Folk-punks The Men They Couldn’t Hang have announced they will play on – for the time being at least – despite the recent tragic death of co-vocalist Stefan Cush.
Cush, who was a founder member of the band back in 1984, died from a heart attack on February 5, at the age of 60. Earlier this month, TMTCH paid tribute by releasing a 15-track career-spanning compilation of songs he wrote for the band, with all proceeds from its sale going to his three children.
Shun Fame: Stefan Cush Sings Stefan Cush Songs is available as a CD and digital download via TMTCH’s Bandcamp page HERE. CDs are expected to ship at the beginning of April, but anyone who buys one gets an immediate download.
Cush’s untimely passing left a question mark over whether the band would continue. However, remaining members Phil ‘Swill’ Odgers, Paul Simmonds, Ricky McGuire, Tom Spencer and John Odgers have decided that The Men They Couldn’t Hang will play on for now.
This week they posted on their social media accounts: “Greetings friends. This is just a quick update to say that after some reflection we have decided that we will honour all TMTCH gigs that were booked or in process of being booked before the sad passing of Cush.
“Not only will this give us all the chance to come together, but it will give us and you all a chance to see whether we still have the magic to keep going beyond that. Rest assured, we won’t be going through the motions. We can’t replace Cush but we can step up to present something different, but hopefully still powerful, exciting and uniquely TMTCH. We’ll see you out there!”
The gigs TMTCH have confirmed are:
3 April – London – Subterrania – moving to December
16 October – Bilston – Robin 2 Bostin IV Fest
29 October – Derby – Hairy Dog
11 November – Manchester – Gorilla
12 November – Edinburgh – Liquid Rooms
13 November – Glasgow – Oran Mor
20 November – Brighton – Concorde2
21 January – Middlesbrough – Westgarth Social Club
22 January – Nottingham – Rescue Rooms
Newcastle – date to be confirmed
Morecambe – The Platform – date to be confirmed
