Way the hell back in 1981, Chicago post-punk scenester Al Jourgenson founded a gothy synthpop band called Ministry. Over their first few releases, Ministry found their way toward a punishing and hugely influential industrial metal sound, which helped spark an entire underground scene. When that scene went mainstream in the ’90s, Ministry became a huge name. They played the main stage on the 1992 Lollapalooza tour, and their classic 1992 album Psalm 69 went platinum. Since then, Ministry have had a checkered history, with Jourgenson as the only permanent member, and they’ve continued to crank our records independently since splitting from Warner Bros. in the early ’00s. But now, Jourgenson is ready to retire the Ministry project after one final run.
As Bloodstock gets closer, we delve deep into the line up to find out more about some of the bands playing the New Blood and EMP stages at this years event.
Today we chat with Apothis
Please introduce yourselves.
Hello, we are Apothis. A Guernsey-based 5 piece band comprising of: Drew Baudains – Vocalist Leon ‘Axel’ Roze – Guitar Nate Le Messurier – Guitar Tom Relf – Bassist Michael Davies- Drums
How would you describe your sound?
We’re a blend of metalcore and deathcore, more melodic influences followed by crushing, high energy riffs.
How did you land your spot on the Bloodstock bill?
We got our spot via the Channel Islands Metal 2 the Masses competition.
How tough was the competition this year?
There were limited bands playing, however no less formidable competition.
What does playing at Bloodstock mean to you?
This is a dream come true to play at a festival, especially Bloodstock. The last Channel Islands M2TM competition was 12 years ago so we’re very eager to show Bloodstock what we’ve got and that there’s a strong music community in Guernsey and the wider Channel Islands.
For people who’ve never seen you live, what can they expect at Bloodstock?
Everyone will be in for a great time, we will bring the energy, the ripping riffs and know we’ll get people moving.
What day are you performing?
We are playing on Saturday.
What other bands are you looking forward to watching at Bloodstock this year?
We all have a variety of bands we want to see as the lineup this year is amazing. Drew – ‘Lamb of God, Fit for an Autopsy and Judas Priest baby’ Axel – ‘Lamb of God, Bleed from Within, Slaughter to Prevail’ Nate – ‘200 Stab Wounds, Lamb of God, Sepultura’ Tom – ‘Lamb of God, Judas Priest, Slaughter To Prevail, Sepultura, Shining, Evil Scarecrow, Vended’Michael – ‘Northlane, Lamb of God, Sepultura’
Playing the New Blood Stage is just the first steppingstone in a bands journey. What’s next in your plans for world domination?
This is the best opportunity we can have to really spread the Guernsey music scene and use this as a big step up, make connections and hopefully get to play even more gigs in the UK or possibly further!
It’s hard to get opportunities to play off this rock so you know we’ll bring our best.
Are you camping with the fans? Which campsite are you heading for?
Due to the tickets being sold out, we’ll be camping in the artists camp. However, we’ll be headed to Midgard to find some parties.
You’ve gotta keep hydrated at Bloodstock, what is your drink of choice for the weekend?
We may have to keep this one light, so only a few spots of beers, ciders, tequila and maybe whiskey.
Though a nice, refreshing water will be the shout for Saturday!
Staind frontman Aaron Lewis has laid out a sweeping view of what he believes has gone wrong with American society, arguing that the country was built on a moral framework drawn from the Bible and that removing it has left the culture unravelling. Speaking on a recent episode of the podcast Pickin’ It Out With Andrew Pope, Lewis also delivered a blunt assessment of smartphones and social media, describing the phone as something closer to a drug people carry around in their hand all day. The comments arrive a week after the release of his sixth solo country album, Give My Country Back.
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One of rock’s most outspoken frontmen goes deep on faith, society and the smartphone era — Scott Penfold covers Aaron Lewis’ latest interview and the rest of the weekend’s biggest rock and metal headlines on Monday’s Metal Breakdown Daily. Download the free Loaded Radio App on Apple iOS and Google Play and stream the broadcast now.
