be warned!!!"
Destruction's European Booking Agent, Dragon Productions add; " In the beginning, Jon Knight (HAGP Music) left a great and professional impression on us. His offer was good so we decided to commit to this tour. Then, when time came to fix the contracts etc., the original offer broke down to only 50%. And this left the band without income, only payments for crew, flights etc. covered.

The band decided to do the tour anyway; they didn't want to let their fans down, but our feelings got worse and worse. The closer the tour became, the more questions we had, and the less Jon responded. He brought in a Tour Manager who tried to save the chaos, but of course, this guy was fighting a losing battle as the tour progressed because this was a disaster just waiting to happen caused by the lack of professionalism at its base. That tour manager left during the tour and Destruction's sound engineer took this job on as well. If band and crew hadn't been such a brilliant team, this tour could never have been finished. No one should work with dreamers like HAGP Music, simply look for the professionals.

We will not make this mistake again as I'm sure won't others who we are told have also worked with HAGP Music. We're hopefully the last who will suffer this?"

Signed; J..Dusedau (Dragon Productions), Schmier (on behalf of Destruction), Mike Exley (UK Press Representative to AFM)

A review of the very short notice show at The Old Angel, Nottingham can be found at this location.

Source: destruction.de
Band profile: Destruction
Posted: 23.11.2007 by Baz Anderson


Comments

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Comments: 17   Visited by: 28 users
23.11.2007 - 20:06
GT
Coffee!!
Damn they must be pissed when they publish something like this...understandable of course, I don't blame them
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Dreams are made so we don't get bored when we sleep
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23.11.2007 - 20:07
Baz Anderson

and I will just thank the bands once more for continuing and playing a great show for the fans regardless of all the troubles they had
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23.11.2007 - 20:12
Bararey
Winter is Coming
I am glad they brought this issue up publicly, so other bands don't have to go through what they went through, and I particularly like them repeating his name again and again (in case you did not catch it the first this is the guy, beware!).

Hope next tour will be much better than this one.
----
"Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought honorably. And Rhaegar died."
Ser Jorah Mormont
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24.11.2007 - 06:32
Inferis: suck it
Account deleted
IDENTITY OF JON KNIGHT

Hey everybody. Just thought to let you know, i'm as pissed off as Destruction are about this: this Jon Knight is a fucking poseur and a liar.

He's so cowardly and such a piece of shit that he's now trying to run away and hide from what he's done.

HE'S THE BASSIST FROM AMENTI!!

If you search for "Jon Knight" "Amenti" on google, you get this:

LINK

look at the fifth and seventh results: indisputable proof.

Then look at their website:

http://www.enteramenti.com/amenti.html

and how they've changed his name - very visibly. In fact, everywhere his name was listed, they're going around and changing - lying to cover it up.
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24.11.2007 - 09:35
LeChron James
Helvetesfossen
DAYAMN. Jon Knight got WRECKED.
----
Kick Ass, Die Young

Less is More
Stay Pure
Stay Poor

Music was my life, music brought me to life and music is how I will be remembered long after I leave this life. When I die there will be a final waltz in my head that only I can hear.
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24.11.2007 - 10:46
Remus

Written by Guest on 24.11.2007 at 06:32

IDENTITY OF JON KNIGHT

Hey everybody. Just thought to let you know, i'm as pissed off as Destruction are about this: this Jon Knight is a fucking poseur and a liar.

He's so cowardly and such a piece of shit that he's now trying to run away and hide from what he's done.

HE'S THE BASSIST FROM AMENTI!!

If you search for "Jon Knight" "Amenti" on google, you get this:

LINK

look at the fifth and seventh results: indisputable proof.

Then look at their website:

http://www.enteramenti.com/amenti.html

and how they've changed his name - very visibly. In fact, everywhere his name was listed, they're going around and changing - lying to cover it up.


It may be 'cause i'm kinda' thick, but i really didn't understand what you tried to say with this post. This asshole tour manager, is he actually playing bass for Amenti?
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Procrastinate, NOW!
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24.11.2007 - 14:03
Baz Anderson

Written by Guest on 24.11.2007 at 06:32

HE'S THE BASSIST FROM AMENTI!!

hmm, maybe you are right, but if he is the bassist of Amenti, why didn't Onslaught and Destruction get answers from him there and then on the tour?

I even had a little chat with the bassist of Amenti before the show started - like Sy from Onslaught, he wanted to know just how I had found out about the show.. I didn't know that might have been him. haha
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24.11.2007 - 15:35
Lowelas OF FIRE
Account deleted
it's good they made this public.
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24.11.2007 - 15:43
Inferis: suck it
Account deleted
Written by Remus on 24.11.2007 at 10:46

Written by Guest on 24.11.2007 at 06:32

IDENTITY OF JON KNIGHT

Hey everybody. Just thought to let you know, i'm as pissed off as Destruction are about this: this Jon Knight is a fucking poseur and a liar.

He's so cowardly and such a piece of shit that he's now trying to run away and hide from what he's done.

HE'S THE BASSIST FROM AMENTI!!

If you search for "Jon Knight" "Amenti" on google, you get this:

LINK

look at the fifth and seventh results: indisputable proof.

Then look at their website:

http://www.enteramenti.com/amenti.html

and how they've changed his name - very visibly. In fact, everywhere his name was listed, they're going around and changing - lying to cover it up.


It may be 'cause i'm kinda' thick, but i really didn't understand what you tried to say with this post. This asshole tour manager, is he actually playing bass for Amenti?


