Deftones bassist Sergio Vega confirms he has left the band

completemusicupdate.com:

Deftones bassist Sergio Vega has confirmed rumours that he has left the band. The split comes, he says, following a contract dispute.

Vegas claims that, despite co-writing and touring with the band for twelve years, they have refused to follow through on promises to make him an official member of the group.A member of post-hardcore band Quicksand, Vega first began working with Deftones in 1999, when he stood in on tour for Chi Cheng, who was then recovering from surgery.

Then, following the 2008 car crash that left Cheng in a coma (he subsequently died in 2013), Vegas rejoined the band, both touring and co-writing all four albums they have released since 2010.Despite publicly appearing to be a full-time member of the band, Vega says that he was actually contracted as a session musician.

He says that he was told that he would eventually be made an official member of the group – as DJ Frank Delgado had been, after appearing as a guest on their second album, ‘Around The Fur’ – but, although he often broached this, it never happened.There had been speculation that Vega was no longer a member of the group for several months – in part because he sold a large amount of equipment online last year.