For Kyle Gass, the day was unfolding perfectly as he celebrated his birthday last July with a performance from the popular duo behind the ARIA platinum single, Tribute. It was the second night of their show at the ICC Sydney, and everything seemed to be going splendidly.

However, it was during this festive evening that Gass, in a moment of jest, said the “five one-syllable words that brought down the empire.”

While being presented with a cake and prompted by his bandmate Jack Black to make a wish, Gass quipped, “Don’t miss Trump next time.” This remark quickly turned the evening on its head.

The timing of the joke couldn’t have been worse. It coincided with the same day when Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate Donald Trump, leaving him injured at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.

Reflecting on the incident, Gass admitted, “I’m human, I made a mistake. I was going for a joke. But timing is everything. If there was ever a ‘too soon,’ it was this.” His candid acknowledgment underscores the delicate balance between humor and sensitivity, especially in the face of real-world events.

It wasn’t until the band were “partying in my hotel room” after the show that they started to see reports of his comments and Gass realised what was coming.

“It’s overwhelming. It’s like a tsunami of shit rolling over you. And then there’s the regret. Like, ‘Why would I do that?’ I just didn’t put it together. And the ramifications were so huge,” he said.

Gass said there were even “safety concerns” and someone called his “poor 95-year-old mum”.

Black cancelled the tour and put “all future creative plans … on hold” as those involved went into damage control, sparking criticism from some corners that the movie star had thrown his decades-long friend under the bus to protect his Hollywood career.

Gass said it didn’t really surprise him.

“I might have deserved it,” he told Rolling Stone in an interview published on Wednesday.

“Or, he had to protect himself from his loose-cannon partner over here. I totally understood once safety concerns got in.

“I might have tried to finish the tour, and I think sometimes these things can blow over, but at the time, it’s hard when the tsunami of shit is coming at you.”

Gass said it was “hard” but he and Black later “hashed it out”.

“Jack and I are all good. At the end of the day, we’re friends. I’ve known Jack since he was 18, and it’s been such a long marriage, really. 

“You go up and down, and we’ve always taken long breaks. He’s had a lot of stuff to do, and I’ve got my other projects. So it doesn’t even feel that different now.”

The 65-year-old, whose Kyle Gass Band project has a new live album coming out, also had a parting shot for United Australia Party senator Ralph Babet who called on then-Immigration Minister Andrew Giles to deport the duo.

“It didn’t take long to be like, ‘Oh, this guy is such a grandstander’,” Gass told Rolling Stone.

“But I think he wanted to get in the news cycle too … It did feel like an overreaction. But that speaks more to my relationship with my agent.”

Black last August said the band would “be back when it feels right” and Gass was even more enthusiastic this week.

“We’re gonna come back — it’s gonna be bigger than Oasis!” he said.