Yes: the Amenti bassist is Jon Knight the booking agent.
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24.11.2007 - 19:00
Bararey
Winter is Coming
I find it very hard to believe that this Jon Knight fella is also the bassist of Amenti, if he truly was why wasn't he referenced in this statement as HAGP music and Amenti's bassist?

I tried to look up the info, and on their myspace page only first names appear, the HAGP site it was half done, with a lot of missing info.

the only places that have this connection is online forums, so I am thinking it is a rumor,
----
"Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought honorably. And Rhaegar died."
Ser Jorah Mormont
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24.11.2007 - 19:10
Inferis: suck it
Account deleted
Written by Baz Anderson on 24.11.2007 at 14:03

Written by Guest on 24.11.2007 at 06:32

HE'S THE BASSIST FROM AMENTI!!

hmm, maybe you are right, but if he is the bassist of Amenti, why didn't Onslaught and Destruction get answers from him there and then on the tour?

I even had a little chat with the bassist of Amenti before the show started - like Sy from Onslaught, he wanted to know just how I had found out about the show.. I didn't know that might have been him. haha


Well as Destruction say in their article, 'as the tour approached, he responded less and less to their e-mails', so that he wouldn't admit to being the booking agent when he'd fucked everything up - and everyone over - is not a surprise.

That a band of Destruction's reputation and standing would have played the Glebe in Stoke - which is a tiny shithole - or that they played the Old Angel in Nottingham is unbelievable.

The Amenti bassist has been 'arranging tours' for them for a few years now, bands like Ektomorf and Illdisposed; they've never happened though - cancelled at the last minute. Listen to this interview here:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/stoke/content/articles/2006/11/24/amenti_insession_feature.shtml

They never toured with Illdisposed though - surprise surprise. Finally one of the tours their bassist 'arranged' actually happened and this is the result - Destruction got fucked.
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24.11.2007 - 19:43
Inferis: suck it
Account deleted
Written by Bararey on 24.11.2007 at 19:00

I find it very hard to believe that this Jon Knight fella is also the bassist of Amenti, if he truly was why wasn't he referenced in this statement as HAGP music and Amenti's bassist?

I tried to look up the info, and on their myspace page only first names appear, the HAGP site it was half done, with a lot of missing info.

the only places that have this connection is online forums, so I am thinking it is a rumor,


Nobody in Destruction or Onslaught knew that the Amenti bassist is Jon Knight because he wasn't 'organising the tour' in his role in Amenti - that's how Amenti, an unsigned band with no backing at all, got on this tour - the guy booking it was in them.

I imagine this Jon Knight said 'yeah, i'll get you this really good support band i know, Amenti' to Destruction. How else would they have got on this tour with these two big bands?

They might have got away with this but for the fact there are people who actually know this guy and this band; it isn't a rumour - just look at this for instance - how can someone make this up?!:

LINK

Look at the 5th, 6th 7th and 8th links down.

And this:

LINK

Second guy down is the Amenti bassist - in a search for Jon Knight...?
And in his profile he's changed his job from 'Music Biz' and working for agencies booking bands from home, to 'I work for Royal Mail in the offices and also work for blackberry '. But look before that he says his cat comes to get a fuss 'every now and then while i'm working' - well if he works at Royal Mail, how does that happen?

There are people who've seen their profiles and websites before yesterday and today, and they're the ones who catch them out in this blatant lying.
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24.11.2007 - 20:22
Baz Anderson

Written by Guest on 24.11.2007 at 19:10

[...]
Destruction got fucked.

hmm, interesting, well unless there are two Jon Knights then I believe you are probably right. shame I didn't know this when I had the little chat with him. haha, I could have asked him a few questions..
oh well

but even still, we can't turn back time now, Destruction and Onslaught got as much as they could out of the tour given the circumstances and I am sure they pleased the fans they played to on the tour as they did me - as well as gaining more respect for actually carrying on with these shows and sorting some out themselves (the Nottingham show)

so who are you? PM me if you don't want to sy anything in here - I assume you are English and not Jamacan. hahaha - are you affiliated with Onslaught or Destruction any way? or just want to make sure we all know who Jon Knight is and what he does?
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24.11.2007 - 21:42
Bararey
Winter is Coming
Written by Guest on 24.11.2007 at 19:43

Second guy down is the Amenti bassist - in a search for Jon Knight...?


I found this to be interesting, OK for the sake of argument, let's say that the bassist and JK is the same person,
Now why would he sabotage his own band? They are touring with Destruction and Onslaught, the best thing to do, logically speaking, is to promote the tour as much as possible so that the Amenti guys can get more exposure not the opposite.

And in the statement they felt sorry for both the other two bands in regards to the outcome of the tour,

so yeah I'm still hesistant to believe that he is the same guy, and if he is, the nerve on him to do such a thing!
----
"Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought honorably. And Rhaegar died."
Ser Jorah Mormont
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25.11.2007 - 03:04
Inferis: suck it
Account deleted
Well it seems i was right - check this out:

LINK
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25.11.2007 - 03:44
Bararey
Winter is Coming
This turned out to be such a soap opera, so much drama?
First Amenti says that there was no proof that JK is Jon the bassist, then the bassist emails Destruction and says it was not him, then the guitarist states that JK is the bassist! Good God, my head is pounding!

I hope they carry on with the legal action against him,, he deserves it.
----
"Rhaegar fought valiantly, Rhaegar fought nobly, Rhaegar fought honorably. And Rhaegar died."
Ser Jorah Mormont
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25.11.2007 - 04:05
Inferis: suck it
Account deleted
Exactly - he's still called Jonathon Andrews on their website!
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