Scott Free • Happy Pride Day Moscow

While much of the world is sitting on their hands as Russian Czar Vladimir Putin has made any show of support of LGBT people or issues illegal in Russia, where the upcoming Winter Olympics is scheduled to be held. Many would rather support the athletes, because competing in a game held every four years is far more important than human rights, right? Even skater Johnny Weir, whose self-involvement is Olympic in proportion to that of even the Kardasian family, appeared on ESPN with Keith Obermann to defend Russia and the games. The fashion-minded skater wore a Soviet-inspired army jacket as he explained how doing anything but support the games would be harmful to both the athletes who train for competition, and the citizens of Russia. Conveniently, the gay skater seemed to forget about the LGBT people having to live with the new law, and the reports of harsh treatment of those Russian citizens. Well, out and proud rocker Scott Free decided it was time to lend his voice to the discussion, so he wrote his new song, "Happy Pride Day Moscow".

Scott Free has been making Punk-fueled Rock since the 1990s, never afraid to speak his mind on the issues. Whether it was political or just a matter of Pop Culture, Free has never shied from allowing his queer voice to be heard. That continues to be true with, "Happy Pride Day Moscow", the bold new song with Punk and Ska influences. Scott's tongue is planted firmly in his cheek, taking a look at everything from oiled men wrestling to the regal attire of some of the Russian conservative movement. Hey, just give a listen for yourself.

To get "Happy Pride Day Moscow", visit Scott on Bandcamp. There you can name your own price, from Free to a donation to support the artist. To learn more about Scott Free, visit his official website. You can also 'like' him on Facebook, and 'follow' him on Twitter.

Rise Against Fight Bullying With "Make It Stop"

The Punk Rockers from Rise Against have never fit the mold set aside for bands of their genre I remember. Tim McIlrath, Joe Principe and Zach Blair are "Straight Edge", and are joined by Brandon Barnes in the support of PETA, living vegetarian lives, and are never afraid to take a strong political stance with their music. I wouldn't be worried about them checking into the Chelsea Hotel any time soon. The boys have a new album out, Endgame, and it is really a hard-rocking album that shows a stunning use of melodic punk, reminding me of some great British Punk bands from the 80s like The Buzzcocks and The Jam.

Yesterday, they released the video for the latest single, Make It Stop (September's Children). The song takes an incredibly strong and vocal stand against bullying, and in particular, the bullying of LGBTQ kids. For the video, they take it take it to a new level, showing the kids who are victims of bullying with a choice to make. The song, and the band, use their voice to tell kids to stay strong, and the familiar refrain, "It gets better." I have to admit, when watching the video I had to wipe a tear or two from my eye. I thought it was exceptionally well done.




I thought it was sweet and touching the band included the names and ages of Tyler Clementi, Billy Lucas, Harrison Chase Brown, Cody J. Barker and Seth Walsh. The band worked in collaboration with the It Gets Better Project. For further information about Dan Savage's project, visit here. For more about the band, you can check out their official website here. You can purchase the album on iTunes here, and on Amazon.com here. You can purchase the video on iTunes here. I bought it, showing my support of a band showing our community and kids such great support as well.

Listen to Siouxsie & the Banshees

It's hard for me to know what song Siouxsie & the Banshees are most know for in the US, as they really didn't have much success in this market. They made a bit of a splash as part of the Neo-Punk/New Wave movement, showing the early signs of Goth tendencies with The Cure. Formed in 1976, vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bassist Steven Severin were initially part of the burgeoning English punk rock scene. Siouxsie's look was bold, androgynous, and highly stylized, almost the Goth Ziggy Stardust. Soon the flavor of the band was moving in a Post-Punk direction, one that was a harbinger of sorts for the New Wave movement. I leaned of them through my fandom of The Cure. In fact, lead singer Robert Smith at one time had an affiliation with the band. At the first public gig the band played, the drummer was John Simon Ritchie. Mr. Ritchie later became known by the name he used in his other band, Sid Vicious. The other band? The Sex Pistols. I think the first song I remember hearing was Spellbound, a 1981 single. I seem to remember it getting some play in the clubs and on college radio. It was off the album Juju.



While Robert Smith was playing with The Banshees in 1983, they released a cover of the Beatles' song Dear Prudence. It was a big hit fro them in the UK, and I remember it getting lots of play on college and edgy rock radio stations. I don't remember there being a video for it, but here is Siouxsie performing it on the British television show Top Of The Pops.



