Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Preachin' to the Choir, March 2, 2002
Great combination of art & politics. Shows what committment to an idea can do to musicianship. Too bad the ideas are so self-righteous.
Best cuts: Angry, Young & Poor/Underground Network/Stars & Stripes/Watch the Right, Culture Revolution.
Then there's this little story song about Spaz's House Destruction Party; notice that this is the only song that is about individual people as opposed to large generalized groups, stereotypes or global forces.
If you don't buy their world view (which can be characterized as simplistically critical of capitalism), you could find this boring - musically there is little variation; lyrics are reports, not poetry.
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12 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An Excellent Document of Modern Political Punk Rock, January 24, 2004
This album is by far the best release from Anti-Flag in my eyes. It's unrelenting, yet melodic, musically, while also offering several sobering examples of political and social injustices. Although Anti-Flag have been known for holding strong political convictions, none of their albums seem to be as convincing as this one. Where albums such as "Die for the Government" and the more recent "The Terror State" seem juvenile lyrically and ideally, this album presents it's view of pro-political activism and actually takes the time to back up their ideas. Several of the topics covered are injustice towards the youth and the inevitable frustration and alienation of the victims of such cases ("Angry, Young and Poor"), media cover-ups and fudging of facts ("Underground Network"), Being under the control of oppressive forces simply because they have money to throw around ("Daddy Warbux"), The horrible incidents involving Native Americans and other minorities which have been shamelessly exploited by a country which supposedly stands for freedom and justice for all ("Stars and Stripes"). The only sore thumb in the whole collection of great songs is "Spaz's House Destruction Party" which is kind of a throw back to early Anti-Flag "scene-songs" and is a frivilous party song that doesn't hold very well to the theme of the album. One of the main points I think you can find in this record is questioning the ideals of those who try to push their's upon you, and thinking for yourself instead of blindly following any one sided party of the matter. However you have to ask yourself, how can this band consider themselves as being this open minded creative force when, in their song "This Machine Kills Facists", they're bantering about someone expressing conservative beliefs musically? Left-wing, Right-wing, whatever; This is a great album worth checking out if you want to see a slightly different perspective on the state of the country we live in.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
More Important Now Than Ever, September 14, 2003
Anti-Flag have been around for a long time, and have improved with each effort. While their early material was "punk by the book" to quote even them, as they matured, their anarcho-politics turned more socialist and much more defined. Few bands today manage to inform as much as Anti-Flag does, without getting boring about it. Musically, they are at the top of their game with this album, and we owe them a great debt for it.Some people will argue that Anti-Flag are unamerica. This is untrue. America was founded on the rights of free speech and I'm sure A-F would agree with the Dead Kennedys lyric, "I'm glad I live in a place, where I can say the things I do without being taken out and shot. So I'm on guard against the goons, trying to take my rights away, we need to rise above the need for cops and laws." Anti-Flag pays homage to the Native Americans (who were here FIRST) in the punk fueled "Stars and Stripes" and the "American Folk Hero," Woody Guthrie (who was a communist) on the song, "This Machine Kills Fascists" (what was written on Guthrie's guitar). In fact, Anti-Flag may be the most important band around in this time of Patriot Acts and HUAC-style snooping. If they hated America, they would move, problem solved. But they don't, they love their land and will fight anyone who tries to drag it the way of the old fashioned, outdated right.
Watch for their new album "the terror state" coming out in October.
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by Anti-Flag 
