Renae Bryant 2/1/09
OTR: As I searched the internet for information on Disaster Strikes (beyond what I already know…you know like “research”…). I discovered that Disaster Strikes aren’t big on talking about themselves. I hope you’ll be willing to open up a little with me here. So first question, how and when did Disaster Strikes start?
DISASTER STRIKES: We prefer that our message and music get the attention, rather than ourselves as individuals. As it gets harder here and elsewhere to make a living, pay rent, get healthcare, or simply survive, it seems there are more urgent things to make noise about than ourselves. The first Disaster Strikes record was recorded by Bill from Toxic Narcotic/Mouth Sewn Shut in his basement many years ago. The current lineup that recorded The Interrogation Sessions EP for Alternative Tentacles is by far the most active Disaster Strikes lineup ever in terms of touring and writing material.
OTR: I noticed that you post reviews of the bands as the description of the band. If forced, how do you describe Disaster Strikes?
DISASTER STRIKES: Hardcore punk with a message that focuses on workers rights and corporate greed.
OTR: Your last two releases have been on Alternative Tentacles. How did this relationship form?
DISASTER STRIKES: The Frisk played a house show that our singer booked. Jesse from the Frisk works for Alternative Tentacles and brought some Disaster Strikes CDs to Jello Biafra. Sue from Re:Generation had told Jesse about us, too. After listening to the songs that Jesse brought him, Biafra invited us to put out a new record with Alternative Tentacles, and it sort of took off from there.
OTR: On each of the D.S. releases and your website you list “resources.” What inspired the band to do this?
DISASTER STRIKES: Lots of people want to start speaking out against injustice at their jobs, in their communities, or globally. Lots of political bands and long-time activists act like this is an easy and convenient thing for everyone to do, but it’s not. In a world with so much injustice, it can be hard for many people to know where to start pushing back, or whether to push back at all. When your boss can fire you for even requesting fair treatment at work, it’s hard to speak out if you feel like nobody has your back, or if you don’t know your rights on the job. We try to give folks a starting point by turning them onto groups and resources that can help them empower others and empower themselves.
OTR: In my mind, Disaster Strikes is a political hardcore punk band. The releases reflect this in the lyric writing and titles of each release. For those that don’t own these yet, could you please describe what some of your favorite songs are about?
DISASTER STRIKES: The song “All for Nothing” is about the amount of trust folks put in corporations, and the fact that this trust is usually wasted. For example, you buy another new product that fails to bring you status or happiness as advertised, or your employer robs its retirees of their hard-earned health care benefits or pensions. Young people are brainwashed to think wearing the right brands can provide them likeability or status. That attitude of trusting brands and corporations to make us who we want to be extends deep into adulthood. It affects what and how we consume and fosters a false sense that large corporations care about us in a human or paternal way that they’re not actually capable of. We invest an incredible amount of trust in corporate employers and suffer a delusion that they will always do right by us, as long as we don’t rock the boat at work, or regulate them publicly.
The good news is that people are starting to look more skeptically at corporate power in this country, following Enron and the Wall Street bailout, in particular. Every new film, band, website, or book that encourages us to question our relationship with corporations helps – whether it’s an underground effort or more popular contributions like Fast Food Nation, The High Cost of Low Prices about Wal-Mart, or what folks like Michael Moore, Cornell West, Naomi Klein, Eckhart Tolle, and even George Carlin before his death have been saying about this.
The bottom line is corporations have shown they are accountable to people only to the degree that the people hold them accountable. Forming unions, taking part in community action to ensure responsible labor and environmental practices, boycotts, and fostering alternative products like sweatshop-free clothing are some of the means we promote for getting this done.
OTR: Many bands have no idea where their merchandise in manufactured. Could you explain how you made sure that your merchandise is sweatshop free?
