They were my favorite band and I considered Ian my idol. I got to meet them shortly before his arrest. I was in denial for awhile, I eventually accepted what was clear. I try a few times a year to listen to them, my brain still registers it as among the best music I’ve ever heard, but my mind can’t shake what the man behind the voice did. I think the betrayed was their best album, but in hindsight it’s very clearly him symbolically, and sometimes literally, talking about who he was and what he was doing. If you can get past associating him and the music I wouldn’t feel guilty. Whatever Pennys he’d earn from streaming he’ll likely never see. And the rest of the guys are, I believe, innocent. I’ve heard enough to say I believe they are.

To lighten the mood a bit, the betrayed was initially not released in America, but being the obsessed fan I was had to have a copy. I wanted to order the album from Amazon uk, I had enough for the album itself, but the shipping made it too much. However I was mere cents away from free shipping, so I searched for the cheapest free shipping item I could find. All this to say I couldn’t afford the album, but I could afford the album AND a random pack of post it notes.