CreedFeed Community - Take a step back here...

OK, yeah I know this is all speculation, but I think we can gleam some interesting psuedo-facts from what's happened so far...

Take a step back and look at the present facts we do know at this point...

OK, for those of you people that don't know, the original members of Creed were Scott Stapp, Mark Tremonti, Scott Philips and Brian Marshal. Brian resigned from or was kicked out of Creed during the Human Clay tour for some as-of-yet unknown reason. Some claim it had to do with some somewhat questionable comments Brian made about Vedder & Peal Jam, and others say it just had to do with "artistic differences." A studio bassist, Brett Hestla, filled in for Brian during the Weathered tour.

Now, we know that Mark and Flip are starting a new band without Scott Stapp. That doesn't necessaily tell us much. However, the fact that Brian Marshall is getting together with the band has got to say something... it's not just a coincidence. If Brian was kicked out because of his PJ comments (i.e. booted for being a "loose cannon," then why would Mark and Flip welcome him into a new band? If Brian was kicked out because of "artistic differences," then, again, why would he be welcomed back? Furthermore, why would *Brian* want to join a band with members that supposedly gave him the boot?

The absence of Stapp from all this is significant. There must have been some kind of friction between these two guys, and it probably had something to do with Brian's removal from Creed.

The more I think about it, the more I see how a rift could have been forming between Stapp and the other band members. To take things one step further, I'd argue that Stapp's desire to unilaterally control the direction of the band could have led to the boot/resignation as well as the de-facto breakup. Ever watch video interviews with Creed when Stapp, Mark and Flip are there? Stapp would always dominate the conversation. Even when the others spoke out, Stapp would always rein them in, taking back control of the conversation. Mark always looks miserable in those interviews, often with arms folded and looking away. I think many of you know what I'm talking about. You can sometimes tell quite a deal from people's body language.

Anyway, from those two points -- the fact that Brian is joining a "Stappless Creed" and the perceived "control freak" manner of Stapp -- leads me to believe a lot of this has to do with Stapp and the direction he was taking the band into.