US metal band Isis sent abuse after James Foley beheading

Isis have been forced to changed their Facebook name to 'Isis the band'

A US heavy metal band named Isis have been receiving abuse online by people mistaking them for the militant Islamist group responsible for the beheading of James Foley. (Wikimedia Commons )

The US metal band Isis has been receiving online abuse by people apparently mistaking them for the militant Islamist group responsible for the beheading of American photojournalist James Foley.

The group’s unfortunate title has forced them to change their name from Isis to ‘Isis the band’ on their official Facebook page, which has over 170,000 likes, to combat offensive comments.

The Islamic State (Isis) released a gruesome video showing a suspected British jihadist killing Mr Foley, before threatening the life of another journalist, Steven Sotloff.

The band formed in Boston in 1997 before moving to California and released nine albums together, including Pantopticon and Celestial. They split in 2010 but some members of Isis will be performing with members of Deftones in a tour later this year.

The group said fans are also feeling uncomfortable about wearing their merchandise after the recent events.

"Fans have emailed us that they're reluctant to wear our T-shirts now and we've also gotten some off-colour comments," former drummer Aaron Harris told ABC News.

"Just like our fans, we've been watching the news in disbelief. We haven't commented on it because we haven't been an active band since 2010, even though our music does live on. We maintain our Facebook page to keep people up-to-date on our current musical projects.”

A representative from their music label Ipecac described the mix-up as an “unfortunate situation”.

“Of course a few less than enlightened people are not seeing the distinction between an inactive band of musicians and a band of terrorists involved in current world affairs,” he said.