The former members of Lostprophets have spoken out about the behaviour of singer Ian Watkins in the lead-up to his convictions child for sex crimes. The members, who’ve formed a new band, No Devotion, and distanced themselves from the frontman, describe Watkins as a “fucking cunt.”
“He was talking about looking forward to the next record – he thought we’d return to being as successful as we’d been five years before,” guitarist Lee Gaze recounted to The Guardian, remembering the last time that he saw Watkins, back in December 2012. “He seemed OK that day.”
Gaze said he can no longer listen to the music he made with his former band, saying, “I can’t [listen to it]. It’s tainted, because he was the voice of the band, and it was his lyrics.” Meanwhile, bassist Stuart Richardson has opened up on the deceit that Watkins displayed towards loved ones.
“A day before the charges went public, we heard he’d been arrested and immediately we knew the band was over,” Richardson, who like every member of the band besides Watkins is a father, said. “The next morning, we started reading tweets about what he tried to do. And we couldn’t believe it.”
“Over last year-and-a-half, my life has been, like… you know the end of The Usual Suspects? I just feel like I’ve had plot twist after plot twist. I can’t believe the things Ian’s capable of. Up until the final second he said he was innocent. He destroyed his family’s life, giving them a glimpse of hope every time he said he was innocent. His mum thought he was innocent. What a fucking cunt,” he added.
However, Richardson insists that he and the other former Lostprophets members aren’t victims, and while the end of the band’s successful, 15-year career has been “horrible, torture,” he stresses, “There are bigger victims in this whole thing, there are families trying to deal with this right now.”
The interview marks the first time the former members of the Welsh group have spoken out about the crimes of their frontman, who is now serving a 35-year jail term, since the formation of their new band with Thursday singer Geoff Rickly, and since the release of their sole statement last year.
“Many of you understandably want to know if we knew what Ian was doing. To be clear: we did not. We are heartbroken, angry, and disgusted at what has been revealed,” they wrote, distancing themselves from Watkins and insisting they stand with his betrayed fans, family, and victims.
No Devotion are currently gearing up to play their first string of live dates at the end of this month in the UK. “We just wrote music. I didn’t know if anyone would want to hear it, I didn’t know if anyone ever would hear it. I just needed to occupy my brain. We just needed this,” said Richardson.
Listen: No Devotion – Stay
