Throughout our ten-plus years of tracking
and fighting hate across music subcultures, the Turn It Down Campaign has also
made it our business to recognize and support bands and labels who take strong
stands against bigotry. As necessary as
it is to track those who would hijack our scenes to promote hate, it is equally
crucial to work with antiracist efforts.
We have published extensive resources, assembled rosters of bands and
other elements of the music industry who support our efforts, and worked closely
with touring bands to share information and ideas.
Now we’ve taken it a step further.
Earlier this year, word trickled out that
Tightrope Records – headed up by Bryant Cecchini, formerly of Resistance and
Panzerfaust Records – planned a follow-up to the 2004 Project Schoolyard
compilation. While we’re happy to report
that this sad sequel attempt to recruit youth to the white power movement has
made barely a ripple, its release started a conversation between Turn It Down
and Insurgence Records.
Insurgence has long been known as one of
the most vital voices in the antiracist scene.
The Toronto-based label has produced such overtly anti-fascist bands as
The Oppressed, Klasse Kriminale, The Press and The Prowlers. Insurgence was just as irate as we were to
learn that the racist fringe would once again target our youth with a
collection of (truly awful) music. So we
decided to do something.
And now, a few months after that
conversation began, we’re proud to announce the release of Northern Aggression:
Project Boneyard Volume II – a compilation of hardcore, punk and more that
Insurgence asserts is “without question, the best collection we’ve ever
compiled.” Turn It Down and Insurgence
have pooled our efforts and resources to categorically answer the efforts of those
who think music fans and youth can be so easily won over by lousy music and idiotic
ideology.
This comp is stellar. For starters, it has made us love hardcore
again has renewed our faith in smart street punk. We’ve found a bunch of incredible bands we
didn’t know, and we’ve rediscovered a few we hadn’t heard in a while. More than anything, though, Northern
Aggression has proven that plenty of people will readily take a stand against
hate in our music scenes.
This is where you come in.
While we’re thrilled and proud that so many
great bands have stepped up, we need music fans to join the fight. We want to get this comp out there in as many
hands as possible, and we need your help to do that. We’ve worked out a number of ways for you to get
copies of Northern Aggression. If you’re
looking for a copy for yourself, go to www.insurgence.net,
where you can get a copy free with any order, or on its own for a mere $3.
But
we’ve also set our sights bigger. We
want to hear from bands, venues, fans and others who can help us get the word
and the music out there. Below you’ll
find information on how to get bulk copies of the comp for as little as 50¢
each. Send us your order, and we’ll send
your discs right out, along with some Turn It Down buttons. You can pass them out to friends, or if
you’re a band, you can give them away or sell them for up to $3 at your merch
table. It’s up to you. But for all of you who’ve been asking how you
can help, this is a huge opportunity to do so.
Let’s show the bigots that they can’t have our scenes. You can order via paypal
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