Anti-Flag

Tom Morello Talks Obama, Not Rage Against The Machine, On Set Of Anti-Flag Video

08 Apr 2008 08:01:00 EDT

The other 'half-Kenyan Harvard graduate from Illinois' refused to comment on rumors that his band is in the studio.
By Chris Harris, with reporting by Matt Elias

Photo: MTV News

It's a weeknight in Glendale, California, and Tom Morello — guitarist for Rage Against the Machine and the man they call the Nightwatchmen — is standing inside Moonlight Rollerway, a fake moustache that looks more like a woolly bear caterpillar resting across his upper lip. Around his neck, there's a long string attached to a silver whistle. He's holding a clipboard, and there's a red headband on his forehead that matches the red wristbands he's rocking. Across the back of his red, white and blue track suit read the words "Coach Tom." He mutters to himself, "Ah, the things I do for Anti-Flag."

No, Tom's not switching careers — he's shooting a cameo for the Pittsburgh political punkers' new video. Morello will be featured prominently in the band's upcoming clip for "The Bright Lights of America," the title track and first single off the band's eighth studio LP, which hit stores last week. As the cameras roll, Morello — playing the irritable coach of "Team USA," during a global roller-derby battle royale — springs into character, acting every bit the epitome of the amped-up, steroid-chomping Little League dad. He pumps his fists in the air and barks at the derby girls who skate past him: "Move your ass! That's not good enough! Not on my time, ladies!" According to Anti-Flag frontman Justin Sane and bassist Chris #2, the video's concept is inspired by the stories of difficult times faced by the many fans they meet on the road. It's also a statement on the absurdity of extreme ideologies and the future of American society. "The song focuses on two characters: a girl I met last year who is a cutter, and to feel alive, she has to cut herself. It's also about a boy who has a really hard time in his home life, and to deal with it, he feels he needs to be on drugs all the time," said Sane. "It's very dark content, but in the end, the song is very optimistic. It says we all go through these really hard times, but we have our community, we have each other, to pick ourselves up and be there for each other. It also asks the questions, 'Who are we as Americans?' 'Where is this nation going?' 'Why are so many people on antidepressants?' People can't handle reality. Is this the direction we want our country, or even the world, to be going in?" Morello has been friends with the Anti-Flag lads for several years now, having enlisted the band as the support act on Rage's Battle of Los Angeles tour back in 1999. "Anti-Flag are a band with a lot of heart, and a band that genuinely cares about its fans," said Morello. "I don't get dressed up in a getup like this for just any band. They are the best punk-rock band of our era, and it's always an honor to share the stage with them or even to be stuck in a roller rink in a goofy outfit with them." While Morello refused to respond to fast-spreading rumors that Rage Against the Machine (who were just announced as Lollapalooza headliners) are in the studio at the moment working on new material, he did discuss this year's presidential election. And why wouldn't he? This is a member of the most political bands ever to emerge — a band that decided to call it quits at perhaps the worst time possible — just before George W. took office. "As the half-Kenyan Harvard graduate from Illinois who is not running for office this year, I've got to say, there's been a lot of talk of change in this election year," Morello said. "It remains my belief that change is not made by politicians, but by people. No matter who is elected, we do not abdicate our responsibility to take action, to organize, to struggle and to push who is in office to make change on the ground. You can't wait and hope your vote will turn the system around. You need to take action where you live and where you work." While Morello hasn't decided who'll be getting his vote just yet, he admitted he has been impressed by Senator Barack Obama's campaign. "I haven't picked a candidate ... my candidate is the American people, the people who work hard for a living and struggle to make ends meet," he said. "The only time in my adult life that I have ever been impressed by a politician was Barack's speech on race. As someone who has witnessed racism up close his entire life, it's nice to see someone who intelligently, candidly and honestly talked to the American people as if they were adults for a change, that didn't try to get something out of people by using 'freedom, good; evil, bad.' I mean, that's the level of our political discourse, from both parties. And to speak intelligently and honestly about a very uncomfortable topic that has been the curse of the United States of America since its founding was something that was very impressive to me." But Morello isn't sure what chance Obama stands in the race for the White House. "Can a country that elected George W. Bush, twice, elect someone who comes across like that is unclear to me," he said. "If America elects [Republican Senator John] McCain, well, then maybe we don't deserve better than McCain. In the most recent congressional election, the Democrats were elected to stop the war, and like cowardly dogs, they failed to do that. No matter who is in office, it's our responsibility to take the wheel of history in our hands, if we want to see a different and better world than the one we live in now."

