Larry Howe says politics cost him Vicious Rumors touring slot

Larry Howe has now given his own version of the Vicious Rumors split, and it turns the drummer’s exit into a much bigger story than a routine lineup change. In a June 8, 2026 interview on Hart O’ The Matter, Howe said the pressure around his right-wing political beliefs had begun costing the veteran metal band touring opportunities, forcing the issue from a private band problem into a public break.

The timeline shows how quickly the situation escalated. Vicious Rumors announced on February 18, 2026 that Howe would no longer be touring with the band, saying the group had years of disagreement with him over his personal political ambitions and that it could no longer be “punished by association.” The band also said four shows had already been canceled amid the controversy surrounding Howe’s political views during the European run, a sign that the fallout was affecting the band’s actual booking power, not just its internal chemistry.

By April 16, Howe had publicly said he would no longer drum for Vicious Rumors “for the foreseeable future.” Around the same time, the band said its European Asylum Tour would continue from May 9 through June 20 with a new drummer in place. Multiple reports identified that replacement as Wyatt Cooper, who had previously played with Yngwie Malmsteen, underscoring that the band was moving forward even as the dispute around Howe continued to hang over the tour.

Howe’s history with the band makes the rupture even sharper. He first joined Vicious Rumors in 1985, left in 2000, and rejoined in 2005, giving him a long stretch of ownership in the group’s sound and identity. One report placed his last scheduled show with the band on March 28, 2026, before the final split was confirmed in mid-April.

What Howe’s interview added was the sense of a drummer being squeezed out not because of timing, chops, or the usual road wear, but because promoters and venues no longer wanted the baggage. Howe’s comments, including his swipe that “cancel culture wins again,” frame the fallout as both bitter and final. For a working drummer, that is the harshest part of the story: the kit stayed on the road, but the player attached to it did not.