Informal Reader Poll: Who Can Do No Wrong By You?

I can’t imagine a world in which I punch Tom Araya. The idea is anathema to me. Tom and Slayer have been such an intrinsic part of my development as a person, and Tom’s always been the member of Slayer I find most chill and relatable. But not only could I not physically take a swing at the guy, I’d also have to push myself to demonize him thoroughly on this blog. If Tom were to come out now being like, “Emperor Rhombus is a mick homo who looks like the Wolfman had a miscarriage,” my first thought would be, Now hold on, let’s get the context of that statement…

Our musical gods were there for us during our darkest times, so we’re ready to excuse their most egregious moments of weakness. We don’t want to, and in polite company we will admit their flaws (“So, yes, okay, that wasn’t cool, and no one’s saying it was, but…“), and yet we’re ready to ignore them when it’s convenient.

The sheer amount of public support for Phil Anselmo I’ve seen from our readership after his racist fiasco was a perfect illustration of that — even though there was video footage that, with the sound off, was damning to Anselmo, many people, myself included, did their best not to believe what they’d seen, or at least not believe it had happened the way it appeared to. He was referencing white wine! Of coooourse! The reasoning is simple: Phil is one of us, and his music has had such an effect on us, so maybe it was okay just this one time (of course, it wasn’t one time, and it wasn’t okay).

So, you tell us: who can do no wrong for you? Who amongst your musical idols would have to work really fucking hard for you to disavow? Who could key your car, bang your girlfriend, and steal the pizza you just ordered, and it wouldn’t piss you off? And I know a lot of you self-aggrandizing jackasses are going to use this opportunity to say no one, and that you’re not a sheep or whatever the fuck–that ignores the point, and anyway I don’t buy it. Who’s the musician who you’ll stand up for in a fight, even when they’re wrong?

Let us know in the comments.