Tim Lambesis of As I Lay Dying: "I would say maybe one in 10 Christian rock bands we toured with were actually Christian."

"We toured with more than 'Christian bands' who actually aren't Christians than bands that are. In 12 years of touring with As I Lay Dying, I would say mayhap i in 10 Christian rock bands nosotros toured with were actually Christian."

Tim Lambesis, one-time frontman of As I Lay Dying.

Has 'Christian rock music' go a scam, driven more by coin than bodily religious beliefs?  Aye, according to Tim Lambesis, the once-popular atomic number 82 singer of As I Lay Dying who is now a declared atheist and says most other 'Christian stone bands' are  basically fronts.

Lambesis is besides at the offset of a half-dozen-twelvemonth prison judgement after pleading guilty to hiring a hitman to impale his ex-married woman, which ways he has very little to lose at this point.  "I really wasn't the first guy in Every bit I Lay Dying to cease being a Christian," Lambesis explained in a lengthy interview with Alternative Press. "In fact, I think I was the third. The two who remained kind of stopped talking about it, and then I'g pretty sure they dropped information technology, too."

"Nosotros talked about whether to keep taking money from the 'Christian market'.  Nosotros had this bizarrely 'noble' thing.  Like, 'Well, nosotros're not passing forth any bad ideas. Nosotros're just singing about real life stuff. Those kids need to hear virtually real life, considering they live in a bubble'."

Lambesis said Equally I Lay Dying wasn't solitary in the charade.  "Nosotros toured with more 'Christian bands' who really aren't Christians than bands that are. In 12 years of touring with As I Lay Dying, I would say possibly one in 10 Christian bands nosotros toured with were really Christian bands."

Information technology gets worse.

"I remember one Christian festival where an interviewer wanted one of the guys to share his testimony.  And he just froze up and let i of the guys who was still a Christian answer the question. We laughed about information technology afterward, but nosotros were only laughing because it was and then bad-mannered.When kids would want to pray with us afterwards shows, I'd exist similar, "Um, get alee and pray!"  I would just allow them pray.  I'd say 'Amen.'  If praying while I have my hand on their shoulder makes them feel amend, I didn't desire to take that abroad from them.  When they would specifically ask me to pray for something, I'd say, 'I don't really similar to pray out loud, only I'll take that with me to the bus.'"

Sorry kids, they were but doing it for the coin.

"Yes. Information technology was cowardly, looking dorsum. But did I really want to get into a huge explanation?  Earlier my abort, my programme was to bout for as many actually adept years that we actually had left—iv, five.  I wanted to save up that money and and then stop doing it altogether, stay home with my kids, have the money we needed.  If I had to piece of work at McDonalds, it would easily pay the bills.  Because my house would be paid off, and all we'd need was food."