Three-quarters of the original Sex Pistols lineup is reuniting for a pair of benefit shows in the U.K. but Johnny "Rotten" Lydon won't be with them. Instead, guitarist Steve Jones, bassist Glen Matlock and drummer Paul Cook have enlisted Frank Carter to front the band.
The group is set to perform their classic 1977 album Never Mind the Bollocks, Here's the Sex Pistols in its entirety on Aug. 13 and 14 at Bush Hall in West London. The shows are a benefit for the historic venue.
Tickets for the shows go on sale Wednesday (June 5) at 9 a.m. local time through Ticketmaster U.K.
Carter is known for fronting his own band, Frank Carter & the Rattlesnakes and previously fronted Gallows.
"This has been a joy from start to finish," Carter said, according to Consequence. "When the Sex Pistols call, you answer. I'm very excited to be a part of it."
"We're doing a benefit for Bush Hall with the famous Frank Carter," Cook added. "We're going to be playing Pistols numbers 'cause they need support and they need the money. We thought it would be a great way to stop it going under. This is my local venue. I grew up in Shepherd's Bush and I still live round here. It would be a real shame to see it disappear and we want to keep it going. So everyone get down to the gig!"
"If it all goes wrong, it's Paul's f----ing fault," added Jones.
The Sex Pistols last performed with Lydon back in 2008 for a series of European festival dates but the band had a falling out with Lydon over the 2022 miniseries Pistol, based on Jones' book Lonely Boy: Tales From a Sex Pistol.
Lydon was against the miniseries, directed by Danny Boyle, before he'd even seen it, calling it "the most disrespectful sh-- I've ever had to endure" and tried to block the band's music from being used in it. That led Jones and Cook, who also had the support of Matlock and the estate of Sid Vicious, to sue him. Jones and Cook prevailed but have yet to make amends with Lydon.
Lydon is currently on his I Could Be Wrong, I Could Be Right spoken word tour in the U.K., but the North American leg has been canceled "due to scheduling and production issues," according to the PiL official website.
Aside from the upcoming gigs, Jones and Cook joined forces with Billy Idol and Tony James to play Sex Pistols songs under the name of Generation Sex in 2018 and 2023.
Matlock, meanwhile, has been playing bass in Blondie since April 2022.