What Lewis Said
Asked about the state of society, Lewis argued that he has watched a civilization decline in real time. In his telling, the willingness to work for things has evaporated, instant gratification has replaced patience, and commitments that were once treated as permanent — he pointed specifically to marriage vows — are now treated as circumstantial. He described those as small pieces of a much larger problem, and said that God, religion and merit-based systems have all been pulled out of American life.
Turning to how he was raised, Lewis said the standard he grew up with was to treat people as you’d want to be treated and to judge them by their character rather than their skin colour, which he described as something nobody chooses. He argued that the country was further from racism during his childhood than at any point he can remember, and questioned whether the current climate is the product of deliberate efforts to divide people. He tied that to the phrase “one nation under God, indivisible,” framing shared belief as essential to holding the country together.
Then came the line that gave the interview its headline. Lewis said the United States was “founded on the beliefs and the moral compass that the Bible provides”, and argued that the country’s economic success and technological output over the last century — everything from electricity to the automobile — flowed from American ingenuity operating within a shared set of standards. His conclusion was that the country needs to return to it.
His Take On Smartphones Is The Part Everyone Will Recognize
The section of the conversation likely to resonate furthest beyond his own audience had nothing to do with politics.
Lewis said his children’s and grandchildren’s generations have no reference point for what life was like before the smartphone, describing the device as an electronic drug carried around in the hand all day, and arguing life was freer and more enjoyable before it. He said it has made people impatient and rewired everything around instant gratification.
He was equally direct about social media, characterizing the platforms as a place where people construct a fantasy version of themselves with all realism stripped out — and noting that the same tools let anyone say something destructive about humanity and find a large audience willing to believe it.
Whatever your politics, that particular critique is one you’ll hear from just about every corner of the culture right now.
Lewis released Give My Country Back on July 17 via Big Machine Label Group, his sixth solo country record. Produced by Sol Philcox-Littlefield, it pairs traditional honky-tonk roots with a heavier modern country production, and Lewis co-wrote five of the songs with longtime collaborators including Jeffrey Steele and Bobby Pinson, with further contributions from Casey Bethard and Travis Meadows among others.
Anyone surprised by these comments hasn’t been paying attention for the last five years.
Lewis has been one of the most openly political figures in rock and country since 2021’s “Am I The Only One”, a song that topped Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart on the strength of airplay, sales and streaming, and drew millions of streams in its opening week. It went gold, and it made him a lightning rod — celebrated by one half of the audience and written off by the other, often over the same lyrics.
What’s worth understanding, regardless of where you land on the man, is the scale he operates at. Lewis has two No. 1 Billboard country album debuts to his name with Town Line and Sinner, a platinum-certified collaboration in “Country Boy” featuring George Jones and Charlie Daniels, and a catalogue that has now passed 5.7 billion career streams worldwide. In 2024 he received Pandora’s Billionaires Plaque for surpassing a billion streams on that platform alone. He’s also recorded with Willie Nelson, Alison Krauss and Vince Gill.
He remains the frontman of Staind, the multi-platinum band he co-founded in 1995, whose most recent album Confessions Of The Fallen arrived in 2023.
Aaron Lewis said on the Pickin’ It Out With Andrew Pope podcast that America was founded on the moral framework provided by the Bible
He argued society is unravelling, citing attitudes toward work, marriage and merit-based systems
Lewis said he was raised to judge people by character rather than skin colour, and questioned whether current racial division is being deliberately stoked
He described smartphones as an electronic drug carried in the hand all day and said social media strips realism out of life
The comments come a week after his sixth solo country album, Give My Country Back, was released July 17 via Big Machine Label Group
Lewis’ catalogue has surpassed 5.7 billion career streams worldwide
FAQ
What did Aaron Lewis say about the Bible?
Speaking on the podcast Pickin’ It Out With Andrew Pope, Lewis said the United States was founded on the beliefs and moral compass provided by the Bible, and argued that the country’s success flowed from a shared set of standards he believes have since eroded.
Where did Aaron Lewis make these comments?
