The frontman for band Mawiza, who blend metal with Mapuche folk music, reflects on the horrific treatment of his indigenous ancestors by the Chilean military as U.S. citizens are getting disappeared and terrorized by the Trump administration. Read my New Noise interview.
Archive for the On Tyranny Category
On Tyranny: As US Citizens Get Disappeared and Terrorized, Chile’s Mawiza Reflects
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Mawiza, On Tyranny on 04/30/2025 by Kurt OrzeckCellista: ‘Creating and Existing Under Trump’s America Is My Act of Radical Resistance’
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Cellista on 04/25/2025 by Kurt OrzeckIf you read one story about the role of artists in our lovely new authoritarian America, please let it be my interview with cellist, composer, aerial performer and resistance artist Cellista. Props to New Noise for publishing this critical interview.
Dusk Sees Hope for Metal in Homeland of Saudi Arabia
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Dusk on 04/04/2025 by Kurt Orzeck“Trading CDs is illegal. Metal music was illegal in (Saudi Arabia). Music in general (was outlawed) by what was called ‘the religious police.’ ” So says Dusk in New Noise‘s latest installment of On Tyranny, a series about artists making music under authoritarian regimes.
On Tyranny: Punk Legends UK Subs Denied Entry Into US Due to Alleged Trump Criticism
Posted in Essays, Features, News, On Tyranny with tags On Tyranny, trump, UK Subs on 03/21/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
A new chapter in Trump’s war on free speech has apparently begun, with members of punk legends UK Subs denied entry into the U.S. and detained after traveling to play a concert Stateside, according to The Guardian. The U.K. news outlet cites accounts purportedly posted on the band’s Facebook page. (The Bad Penny does not utilize or endorse social media.)
Continue readingOn Tyranny: Kuwaiti Metal Artist Abzy Calls Hate ‘A Black Hole’
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Abzy, Dusk, Meshari Sangora, On Tyranny on 03/20/2025 by Kurt OrzeckIn the latest installment of my new On Tyranny series for New Noise, I caught up with Abzy, a metal and rock musician from Kuwait, and chatted with him about what life was like for artists when Saddam Hussein ruled Iraq.
On Tyranny: Hungarian Black-Metallers Sear Bliss Lost ‘Freedom’ In Orbán’s Autocracy
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Donald Trump, On Tyranny, Sear Bliss, Viktor Orban on 03/19/2025 by Kurt OrzeckHungary’s longest-running band, Sear Bliss, recently spoke with me about what it’s like living in a country ruled by a despot who happens to be good friends with Donald Trump. Get a glimpse of the serious threats American artists are now facing at home, where the Trump regime is now disappearing dissenters, in the latest edition of New Noise‘s new series, “On Tyranny.”
On Tyranny: Necrofier Frontman Wonders ‘Is It Going to Be Like ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’?’
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Christian Larson, Hell's Heroes, Necrofier on 03/17/2025 by Kurt OrzeckWhen we recently chatted with Christian Larson about his upcoming Hell’s Heroes festival and what his band Necrofier is up to, we also had to pick his brain about what the hell is going on in the United States of America.
On Tyranny: ‘People in America Have Blinders On,’ Lamb of God’s Randy Blythe Says
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Lamb of God, Randy Blythe on 02/25/2025 by Kurt OrzeckAs part of The Bad Penny‘s new series called On Tyranny and focusing on how artists deal with living under authoritarian regimes, we’re dusting off an interview with Lamb of God frontman Randy Blythe conducted on December 23, 2007.
At the time, Blythe—known more as a deviant class clown than a philosopher—was one of the only vocalists in metal or punk screaming unabashedly about the Gulf war and the crimes of George W. Bush.
Check out the prescient words of one of metal’s greatest frontman in this interview, originally published in unparalleled graphic novel/ rock magazine Royal Flush and now presented online for the first time.
Check out these related stories:
• “‘On Tyranny’: Musicians Living Under Authoritarian Rule Speak Out” (2.24.25)
• “Thy Catafalque Mastermind Talks About Meaning of Life, Living Under Dictator Viktor Orbán” (12.10.24)
• “Malist Creator ‘Exhausted’ By Russia’s Invasion Of Ukraine” (9.7.24)
• “Moscow Metal Band Malist Voices Opposition to Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine” (5.15.23)
• “Faith In Metal: Orphaned Land Push For Peace In The Middle East” (9.28.10)
• “Steve Earle: ‘It’s Very Dangerous To Be Ignorant Of Islam’” (9.8.10)
Also related: “My Friend Neamah And The State Of Our Country” (9.21.24)
On Tyranny: Musicians Living Under Authoritarian Rule Speak Out
Posted in Features, Interviews, On Tyranny with tags Malist, Orphaned Land, Steve Earle, Thy Catafalque, Timothy Snyder on 02/23/2025 by Kurt Orzeck
With the U.S. now unquestionably (pun intended) operating as an autocracy, The Bad Penny is launching a new feature series called On Tyranny, consisting of conversations with artists who are current or former residents of countries ruled by dictators (other than the U.S. and per the nonpartisan World Population Review). After more than a week of reflection, it became apparent that taking action and initiating this modest effort seemed like a healthier idea than giving up and obeying in advance.
On Tyranny, inspired by Timothy Snyder‘s book of the same name, is not intended to foster policy debates but rather facilitate artists who have lived under authoritarian regimes to educate artists who have not. With any luck, maybe some will discover ways to prepare, strategize, cope or simply find a sense of camaraderie as America’s new dictatorial regime targets artists, always one of the first groups to be assailed during times of right-wing political upheaval.
While we assemble our first proper installment of On Tyranny, here are some related articles that might catch your interest in the interim:
• “Thy Catafalque Mastermind Talks About Meaning of Life, Living Under Dictator Viktor Orbán” (12.10.24)
• “Malist Creator ‘Exhausted’ By Russia’s Invasion Of Ukraine” (9.7.24)
• “Moscow Metal Band Malist Voices Opposition to Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine” (5.15.23)
• “Faith In Metal: Orphaned Land Push For Peace In The Middle East” (9.28.10)
• “Steve Earle: ‘It’s Very Dangerous To Be Ignorant Of Islam’” (9.8.10)
Also related: “My Friend Neamah And The State Of Our Country” (9.21.24)
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