So Brick, Eh?’s Festivus Musical Grievance

By So Brick, Eh?:

It seems we need to more firmly commit ourselves to standing up against our musical overlords. I, for one, welcome an anarchistic coup of media empires and you should, too.

Punk Rock’s tumultuous relationship with conservative politics is well-known. Johnny Ramone of The Ramones was a proud outspoken conservative. The splitting of the titles “Bonzo Goes to Bitburg” and “My Brain Is Hanging Upside Down” was due to Johnny’s triggered feelings about calling his “favorite” president a bonzo, which was the name of the chimpanzee in the film Reagan starred in. When inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Johnny thanked various parties and then said, “God bless President Bush, and God bless America.”

Though today’s political fuckery makes Georgie B look tame, we should have been firmer then. Your catchy tunes be damned—we need to make a stand.

Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols has lived up to his self-bestowed name by endorsing Trump. 

To see some of the greats openly court demagoguery reminds the punk community that our relationship with Nazis has always been a sore spot. An entire genre of so-called “Nazi punk,” which seems like an oxymoron, is widespread. One only need to watch American History X to see what this subculture looks like. By appropriating pointy aesthetics, fast beats, and a “fuck you attitude,” these so-called punk rockers trick young minds into thinking they are somehow anti-establishment while deepthroating the boot they were only asked to lick base to tip. In reality, they are anti-Liberal (note the capital L). I can’t help but trace this in my mind to Tipper Gore’s crusade against swear words. That moment was, in many ways, the pinning of pearl-clutching political correctness on Liberals. Be careful what you say around the WASPs. 

Lest we forget that bible-thumping Christians wince at “gosh darnit,” these so-called punks are making their way into the upper-echelons of music and that’s a problem we can no longer ignore.

I could swallow the Johnnys’ various bullshit so long as their message was limited to their first amendment rights, but I won’t stand for these idiots gaining influence over other artists. And that, my friends, is my grievance this year. Between Punk in the Park’s ties to the Trump administration and the CEO of Spotify investing in military AI applications and defending advertisements for today’s Gestapo on the platform, I’m done. 

I’m canceling Spotify. I won’t go to Punk in the Park anymore. I’ve got a burned CD of The Ramones, I might spin it a few times, but it’s getting harder to listen to without becoming angry. Reagan was your favorite U.S. president. Give me a break, Johnny. Death of the author? Death to capital.