The comments were made during an appearance on “Pickin’ It Out With Andrew Pope,” a podcast hosted by singer-songwriter Andrew Pope.
What did Aaron Lewis say about smartphones and social media?
Lewis compared the smartphone to a drug carried around in the hand all day, said younger generations have no reference point for life before it, and argued social media encourages people to present a fantasy version of themselves.
What is Aaron Lewis’ new album?
Give My Country Back, his sixth solo country album, was released July 17, 2026 via Big Machine Label Group and produced by Sol Philcox-Littlefield.
Is Aaron Lewis still in Staind?
Yes. Lewis remains the frontman of Staind, which he co-founded in 1995, alongside his solo country career. The band’s most recent album, Confessions Of The Fallen, was released in 2023.
Agree with him or not, Aaron Lewis has never once softened an opinion to make it easier to hear — and at 5.7 billion streams, plenty of people are listening. What did you make of what he had to say? Let us know in the comments, and follow Loaded Radio for daily rock and metal news.
AMON AMARTH announce The Allfather Awakens – a ten-song masterwork that further cements the legacy of the Swedish metal titan’s spectacularly memorable riffs and unflinching melodic aural power. The Allfather Awakens sees its release October 2 via Metal Blade Records. For Amon Amarth, a new album marks the beginning of a new world. As with previous records, Oden, the Norse “all […]
ENCASEMENT will unleash its self-titled debut full-length on September 4th through a joint collaboration between Hypaethral Records and I, Voidhanger Records. ENCASEMENT is the solo black metal project of James Thompson, formed in 2024 through what began as a simple creative exercise and evolved into something far more personal. The venture found direction with the opening passage […]
At the top of this year, Nashville-based singer-songwriter Joy Oladokun released a very moving single “Nothing Comes Easy.” Today, she’s returned with another thoughtful single “Kind,” which also announces her new album Hope Is A Heavy Thing that’s out September 25.
My Dying Bride helped birth and later perfect (see Turn Loose the Swans) the doom/death genre in the early ’90s. By the late ’90s, however, the lineup that left a seismic impact on extreme metal began to crumble. The band has admirably carried on since further cementing their legend, even in spite of perhaps their most recognizable member — original vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe — formally departing the band last year.
Now nearly 30 years after they last performed together, former MDB members Stainthorpe, co-founding guitarist Calvin Robertshaw, co-founding drummer Rick Miah, and original bassist Adrian Jackson have reemerged as Towards the Sinister to perform material drawn primarily from the their landmark debut EP Symphonaire Infernus et Spera Empyrium through 1996’s Like Gods of the Sun.
“What an opportunity we have ahead of us,” Robertshaw tells Decibel. “To be back in the presence of lifelong friends and musical practitioners who created iconic songs that helped to shape a genre is incredible. The camaraderie is still there and the banter flows like we’ve never had a day apart. This period had a lasting effect on those who first heard these songs and having this chance to perform the classics again will only strengthen our bond and push us to create more in the future.”
While their future remains unwritten, you can be to the first read about it by following Towards the Sinister on Instagram, (if you must) Facebook and the band’s official website. Live appearances announcements and info on merch drops will follow shortly. In the meantime, find me in the comments begging them to play “God Is Alone” and the original “Sear Me.”
In 2003 Swedish philosopher Nick Bostrom devised a thought experiment centred on the programming of an AI whose sole objective was to produce paperclips. Given its advanced rate of learning, the AI’s survivalist approach would eventually lead it to compete with humans for appropriate resources; and given its super-intelligenc, likely win the battle. Known as the Paperclip Maximizer, the theory essentially suggested that AI may well render all human endeavour obsolete. Cheery stuff.
But one man’s apocalypse scenario can be another’s creative spur. This is where The Claypool Lennon Delirium come in. The Great Parrot-Ox And The Golden Egg Of Empathy – the first album in seven years from the combined forces of Les Claypool and Sean Ono Lennon – is a fantastical concept work that warns against the perils of unchecked technology and reinforces the need for human connection. The whole idea is bolstered by a 24-page comic book conceived by longtime ally Rich Ragsdale.
