Public vs private, politics vs business, morals vs money… I admire musicians. We work hard. We obsess. We passionately emote. But I really admire the writers. The ones who have something to say and aren’t afraid to say it.
Obviously I’m generalizing. I don’t have a WHOLE lot of respect invested in lyrics like “All I really want is to zig a zig ah” (though I do adore the Spice Girls), nor do I have much interest in lyrics that I frankly can’t grasp (“I don’t want her if that ass don’t sit like a horse.” Thanks T Wayne… I’m not even… I don’t even…… what?). I hate a LOT of words being spoken by artists, but at least they’re SAYING something.
And yet, that can be kind of dangerous in our profession. Sure – when you’re huge you can make a statement and people will care. U2 can boycott something. Ani Difranco can endorse something. But as a little band we find ourselves in this in-between space where you’re often not ready to piss anyone off, don’t have time to get into the conversation, aren’t sure if you want to engage… In the deep south bar do you REALLY want to denounce God? Howabout playing that song about being a “roughly straight white guy” (yeah, yelling “Fuck the POLICE isn’t the ONLY reason you don’t hear ‘Chalk Pit’ played)? Generally we put the lyrics out there, MAYBE people are paying attention, MAYBE there’s an effect. I can’t remember the last time that anyone got pissed off at the politics that we’ve presented in song… but have been amazed that someone would come up after something like “Terms” and tell me they like that we’re not like those bands that have to get political all the time…
Enter social media. Jesus fucking Christ.
In the past two weeks I’ve had seven friends in my musical community get unfriended or blocked on Facebook due to political conversations. All fine and good – I’ve done the same dozens of times. Until the next modifier on the lament : PROFESSIONAL connections with promoters, other artists and venues – THIS is what they’re losing because of political statements on Facebook.
I was talking to Heather about this last night… where does that line come in? It’s like the liberal newspaper reporter who maybe can bend their reporting around a particular
viewpoint but who’s really SUPPOSED to be unbiased. We have to try to just be about the music but the music is about so much more. We have public personas and private personas and the two keep edging closer and closer together. I know I try to be as honest as possible on stage, but I try to be endlessly supportive through the open mics, I try to be neutral and encouraging but firm as a booker – so many hats with different faces – all with the same heart but wearing different masks.
I started these paragraphs with a pretty firm direction but now…
Now it’s Sunday morning and 50 people died in Orlando this morning. I had to pull over on I-95 and cry because I take things to heart. Another man has just been arrested headed to a Pride march in California toting assault weapons and explosives. And my heart aches. Am I furious? You bet. I’m furious at the fucker who got swept up in hatred, wanting so badly to belong to something that the only way he could do it was through hatred. I’m furious at the people now seeing “see, this is why Muslims should be banned” in all their snarky iterations. And I’m furious about the people who say “the fags are getting what they deserve” – and I’m even furious with the people that are saying “see, this is what happens when people have guns”. Though I do think we have no reason to own high-capacity, high-output weapons like the one used in Orlando this morning, I also think that outlaws won’t stop at something simply because it’s outlawed.
And as for you people yelling “where’s the outrage from the Muslims” – a) declaring allegiance for the Islamic State isn’t like being a follower of Islam – it’s every moment of existence is an affront to any true follower of that religion and b) even the lowest estimates I can find point to 20,000 people dying last year in the war against ISIS so maybe 50 people in a nightclub doesn’t seem like a big deal. A month ago today the IS claimed responsibility for three bomb attacks that killed almost a hundred people and wounded a hundred and fifty more. News is news because it’s not the norm – and there’s part of me that knows I’m a privileged American to still bat an eye at, much less get emotionally wrecked over, a mass shooting claiming a hundred victims – so don’t ask where the outrage is. It’s Americans that are killing one another. We’re the ones who should be outraged, not simply pointing fingers, blaming and whining that no-one is coming to the fore and saying “damn, you DO have it rough…“
Sorry, this has been a rather undirected rambly rant, but I guess if I’m not making that much sense right now, I’m fitting right in with the rest of the world.
