Drummer Janet Weiss Announces Her Departure from Sleater-Kinney

Say it ain’t so: Longtime Sleater-Kinney drummer Janet Weiss has announced her departure from the prominent indie-rock group.

Weiss announced her decision to leave the band in a brief statement uploaded to her personal Twitter Monday morning, writing, “The band is heading in a new direction and it is time for me to move on.”

Weiss, who has served as the longest-running drummer of the group since their formation in 1994, joined the band before they recorded their 1996 release Dig Me Out. She recently appeared alongside vocalist Carrie Brownstein and guitarist Corin Tucker to perform “Hurry On Home” on The Tonight Show.

“I will never forget the heights we reached or the magnificent times Corin, Carrie and I shared,” Weiss continued in her statement. “We were a force of nature.”

Sleater-Kinney recently returned after a four-year hiatus to release two new singles and announce their forthcoming ninth studio album (and Mom + Pop debut), The Center Won’t Hold. Produced by St. Vincent, The Center Won’t Hold’s advance cuts showcase the band moving into different and more experimental sonic territory.

The band announced an extensive North American tour in support of the album, and it looks like Weiss will not return for the upcoming dates.

The band responded to her departure in a Notes App statement posted to their Instagram, writing: “It has been an incredible privilege to work with such a talented musician and drummer over the course of so many albums, including The Center Won’t Hold.”

Weiss is currently a member of Portland duo Quasi, and has previously drummed with Stephen Malkmus and The Jicks, Bright Eyes and punk supergroup Wild Flag.

Check out both Weiss and the band’s statements, and Quasi’s 2008 Daytrotter Session below.

Big changes. pic.twitter.com/PWWHMWDLU9

— Janet Weiss (@jazzzhand) July 1, 2019