⁠“It’s a roller coaster” — Faster Pussycat’s Taime Downe breaks silence on fiancée Kimberly Burch’s cruise ship death

Faster Pussycat frontman Taime Downe is getting candid about his fiancée Kimberly Burch’s cruise ship death for the first time.

The New York Post has reported that Burch plunged to her demise from the side of a cruise ship moments after she allegedly got into an argument with the ’80s rockstar on March 2. Speaking on SiriusXM’s Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk on Friday, May 30, Taime Downe, 60, said:

“It’s a roller coaster. I’m hanging in there. I’m just taking it a day at a time.” “And everybody thought going out on the road and doing what I do and being with my family in my band would be good for me. [I'll] get to see a bunch of fans and a bunch of friends across the country. So I think it'll be helpful,” he continued. “ I’ve taken their advice and I’m doing this. We’re going out with some cool bands.”

---

Everything we know about Kimberly Burch's demise as Taime Downe says he has an enmity with alcohol:

According to the outlet, Taime Downe and Burch, both 56, were aboard a Royal Caribbean ship named Explorer of the Seas for an 80s-themed experience. Faster Pussycat was invited to perform, alongside other bands like Men at Work, Squeeze, and Tiffany.

However, on the very first night of the seven-day journey, Burch lost her life in the accident. At the time, the ship was sailing between Miami and the Bahamas.

In his interview, Taime Downe said his "fingers are crossed" that the experience makes him feel better:

"I hope so. I'm just going out and doing what I love to do with the people I love," he said. "So, I think it can't be anything but therapeutic, you know what I mean?"

Reflecting on Burch's demise, he said:

"But I don't really wanna talk about it with strangers, 'cause it doesn't seem appropriate," he said. "It is what it is."

Burch's mom, Carnell, told TMZ back in March that Taime Downe was the one to break the news to her from the voyage. She also claimed that the pair had gotten into a “heated” argument and that Burch was inebriated before she fell.

A Royal Caribbean Group spokesperson told TMZ at the time,

“Our crew immediately launched a search and rescue effort, is working with local authorities, and we are providing support and assistance to the guest’s family during this difficult time. To respect the privacy of our guest’s family, we have no additional details to share.”

According to The Post, Taime Downe claimed his fiancée’s demise was “alcohol and prescription-related" during his interview.

“So I blame alcohol and pills on it,” he said. “There’s no way I’d touch booze. For me, that’s just completely disgusting in my brain, you know what I mean?” He added, “So I’ve got some hatred for booze, ’cause I loved the hell out of Kimberly, and it was just hard to deal with. We spent basically nine years together. This is just heavy s–t, and I’m just looking forward to playing shows and having fun.”

Noting that he didn't "wanna get into what her psyche was at the time," Taime Downe said that there are a lot of things that "make up people's lives at a certain time of their life" before noting that Kimberly's demise has "been hard on everybody."

Blabber Mouth has reported that, given that the Explorer of the Seas is registered in the Bahamas, the Nassau police have taken the reins of the case and have since cleared Taime Downe of any suspicions of foul activity.

Riki Rachtman, who once served as the host of MTV's Headbangers Ball and longtime friend of Taime Downe, took to Facebook Live on March 7 to slam trolls accusing his "best friend" of wrongdoing:

"I know that I would not the career that I have now if it wasn't for Taime Downe. I also know Kimberly Burch because I've been with Taime and Kimberly many, many, many times, to the point — I mean, Kimberly and Taime have been at my house many times."

He added,

"Kimberly and Taime have always had a very toxic relationship. They have been fighting a lot. They have always fought a lot. A lot of it had to with drugs and alcohol." But he insisted that Taime Downe "loved Kimberly very, very much" and "Kimberly loved Taime very, very much. However, they fought all the time. That is the true story."

He also claimed that there are clips online of Kimberly Burch allegedly "committing suicide and Taime was cleared of all charges."

"How's Taime doing? Well, how do you think he's doing? The woman that he's in love with, that he's lived with for the past eight years, committed suicide in front of him. And I feel horrible for Kimberly … that she had been in so much pain that she had to commit suicide. I know to be fact that Taime did absolutely nothing wrong, but Taime is going to be scarred for the rest of his life."

The New York Post has reported that the video in question, which is currently in the hands of the investigators, shows Burch scaling the cruise ship's railing before jumping off. However, it remains unclear if she jumped deliberately or if it was an accident. Her body has yet to be found.

Kimberly Burch's sister-in-law, Kellie Burch, told the Daily Mail that she is in disbelief that her sister would do something to hurt herself.

"She wouldn't do that," Kellie said. "We just want to know what happened," she added. "We just want answers… All we want is answers. We've had absolutely zero contact with the cruise company. We've emailed, we've called, and nobody has gotten back to us."

Her brother, Keith Burch, told The Post in March that his family feels "lost" without Kimberly:

“We feel lost … We have no answers at all,” he said. “Something happening to one of your loved ones, and not even knowing what happened — it’s awful.”

Kimberly Burch's family announced her demise in a statement on Facebook:

"It is with broken hearts that we share the sad news that Kimberly Burch has passed away," they wrote. "She was a beloved daughter, sister, sister-in-law and aunt. She will be greatly missed by all that knew and loved her. We ask for prayers during this time for our family as we try to wrap our minds around this heartbreaking tragedy. We love and miss you Kimberly Burch!!"

---

Blabber Mouth has reported that, according to a U.S. Coast Guard spokesperson, the incident took place about 20 miles away from Freeport, Bahamas. At the time, the band Squeeze was performing on stage, and the ship's captain announced the news via the public address system.

Crew members were immediately deployed to recover the missing person, with two nearby vessels also lending a hand. The ship had come to a halt to facilitate the search, though it eventually went on to dock at Nassau, a few hours behind schedule.