Following the theft of Russian Circles’ merch, a GoFundMe page was recently launched. The fundraiser raised around $17,000 in one hour after going live and has collected almost $60,000 until now.
The fundraiser was created by the manager of the band, Cathy Pellow, and it aimed to solve the financial problems suffered by the band.
Pellow said that Russian Circles is one of the most hardworking bands she has ever met and that it has been hard for her to see them in a loss during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The band’s issue started with the cancelation of the European tour, which left them in debt followed by the theft of their gear. The insurance had also expired, so nothing will be covered. The problem did not end here and their shows in Los Angeles were canceled a day earlier.
Pellow also hoped that the stolen gear would be found, but they had no leads to get the gear back. The band’s losses have left them in a situation where they cannot cover their expenses.
About the Russian Circles in brief
Russian Circles is a band that is originally from Chicago, Illinois, and was formed in 2004 by Mike Sullivan and Dave Turncrantz. The band is popular because of their albums and long international tours.
The band parted ways with its member Colin DeKuiper in 2007, and the bass tracks of their album Station were handled by Brian Cook. Brian later became a permanent member of the band. The band’s third full-length, Geneva, was released in 2009.
Russian Circles signed to Sargent House in 2011, and their fourth album Empros was released the same year. Their fifth album Memorial was released in 2013 and had a guest vocal by Chelsea Wolfe. They also went on a UK/European tour.
Their sixth studio album Guidance was released in 2016 and produced by Kurt Ballou. The band’s seventh album Blood Year was released in 2019 and was also produced by Kurt Ballou.
Russian Circles gear stolen
An official statement by the band says that the gear was stolen from a U-Haul truck parked in a Holiday Inn parking lot in Chowchilla, California on October 17. They have requested the public to share any information related to the gear at [email protected].
As mentioned earlier, fans have donated around $60,000 to help them recover financially. Aluminum guitar builder Electrical Guitar Company gifted Brian Cook a Series Two bass guitar.
A picture of the new guitar was also shared on the company’s Instagram page. The donations have stopped and the GoFundMe page has overall collected an amount of $52,798.