Politically-minded punk rockers Anti-Flag have pulled a pretty cool fast one that us plebians should admire them for.
Of course, that depends on how you look at their signing with major label RCA Records a couple of years back. Naturally, the cries of "sellout" came fast and furious at the quartet, who have always prided themselves on being a sort of working-class outfit. In a smooth business move though, they've kept their sights high, managed to step into the majors, come out virtually unscathed and are now utilizing that financial gain/big business money to support the independent world.
To explain, apparently the band only had a two-album contract that neither side seemed anxious to renew. Regardless, the quick step up to the big leagues generated enough dough for these Pittsuburgh natives to build their own studio and record seventh full-length The People Or The Gun.
Of course, a band as popular as Anti-Flag had no trouble wrangling up a new label. SideOneDummy jumped at the opportunity and will get the sucker into stores for a June 9 release date. As expected, the majority of The People Or The Gun revolves around the globe's political climate (i.e., government bailouts while ignoring the poor and so on). And, as expected, the band will continue their social outreach work with their new effort and live shows.
Drummer Pat Thetic says, "It's become a main priority to put the emphasis of our band and every show we play on community, whether it be canned food drives for local food banks, raising money to build wells in Africa, which we did on our U.S. tour, or clothing drives for the homeless on our Canadian tour."
In addition to raising funds, Anti-Flag have created the non-profit organizations Military Free Zone (combating a provision in the No Child Left Behind act that invades students' privacy for Military Recruitment purposes) and Underground Action Alliance (a networking site for social justice). As bassist Chris #2 says, "This is an extension of what our vision of punk rock is, was, and will always be."
A portion of the proceeds from the new album's pre-sales on the SideOneDummy website will be donated to Amnesty International.
The People Or The Gun tracklisting:
"Sodom, Gomorrah, Washington D.C. (Sheep in Shepherds Clothing)"
"The Economy is Suffering...Let It Die"
"The Gre(A)t Depression"
"We Are The One"
"You Are Fired (Take This Job)"
"This Is The First Night"
"No War Without Warriors (How Do You Sleep?)"
"When All The Lights Go Out"
"On Independence Day"
"The Old Guard"
"Teenage Kennedy Lobotomy"
Of course, that depends on how you look at their signing with major label RCA Records a couple of years back. Naturally, the cries of "sellout" came fast and furious at the quartet, who have always prided themselves on being a sort of working-class outfit. In a smooth business move though, they've kept their sights high, managed to step into the majors, come out virtually unscathed and are now utilizing that financial gain/big business money to support the independent world.
To explain, apparently the band only had a two-album contract that neither side seemed anxious to renew. Regardless, the quick step up to the big leagues generated enough dough for these Pittsuburgh natives to build their own studio and record seventh full-length The People Or The Gun.
Of course, a band as popular as Anti-Flag had no trouble wrangling up a new label. SideOneDummy jumped at the opportunity and will get the sucker into stores for a June 9 release date. As expected, the majority of The People Or The Gun revolves around the globe's political climate (i.e., government bailouts while ignoring the poor and so on). And, as expected, the band will continue their social outreach work with their new effort and live shows.
Drummer Pat Thetic says, "It's become a main priority to put the emphasis of our band and every show we play on community, whether it be canned food drives for local food banks, raising money to build wells in Africa, which we did on our U.S. tour, or clothing drives for the homeless on our Canadian tour."
In addition to raising funds, Anti-Flag have created the non-profit organizations Military Free Zone (combating a provision in the No Child Left Behind act that invades students' privacy for Military Recruitment purposes) and Underground Action Alliance (a networking site for social justice). As bassist Chris #2 says, "This is an extension of what our vision of punk rock is, was, and will always be."
A portion of the proceeds from the new album's pre-sales on the SideOneDummy website will be donated to Amnesty International.
The People Or The Gun tracklisting:
"Sodom, Gomorrah, Washington D.C. (Sheep in Shepherds Clothing)"
"The Economy is Suffering...Let It Die"
"The Gre(A)t Depression"
"We Are The One"
"You Are Fired (Take This Job)"
"This Is The First Night"
"No War Without Warriors (How Do You Sleep?)"
"When All The Lights Go Out"
"On Independence Day"
"The Old Guard"
"Teenage Kennedy Lobotomy"
