Former Marilyn Manson guitarist Zim Zum has responded to the All-American Anti-Christ's statement that the guitarist didn't contribute anything to the band and that Manson showed him, "[a] strong foot in the door."

In a statement issued to ChartAttack and MTV.com, Zim Zum says that he didn't want to unveil his latest project, Pleistoscene, but Manson's comment forced his hand. "I wasn't going to make any public announcements regarding my new project Pleistoscene for another few weeks, but Manson's recent comments about me are misleading, and require a long overdue dose of reality."

The two are embroiled in a lawsuit and have taken slagging each other in the press and on the net. Zim Zum says, "Marilyn Manson is no longer in the position to define what 'the plate is' that everyone needs to step up to. What does he have to validate his 'subversive credibility' these days anyway? A BMW? A swimming pool? A maid? I life all that behind to retain the idealism that attracted me to him in the first place, as did a large portion of his fans. I have successfully separated myself from him, while retaining a large and militantly dedicated fanbase."