DISASTER STRIKES: The first priority is making sure any blank apparel purchased by you or your screen-printer has what’s called a “union label” or “union bug”. That’s a special imprint on the tag that tells you the shirts were manufactured by union workers who have a collectively-bargained contract with their employer and a voice in determining their wages, benefits, and working conditions. UNITE-HERE!, UFCW, and GCIU are examples of unions whose members still manufacture clothing in the United States, so those are the names to look for on the tag. If you’re not doing the screen-printing yourself, you can have it done at a union screen-printing shop like Mirror Image in Rhode Island, which ships to anywhere and whose employees are members of UAW Local 1596. That’s where Disaster Strikes merchandise is produced. It’s a two-step process. You want to ensure folks are being treated fairly both where the shirt is being manufactured and where it is being screen-printed. These are usually two separate worksites.
OTR: Do you feel hopeful with the new administration under Obama, or do you feel it’s the same shit different day?
DISASTER STRIKES: To say that electing a pro-choice African-American who opposed the Iraq invasion, and who supports health care and labor law reform is the “same shit” as George W. Bush or John McCain seems intellectually dishonest, even if we share broader objections to how systems of power work in this country.
To say it doesn’t matter who picks the judge that will possibly cast the final vote on Roe vs. Wade and a woman’s right to choose overlooks a huge threat to the lives and health of women.
At the same time, we need to remember that his election matters far less than what we do or fail to do in organizing for social justice in our own worksites and communities.
Two key tests will be how universal Obama’s health care plan actually is and whether or not he gets the Employee Free Choice Act passed, which he supports and both Bush and McCain vehemently opposed.
That bill would make it easier for US workers to form unions and mandate real penalties for employers who threaten workers during the organizing process. Currently, it’s very easy and common for employers to engage in illegal “union-busting” tactics without any consequences. Right now, average CEO pay is 344 times that of the average US worker. For all the talk of fixing the economy, giving workers back the basic right to organize is vital if the balance of power in this country is to shift even slightly towards working people.
That being said, the President-elect is very wrong on issues like gay marriage, the anti-immigrant wall on the Mexican border, the Patriot Act, and the FISA wiretap bill. As others have said, it’s going to be up to the movement of people who want change to drive Obama and hold him accountable, not the other way around. Not long ago, this country had a lot of hope in another Democrat promising change named Bill Clinton, and while not as bad as Reagan and Bush, Sr., Clinton had the audacity to exploit that hope, selling out working folks big-time with things like NAFTA.
OTR: There are some bands that talk activism but don’t always put action towards their words. How does Disaster Strikes “walk the talk?”
DISASTER STRIKES: Seth Tobachman has a book with a great title: “You don’t have to fuck people over to survive.” At a minimum, we adhere to that idea as individuals and in how we operate as a band – using sweatshop-free merchandise and showing respect to people we collaborate with and play for on tour. We all have our own ways of putting these words into action. Some of those ways we’ve been doing for a long time and others we’ve learned about from each other. For our singer, it’s a part of his job everyday as a labor organizer, helping other people form their unions and get respect at work.
OTR: Disaster Strikes has completed numerous U.S. tours. What are some of your best memories of touring?
DISASTER STRIKES: Jumping off a bridge in Wakefield, QC, Canada into the Riviere Gatineau. Playing the Showcase Theater before it closed in Corona, CA with Naked Aggression, Mouth Sewn Shut, and All or Nothing HC. Lake Shasta near Redding and the beaches in San Diego and Santa Cruz were very cool. There are too many to list and sometimes too many to even remember.
OTR: Disaster Strikes is very active in the Boston/East Coast scene. What are the highlights of your hometown and the East Coast scene?
DISASTER STRIKES: In terms of venues, Boston has been in a whatever-we-can-get mode for almost a decade since the Rat closed and the Middle East stopped doing all ages shows. Midway Café and house shows are the ticket now in Boston. There are cool spots to the South like the Thunderdome house and AS220 in Rhode Island, and obviously ABC no RIO in New York. Further South, Charm City, Lo-Fi, and Sidebar are fixtures in Baltimore, and LAVA Space in Philadelphia is great. Suburban Showdown has been doing good shows in New Hampshire and the Clinic Bomb and USA Waste folks have been keeping things going in Maine.