“Because we were going in to make our third album, I think Les and I both wanted something extra-special,” says Lennon. “We’d always thought it would be cool to do a Delirium rock opera, like Tommy or S.F. Sorrow, or even Yellow Submarine. I’d been thinking a lot about AI and the paperclip dilemma and all that stuff. And Les had a whole bunch of characters that he’d come up with. So we just started incorporating them into this world and building out the story.”
The tale takes place in the fading dominion of Cliptopia, where an army of robots – led by advanced AI figure Cliptron – are assimilating everything, humans included, into branded paperclips. The only form of resistance is Hippard O. Campus Jr. (rebel son of the Clipnex corporation’s founder) and his doughty seafaring pal, Colonel O’Coren. Their quest involves the Isle of Lucidity, a Ministry of Manatees and, ultimately, an encounter with the Great Parrot-Ox of the album title.
It all sounds like a lark, and indeed it often is. But behind the surreal narrative and playful imagery lie sobering questions about the abuse of power, societal collapse and the value of compassion.
“Initially, we’d been kicking around some ideas about a longform animated project,” says Claypool. “Then as we started working on it, we found the songs had a bit of a thread to them. In terms of subject matter, it just happened to work out for us that we’re all now in the midst of discovery and fear and confusion and glory, however you want to perceive it.”
The belated follow-up to 2019’s cosmically inclined South Of Reality, The Great Parrot-Ox has been three years in the making – which is perhaps less to do with labour than it is logistics. Aside from his day job as leader, bassist and chief songwriter of Primus, the prolific Claypool has also been involved with other schemes, including the Fearless Flying Frog Brigade ensemble.
Lennon hasn’t been slacking either. An honorary Flying Frog himself, he’s been juggling a solo career with production duties for Temples and The Lemon Twigs, as well as being immersed in projects related to his parents. He co-wrote and co-produced 2023’s Oscar-winning animated short War Is Over! Inspired By The Music Of John And Yoko; and last year’s Mind Games box set, which he art-directed, landed him a Grammy.
Notwithstanding all these things, The Claypool Lennon Delirium is unique among their respective ventures. It’s a place where dramaturgical prog meets rich psychedelia, a voyage of discovery that mixes pathos, humour and hallucinatory invention. Pop-accessible one moment, Dadaist the next. The Great Parrot-Ox is easily the pair’s most ambitious statement yet.
The Delirium was founded on great chemistry. They even have pet names for one another: Lennon is Shiner, Claypool is the Colonel. “I feel like we complement each other because we’re very different,” say Lennon. “Les always teases me that I’m the Paul and he’s the John in the Delirium, because I tend to write more melodic structured songs and he’s just super out there and experimental. Not that I don’t have an experimental side – I do enjoy helping him finish off those weirder songs – but I think it’s a nice balance. There’s a kind of yin and yang going on.”
“Shiner and I are both fans of old psychedelia, and we’re constantly turning each other on to different things,” adds Claypool. “But we have a mindset when we get together. It’s very enjoyable working with him. We laugh, we argue, we go crabbing in the ocean, we chase wild mushrooms. And Shiner’s incredibly musical. Obviously he has the genetics – not just from his father, but his mother as well. There’s an abstract element to him that I think is somewhat under-appreciated. And that’s my world; I love that shit. So it’s just a good fit.”
The duo tend to operate very differently: Claypool is a master of spontaneity, a grab-the-moment kind of guy, while Lennon tends to pore over an idea, adding elements and layers as he sees fit, continually refining. Their music finds its golden meaning in the tension between the two. “We tug at each other all the time,” says Claypool with a laugh. “It’s those conflicts and differences of opinion that make the unique magic. I throw warts and barnacles and pimples at it, then there’s this beauty that Shiner throws at it.”
