The Bad Penny (beta)

“Hearing stories of other bands paying for their visas and still being unceremoniously detained at the [U.S.] border and denied entry makes us wonder if it’s even worth it. As a band with leftist political affiliations, we’re becoming increasingly wary of the risks.”
-Theo Vandenhoff

The news reports are piling up. ICE agents arresting Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a legal U.S. resident without any criminal record or allegations in any country, and sending him to a Venezuelan gulag for months without due process.

An Australian woman held in federal prison and deported simply for visiting her husband, a U.S. Army officer, at the base where he is stationed in Hawaii.

A U.S. citizen detained at the border after trying to return to the States after visiting Canada.

If you’re ignoring the news or looking the other way, you might want to refresh yourself on the definition of “Stockholm Syndrome.” Or admit you’re a lousy citizen and bad American unwilling to fight to preserve democracy. Or under the delusion that it’s not just alleged criminals who are losing their freedoms, when in fact all Americans are (with the potential exception of the super-rich).

Hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions, of Trump supports will stick by him to what will be one of the bitterest ends in American presidential history. But we might not see a restoration of democracy even happen in our lifetimes because the sadists, nihilists, bigots and billionaires who have sided with Trump are already devising plans for what they’ll do to further an autocratic system of government in the U.S. when Dear Leader is finally gone.

If you’re not a fan of the fascist takeover that is under way in the United States but don’t think it will affect you, just wait. Ronald Reagan’s trickle-down economics theory never worked, but the trickling down of authoritarianism is very real and accelerating at practically light speed.

Because this website is mostly devoted to music, here are some examples of how Authoritarian America could quite possibly affect your consumption of audio entertainment:

• The presence of U.S. marines at music festivals and even smaller-scale concerts.

• American musicians becoming afraid to tour because masked, supposedly federal law-enforcement officials are kidnapping citizens who lawfully reside and were even born in the U.S., denying them due process and secretly shipping them to countries notorious for their horrific records on human rights: Uganda, Sudan, Venezuela and God knows wherever else.

• U.S. bands that do decide to tour skipping past red states.

• Musicians from other countries not wanting to tour the U.S. anymore due to fear of being terrorized by authorities because they’re foreigners

• Concert attendance in the U.S. possibly tanking as the country transforms into a police state and simply not feeling safe in a land where law and order is all but decimated. That outcome would be exacerbated by a recession that economists say is looming.

Still think these are farfetched fears and impossible outcomes? Read how Toronto post-punk band Theo Vandenhoff responded when The Bad Penny recently checked in with them about the hellscape that America is descending into, with no rock bottom in sight.

Bands from outside the U.S. were already burdened with having to pay exorbitant fees and deal with stringent customs agencies denying their entry. Are the new, extreme restrictions managed by incompetent officials going to be the straw that breaks the camel’s back?

Applying for a U.S. Visa is already more than most Canadian bands can afford, ourselves included, especially with the increasing risks at the border. Hearing stories of other bands paying for their visas and still being unceremoniously detained at the border and denied entry has made us wonder if it’s even worth it. In some ways it’s cheaper for us to tour Europe. We’re privileged enough to be a band of cis white men, but as a band with leftist political affiliations we’re becoming increasingly wary of the risks.

Are more bands on the fence about whether to tour the States going to decide against it because, given all the headaches, it won’t seem worth it?

It seems like a bit of a shit show. A lot of the frustration from us Canadian musicians stems from the fact that it is quite cheap and easy for American bands to play here. It all feels quite unfair and discouraging. Our own federal authorities will not advocate for us even though they pretend to care about bolstering cultural exports. Most bands can’t rely on the grant system especially when the upfront touring costs have to come out of your own pocket anyways with no guarantee of reimbursement. 

Likewise, with federal authorities trying to make life here a living hell for virtually everyone, including musicians who need work-authorized visas to pay gigs here, decided to hold off from touring the U.S. for the time being?

It’s a tough one because the U.S. is one of the most important places to tour for anyone launching a career in music, but it is also the least accessible for most people. The question of whether or not it will get any better is still up in the air. Do we wait and see or do we just bite the bullet and risk throwing away thousands of our hard-earned dollars we won’t see again for some time? We have no option but to put the fate of our band in the hands of those who seem like they would rather not have us in the first place.

Visit Theo Vandenhoff’s page on the website of their label home, Artoffact Records, and/or their Bandcamp page to buy their music and learn more about the self-described “dark and romantic” trio.

And pick up a free copy of Artoffact’s remarkable and highly admirable new compilation, The State of Canada, a snarky response to Trump recently declaring he wants the country to be America’s 51 state. It features 51 Canadian artists – Theo Vandenhoff, Kontravoid, cEvin Key, KEN Mode, Ghost Twin and Front Line Assembly, to name just a few–professing their love for their homeland.

Go here for The Bad Penny‘s On Tyranny hub.

This entry was posted on 09/04/2025 at 3:19 pm and is filed under Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Theo Vandenhoff. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.