Steve, I was a typical suburban Amerikan middle class misfit. Anarchy was the juvenile concept of vandalism and getting pissed drunk at age 9….listening to the shite bands I could buy at the mall(exploited, misfits, venom, sex pistols, dolls, etc..)…a friends brother came home from University when I was 11 and put on ‘Feeding of the 5000′ then ‘Stations of the crass’…i might not have quite gotten thru all the accents(altho im welsh just live here…go figure) but of the thousands of bands i’ve played shows with, listened to, booked shows for, put out records for, etc..hearing those 2 albums(and the amazing packaging and reading the lyrics) that moment was is and always will be the paradigm shift in my life. Within weeks I was lugging Bakunin and Proudhoun books to 6th grade(i was spot on for reading early on), and within a year I was not a ractionary or a nihilistic idiot, i was an ACTIVIST and altho the pigs have come close to offing me a few times and have jailed me several(inciting a riot against the building of a nuke plant and assault with a deadly weapon,a 40 pound rock i cracked on a copper after he clubbed my obviously pregnant companera
are my “heavy” crimes)…but too much other positive, acts(books for prisioners, food not bombs, etc.) to list would have never happened, and my life would not be the wonderful, satisfying experience it has been in my 33 years had I not heard this band CRASS at that pivotal age in my life…I wont gush on and on and I’m not trying to kiss yer arse, but just being honest that an ANARCHIST band….a band that said things much more deeply and thought provoking than “anok in the uk” or “fuck society” resulted in my lifelong dedication to a movement, a struggle to change things instead of dye my hair….and as you can ask my wife(who like it or not knows every lyric to every crass song ever) whenever I want to give up on a better future, on doing what i know is right…i put on any of yer albums(despite the terrible sound christ the bootleg is a fave) and it erases any doubt that no matter what i’m against or what the odds, or the consequences….that “I’d rather die on my feet than live on my knees” -Zapata
thanks mate and ill see you in atlanta…first few rounds of pints are on me..
Jon Entropy
K.A.T. Collective/Organic Farm
state of Georgia, u$a
[email protected]
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