Bring me the Horizon is back stronger than ever, with the release of That’s the Spirit last week, their upcoming US headliner tour this fall and the killer show they just performed this week in New York City, you can safely say they’re becoming the center of attention once again. Taking advantage of their position, the band added some controversy to their plates by advocating drug use and bashing every religion out there.
Earlier this week, frontman Oliver Sykes had an interview with Metal Hammer discussing many topics, including his history with drug abuse. Sykes has been clean and sober for a while but apparently, still thinks everyone should experience drugs:
I don’t regret taking drugs – and I don’t know if I should say it, but everyone should do drugs at some point in their life.
You shouldn’t go through your life without experiencing acid, in my opinion. It used to be fun, it used to be an adventure. That’s why I did all those drugs.
After a while it stops being awesome, and that’s the reality. But it’s a hard reality to accept.
If you want to take it out of context, you can easily say Sykes is telling his young fans “Go and get a drug addiction, kids!” but even with his latter remark about not “being awesome” after using and abusing, it still poorly worded and may come across as irresponsible advocacy.
Fast forward to yesterday, when the band had a Reddit AMA and, as many other AMA’s, trolls and fans joined the forum and asked away what they wanted in hopes to get any sort of response. The Brits knew about how Reddit operates and decided to have some fun with their answers, including to the question below which, if you really read into it, does appear to be a legitimate question and the answer may also be legit:
As they were in full swing, they also responded about the exit of their former guitarist Jona Weinhofen (I Killed The Prom Queen) back in 2013:
I’m not sure if that was a real response and sentiment the band has about Weinhofen but as he never disclosed the reasons or who decided to fire him back then, I doubt it was an amicable split and they may think he’s a cock. Weinhofen was aware of the response and simply said on his twitter:
Apparently I’m a ‘cock’ pic.twitter.com/znObq11Kdn
— Jona Weinhofen (@jonaweinhofen) September 17, 2015
Weinhofen took the high road and stated his sentiment about the band’s new album:
A lot of people have asked my opinion on the new @bmthofficial record. I think they are fantastic songwriters & what I have heard rules — Jona Weinhofen (@jonaweinhofen) September 11, 2015
Now, that’s what I call a busy week. I’m sure the band knows that any press is good press and with their tour coming, they want to make sure you know who they are. Catch them on the road at the following dates:
10/1 — Orlando, Fla. @ Hard Rock
10/2 — Charlotte, N.C. @ The Fillmore
10/3 — Louisville, Ky. @ Champions Park (‘Louder Than Life‘)
10/5 — New York, N.Y. @ Terminal 5
10/7 — Worcester, Mass. @ Palladium
10/8 — Toronto, Ontario @ The Sound Academy
10/9 — Montreal, Quebec @ Metropolis
10/10 — Chester, Pa. @ PPL Park (‘Rock Allegiance‘)
10/12 — St. Louis, Mo. @ The Pageant
10/13 — Chicago, Ill. @ Aragon Ballroom
10/14 — St. Paul, Minn. @ Myth
10/16 — Dallas, Texas @ Southside Ballroom
10/18 — Austin, Texas @ Austin Music Hall
10/19 — Wichita, Kan. @ The Cotillion
10/20 — Denver, Colo. @ Fillmore
10/22 — Mesa, Ariz. @ Mesa Amphitheater (KUPD radio show)
10/24 — Sacramento, Calif. @ Gibson Ranch (‘Aftershock Festival‘)
10/25 — San Bernardino, Calif. @ San Manuel Amphitheater (‘Knotfest‘)
