Metal Anarchy

Static-X, bassist Tony Campos, and frontman Edsel Dope (aka Brian Ebejer) have filed a lawsuit against Matt Zane (aka Matthew Zicari). This news comes as he continues his campaign to make the band look bad amid his plans to release a new unauthorized documentary on the late Wayne Static and Tera Wray.

The following was said in the complaint:

“This suit arises roughly a year after Zicari’s voluntary exit from work on an official Static-X documentary film project, Evil Disco, which the band and its manager independently developed and funded.

In addition to other generous concessions, Static-X LLC paid Zicari more than $75,000 for his efforts on the developmental movie.

After growing impatient with the process and voluntarily withdrawing from participation, Zicari betrayed Plaintiffs and is now weaponizing valuable, confidential Static-X digital property against them on a daily basis. Among other things, Zicari is maliciously posting unauthorized video segments that he stole directly from the copyrighted audiovisual recordings of the Evil Disco Static-X documentary, using deliberate and deceptive editing techniques to exploit those private clips outside of important context with the deliberate intent to do harm. Having been shot in private spaces (which include dressings rooms and bathrooms), some of the clips Zicari has posted show the individual Plaintiffs and other innocent bystanders in various stages of undress.

Zicari is deliberately using these exploitive tactics to seek viral moments at the expense of Plaintiffs, while proving his intention to monetize by attaching payment links and blatantly asking fans for monetary contributions to his projects.

Zicari has further been taunting Plaintiffs by publicizing private information about plaintiff Brian C. Ebejer (“Ebejer”) and his residence, where Ebejer quietly lives with his fiancé and their young daughter.

Zicari also unlawfully accessed and published his rhetoric on the official Static-X account on X (formerly known as Twitter), @OfficialStaticX. Zicari’s illicit posts included disparaging remarks concerning Ebejer and band members including plaintiff Antonio Campos, professionally known as Tony Campos (“Campos”). Zicari then highlighted those posts through his own social media accounts in an attempt to legitimize and draw attention to them.

Zicari’s relentless online attacks on Plaintiffs, for whom he worked for many years, are unwarranted and cross lines of both legal and ethical proportion. Plaintiffs financially compensated Zicari, as mutually agreed, and have always treated him fairly. In addition to the above-mentioned $75,000 related to Evil Disco, Static-X and Ebejer also paid Zicari tens of thousands of dollars for additional video projects and also graciously allowed Zicari’s band to share the stage at several shows during the virtually sold out Rise of the Machine tour that Static-X headlined in 2023.

Zicari was recorded in 2023 (within the unreleased copyrighted footage of the Evil Disco Static-X documentary) expressing his full support for Static-X, Campos and Ebejer. It is only now—in his selfish pursuit of Internet fame and fast money—that Zicari has made an abrupt about face and is egregiously exploiting Plaintiffs’ own digital property against them.

Plaintiffs come to this Court respectfully seeking protection from the aggressive offensive by which Zicari is targeting them using credentials, footage, documents and other data that he unlawfully misappropriated from Static-X.

It went on to say the band are seeking the following:

Plaintiffs pray for judgment against all Defendants as follows:

1. For a preliminary and permanent injunction restraining Defendants, their officers, directors, agents, employees, representatives and all persons acting in concert with them from further using, exploiting or infringing any of Plaintiffs’ copyrighted materials;

2. For actual copyright infringement damages and Defendants’ profits in an amount to be determined at trial;

3. For damages according to poof at trial, including general, special, punitive and exemplary damages in excess of $1 million;

4. For costs of suit and attorneys’ fees incurred herein;

5. For interest on the above-requested damages and profits at the maximum legal rate as provided by law; and

6. For such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.”

A trial by jury has also been requested.