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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (April 7, 1988)
Band sings punk but needs change on new album "Punk became a fashion just like hippy used to be and it ain’t got a thing to do with you or me” — Crass Conflict has released its fourth live album, and 1 still haven’t heard a decent live recording from them. The new two-album set is called “Turning Rebellion Into Money” and was recorded at the “Gathering of the Five Thousand” concert last year in London. The concert’s atmosphere harkens back to the heydays of the peace punks i n 1981, wnen uie crowus anu nanus were sincerely trying to change the world, when the slogans were still fresh and the outrage would never die. Conflict is one of the few hands that hasn’t given up die vision. The band remains at the forefront of the British peace punk scene, despite being slagged off in nearly every underground rag. The band’s ag gressive, confrontive stance has tempered a bit, but the fires still bum. The Homs now accompany some of the songs, even giving a solo in one song. The Homs have expanded their brief foray into reg gae on “The Day Before,” but it just isn’t enough. Conflict needs to continue becoming more diverse, while maintaining its ferocity. For this concert, the band did add two saxophone players and three back ing vocalists, including Steve Igno rant from Crass to back Colin’s singing. The ties to Crass are close throughout the concert About half the songs are by Crass, and the band does a fair job playing them, al though the band sounds more “to gether” when it plays its own songs. Crass’ “Banned from the Roxy” has become “Banned from the U.K.” and the concert’s name recalls one of Crass' albums, “The Feeding of the Five Thousand.” dongs oy i_rass nave ocen adapted to Conflict’s pure hard core style and lack some of Crass’ originality but are a good addition to the usual Conflict fare. The band plays its own songs in energetic bursts of three or four at once and shows no signs of slowing down. In an incident similar to one at the Nagasaki Nightmare concert in California, Colin stops a song when he sees a fight break out. “Stop punching and hurting people. You’re supposed to be fighting to keep the peace, not pro voking violence.” The crowd cheers. “This is why they think we’re a load of thick assholes. Don't resort to their tactics.” The crowd cheers more. Conflict played many Crass classics (“Reality Whitewash,” “How Docs it Feel?,” “Big a Little A”) as well as the band’s own songs such as “From Protest to Resis tance,” “One Nation Under the Bomb”and “Mighty and Superior.” The material spans the history of both bands and will be appreciated by anyone who already owns studio versions, but this live recording is typically harsh. Proceeds from the concert and album sales will go to several Lon don-area groups: the Animal Lib eration Front, Greenpeace, various anti-apartheid groups, a rape crisis center and Anti-Fascist Action. “So you want a revolution? Well I've heard it all before and I'm tired of all the promises of 1984" — Conflict (review copy courtesy of Project Import) .-f _jJJL-Ui MDC started as The Stains ,in Austin, Texas, more than seven years ago anti then moved to San Francisco, where the band chose its current name and released its first album, now a staple in every grow ing punker’s record collection. MDC uses a different name for each release, as in Multi-Death Corpora tions, Millions of Dead Children (about world hunger), and most recently, Millions of Damn Chris tians. MDC started out as one of the fastest hard-core thrash bands around and has slowly become much more versatile while keeping within the punk structure. This is MDC’s third album, and it continues its traditional vitriolic tirades set to music. The lyrics are much more complex, and the music is more intricate than in the past, especially Gordon’s guitar-play ing. MDC also takes care not to be so easily misunderstood these days. The song “Skinhead,” for instance, isn’t about all skinheads, only “fag bashing racist skinheads. Several of the songs on the al bum (“This Blood’s For You,” “Sexy and Christian,” “Millions of Damn Christians”) arc caustic criti cisms of organized religion and are dedicated to “all humankind, past, present, and future, who have been hassled, persecuted, murdered in the name of God ...” It is not the spirituality but the artificial, meaningless religion which is so prevalent today that MDC sings about. From the liner notes: “This record was not created as an affront to true spiritual peoples who work toward world harmony, bliss and such, be they Christian-Judaic, Moslem, Bud dhist, pagan, or whatever.” MDC shows more variety than ever on this album. It shows off some talent while covering Cream’s “Politician” and then gets silly on “Mao tse Tung.” “Bye Bye Ronnie” begins with a tear-jerking clip from one of the Gipper’s mov ies, while the entire “Guns For Nicaragua” is a recorded phone plea to fight communism set to music. The funniest song is the eight-second “Henry Kissmyas sengcr.” The best song is “Who are the Terrorists Now?,” an angry look at U.S. intervention in Central Amer "Par don me, President Reagan,, but who are the terrorists now? This isn’t a movie we're making, so who are the terrorists now? Guns.nlanes, napalm flames stenciled proudly our nation s name so the dying can read who's to blame.” The world ’ s problems are not all so far away, as MDC makes clear in “Massacred and Dismembered Culture,” a look at the continuing treatment of the Native American people. One song, “Police Related Death,” takes a look at the abuse of authority, which brings back memories of MDC’s first album. Billed as the “official album of the pope’s visit to San Francisco,” “Millions of Damn Christians” is the best album yet from the mem bers of MDC, who were arrested while playing “This Blood’s For You” atop San Francisco’s Rathousc w hile the pope spoke on the street below. ,o’s p III'» DAY TION ANNIVERSARY CAKE APRIL 7TH THRU 1«TH mto°PonWk?* ^ M Come .mo PonWIoa end celebrate with us anniversary dessert MEDIUM CHEESE PIZZA THURSDAY 7TH Jut) tay Happy Anniversary Pontrtlo s MED CHEESE PIZZA SPECIAL and rsceive e medium cheese pizza 1 ,TM Apnl 7th. 9ih, 11th. 13th and 15ih lor "J" .... So 10 Additionii loppings are 85« each w SALAMI Anniversary specials are available lor IPH dine tn and carry out on*y_ CHEESE PIZZA SPECIAL £j '■ **'% 10TH TURKEY Of PIZZA HOAGIE ill. _ I MONDAY 11TH *4^ W i-.ji mam-wm.... 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