Testament guitarist Alex Skolnick released second Trump diss track called “Wear a F–king Mask (WAFM).” The first was “Trump Sucks,” which was met with mixed opinions.
Skolnick’s caption on the video for “Wear a F–king Mask” starts off by commenting on the reactions to “Trump Sucks,” “Some wrote in calling it ‘Brilliant,’ ‘Best rap song of 2020’ and ‘An anthem for our times,’ while others labelled it ‘cringeworthy,’ ‘pathetic’ and ‘leftist BS.’ (Hey, any reaction is better than no reaction, as they say).”
Instead of sticking to the jazzy guitar playing that “Trump Sucks” used, Skolnick plays an Eddie Van Halen-inspired riff and dedicates it in tribute to the late legend. “The loss of my all-time favorite guitarist, Eddie Van Halen delayed things by about a week, as I and the world mourned.” The caption continued, “Coincidentally, this project includes some of the most directly VH influenced parts I’ve ever done; so much so that I’d taken out my exact replica of his guitar after quite some time.”
He explains how Van Halen’s technique directly influenced his playing, especially the way he imitated DJ scratches, “Eddie’s palm scratching technique on the VH track ‘Atomic Punk,’ is a perfect stand-in for a turntable sound (and easier than coordinating with an actual DJ). The chorus is inspired by a VH groove so funky, it could have worked for rap/hip-hop (‘Mean Street’).”
A drum loop completes the beat. Skolnick raps in a very 80’s style, setting up the diss with some words satirically bragging about his rapping skills, “Kinda like Zappa I’m all over the mappa/I guess I’m now a rappa.” He segues to the meat of the lyrics by rapping “I am a younger Generation X/And so what? That’s too old to put rhymes on the page?/What if I was more like Dr. Fauci’s age?”
In the chorus, Skolnick holds up a picture of Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and sings “Wear a fucking mask” while doing an impersonation of Fauci’s voice. Fauci has been in the news today since Trump allegedly lifted Fauci saying “Can’t imagine that…anybody could be doing more” out of context for a campaign ad. The quote came from an interview with Fox News from late March.
An interlude shows Skolnick speaking without comedic delivery, “Mr. President, on behalf of the American people, I’d like to have a little word. You claim it’s important for you to be respected. Well… respect must be earned.”
There’s a couple more verses that more specifically call Trump out for how he’s handled the virus and make fun of him for testing positive. “I know my tracks will trigger attacks but I can’t relax/This is a war against alternative facts/So that’s why I’m lyrical, I’m not being hysterical/But this thing ain’t going away like a miracle.”
Testament’s last album Titans of Creation came out in April via Nuclear Blast. Since then, Skolnick has contributed to a lot of covers with some other star musicians, Rush’s “YYZ” and “Freewill,” Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now,” Beastie Boys’ “Check Ya Head,” Kiss’ “C’mon and Love Me” and Fleetwood Mac’s “Rhiannon.”
Photo credit: Marv Watson
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