The new album has plenty of both, from the Zappa-like devilment of Claypool’s Troll Bait (and its bizarre Willy Wonka-ish choral sections) to the acid-rock chug of Lennon’s Melody Of Entropy. Then The Golden Egg Of Empathy is a prime illustration of how they feed off one another. The song is powered by a dazzling Claypool bass vamp that hops and snaps like popcorn under heat. “I had the melody and the chords, and I asked Les to come up with some amazing funk bass line to open it up,” recalls Lennon. “And he just did it on the spot! The recording you hear is the first time he ever played it.”
(Image credit: Jay Blakesberg)
Adds Claypool: “That’s just the way I work. I’ve done a lot of records with Tom Waits, where it’s always about capturing moments. And those are the glorious moments.”
The Golden Egg Of Empathy is one of several tracks that signpost the Delirium’s prog credentials. That bass line feels akin to Tony Levin’s early 80s work with King Crimson. “Tony is one of my all-time favourites,” says Claypool. “I adore that guy’s playing. I was a big 80s Crimson fan and then got into earlier Crimson through working with Shiner, because that’s where he came from.”
Everybody thought my father was crazy for buying me a bass. They thought I was going to be a loser drug addict
Les Claypool
“My favourite Crimson records are Larks’ Tonguesand Red,” says Lennon. “Les is more into the Discipline era, but I never got into that stuff until I met him. In fact, we play Thela Hun Ginjeet live. I’ve been a prog fan since I was 17, pretty much. Discovering Mahavishnu Orchestra’s The Inner Mounting Flame totally changed my life. That then led to Crimson, Yes and weirder bands like Soft Machine and Utopia; all that stuff. And Genesis, who were so sophisticated, and their stages too. It almost felt like the classical music equivalent of rock music. It feels like where Sgt. Pepper was headed, showing the world that rock’n’roll could be high art. I still think of prog rock – the good stuff anyway – as the peak for me. It was everything I wanted music to be: epic, conceptual, experimental.”
By contrast, Claypool cites Geddy Lee as a formative influence. “In the early days I was obsessed with Rush,” he says. “I was about 14 when I went to my first concert: Rush at the Cow Palace in San Francisco with Pat Travers opening [in November 1978]. And I was always a huge Yes fan, a major Chris Squire fan. I’ve bought Fragile multiple times over the years. It’s just a spectacular piece of music.”
Prog leanings aside, he and Lennon have arrived at their current point through very different routes. The deeply strange The Wake Up Call – another highlight of The Great Parrot-Ox – references Claypool’s childhood in working-class California, where he was born into a family of car mechanics. The thrust of the song – ‘So you want to be an artist? Dabbing colours all the day?’ – suggests that careers in the creative field were frowned upon.
“Everybody thought my father was crazy for buying me a bass guitar, because they thought I was going to be a loser and a drug addict,” Claypool remembers. “My dad was always very supportive, but he always did say: ‘Look, kid. The music thing’s great, but learn a trade.’ But I’m a firm believer that anything you can get a kid to focus on is a wonderful thing. Just having something you’re proud of gives you self-esteem. I had to explain the whole perspective of The Wake Up Call to Shiner, because he didn’t get it.”
It was so weird being the son of John Lennon… I’ve now gotten to a point where I actually like what I do
Sean Ono Lennon
Indeed, a career in music seemed inevitable for Lennon. At the same time, his motivation was uniquely complex. “I feel like I wound up playing music for different reasons than other musicians,” he says. “I don’t even think I played because I had talent; I played because of that feeling of wanting to get closer to my dad. With my first couple of solo albums [1998’s Into The Sun and 2006’s Friendly Fire], I was so insecure because it was so weird being the son of John Lennon and trying to write my own songs.
“But I’ve since been in five or six bands, toured hundreds of times and written a lot. I’ve now gotten to a point where I actually like what I do, which is sort of new for me. The older I get and the more songs I write, the more I feel like I’m pretty good.”
