Anti-Flag have been saying what's on their minds for over two decades. Why stop now? The punk rockers from Pittsburgh are back with their eighth studio album The General Strike, and like previous efforts, it finds the band speaking against injustices in the world and the government's abuse of power. Earlier this month, Anti-Flag -- Justin Sane, Chris #2, Chris Head and Pat Thetic -- stopped by the Music Conservatory of Westchester to record an "A-Sides" session. More accustomed to head-banging and stage-diving, they found it a nice change of pace to perform acoustic versions of two tracks within a practice studio at the Conservatory usually reserved for its Music Therapy Institute.
Chris #2 performed "1915" off the new album, while Justin Sane played "One Trillion Dollars" -- an old favorite that's sadly still relevant today. Following the performances, the band did an informal, extremely candid interview with me on the new album and the sad state of the current political scene.
Watch. Listen. Learn.
"1915":
"One Trillion Dollars":
Interview:
About A-Sides with Jon Chattman
Jon Chattman's music series features artists (established or not) from all genres performing a track, and discussing what it means to them. This informal series focuses on the artist making art in a low-threatening, extremely informal (sometimes humorous) way. No bells, no whistles -- just the music performed in a random, low-key setting followed by an un-rehearsed chat. In an industry where everything often gets overblown and over manufactured, I'm hoping this is refreshing.