Fire Relief for Josh (Begat the Nephilim)

Hey all, this was not how we wanted to announce that the boys were back in town.

This morning, April 27th, our brother and bandmate - Josh Richardson - lost nearly everything in a matter of minutes. On his way to work, a fire started somewhere in the rear of his van (the Begatmobile) that quickly spread throughout the interior, fortunately leaving him just enough time to pull over and safely exit the vehicle. If he hadn't gotten off the road when he did, he would have been caught in the first explosion.

The van had been fully retrofitted into a tour vehicle for the band - a sleeping bunk, cabinets, ventilation, etc. - much of which was recent work done in preparation for upcoming tour plans for later this year and 2022. He had just put roughly $2,000 of work into maintenance within the past week alone. It contained some drum equipment (throne, pedals, sticks), a laptop, all of his clothing, his wallet with all of his identification/cards/cash, bedding, his food, and anything else a person needs to live. Due to Covid, Josh lost his primary source of income working on the road doing stage/tech, merch, and driving for touring artists. Recently, he was priced out of his house and had moved his world into the van while looking for a new place. That van was not only our tour vehicle, which carried us all over this country (and that one night in Canada when we had to leave our guitarist at the border), but up until this morning it was Josh's only vehicle and living situation. There was a lot lost in that fire that can never be replaced, and this sets him back far more than just a dollar amount or a means of transportation.

Hopefully we can help him to recoup anything lost that once carried a price tag, get him mobile again, and get a suitable roof over his head that's not just a temporary situation. The goal set is not the dollar value of the items lost, it's just what I think would replace the van with a large enough payment to not saddle him with new debt while already earning less due to the pandemic, get him a bed/bedding, a laptop, clothing, the materials/tools to build out the tour modifications/sleeping area, and hopefully enough to get him into a new place (he's not above staying in the van, after driving us around for seven years I think he's perfectly comfortable there, I'd just rather it be less a necessity and more an option). Any amount is going to help him out, and that helps us out, because we are collectively uh, less wealthy than we are handsome, and just look at us.

Oh, and if you're a fan of what Josh and the rest of us do with Begat, let us know if you donate so we can think of something to do to thank all of you who help our boy out. We'll keep things updated and we're very much open to ideas of how we can express our thanks and give back to you. Love you all, and we'll see you on the road with Deicide, Kataklysm, and Internal Bleeding this summer unless everything else burns down too.

--Brendan, Cam, Tyler (three fourths of the aforementioned boys)