SoCal pop-punk outfit Unwritten Law fired longtime guitarist Rob Brewer last week following an onstage fracas that left frontman Scott Russo with one less tooth. The incident unfolded during a performance at the House of Blues in Anaheim, California, on March 23 — an evening that also included a brief hospital stay for the sacked guitarist.

"The latest decision to part ways with [Brewer] was motivated by a number of volatile circumstances involving disputes between Rob and various bandmembers, as well as interactions between Brewer and the fans," the band said in a statement.

In an interview with MTV News on Monday night, Russo elaborated: "Long story short? [Rob] sucks. He hit me, and then we fired him."

The frontman provided a more detailed account of the events that led to Brewer's unexpected dismissal. His onstage antics aside, Brewer was an irresponsible member of the group, Russo said, and his overall presence in Unwritten Law was beginning to take its toll.

The weekend prior to the Anaheim gig, the band had planned to perform "F.I.G.H.T," from its latest disc, Here's to the Mourning.

"Kids have been coming up to the stage asking for that song," Russo said, "because they want to sing along. So we practiced the song during that weekend, and when it came down to the day of the show, Rob wasn't prepared to do the song. But we'd already committed to that song. We'd said we were going to be playing it."

But Brewer refused, telling the band he didn't have his parts nailed down. "We were like, 'Dude, it's on your record. It's been on your record for the last two months,' " Russo said, adding that Unwritten Law haven't been able to consistently play the new record's single, "Save Me," during live sets because of Brewer's failure to master the material.

"When it came down to it, he was frustrated, and I knew he was upset — I can tell. So I said on the microphone that Rob's mad at us. I went over to try and give him a hug, and he pushed me."

Russo responded by throwing water at Brewer, and apparently the guitarist was in no mood to get wet.

"He knocked one of my teeth out," Russo said. "So I walked offstage. Rob did too. But I walked back out, threw his guitar on, and we finished the set without him. Then I threw his guitar into the crowd and gave it to the kids."

After the show, Russo said he went backstage to find Brewer, "to f---ing have a word with him and do whatever."

Russo said he eventually found the guitarist. He was wielding a bottle of vodka and started "charging me, and he tries to hit me over the head with it." But, as Brewer was running through an open doorway, "the bottle connects with the top of the door jamb, and smashes, cutting half of his right pinkie off. Needless to say, he couldn't play the next two or three shows, because he had to have surgery to reattach his torn ligaments."

Russo said the band, which unceremoniously fired original drummer Wade Youman more than a year ago because of his alleged violent outbursts, digested the entire situation, and decided it was time for Brewer to go.

"[The outbursts] had become a once-a-month problem with him," he said. "We decided it was in our best interest to make sure this would never happen again. We wanted to get rid of him before the band started deteriorating, basically."

Russo said it was during the same Anaheim show that Brewer pushed a fan who had made his way backstage to meet the band. "He yelled at the kid, 'What the f--- are you doing in my [dressing] room?' and he hit the fan across the room. We we're just like, 'What the f--- is wrong with him?' "

Russo said he and the rest of the band — bassist Pat Kim, guitarist Steve Morris and drummer Tony Palermo — were "bummed" to have to give Brewer the boot, but, following several marathon discussions about the situation, felt they had no other options. "It wasn't a question for us of whether he was capable of doing this again — attacking one of us, attacking a fan," Russo said. "It was really a question of when he would. Trust me: We didn't want to do this."

Describing him as "irreplaceable," the band, currently on the road with Sum 41, said in a statement that it'll continue as a four-piece and has no immediate plans to replace Brewer.

Brewer could not be reached for comment.