Jonathan Hanley spoke to Jesse Leach, the Christian frontman of metalcore's KILLSWITCH ENGAGE



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Jonathan: I'm a pastor now, I know your dad is, or was. . .

Jesse: He is officially retired because he's a fulltime professor now. He teaches theology in a college called Concordia. But he still on weekends will sub for other ministers. Because he loves it. He won't admit it but he loves it even though he's retired. And he's good at it.

Jonathan: Do you ever listen to him preach in church?

Jesse: Oh yeah. He's actually the one guy that I really appreciate because he comes from such a different point of view. He's not tied up in the politics of the church. He doesn't get bogged down with the dogmatics of organized religion. Even though he is a Lutheran minister, his world view has changed especially since he started teaching. It has made him more accepting and less "hellfire and brimstone", which I think is great. As Christians, the message of love should be the one thing you're doing if you're preaching Christianity. And I think these days it gets bogged down with the finger-pointing. Bring people into the love of God and then everything else should take its course. I believe in God, but I'm a musician, not a minister. I feel that if you lead people in a certain direction, they'll catch on. My father always says that the Spirit will lead after that, and I think that's what I try to do with my music.

I think with this last record especially, there's a lot of human elements that I allow to come out. Some of my doubts. Some of my insecurities. I allow them to show in songs like "It Falls On Me" or "Embrace The Journey", where I'm talking in a broader scheme about contemplating God. I like the idea of God, the vastness, the alien aspect of God that we could never capture in this life. That's kind of what I'm pointing toward now.

Jonathan: Do you still every now and then manage to sit down and have a whisky with your dad?

Jesse: Yes. It's funny because I didn't really know my dad. . . truly know who he was until I was about 30. And right before the Times Of Grace record, I hit a real dark patch in my life. And so did my father. He never really used to drink in front of me. He was very protective. And I remember one day he brought out a bottle of scotch. Set it down in front of me. We both started drinking and by the end of the four-hour conversation, I'm like "Wow, I'm actually starting to get to know who this man really is." So it has become a bit of a tradition. We don't get drunk like we used to. So yes, I enjoy that with my father, in moderation these days.

Jonathan: Why is there such a fascination, particularly in metal, for both God and the Devil?

Jesse: Wow, that's a great question! I think for me it's just the whole meaning of life thing. That's a deeper thing for me. I can't really speak for metal, but yeah you're right. . . the obsession with the Devil. . . I think it was originally a shocking thing, to sort of put the middle finger up to society. But nowadays it's pretty gimmicky. And a lot of guys who claim to be Satanists, I know for a fact, are not. They are using it as a tool to get people to listen to them. Which is really interesting because it's kinda like a business move now. And I'm sure people would deny it until they're blue in the face.

Jonathan: There's a bit of controversy here in France where people try to get Hellfest banned. You know, "Satan's festival". A lot of Catholics and some Evangelicals. What would you like to say to those Christians who just say "Oh it's a satanic thing we need to get it banned"?

Jesse: Lighten up, take a breath and pick your battles. This is not a battle you should be fighting. There's plenty of other things that you can fight for in the name of God. In this festival, sure people get drunk and they can be debaucherous, but that happens everywhere. This is not a satanic festival, at least from what I can tell. I don't sense it, I don't feel it here. But yeah, there's a lot more you can be focusing on than banning a music concert. And it makes you look bad. It makes Christians look even worse. We're not that uptight. We shouldn't be. If God is graceful, if God is loving, let him be graceful and loving. Don't try to step in the way and say "In the name of God, we do this!" You can do that with certain things in life. There's plenty other ways to do that and other battles to pick. Hellfest shouldn't be one of them, in my opinion. CR

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.