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Sneakers, Warped Tour Mementos From MCR, NOFX To Be In Rock Hall Of Fame

25 Oct 2006 16:42:00 EDT

New Found Glory, Dropkick Murphys also contribute items for display, which begins in January.
By James Montgomery

NOFX's El Hefe
Photo: Bryan Bedder/ Getty Images

For years, the biggest knock on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has been its unwillingness to recognize the contributions of artists that fall outside the standard definition of, well, "rock and roll." In recent years, the Hall has taken steps to rectify the problem. The list of 2006 inductees included punk pioneers the Sex Pistols and Blondie, proto-metallers Black Sabbath and forward-thinking jazznick Miles Davis (see "Metallica Thud, Blondie Feud At Rock Hall Of Fame Ceremony"). And now an even more unlikely group of artists will be allowed inside the hallowed Hall: a bunch of sweat-stained and sunburned punks — or, more specifically, their guitars, Converse All Stars and hairspray. Starting in January, an exhibit honoring Warped Tour — the longest-running touring rock festival and summertime celebration of piercings, Manic Panic and all types of punk rock — will display gear, clothing and various ephemera donated by the hundreds of artists that have graced Warped's many stages over the years. "It's a great honor for the Hall to recognize the success of Warped, and I know it's a special thing for a lot of the bands," Warped founder Kevin Lyman told MTV News. "So many of them have donated their personal gear, because they realize how great this is. A lot of them have kids now, and so they looked at it like, 'Well, I don't know if I'll ever get into the Hall, but now at least my guitar will.' " New-school acts like My Chemical Romance, New Found Glory and Gym Class Heroes all contributed items, as did a host of punk stalwarts, including NOFX, the Dropkick Murphys and the Bouncing Souls. And in keeping with the spirit of the tour, the list of donated items is particularly punk — from the Murphys' bagpipes and Anti-Flag's sneakers to a customized Millencolin beer bong. "When we first reached out to Kevin about making this exhibit happen, we wanted to recognize the significant contributions Warped has made to the state of rock and roll," Todd Mesek, a spokesperson for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, told MTV News. "We wanted to explore just what the fest means and how it has developed so many artists. And so we set out to collect as many artifacts as we could from the past 12 years." The Warped exhibit is scheduled to open sometime in late January at the Rock Hall's permanent home in Cleveland, and Lyman told MTV News that he's in the early stages of planning a show to coincide with the opening (the Used and Paramore are already on board to play, he said). And when the exhibit wraps — which should be sometime in June — the Hall plans to seal all the donated items in a special time capsule, which will be reopened in 25 years. (Click here for a look at what goes on behind the scenes at the summer's craziest punk-rock circus.)

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Warped Tour 2006 Photos

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Less Than Jake Tap New Found Glory For 'Track' Trek

14 Feb 2001 17:45:00 EST

Tour of International Track & Field Champions kicks off February 15 with Anti-Flag, Teen Idols.
By Joe D'Angelo

BW promo image
Photo: Caroline Records

While not the most athletic-looking band making the rounds, Florida sextet Less Than Jake are headlining the Tour of International Track & Field Champions, and they've tapped teammates New Found Glory, Anti-Flag and Teen Idols to join them. The month-long U.S. trek in support of the band's latest album, Borders and Boundaries, kicks off on February 15 in Atlanta and hits 24 more cities before wrapping up on March 15 in New Orleans. The horn-centric ska-punks then head off to Europe on their own for another month of roadwork, according to the band's publicist. Less Than Jake — Chris (vocals, guitar), Roger (vocals, bass), Vinnie (drums), Buddy (trombone), Pete (trombone) and Pete (baritone sax) — should be accustomed to other lands after headlining a tour of Europe with MxPx last year. The group also played a few shows in Japan before being tapped as openers for Bon Jovi's Crush tour (see "Bon Jovi Has A 'Crush' On Less Than Jake"). Fellow Floridians New Found Glory have been causing a bit of a buzz with their latest, eponymous LP. The album, propelled by the single "Hit or Miss," follows 1999's Nothing Gold Can Stay and last year's From the Screen to Your Stereo, an EP of revved-up covers of soundtrack tunes ranging from Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" to Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing." Less Than Jake and New Found Glory will also share a stage on this summer's Vans Warped Tour, which begins June 22 in Phoenix, Arizona (see "Rancid, Pennywise, More Confirmed For Vans Warped Tour"). Here is Less Than Jake's itinerary, according to the band's publicist: 2/15 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
2/16 - Norfolk, VA @ The Boathouse
2/17 - Washington, DC @ The Nation
2/18 - Charlottesville, VA @ Trax
2/19 - Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory
2/20 - New York, NY @ Roseland Ballroom
2/21 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Laga
2/22 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart's
2/23 - St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
2/24 - Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
2/25 - Minneapolis, MN @ The Quest
2/26 - Iowa City, IA @ Union Bar
2/27 - Denver, CO @ Paramount Theater
2/28 - Colorado Springs, CO @ Colorado Music Hall
3/1 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Utah State Fairgrounds
3/3 - Portland, OR @ Pine Street Theater
3/4 - Seattle, WA @ DV8
3/5 - Chico, CA @ Brickworks
3/6 - San Francisco, CA @ Maritime Hall
3/7 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Palace
3/8 - Pomona, CA @ The Glass House
3/9 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Palace
3/10 - Las Vegas, NV @ House of Blues
3/11 - Phoenix, AZ @ Web Theater
3/13 - Dallas, TX @ Bronco Bowl
3/14 - Houston, TX @ Aerial Theater
3/15 - New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues