Nothing says hardcore punk like a class-action lawsuit. Although admittedly Black Flag guitarist Greg Ginn isn't suing the former members of the band he founded for any money, he is asking for an injunction on spinoff band Flag's upcoming tour.
The suit mainly aims at former Black Flag members Dez Cadena, Chuck Dukowski, Keith Morris and Bill Stevenson. Those four currently tour under the name Flag, an obvious reference to the more renowned Black Flag, plus that group also uses the original band's iconic logo of four black bars. The original outfit folded after guitarist Ginn quit in 1986, but the previous members have toured off and on since. In January, Ginn announced that he and pre-Henry Rollins vocalist Ron Reyes would again tour under the Black Flag name. Hence legal shenanigans.
The good news for Ginn is that his record label, SST, owns the Black Flag name so it shouldn't be too hard ti get his way. However he claims that Rollins and others have long violated trademark laws, and he alleges that Rollins and Morris attempted to produce bootleg SST T-shirts as well. Rollins has long been associated with the group, but unlike Ginn, has taken to putting his face in the mainstream, including a brief role in the film "Bad Boys II."
Black Flag manager (the Ginn-version of Black Flag) Mike Valley said the issue was all about money, somewhat ironic considering the band in question.
"They see a s---load of money sitting there and they want it, and they want Greg to open the gates and give them the keys and let their Century City machine come in and run the show, and have Greg be their guitar player," Vallelysaid. "But that's not what f------ Black Flag is about, man."
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