Anti-Flag bassist Chris Barker says he’s notably excited in regards to the upcoming Grog Store reveals that happen on April 13 and 14. These concert events pair the Pittsburgh-based punk rockers with Bouncing Souls. It isn’t simply the pairing with one other veteran punk band that has Barker excited. He likes the concept of hunkering down on the Grog for 2 straight reveals.

“It’s been tough to do one thing like [multiple shows in a row] popping out of the pandemic as a result of there are such a lot of bands touring now,” he says by way of Zoom from a Worchester, MA tour cease. “The Grog Store has at all times been variety to us, and I anticipate nothing lower than that for these reveals. Cleveland is simply two hours away [from Pittsburgh], and we minimize our enamel there and at smaller cities in Pennsylvania. It was the place the band first felt like we have been true troubadours and eventually venturing out of our garages.”

With its newest album, Lies They Inform Our Kids, Anti-Flag will get conceptual. The songs middle on imminent threats to the standard of life, from the dearth of inexpensive well being care to wealth inequality. Whereas writing about political issues is nothing new for the band, writing songs that revolve round a typical theme is.

“It’s our thirteenth report, and once you’ve finished one thing for over half of your life, you begin to examine methods of protecting issues a problem,” says Barker when requested about how the band determined to go the idea album route. “We’ve had this occur previously. You get on an escalator and simply go. The artwork turns into impassive. It will get created for various causes than it ought to. You make a report as a result of you must tour, otherwise you make a report as a result of the festivals received’t put you on the invoice until you have got one thing new out. That’s by no means an excellent house.”

Popping out of the pandemic and having a report that was three years outdated, the band needed to make use of the album to make an announcement. It made a grasp listing of political and cultural shifts after which turned that listing into 11 compelling songs.

“We discovered that [challenging ourselves] is after we’re at our greatest — it’s after we benefit from the course of but additionally turn out to be higher variations of ourselves,” says Barker.

Visitors on the album embrace a listing of punk/steel icons, together with Killswitch Interact’s Jesse Leach, Silverstein’s Shane Informed, Dangerous Cop/Dangerous Cop’s Stacy Dee, Pinkshift’s Ashrita Kumar, Dangerous Faith’s Brian Baker and Rise Towards’s Tim McIlrath.

“The driving issue was how we have been gonna launch the album,” says Barker when requested in regards to the varied collaborators. “We knew we have been going to slowly share music because it is available in. We needed to carry different folks in for that. Additionally, we’ve got tried to cover our influences and never make it appear like you’re not stealing concepts from others. At some point, you look into the mirror, and also you understand you’re a band that’s been round for 30 years, and also you simply don’t care anymore. We toured with Rise Towards loads and embraced that affect. Identical with Brian Baker. Clearly, we have been influenced by the artwork these folks create and by their power and their dedication to their activism and artwork.”

The band ambitiously recorded eight totally different music movies for songs from the album, and a gaggle of filmmakers from Brazil recorded the video for “Shallow Graves,” a tune with simmering call-and-response vocals.

“The filmmakers are related to us by INDECLINE, a world community of visible artists,” says Barker. “It runs the gamut of all codecs of artwork. They use it to inject activism into public discourse. INDECLINE was the artistic director of all the movies, and we discovered folks to conceptualize each. it was a multi-national, world-wide factor to tug it off.”

Barker says the important thing to enacting political and social change is just exhibiting kindness. However provided that we’re dwelling in grim instances of poverty and conflict, how does he handle to maintain from turning into too pessimistic in regards to the future?

“Step one is to current the concepts in a means which can be hopeful and optimistic and never cynical however empathetic,” he says. “Once you work together with somebody, and so they’re shitty to you, it’s simple to say that is over as a substitute of doing the work you may do to know what the persona goes by way of and experiencing. My solely recommendation is to steer with kindness. I do know it’s cliche and never as horny as saying, ‘We’ll burn all of it down.’ I do consider it can burn to the bottom if it stays on the present trajectory however I’m extra within the optimism I see from younger folks. The activists are at all times doing what they will to alleviate struggling, and I feel that’s the aim of punk rock.”


Coming quickly: Cleveland Scene Each day e-newsletter. We’ll ship you a handful of fascinating Cleveland tales each morning. Subscribe now to not miss a factor.

Observe us: Google Information | NewsBreak | Instagram | Fb | Twitter