The Great Parrot-Ox is more than pretty good. In fact, it’s the best thing Lennon has ever put his name to. And in Claypool – his on-off collaborator for a decade now – he may just have found his perfect foil. Alongside Primus and Colonel Les Claypool’s Fearless Flying Frog Brigade, the Delirium are playing the States as part of this summer’s Claypool Gold tour. And while Primus will then gear up for their first UK dates in nine years, the Delirium may also be here, in their own right, sometime soon.
“We’re talking about possibly doing shows early next year,” Claypool reveals. “We want to bring The Great Parrot-Ox stage production together, incorporating Rich Ragsdale’s amazing art and vision. If it’s financially viable, it’d be residencies in various places. It would be so cool to set up at a theatre somewhere in London and have it run for a handful of days.”
“I would love to tour the UK,” enthuses Lennon. “Put it in the article! Maybe it’ll convince the agents to let us do it!”
Die Corrupted Blood – Pit Session ist das intimste Event-Format von Corrupted Blood – viermal jährlich kleine Clubs, in denen der Schweiß von der Decke tropft. In diesem Jahr exklusiv während des Wacken Open Air im legendären Landgasthof. Acts werden nicht angekündigt und reichen von CBR-Bands zu überraschenden Underplays. Es gibt keinen Livestream. Man muss dabei gewesen sein!
As Bloodstock gets closer, we delve deep into the line up to find out more about some of the bands playing the New Blood and EMP stages at this years event.
Today we chat with Inscape
Please introduce yourselves.
We are INSCAPE an Electronic Alternative Metal band from Swansea, South Wales.
Vocals – Ethan Shields, Guitars – Luke Morgan and Joel Williams, Bass – Mutley and Drums – Liam Hawkes
How would you describe your sound?
We blend dancey beats, groovy riffs and heavy breakdowns. You can expect to have a boogie and throw down in the pit in the space of one song!
How did you land your spot on the Bloodstock bill?
We won the South Wales M2TM heats – but we actually got knocked out in the first round. There was a band that pulled out of the second round and we were invited back in as a wildcard pick – which completely took us off guard, so you can imagine how shocked we were to actually win it! We are beyond thrilled to have this opportunity and excited to show everyone our live show!
How tough was the competition this year?
The competition was very tough! Every heat contained such a variety of bands, it was great to see how metal is thriving in South Wales and also how diverse it is! Being put in heats with such a variety of bands was so great because we never really get that opportunity at normal shows. There are so much talented bands that we have played with that are also deserving of a place on the New Blood Stage!
What does playing at Bloodstock mean to you?
Bloodstock has been on our list to go to for a while but the stars have never aligned until now. One of the main things we have been told about Bloodstock is that it’s got a real close family feel to it and also the fact that there is so much emphasis on people supporting upcoming bands there. There’s not many festivals of this magnitude that give upcoming bands this platform and nuture grassroots music like this, it has really inspired us. We are so thankful and determined to make the most of this opportunity.
For people who’ve never seen you live, what can they expect at Bloodstock?
We hope to bring a fun and energetic live show that blends plenty of different genres ranging from metal, prog and various forms of electronic music! If you like breakdowns with a side of sub drops and a hefty serving of donks – we got you covered!
What day are you performing?
We are performing on Saturday
What other bands are you looking forward to watching at Bloodstock this year?
There’s so many, Lamb of God, Northlane, The Scratch, Leporus to name a few – and our fellow Welsh compatriots in Groom the Giant of course!
Playing the New Blood Stage is just the first steppingstone in a bands journey. What’s next in your plans for world domination?
We have just released an EP so we want to continue to promote this, we have new material in the works – some of which we will be playing at Bloodstock! But the main hope is to play more consistent shows around the UK and hit the festivals hard next summer… and to come back and play the Sophie stage next time!
Are you camping with the fans? Which campsite are you heading for?
This is something we need to talk about haha! We are just happy to be involved to be honest, any flat ground will do! WE’RE AT BLOODSTOCK BABYYYY!
You’ve gotta keep hydrated at Bloodstock, what is your drink of choice for the weekend?
We’re on our best best behaviour! The plan is to smash our set and then we can have a few beers to celebrate!
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