Amity Affliction Member Responds to Being Kicked Out of the Band

Last May, Australian metalcore/post-hardcore troupe The Amity Affliction’s founding bassist/co-vocalist, Ahren Stringer, claimed that he was “booted” from their 2024 tour. Now, Stringer has officially responded to getting “kicked out” of the group (with the band also posting their own statement on the situation).

The Amity Affliction and Stringer’s Statements

This past Friday (Feb. 14), The Amity Affliction posted the following statement to Facebook and Instagram:

We are aware our fans have been waiting for us to comment on the situation between Ahren and the band.

This will be our only statement.

We have been choosing to stay silent until now, as we wanted to handle this privately with respect to all involved. Unfortunately, it has become clear to us that this is no longer possible and we owe it to you, our fans, to comment.

Ahren will no longer be touring or recording with The Amity Affliction.

We acknowledge that we have all had our fair share of issues over the years. But sadly, over time the relationship between Ahren and the band has completely broken down while he has been dealing with challenging elements of his personal life.

The band have had to cancel tours and pass on many opportunities in hopes of supporting Ahren, but moving forward we find it impossible to continue to tolerate certain behaviours that have been directed at ourselves and those close to us. Ahren has made it very clear on numerous occasions that he does not enjoy or want to continue touring.

We still have a lot to give as a band and we’re excited to continue touring and sharing new music with you. We also understand that we need to prove ourselves to you all, and thank you for sticking with us.

The music we’ve created with Ahren will forever bind us and we are thankful for the good times we had together. We wish Ahren all the best in his personal and professional future.

We look forward to seeing you all on tour.

Joel [Birch], Dan [Brown] and Joe [Longobardi]

You can see their post below:

Yesterday (Feb. 15), Stringer gave a response on Instagram Stories.

Per Lambgoat, his statement read: “Not tryna start anymore shit BUT I have been kicked out of my band. I will NEVER play with The Amity Affliction (who blocked me btw) love you all x.”

The official X account of the State of the Scene Podcast – among others – shared an image of Stringer’s story, adding: “Ahren Stringer says that The Amity Affliction have blocked him on social in new IG story.”

You can see that post (which includes Stringer’s statement) below:

Understandably, fans have been conflicted about the formal separation.

For example, one X user stated: “His voice is the only thing that made them unique.  Good luck being irrelevant now.” Similarly, another X account concluded: “That’ll be it for Amity Affliction lol, you can’t kick out the guy who makes your sound unique. Same thing happened to OM&M [Of Mice & Men] after [Austin] Carlile left. RIP.”

In contrast, Iridium vocalist Danny Lewis offered his thoughts as a reply to The Amity Affliction’s post:

To the people saying no Ahren no Amity, get a grip. A band is not, and never will be solely created by one member. Yes, Ahren has a unique voice and his vocals are truly one of a kind. But to say that without him the other members should just give up on something they have worked their entire lives to grow is ridiculous. Ahren will be missed, but a band is a collective and they have to do what they think is best. It’s a sad situation all round, and I wish both sides the best.

READ MORE: 25 New Rock + Metal Tours Announced This Past Week (Feb. 7-13, 2025)

What Led to ThIs

As mentioned before, The Amity Affliction revealed in May of 2024 that Stringer wouldn’t be joining them on “the remainder of [their] North American tour dates.” They added:

Tim Beken, who many of you will know from True North, will join us for all upcoming shows until Ahren returns. This decision is in the best interest of Ahren’s mental health and well-being. He is returning to Australia to address his struggle with addiction and get the support he needs. . . . Please feel free to bring signs of support for Ahren that we can send to him at home, now more than ever he needs as much support as we can possibly give him.

You can see their full post below:

Afterward, Stringer responded: “I was booted from the tour with no warning whatsoever. I did absolutely nothing wrong, but I wish you guys all the best in the future.”

Then, in September of 2024, Stringer gave a hopeful update via Instagram, writing:

I know you have all been waiting and wondering about the future of the band and how I am doing. First of all, I want to express my heartfelt gratitude for your unwavering support and kind words of encouragement. I am so proud to share that I am happy, sober, and thriving!

As for plans with The Amity Affliction.
I will definitely be performing at the Big Pineapple Music Festival and on the upcoming Australian tour.

However, after these shows, I will be taking some much needed annual leave from the band throughout 2025 to focus on my continued personal growth, considering my future with the band & spending more quality time with the people I love!

Rest assured, The Amity Affliction has my full support to continue touring during my absence. Jonathan Reeves will be stepping in for me, and I have complete confidence that he will deliver an incredible performance for you all!

Thank you all so much for your understanding and support.

I’m looking forward to seeing all of you and giving you the best Amity shows we’ve ever played! Your energy and support mean the world to me, and I can’t wait to share this experience with you!

With love,
Ahren x

You can see his post below:

Last month, however, Stringer gave another update to Instagram amidst selling some art prints. In the post, he wrote: “Once again these will be the last Amity paintings I’ll ever make so get em while they’re hot.”

This prompted someone to ask if Stringer was indeed leaving The Amity Affliction, to which Stringer replied: “[W]asn’t my choice.”

You can see that post below:

Taking all of this into consideration, it’s fair to say that the writing was on the wall for several months now.

Stringer’s History With The Amity Affliction

Stringer co-founded The Amity Affliction with former guitarist/backing vocalist Troy Brady in 2003, and their name was inspired by the trauma and bond they shared following the loss of a mutual friend (who died in a car accident).

Although he took on different roles over the years – transitioning from rhythm guitar to bass around 2007 – Stringer has always been a part of The Amity Affliction. Therefore, he’s appeared on all their studio EPs and LPs, and throughout their history of lineup changes, he’s been the only consistent member.