P.O.D. Guitarist Quits...Gets Fired?

[NunoFreak]

P.O.D. and their guitarist Marcos Curiel have parted ways. Originally P.O.D. lead singer Sonny Sandavol said Curiel quit, but it has now come to light that Curiel was forced out of the band because of his desire to do side-projects with non-Christian bands.

"I was hoping I could do what Maynard [Keenan] does," said Curiel, who was a primary songwriter for P.O.D. "He's in Tool and A Perfect Circle. That's obviously not the case here. It got pretty sticky at the end about 'You need to prioritize where you're at with your music and where you're at with your walk with God.' I'm like, 'You guys are tripping, dude. I just want to be an artist, and if I can't have that freedom, I just want to fly.' If someone asks me to play with them, if someone asks me to write a song, I just want to be able to do that."

Curiel said P.O.D.'s problems with him are evident in the fact that he has been replaced by Jason Truby, former guitarist for Christian metal band Living Sacrifice.

"That was always an issue with them," Curiel said. "It should have never been about that. It should have been about the music."

Sandoval also hinted at spiritual differences in his e-mail. "I feel that there are still so many good things in store for those of us who have put our lives on the line for what we believe in," he wrote.

Curiel did not comment on his religious beliefs, but he said he was tired of playing Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. "I hate the facade of putting on a mask in front of fans and then behind the scenes acting like someone else," he said. "I just want to be myself all the time."

The guitarist said P.O.D. is not as righteous as their reputation. "The thing that's really bugging me out is the e-mail is portrayed all holy and sh--," he said of the letter, which ended with: "Please continue to keep P.O.D. and Marcos in your prayers. All our love is yours. Be blessed."

"I hate that. That's one of the main differences we had is philosophy. They're putting that out because they know their market and they know what kids are going to say about all that."

It seems like P.O.D. are doing the typical Christian thing: acting one way in public and being who they really are behind the scenes. Curiel is starting a new band with members of Sprung Monkey called Accident Experiment.

[areusad831]

big loss to the music community

[Mechanical Thought]

apparently POD are big in the US
i was unaware of this.

[emily]

yeah, they are. i dont really care for them. i always thought they were jewish?

[Mechanical Thought]

this could be true.

[lukin]

apparently POD are big in the US
i was unaware of this.

I haven't heard of then since their damned Alive song. I remember Duncan saying it was one of his favorite new bands though, so maybe olp will be disappointed.

[Mechanical Thought]

i sure as hell hope not.

[Staley]

"Youth of the Nation" and "Alive" were really big last year in the US.

[Joe Cooler]

yeah, they are. i dont really care for them. i always thought they were jewish?

Christian. POD is huge in most places in the states.They've been nominated for 3 Grammys over the past two years. Thats not saying much, but Satellite has sold over 5 million world wide. Anyhoo Marcos was kicked out for a few reasons. The main one was P.O.D has deep spiritual faith and Marcos doesnt hold the same beliefs as the rest of the band.. which of course leads to problems.

[Bandalero]

i hate christian bands, and that's cause my best friend is in one.

[cor3y]

Some of their stuff was cool, but I'm not too distraught over it. The whole rock/rap thing is just getting annoying now. Plus, theyre addition of some Spanish/Latin stuff just made it all the more annoying IMO.