OTR: What does 2009 hold for Disaster Strikes?
DISASTER STRIKES: We’re hoping to put out some new songs and maybe some split records in 2009. In March 2009, we are touring the West Coast and in June, we’ll be doing the East Coast and Midwest with Mouth Sewn Shut. We’ll be doing a good amount of shows with In Defence and Common Enemy, as well. Our 2009 plans are focused on those US tours and possibly some Canadian dates, and in 2010, we’re hoping to tour in South America and Europe.
OTR: Any last words?
DISASTER STRIKES: Thank you to everyone who has been taking the message to heart recently or who has been part of the struggle all along. Thank you to everyone promoting and coming out to the shows and to everyone who helped with The Interrogation Sessions EP like Richard Marr at Galaxy Park Studios, Amy Toxic, Jeff Lipton, along with Jesse, Maiko, Biafra, Dave, and George at Alternative Tentacles.
OTR: Contact info.:
www.disaterstrikes.net
www.alternativetentacles.com
- WED MAR 11 – FLAGSTAFF, AZ @ STAB MOUNTAIN
- THU MAR 12 – TEMPE, AZ @ AZTEC THEATER
- FRI MAR 13 – RIVERSIDE, CA @ BACK TO THE GRIND
- SAT MAR 14 – BERKELEY, CA @ 924 GILMAN ST.
- SUN MAR 15 – SANTA CRUZ, CA
- MON MAR 16 – SANTA ROSA, CA
- TUE MAR 17 – SACRAMENTO, CA
- WED MAR 18 – CHICO, CA @ MONSTRO’S
- THU MAR 19 – MEDFORD, OR @ MUSICHEAD RECORDS
- THU MAR 19 – MEDFORD, OR @ JOHNNY B’S (late)
- FRI MAR 20 – PORTLAND, OR @ PLAN B
- SAT MAR 21 - TBA (early)
- SAT MAR 21 - SEATTLE, WA @ FBK HOUSE (late)
- SUN MAR 22 – OLYMPIA, WA @ TBA (early)
- SUN MAR 22 – BREMERTON, WA @ AFU (late)
- FRI MAR 27 – BOSTON, MA @ MIDWAY CAFE
- SAT MAR 28 – HARTFORD, CT @ WHITMAN HOUSE
- SUN MAR 29 – DOVER, NH @ BRICKHOUSE
- SAT APR 04 – NEW YORK, NY @ ABC NO RIO
Common Enemy Interview
By Renae Bryant
OTR: I was first introduced to Common Enemy while on tour in 2004. I think the line-up has gone through some changes since then. Tell us a little about how Common Enemy came together and who is in the band now.
Justin: Originally we came together to fight zombies trying to eat brains, but of course being no zombies right now, that got boring. We then started the band to spread the word of FUN! Singers have come and gone for personal reasons, but the rest of us, Greg, Tank, and I are not ready to stop playing. So we then recruited a real party animal, Gary Critical to sing.
OTR: Skateboarding is a huge part of the imagery of Common Enemy. Tell us about how this relationship began. Who still skates?
Greg: Well, I always loved music and started skating at about 13. I still break out the board occasionally, but not as much as I would like.
Justin: Greg pretty much summed it all!
Gary: I skate, but I can’t do anything great besides fall.
OTR: What and how many releases do you have so far?
Gary: We have releases?
Greg: Yeah man, quite a few!
Justin: These are just the releases I remember off the top of my head.
- "L.E.A.R.N. / Common Enemy / Woof / Sidetracked" 4 way split CD
- "Common Enemy vs. Everybody's Enemy" split CD
- "When Cops Attack" Common Enemy / Weot Skam split 7"
- "Till Death" Common Enemy / L.E.A.R.N. split 7"
- "Groovy" 7" EP
- “T.U.I.” CD
- “Let’s Have Fun!” 7” EP
- “Circle Pit Split” Eyes of Hate / Common Enemy split 7”
- “One Shall Stand, One Shall Fall!” Common Enemy vs. The Twats split 7”
- “Late Night Skate” CD
OTR: I was blown away by the amount of vinyl you have. Many DIY bands don’t have that much vinyl. Did you make a conscience effort to put out so much vinyl?
