Is Joe Seaward still in Glass Animals?

Written by Jeff Campbell in Band Members,Alternative Indie Last Updated November 17, 2022

joe seaward still in GA lg

Joe Seaward of the Glass Animals suffered a profoundly traumatic collision in July 2018. While Joe is said to have fully recovered from the fatal injury, his few appearances with the band make his fans wonder: Is Joe Seaward still in Glass Animals?

Here is what I found out:

Joe Seaward remains an integral part of Glass Animals. The drummer sustained a life-threatening accident in 2018, forcing the band to cancel their tours. However, the members re-appeared with Joe back on his drum kit within six months of the accident.

Band members Dave, Ed, and Drew, showed continuous support to Joe while he was in the hospital recovering. Dave took up the responsibility to update Joe’s fans using his Instagram account.

But looking at the seriousness of the injuries, band leader Dave thought Joe’s probably never going to play the drums again.

Let us find out if Joe has recovered completely:

What happened to Joe in Glass Animals?

Glass Animals drummer Joe Seaward had a near-death experience in Dublin in 2018 when his bicycle collided with a truck. Joe sustained a complex skull fracture, and the impact damaged his speech abilities temporarily.

The band’s drummer was hospitalized following the crash. He underwent neurosurgery to repair brain damage and a broken leg.

The doctors performed two operations to reshape a part of his skull and repair the part of the brain responsible for speech. Fortunately, Joe recovered completely. Seaward said:

“Everything that made me…me was taken away. And I couldn’t even remember why.”

It was 2 years before the band began to perform consistently, to which Joe responded.

“It felt like a miracle, and it was a miracle. At one of our first shows in Manchester, everything clicked again. I remember just being so thankful that we could still do this. I couldn’t stop thinking about how lucky we were.”

The crowd cheered Joe, showering him with the longest and loudest standing ovation. Joe got overwhelmed to see such a response from the crowd.

Did Joe Seaward fully recover?

Months after the near-fatal bike accident, Joe Seaward made a full recovery which he confirmed with an Instagram post.

Joe Seaward sustained fatal injuries after colliding with a lorry in Dublin. The band’s drummer had to learn to walk and talk again. He also suffered a temporary memory loss. But he recovered gradually.

The drummer took to Instagram to inform his fans about his full recovery and thanked his bandmates for their support.

Seaward wrote:

“Hi everyone, it’s joe. I have learned a lot this summer. I thought I’d share a few of my findings with you all: I am fortunate; my family and friends and the doctors and nurses in Dublin are remarkable people. The band and my family sat next to me in hospital for two weeks while I couldn’t speak or move and haven’t left me since. I’ve been looked after by the best. Thank you all for your support. especially to Dave, Drew, Ed. and Joe.”

The band toured Australia to play their first headline show since Seaward’s life-threatening crash. He later told Triple J Breakfast about his journey to getting back on the drum kit.

Joe said:

“It was baby steps, to begin with. Talking was first, which took a while. Then thinking, reading, walking. I had to start from scratch, really,”

Being a fan of the band, I am glad to see the band back to writing music. Their fans eagerly wait for them to welcome them on stage once more once the pandemic is over.

Did Glass Animals break up after Joe’s accident?

Glass Animals did not break up after Joe’s accident. However, the band did go off the grid for about three months and took a break while Dave Bayley worked on several collaborations with other artists.

The tragic accident had left Joe with a short-term memory loss and a damaged speech. At this point, the band took a little break from touring to support Joe.

According to EW.com:

“Concentration and recall were two of the biggest things impacted by his operation. But with steady progress and help from his bandmates, Seaward recovered quickly; he started walking again about a week later.

While Seaward recovered at home, Bayley constantly traveled back and forth to Los Angeles. He was working as a songwriter for various artists such as Khalid, Kendrick Lamar, 6lack, and King Princess.

The band members grew closer after Joe’s accident. Inspired by the band’s newly discovered bond, Dave dedicated a song to Joe in his autobiographical album-Dreamland.

Did anyone replace Joe Seaward temporarily after his accident?

Glass Animals did not hire any replacement after Joe Seawards’s horrific accident. Instead, they canceled the tour and waited for Joe to get better.

When Seaward’s crash occurred, the band was in the middle of a European tour. The band leader Dave Bayley decided to cancel the tour instead of carrying it on with a replacement.

Here is what Dave says on not hiring a replacement:

“If I was in his shoes and I came to consciousness and realized that my best friends were off touring with a replacement of me, that would be horrible. We wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else anyway.”

For Dave, the thought of replacing Joe to complete the tour was unthinkable as it was Joe who seems to have the most significant impact on Dave’s life.

From giving him his peculiar British accent to co-writing songs in his studio, Dave couldn’t imagine Glass Animals without Seaward.

Didn’t know Dave copied Joe Seaward’s British accent?

Read my recent article to discover how Joe Seaward was the motivation behind Dave’s peculiar conversing style. After all, while the band is English, Dave moved to the UK from Texas of all places! Did he have a twang accent?

Just click on that link.

Are Dave and Joe from Glass Animals dating?

Dave Bayley and Joe Seaward certainly spend more time with the band than their families, and there have been rumors of them being a couple, but their dating history has never been confirmed.

When fans on the Reddit community attempted to get a clear idea of Bayley’s sexual orientation, one of the users commented:

“There’s plenty of evidence he could be gay or bisexual, but nobody knows for sure. And honestly, I don’t need to know. He could like inanimate objects, and I’d still love him for his genuine attitude and well-written music.”

Dave Bayley is a little playful when disclosing his life to the public.

In an Instagram section, he once responded, “Who says it’s a girl?” to someone who made speculations about a necklace Dave wore with the letter “R” engraved on it.

Another reason why people think he might be bisexual is that he mentioned that Dreamland was going to be a personal account of his life, and there are plenty of lines that point to him being bisexual.

For example, the song Helium that he said is about him. Look at the lyrics:

I’m falling now but it’s so wrong

You talk like a man and taste like the sun

Ooh, you lift your eyes up from the dust

I knew just then I knew it was done

On a more personal level, I think:

Nobody should stop listening to one artist because of their sexuality. Seeing the popular LGBTQ community helps with self-acceptance for some at an early age.

As a listener, it is easy to fall into the trap of various narratives when the artist does not precisely talk about the character.

I, however, think that in the end, fans should accept Dave for his music rather than his sexual orientation. It shouldn’t matter, but it’s always fun to speculate.

Glass Animals interview - Joe Seaward (2020)

Conclusion

Joe Seaward became a vital part of the four-membered Glass Animals band in 2010.

But the quartet’s friendship started way before 2010. Having attended the same schools and high schools, the members have been together through thick and thin.

Out of all the members, Dave Bayley grew closest to Joe Seaward.

Dave even copied Joe’s British accent. In addition, there came a point in the duo’s friendship when Joe met with a traumatic accident, and Dave started working on several solo projects.

Joe’s fans wondered if he was going to be replaced. But, band leader Dave decided not to replace Joe Seaward and waited for the drummer to get better.

At this point, Joe Seaward is still a crucial member of the band Glass Animals.

Photo that requires attribution:

Glass Animals by Alterna2 http://www.alterna2.com is licensed under CC2.0 and was cropped, edited, and had a text overlay added.

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