The first time I heard Anti-Flag I was in the top bunk at church camp. I was up there trying to have an afternoon nap and some disruptive ginger kid woke me up and made me listen to his Discman that he smuggled in, eager to corrupt this quiet little church kid (I didn’t know this obnoxious punk-kid would eventually become my best friend). He handed me up the Discman and played his burnt CD for me. Though I had heard plenty of Guns N’ Roses and other “secular” music, I had been completely sheltered to the world of punk. So I laid in my bunk and listened to this CD that contained everything from NOFX to Bad Religion to The Butthole Surfers (at church camp!!!) on it. And I remember very specifically when Die for Your Government came on the earphones. I’d never heard a song like it before. Mixing Justin Sane’s loose, almost careless voice and an overdriven guitar with a highly over-complicated drum beat, this was a band that deserved my attention.
With a voice reminiscent of Johnny Rotten and with riffs as fresh and in-your-face as The Clash or The Ramones, Anti-Flag brought a long needed maturity to punk rock. Sure they’re punk kids who are fighting “The Man”, but they are also quite obviously talented musicians that are worth taking a second look at. As a punk band it’s often difficult to be recognized as a serious musician, but after listening to even a couple Anti-Flag songs it’s obvious that their “don’t-give-a-s@#&” attitude and their clearly transparent musical skill are seamless. Their teenage-activist angst and talented craftsmanship meld together so well it’s hard to pick out what’s politically motivated and what’s musically motivated. Like I said, seamless.
Their first album, Die for Your Government is an obvious slam towards the U.S. government who send soldiers to fight, what Sane thinks, is an unjust and unworthy cause. Sane masks his intelligence with a punk-kid attitude and lyrics punctuated with gratuitous profanity. But it is certain that despite his persona, Sane is intelligent and a brilliant song-writer that easily gets across his views with his music.
Anti-Flag has matured in age and attitude over the years. Not only has Sane’s voice somewhat changed, but his attitude and composure along with his subject matter has too. Though there has always been anti-government and authority scepticism in their lyrics, it changed from simple, profane name calling and cursing rich people (Your Father is a Rich Man…) to actual commentaries on factual discrepancies Sane has observed. Although I’m not a big advocate on politically motivated music, the music is so good that the subject matter is easier to separate.
The Terror State, for me, is the album that was the real eye-opener for me and really highlighted Anti-Flag as a musical juggernaut and not just another punk band. With songs like Turncoat and Rank-n-File, though their attitude is largely the same as their intense teenage and political angst as before, the addition of maturity and experience made a huge difference and actually dramatically changes Anti-Flag’s sound. With Chris Head taking a much more prominent roll on vocals and Justin Sane almost taking a backseat, Anti-Flag became almost a flagship, a goal to be achieved by other punk bands. They reinvented themselves. They changed their sound, look and all the while keeping the same energy as in their younger days.
Though Anti-Flag is clearly anti-government, or more specifically anti-corrupt government, they make it painfully obvious on their albums that though they don’t agree with everything the government says or does, one thing they are eager to capitalize on is being able to exercise the First Amendment. Freedom of speech. Without this, Anti-Flag wouldn’t be able to exist and they are self-aware of this. In a song like You Can Kill the Protestor, they’re not simply denouncing the government, but also explaining that once something upstairs is happening that you don’t agree with, you MUST exercise your right to protest no matter what they do to drown your cause. “You can kill the protestor, you can’t kill the protest” is a powerful line in any country, not just America.
Though some people will be turned off by their brash, in-your-face opinionated punk rock, with a name like Anti-Flag what do you expect? What you see is what you get.
Anti-Flag simply love where they live, they just are not fans of who is running it. All-in-all they are just trying to make their country a better place by pointing out injustices they’ve noticed and motivating their listeners to do something about it.
Their direct subject matter has changed as of late, but their central message of speaking out and pointing out what they see as wrong with the world hasn’t wavered. They’ve been around a long time, and they’re not going anywhere.
Songs to listen to: 1 Trillion Dollar$, Hymn for the Dead, 911 for Peace, The Press Corpse, Turncoat, Rank-n-file.-Justin
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