Justin: Nothing sounds better and looks greater then vinyl with some killer artwork.
Tank: We love vinyl. It actually just happened that way.
OTR: You have co-released a CD with a Japanese band. Any plans for touring Japan?
Tank: I want to go their so bad! One day we will get there.
Justin: There has been talk of touring Japan, South Asia, and Australia, we just don’t have the vacation time, money, and time off school to do it all right now! We will get there though!
OTR: How did each of you discover punk/hardcore and what keeps you an active part of it?
Tank: When I was 11 or 12, my brother got me into it. It’s like it was in my blood. We help put on shows for touring bands and spreading the word of fun.
Greg: Some friends took me to a local show, I loved it! Playing shows and going to shows.
Gary: The song “Egg Raid on Mojo” by the Beastie Boys got me hooked.
Justin: “BUILD RAMPS, NOT BOMBS!”
OTR: In my opinion, Common Enemy is a hardcore punk band. How do you describe Common Enemy, and could you please describe what some of your favorite songs are about?
Tank: Fun! In your face, party it up. My favorite song is “Skate or Try”, skate for yourself, I hate competition.
Justin: He pretty much just summed it up. Some of my favorite songs are “One Up” and “Just Another Enemy”. They’re very personal to me and describe past relationships of so called friendships and what they’ve become.
OTR: Do you feel hopeful with the new administration under Obama, or do you feel it’s the same shit different day?
Tank: I think it’s a huge step for this country and in the right path, but we have a long way to go.
Greg: There are a bunch of things I agree with him about. Let’s keep our fingers crossed. It’s gonna take time.
Justin: Obama is a leader and we need that, but the last administration has screwed this country up so bad that it’s too far gone that a revolution would be the only thing to help it out.
OTR: There are many definitions of punk. What is yours? Do you think that activism and positive change is a part of that definition?
Tank: Yes and no, being yourself and standing up for what’s right.
Greg: Just do and be who you want and what you want.
Gary: I can’t really define anything I do, I do what I do cause it’s both fun and feels right to me.
OTR: Some of the band members are punk rock dads. How is punk rock parenthood? Is it hard to juggle everything?
Tank: Not me!
Justin: I love it and wouldn’t change it for the world! We are lucky we have lots of support from our ladies, without them it would be extremely difficult to do the things we do with the band.
Greg: Yeah, it keeps you busy. I can tell you that.
OTR: Common Enemy has toured the U.S. and Europe. What are some of your best memories of touring?
Tank: All of it has been great! The best is meeting new people and the different cultures.
Greg: Falling from a 12 foot high bunk bed on my face.
Everyone: hahaha… (laughing)
Justin: Yeah that was the joke of the whole tour! Oh the good times!
OTR: Common Enemy is very active in the Pennsylvania/East Coast scene. What are the highlights of your hometown and the East Coast scene?
Tank: Some awesome people and bands on the east coast, with lots of partying.
OTR: You guys help a lot of touring bands out in PA. What are some of the more memorable shows that have happened as bands have toured through?
Tank: Any show with All or Nothing HC of course … good times. Jeff from Party Time Records and Concrete Facelift, those guys know how to party! I just love playing and having fun.
Justin: I don’t help out as much as I would like to, but for me it’s just impossible to do it all.
OTR: What does 2009 hold for Common Enemy?
Tank: More beer drinking!
Greg: Fresh tunes and fun!
Gary: More shows, tours, and bong packs.
Justin: Brand new Full length, touring Europe, Canada, Puerto Rico, a 7” split with Aggressive Force, and what ever else comes our way!
OTR: Any last words?
Tank: Up the punx! Beers good for you!
Greg: Who’s got the beer bong?
Gary: Hey, hey, hey, smoke weed everyday!
Justin: Keep it real … FUN!
Contact info:
Email: satantrooper@aol.com
www.commonenemy2000.com
www.myspace.com/commonenemy