Jon Schaffer, the founding guitarist of power-metal band Iced Earth, is talking again — and stirring up old wounds.
The 57-year-old musician was once best known for building a cult-favorite band out of Tampa’s late-’80s metal scene (though the band started under the name Purgatory while Schaffer was in Indiana). But after he was photographed as one of the first six rioters to breach the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, his name became linked to one of the most infamous days in modern politics. Schaffer turned himself in less than two weeks later, pleaded guilty to two felonies, and according to the government’s sentencing memorandum, was sentenced in October 2024 to three years’ probation, community service, and fines.
ICED EARTH Guitarist Jon Schaffer Arrested for Role in Riot at Capitol https://t.co/bxGDk26yqB pic.twitter.com/kZpfesVAMU
— Lambgoat (@lambgoat) January 18, 2021
The fallout for Iced Earth was swift. Longtime frontman Stu Block and bassist Luke Appleton quit within weeks, guitarist Jake Dreyer left, and side project Demons & Wizards ended when Hansi Kürsch walked away. Fans assumed the band’s future was over.
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Now, Schaffer has resurfaced on the Sunday, September 21 episode of Podcast of the Wicked to clear the air.
“Let me just take this opportunity to say, I hope that the fans out there will stop — I mean, my wish is that they would stop hating on Stu and on Hansi… The guys were pressured,” Schaffer told host Rose. “Some guys handled it better, some guys handled it very weak and kind of pathetic.”
When pressed about Block, 47, Schaffer didn’t mince words.
“The biggest issue when it comes to Stu is that he made a post [on Jan. 6, 2021] cheering it on and then flipped and that looks like a total poser move. You know what? It is a total poser move, but it’s okay. Forgive him, we did some great work together… I forgive him,” he said.
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Schaffer also revealed that lucrative offers have been on the table to bring Iced Earth back, but he’s not interested in a cash-grab comeback. “I’ve had great financial offers, so if it was about chasing money, but that’s a checkers move,” he explained. “The time is not right now… not anytime soon.”
While he says he remains close to Kürsch, 59, on a personal level, Schaffer admitted they’re unlikely to collaborate again. As for Block, he added that he doesn’t have “any ill will” but isn’t “interested in hanging out like we did.”
Shortly after the interview went public, Loudwire reported that Block responded via Facebook with just five words: “I’m absolutely gutted right now.”
Although Iced Earth may never return to its former glory, Block has hardly stepped away from music. Since leaving the band in 2021, he’s rejoined Canadian prog-metal vets Into Eternity, helped record a new album (near completion as of July, per The Metal Voice) and has been performing festival dates like ProgStorm.
