Sublime Loses its Name

Sara Harowitz — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 04:43:49 +0000

Posted on andPOP:

Even if they had a crystal ball, chances are they wouldn’t have seen this coming.

The two surviving members of the 90′s band Sublime have lost the rights to call themselves just that: Sublime.

According to rollingstone.com, a California judge has told the band’s surviving members, Bud Gaugh and Eric Wilson, that they cannot use the name Sublime for their band with new singer Rome for any performances, merchandise, or Internet domains. The two musicians debuted their new frontman at last week’s SmokeOut Festival in California.

Original lead singer, Bradley Nowell, died of a heroin overdose in 1996. Nowell’s estate was upset that Gaugh and Wilson were performing under the name Sublime, stating that Nowell had trademarked the name and had never intended for any band that he was not in to use it.

Gaugh and Wilson spent the last decade performing under the name, Long Beach Dub Allstars, and recently renamed the band Sublime after recruiting new frontman Rome. The band’s “We Are Sublime” Website has now been replaced with a picture of a muzzled dog with a sign around its neck that says, “Free Sublime.”

Gaugh and Wilson responded to the Court ruling with a statement that says, “Our goal continues to be sharing the music and message of Sublime with all of our fans around the world. We intend to take the court’s advice and work on a business solution to this issue. We hope the Estate follows suit so the music of Sublime can live on and be accessible to everyone.”

Before their performance at SmokeOut, the renewed Sublime won the right to play under the name. They issued a statement saying that, “we are pleased that the United States District Court has allowed us to perform as Sublime for all our fans.”

The band said they wouldn’t call the reformation a “reunion,” but rather a “celebration” of the band.

Interestingly enough, Gaugh and Wilson are currently in litigation with another band that is currently performing under the name Sublime LBC.

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Sublime Loses its Name