Silent Planet Slam Tim Pool For Backing Phil Labonte's "Therapy Is For Women" Commentary: "I Exclusively Take Mental Health Advice From Podcasters Who Are Afraid To Take Off Their Hats..."

Californian alternative metalcore band Silent Planet have somewhat indirectly thrown their hat in the ring when it comes to the recent debate over All That Remains vocalist Phil Labonte‘s views on therapy. Earlier this month, Labonte created some heated discussion when he went on to claim that therapy is ineffective for men.

Labonte, who also fashioned himself a side gig as a right-wing political commentator, penned this 2024 op-ed piece for Fox News. In it, he claimed that modern society is facing a growing crisis of men and boys withdrawing from society.

Labonte cited numerous reasons for the situation, claiming a lack of traditional father figures, a decline of interest in higher education, and an absence of places for males to congregate exclusively, among others, were accelerating the crisis. Labonte cited statistics of a rise in male suicide rates as being one of the direct effects of the purported crisis.

Earlier this month, Labonte however set off a new round of controversy, when he expanded upon his views on how to rectify the situation. He was quoted as telling Today’s Boondoggle Podcast that “therapy is for women.” Labonte direct quote on the matter read:

“Suicide among men my age — 50 and above — the rates are up. Men have to have meaning. Men need something to do. The idea that men can go to therapy and that’s gonna solve their problems is ridiculous. Therapy is for women. Men don’t solve their problems by talking. Men solve their problems through action. So men should be doing things with other men, like building things, going out and fixing cars, whatever it is.

But those kind of activities are what will help a man feel accomplished, help a man feel like he’s got purpose. Just going and talking to a therapist, that’s not what fixes men. That’s not what fixes men at all. Men need goals that are achievable, and they need to make progress to those goals. That kind of stuff is what will help a man feel empowered, feel good about himself. That’s the kind of stuff that men need. And the idea that all of society is telling men, ‘Oh, you should be more like women,’ or, ‘You should go to therapy,’ none of these things help men.

And the evidence is in the statistics. The evidence is in the suicide rate. It’s in the depression rate. It’s in the fact that men are checking out from society. These ideas don’t work for men because men and women are not the same. And this is not in any way an attack on women, but men and women need to be treated as if they are men and women. They’re two different, different psychologies. And that’s not to say that there aren’t men with more feminine characteristics or women with more masculine characteristics, but broadly, men are different than women, and they need different things to make them feel emotionally fulfilled and psychologically acceptable.”

Labonte‘s comments drew criticism from Lindsay Schoolcraft (ex-Cradle Of Filth), a mental health advocate who has woven her experiences overcoming trauma into her latest release “Harrowing“. Last week Schoolcraft called Labonte‘s stance, “extreme toxic”, and suggested Labonte himself may be in need of therapy.

Labonte went on to respond in a video statement on social media, standing his ground and dismissively firing back at the criticism his stance on therapy has generated. Labonte closed his video with a parting shot directed towards Schoolcraft, stating, “Why are you saying that I should go to therapy? I’ve already told you, therapy’s for women.”

Labonte‘s views on therapy when it comes to males were picked up by Rock Feed. A post made on social media by that publication about Labonte‘s views saw his friend and longtime associate, right-wing political commentator Tim Pool adding his support, stating on X yesterday, June 22nd, “therapy is not for men thats it”. Labonte has been a frequent co-host/guest on Pool‘s ‘Timcast‘ podcast over the years.

Silent Planet‘s band account on X fired back directly at Pool‘s aforementioned post, and by extension, Labonte take on therapy, stating:

“I exclusively take mental health advice from podcasters who are afraid to take off their hats and are funded by Russia. by the way, just played some shows in Ukraine and it was great. met a man with his legs blown off by your beloved Russian army and he is still taller than you.”

Silent Planet‘s reply was met with a mixed reception on X, and even saw the band’s vocalist Garrett Russell take and respond to direct criticism via the following exchange:

Silent Planet‘s latter post would seemingly be in reference to the 2024 Tenet Media scandal. Silent Planet have a long history of political and social justice-inclined commentary and activism. Most recently, the band played two shows in Ukraine this month. The group previously used their 2025 track “Wick” to raise funds for Ukrainian children affected by the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine.