Founded in 1988 in Pittsburgh, in response to the anarcho-punk scene and known for their lyrics laden with strong political messages and their concern for animal care, AntiFlag It is one of the most boasted punk acts of today.
As part of the promotional tour for her latest album, ‘American Fall’ 2017, the band will be back in Mexico as part of the Mexico Tattoo Convention that will take place on August 17 and 18 at the Citibanamex Center. So we had the opportunity to speak with the founding member and drummer of the band, Pat thetic about the future of punk and the serious problem of shootings in the United States.
What is the song that has the most meaning for you on your last album?
Déjame pensarlo… umm creo que elegiré a ‘American Attraction’ porque habla sobre la cultura en la que hemos vivido, la violencia que hemos estado sufriendo últimamente como lo de hace unos días en El Paso, la cultura de Estados Unidos está muy militarizada, y violenta en este punto, y todo esto que está pasando que afecta a todos.
The shooting problem is a very common and deep-rooted problem within the United States, what is really going on?
What happens is that any idiot can get a weapon, and the worst is that there is a growing culture of racism, xenophobia and of believing themselves better than others and therefore being able to harm them, and there are many idiots who support the president, who is the greatest promoter of this ideology. The way I see things, sadly I don't think the situation will improve.
What do you think people can do against Trump and his policies?
I think the main thing we can do is do the opposite of what he says. Be aware that he is only a symptom, not the problem itself. For example, if you talk to your racist uncle and he tells you that we have to make the wall, you have to rise up and tell him that his ideas are stupid and that he is a piece of shit. Every day we can do something against Trump. Trump is only as powerful as the number of racist idiots who follow him. And as activists we have to reduce Trump's power by preventing his re-election and make him aware that his ideas are not good.
Are you planning to release a new single soon that talks about any of these current issues?
Sí, de hecho ya estamos en el estudio preparando canciones de lo que está pasando la sociedad actualmente, estaremos hablando sobre temáticas que nos preocupan y que nos interesan en el nuevo álbum, hablaremos de muchos temas…
What do you think of the current state of the punk scene?
Well, I think that each city and culture creates the punk rock scene in its own image, the bands of each place create the communities and that is incredible, because each place we visit has its touch, speaking of activism and politics. Personally, I can tell you about my culture, where we talk about gender issues, immigration, and more. The truth impresses me what punk rock is now, everything it has managed to transmit and the battles it has fought on a daily basis.
Anti Flag is a band known for promoting animal rights, are you currently in any project for their protection?
I am in a project for them every day that I eat. I know that everyone makes the decision on how to feed and feed their family, but for me it is better to stop eating animals, or at least decrease their consumption, that from my perspective, helps create a better world. It does not matter that you are not vegan, I just think that we should all decrease the consumption of food of animal origin and we should be aware of what we do.
What can you recommend to other punk bands to be inspiring and successful?
Do something that you are passionate about, punk rock music is about creating something real and authentic for you, punk rock, politics and activism are something very important to us and we put it in our music, if you don't like those songs and you prefer unicorns, there are other genres like pop.
Estarás pronto en México…
Unfortunately, what I can tell you today is that not all Americans are pieces of shit and that not all of us are crazy and want to shoot people in the squares. I have had to talk to people from all over the world and all ask the same thing, why are these things happening in my country, why is there so much shooting. The only thing I can tell you is that these people are a minority. I want to remind Mexicans that not all Americans are racists, there are also good people in the United States and we promise that we will fight. I know that Mexicans cannot vote or make a political demonstration in our country, but with your support it will make a great difference to win this fight.