NAPALM DEATH Frontman Says He Is 'Very Pro Mask': 'It Shows Respect For Your Fellow Human Beings'

NAPALM DEATH frontman Mark "Barney" Greenway has weighed in on the face mask debate, saying that wearing a mask during a pandemic "shows respect for your fellow human beings."

Grenway addressed the hot-button issue as lawmakers continue to push for their constituents to wear face masks to limit the spread of coronavirus. Months after his own advisers recommended it, President Donald Trump finally briefly wore a mask in public in July during a visit to wounded service members at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

Speaking to "Lambgoat Vanflip" podcast, Barney said about how his native United Kingdom has handled the coronavirus crisis so far (hear audio below): "This push for economic opening or whatever has meant that, inevitably, there's rises in cases in a lot of places.

"I'm no scientist, but the probability, to me, seems like it's gonna go up significantly; I just get that feeling. So that's where we are at the moment.

"People are wearing masks, generally speaking," he continued. "But the whole idea of wearing the mask is to, of course, protect anybody if you're carrying the virus. But you still have to socially distance; otherwise, you're defeating the object of the exercise.

"I'm very pro mask, I must be honest. I just think it's a human thing. If you can't be bothered to even partially protect people around you, then I don't know what that says for people.

"Just because you're asked to wear a mask, is that really like a pair of handcuffs on a person?" Barney asked rhetorically. "I don't get that mindset. I just don't get the logic of it… And I think it shows respect for your fellow human beings to wear a mask, actually. 'Cause it says, 'You know what? It might not be the endgame, but at least I value your safety, as a fellow human being."

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Surgeon General urged people to wear face coverings, saying they will promote freedom during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a study published in June, researchers from Texas A&M University, the California Institute of Technology and the University of California San Diego, concluded "that wearing of face masks in public corresponds to the most effective means to prevent interhuman transmission."

NAPALM DEATH will release its new studio album, "Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism", on September 18 via Century Media Records. The follow-up to 2015's "Apex Predator - Easy Meat" was again recorded with longtime producer Russ Russell and features artwork by Frode Sylthe.