Betraying the Martyrs Drop Off Tour After Escaping Van Fire

Betraying the Martyrs were in the midst of promoting their upcoming album Rapture when a rather scary incident forced the cancellation of their summer tour. As the band revealed in a new posting, they were involved in a serious auto accident and while they all escaped unharmed, all of their personal possessions and gear inside the vehicle were lost in a fire.

Singer Aaron Matts commented, “We're all shaken by what has happened this morning. We're well but very heartbroken that all we have worked hard to accumulate over the years, both in musical equipment, and personal belongings has been lost in a matter of minutes.”

He added, “I'm grateful that we have our health, each other and were able to walk away with the clothes on our backs. We are extremely sorry to have missed another opportunity to play for those that were looking forward to see us. We'll bounce back and we'll see you soon. Thank you.”

Guitarist Baptiste Vigier also added, "This is the most tragic event that has ever happened in our band's career, and in my entire life. Earlier this morning, I was awakened by our driver screaming and urging us all to get out of the vehicle. Although I'm incredibly thankful to still be alive and tell this story, I lost all my gear and personal belongings. We feel incredibly powerless and in shock."

He continued, “If it weren't for our driver and now best friend Daniel Johnson, we wouldn't have made it out safely. This man literally ran though the fire in an attempt to salvage our belongings and to ensure our safety and well-being. Daniel acted out of pure courage and professionalism in order for the band and crew to be safe and at a lower risk of injury. Whatever we have left after this, we owe it to you Daniel. A part of potential funds raised will be going to Daniel to compensate for his courage and for his belongings lost.”

Among the items lost were the following:

- Splitter
- In Ears Monitors System x 4
- Most of our Merchandising
- 1 furman power conditioner
- S16 / x32
- 4 keyboards
- our shock mount racks units
- 1 Helix
- 1 AxeFX
- 6 guitar cases
- all personal belongings and suitcases
- A full Midas Mixing Desk and its case
- A full drum kit
- The whole brand new trailer

See some of the fire damage photos below:

As stated in the posting, the band has launched a GoFundMe page to help offset the cost of what was lost. They were seeking to meet a goal of $27,000, and had already exceeded $16,000 of that at press time. “ANY donation will be incredibly helpful to all of us and will go directly towards rebuilding our band, to help us get back home and ultimately to keep doing what we love, which is creating music and sharing it with our fans,” state the group. To donate, head here.

While Betraying the Martyrs are off the road for the time being, the tour will continue with Within Destruction and Sentinels playing dates and the band encourages their fans to support the other two bands on the run. See the remaining dates in the tour poster below.

Betraying the Martyrs’ Rapture album is due Sept. 13.

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