Marek “Ashok” Šmerda, guitarist for Cradle Of Filth, has confirmed that he will leave the band at the end of their current South American tour, following the mid-tour departure of his wife and keyboardist Zoë Marie Federoff.
In a candid statement, Ashok explained that the decision was long-planned with Zoë, citing personal and professional reasons: “I ask you to please respect my wife and myself in this transitional period. I am indeed leaving Cradle Of Filth at the end of this current tour, and the reasons behind this are conclusions my wife and I came together at long before this week. We simply do not feel like Cradle can provide for our future, and in fact hinders it. Among other reasons it is a lot of work for relatively low pay, the stress is quite high, and we haven’t felt for a while like this band actually prioritizing/caring about members. It has been years of unprofessional behavior from people above us that led to our decision.
The guitarist also confirmed he has requested all of his compositions be removed from upcoming Cradle Of Filth releases, including the previously announced collaboration with Ed Sheeran: “This song feels like foolish clown antics for me at this point anyways — first it was charity single for kids, then for profit single, then on next album, and now who knows. I just do not want to be involved anymore, no disrespect to Ed Sheeran.”
Ashok addressed rumors about his relationship with Zoë, emphasizing that they are focused on a new chapter in their lives: “So many ‘brilliant’ Internet brains trying to speculate on personal affairs between me and Zoe — just stop this, please.”
Despite stepping away, Ashok confirmed he will finish the tour strong: “I am going to finish this tour strong! For the fans and for my friends in this band and crew! It is my last ride with Cradle and I am proud to give it my best. I am sad to not share the stage with my wife these last times but I respect why she left and I am happy our friend Kelsey Peters has been given opportunity to shine.”
Zoë Marie Federoff left Cradle Of Filth on August 24, mid-tour, citing personal reasons. That same night, the band performed at Palermo Groove in Buenos Aires with Kelsey Peters stepping in as keyboardist and backing vocalist.