One of my favorite songs was released in 1984. The band had an interesting album, Hyæna, and the amazingly layered song, Dazzle. The lyrics were smart and evocative, and delivered with just the right amount of, well, everything.



Their biggest hit in the US came in 1991 with their poppiest single to date, Kiss Them For Me. It made it to #23 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #8 on the Dance Tracks chart, and #1 on the Modern Rock chart. From the album Superstition, this is Kiss Them For Me.



By 1999, the band had been pretty much seen the direction of the music change dramatically. It was decided to put an end to the band. However, in 2003 they reunited for a tour, and much of their music was remastered and re-released in that same period. Siouxsie went on to be a part of The Creatures, and has had a solo career as well. Her 2007 album MantaRay was met with critical praise. For more about Siouxsie and the Banshees, check out their official webstore here. You can find more about Siouxsie at her official website here.

Summer Music - Hanging On The Telephone & Picture This

In 1978, a band named Blondie shook the world when they released the album Parallel Lines. It was their third release, and while the first two found success in the UK, it was this one that rocketed to success in the US, making the name for the band. While it was the third single, Heart of Glass, that topped the charts, the first two singles were getting noticed by college radio on the strength of the Punk pedigree of the band. The second single was one of my favorites from the album, Hanging On The Telephone.



The first single was the lovely Picture This. Well, it was as lovely and sweet as Debbie Harry was going to get. I later believed it was the inspiration for the writers of the Golden Girls when they wrote about Sophia telling stories...

Worth Another Listen - Tom Robinson

Tom Robinson is a British singer/songwriter, best known as a founding member of the Tom Robinson Band, a rather politically active rock/punk band in the 70s and early 80s. He is most likely best known for the song (Sing If You're) Glad To Be Gay, the 1978 hit single. For a long time, it was thought that Robinson was gay sheerly because of his open support of the community, but later he maintained he was bisexual, falling in love and marrying a woman. This upset some gay rights activists, and became a bit of a joke to the press. Too bad, because as far as I knew, there is a 'B' in LGBT. To this day Robinson is still active in promoting tolerance and acceptance for the LGBT community.



Robinson also had a career as a songwriter, including a period of collaboration with Elton John. The Tom Robinson Band had another hit in the UK, called 2-4-6-8 Motorway. During the time they were together, the TRB worked with producers such as Ray Davies [of the Kinks fame] and Steve Lilywhite.



Eventually Robinson went on to be a host/presenter on BBC radio, as well as work on some other projects. One was a radio documentary, You've Got To Hide Your Love Away, examining the LGBT music scene. He also had a series on men and masculinity, entitled The Locker Room. You can find out more about Tom Robinson on his website here.

Worth Another Listen - The Jam

I had done an earlier post about Paul Weller, the British singer/songwriter whose career I followed from group to group before his solo career. The first I knew of Weller was when he was part of the New Wave/Punk band, The Jam. Weller was joined by Bruce Foxton and Rick Butler to make up The Jam. They were one of several young bands who looked back to the music of the British acts of the late 50s & early sixties, reclaiming the concept of 'mods' and put in their own spin. They seemed to be part early The Who and part Jack Kerouac, part of the 'beat generation,' only on steroids. They blazed strong in the musical sky, amazing considering they released albums for a scant 5 years, from 1977 to 1982.



In those 5 years, they put out 6 albums and went on several tours, which resulted in 3 live albums. And, as the music industry can do so well, there are 14 compilation albums, as well as 3 separate box sets. The music was rich and textured, while maintaining a raw and emotional edge all delivered at a breakneck pace, hallmarks of the punk movement. Here is a clip of The Jam performing Eaton Rifles live.



Later in the run, you could see the direction Weller was taking with the music, and it was in the direction that would later be played by the Style Council. For me, this evolution was evident in A Town Called Malice.



You can find more about The Jam at their official website here.

Worth Another Listen - The Undertones

God, I loved The Undertones. Hitting the airwaves in the late 70s and hitting their stride in 1980, The Undertones were everything I though Punk music should be about. They were raw, bold, brash, not pretty, taking the best of the 60s rock bands and bringing a drive and beat matched with testosterone. The put out four albums before giving up the ghost in 1983.



Here is another 'live' performance on British television of Here Comes The Summer.

Worth Another Listen - Feargal Sharkey

You gotta love Irishman Feargal, who rose to frame when it was more important to have a vibrato that could take out a redwood than it was to have lovely tone. He rose to fame as the lead singer for the punk band The Undertones, went on to a solo career that included the hit song A Good Heart, and then settled down to become a record executive. Proved an interesting look and sound and the right promotion could sell just about anything.