While Pennsylvania has a spotlight on them during the current presidential election, Pittsburgh-based political punk group Anti-Flag have released timely video for their track “A Dying Plea Vol. 1.” The punk rock band collaborated with other big name artists such as DE’WAYNE, Jalise Della Gary, Marcia Richards and Tom Morello on the song to bring awareness to the current situations the country is facing.
The video sheds light on a lot of social injustices the country as seen this year and in years past. Police brutality, the Black Lives Matter movement, violence and protesting are the common themes shown in the video. The clips and photos that are shown help visualize the emotion that the artists were trying to bring attention to through their lyrics.
“How long must we wait/ For all of this to change/ The fear, the death, the pain/ Will it ever go away?/ How long must we wait/ How long? (How long?).” These words are just a few that are used in the political tune that push the message Anti-Flag and the other artists are emphasizing to help push change in the United States.
The angsty sound that Anti-Flag is widely known for is definitely prominent in “A Dying Plea Vol. 1” but is accompanied by unique tones and vocals brought by the collaborating artists. The diversity in sound between the artists makes this song stand out among the others done by Anti-Flag.
While it comes as no surprise that Anti-Flag has released a political track, especially during election time, their most recent album is arguably their strongest political piece of work. The group utilized this album to specifically target one political figure in particular. Donald Trump is the center of attention on their album 20/20 Vision. Anti-Flag took the opportunity to shed light on major issues that have only gotten worse under Trump’s presidency. 20/20 Vision was released in January of this year.
Anti-Flag is set to play Red Bridge Fest in 2021 after it was announced earlier this year that festival would be postponed due to the pandemic. The bill features artists such as Less Than Jake, Pulley, Satanic Surfers and more.
Photo Credit: Raymond Flotat
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