Anti-Flag’s Chris#2 On Trump’s America In 2020: “There Are People’s Lives At Stake”
Anti-Flag’s Chris#2 reveals why the band felt they needed to make a new album now more than ever.
Earlier this year, Anti-Flag bassist/vocalist Chris#2 took the time to rank the band’s entire discography for us. Some of his placings were based on personal experience (“...a low-point for the band, just emotionally and physically. We felt exhausted…”), while others were about the strength of conviction behind the album’s political message (“That was the moment where it all convalesced and became what the band is today”). One byproduct of the ranking process as a whole, however, was that it made Chris llook at his upcoming record, next year’s 20/20 Vision, in a different light.
“It’s funny to be doing this, because with this being our 12th record, and with the idea that we’ve hit 25 years as a band, there’s been a lot of looking back, but looking back in the sense that you recognize that you’re mortal,” laughs Chris#2. “During record five, you don’t think about what it’s going to be like to be not doing it anymore. But record 12, you’re like, do I need to make one? Because I have all these other ones!”
READ THIS: 10 artists helping to save the planet through environmental activism
At the same time, Chris feels that if Anti-Flag ever needed to rise and speak to power, it’s now. The band have found an enemy like no other in Donald Trump, a single figure they focus on almost exclusively on 20/20 Vision. While the band doesn’t usually put all their energy into a single political issue, Chris says that Trump’s America isn’t just about politics, it’s about life and death.
“There are people’s lives at stake,” says Chris. “LGBTQ suicide rates are up. Hate crimes are up hundreds of percentiles in places where Donald Trump won. These are dire straits. This is a child in a cage along an invisible line in the fucking sand. And another world is possible if we refuse the orders that are being given right now.
“All of that vitriol combines to make a very important record for our band,” he says, though he’s quick to add, “and all of that shit kind of pales in comparison to the weight of what’s going on. But all of our value, and our worth in this, is our creativity. I find we are best served with these instruments in our hands and these microphones pointed towards our faces so we can get this message out, find community, find commonality, and through that either share in the empathy and the pain that we’re feeling because of these issues and push towards ending them, or raise our hands and put together a collection of people who can’t wait to see them end.”
READ THIS: 13 records to kickstart the revolution
Anti-Flag’s 20/20 Vision comes out January 17 via Spinefarm Records and is available for preorder.
Catch the band live at one of their upcoming shows in the U.S., the UK, and Europe listed below:
December
19 Erie, PA @ Basement Transmissions
20 Chicago, IL @ Reggies
21 Detroit, MI @ Black Christmas
January
08 Lisboa, PT @ RCA Club
09 Madrid, ES @ Caracol
10 Vitoria, ES @ Kubik
11 Zaragoza, ES @ Sala López
12 Barcelona, ES @ Estraperlo
14 Milano, IT @ HT Factory
16 Zurich, CH @ Dynamo
17 Graz, AT @ PPC
18 Vienna, AT @ Flex
19 Prague, CZ @ Roxy
21 Berlin, DE @ SO36
22 Munich, DE @ Backstage Werk
23 Nuremberg, DE @ Löwensaal
24 Chemnitz, DE @ Talschock
26 Warsaw, PL @ Proxima
28 Hamburg, DE @ Fabrik
29 Köln, DE @ Essigfabrik
30 Haarlem, NL @ Patronaat
February
02 Brighton, UK @ Chalk
04 London, UK @ O2 Academy Islington
05 Manchester, UK @ Club Academy
06 Birmingham, UK @ The Mill
07 Glasgow, UK @ The Garage
08 Leeds, UK @ The Key Club
09 Cardiff, UK @ The Globe
March
11 - Ottawa, ON @ The 27 Club
12 - Montreal, QC @ L’Astral%
13 - Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground*
15 - Boston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall%
17 - Asbury Park, NJ @ House of Independents%
18 - Hamden, CT @ Space Ballroom*
19 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry%
20 - College Park, MD @ MilkBoy ArtHouse*
22 - Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade @ Purgatory%
24 - Nashville, TN @ Exit/In*
26 - Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop%
27 - Buffalo, NY @ Rec Room*
28 - Pittsburgh, PA @ Roxian Theatre*
May
02 - Charlotte, NC @ Epicenter 2020
03 - Columbus, OH @ A&R Bar^
05 - Toronto, ON @ Velvet Underground^
06 - Grand Rapids, MI @ Pyramid Scheme^
08 - St. Paul, MN @ Amsterdam Bar and Hall^
10 - Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theatre^
12 - Dallas, TX @ Dada^
13 - Austin, TX @ Barracuda^
14 - El Paso, TX @ Lowbrow Palace^
20 - Oakland, CA @ New Parish^
21 - Santa Cruz, CA @ The Atrium at The Catalyst^
27 - Sacramento, CA @ Holy Diver^
28 - Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre^
29 - Vancouver, BC @ Wise Hall^
30 - Seattle, WA - The Crocodile^
* w/ Grade 2 and Doll Skin
% w/ Grade 2
^ w/ Bad Cop/Bad Cop and Grumpster