Marxist Music groups.

[4thInter]

I've been currently listening to Oi Polloi, although they're a great band I want to hear a band who sings about Marxism. Any good bands?

[Iakovsko]

Good question. It really would depend on the type of music you like. Personally, I'm a fan of old labor protest songs, communist anthems, and the link so I pretty much listen to the Red Army Choir, Pete Seeger, etc. Though if you're into the Punk scene, Workers United Front has two albums that are OK. Night of the Living Reds and Dawn of the Reds. They're not the best, but hey, it's Punk, amiright?

[MarcusJuniusBrutus]

I rather like Billy Bragg.

The union forever! Defending our rights! Down with the blacklegs. All workers unite.

[Kaoxic]

One of the girls from Babes in Toyland is a Marxist.

[Ceallach_the_Witch]

Afaik Paul Heaton of The Housemartins/The Beautiful South was/is a Marxist. I know one of the tracks on London 0 Hull 4 explicitly references Karl Marx

[Queen Mab]

Gang of Four

[BolshevikBabe]

Stereolab are Marxists iirc

[Brandon's Impotent Rage]

Angelic Upstarts.....I think? I know they've used alot of revolutionary socialist imagery in the past.

Obviously Rage Against The Machine is one that get's mentioned quite alot. Tom Morello's Nightwatchman side project is also awesome, especially if you're into blue collar American class conflict.

There's also the MC5, which was probably the first rock band to be formed out of the more radical elements of the American New Left.

[motion denied]

Angelic Upstarts.....I think? I know they've used alot of revolutionary socialist imagery in the past.


Yes. Mensi (vocals) was a very active anti-fascist back in the day.

You'll find tons of Oi! communist bands, OP. Though they're more anarchist, you can't go wrong with Brigada Flores Magón.

[Ceallach_the_Witch]

Les Rallizes Denudes were all Marxists I think, AFAIK most of them were involved in Japanese communist organisations

[bad ideas actualised by alcohol]

the Dicks were maoists (and hella rad). Nation of Ulysses and the Refused were situationistic.

[VILemon]

My band is not political per se, as we don't have any lyrics, but all three of us are Marxists (despite our name).

Check us out!

http://juche.bandcamp.com <-- This is our recent EP

http://juche.bandcamp.com/album/juche <-- Full-length album

ANY FEEDBACK GREATLY APPRECIATED

[RedWorker]

Who said music by itself can't be political?

Also, fuck North Korea and their far-right Juche crypto-fascist bullshit.

[VILemon]

Who said music by itself can't be political?

Also, fuck North Korea and their far-right Juche crypto-fascist bullshit.

You might have noticed that I deliberately made a point of distancing Marxism from juche in my comment. Maybe you were just adding that as an aside though (it's hard to read tone in text, obviously).

And without allowing this thread to devolve into a debate about the DPRK - far-right, really? DPRK's autarky, dynastic succession, etc. are unsavory, but I'm not sure that their politics are best understood as on the right.

[Geiseric]

:glare: the beatles

[Sasha]

Yeah, lots of the old OI bands where socialists; red alert, red london, angelic upstarts, the oppresed, the redskins
Still many of the current redskin bands are, especially those from eastern-europe and southern-europe and south-america.
Also if you want something less punk, new model army

[The Idler]

Thee Faction
http://www.theefaction.org/

[#FF0000]

You might have noticed that I deliberately made a point of distancing Marxism from juche in my comment. Maybe you were just adding that as an aside though (it's hard to read tone in text, obviously).

You should post more cuz your band is good.

[Brutus]

The Doors. Just listen to The Doors.

[Dennis the 'Bloody Peasant']

The (International) Noise Conspiracy were one group I was aware of as being overtly Communist / Marxist. Can't remember if they were any good or not.

[Lev Ulyanov]

v=ZMRoB9VK3Xc

Their drummer (and the guy who posted the video) is one of my best lecturers, and an activist in various left-wing movements. He drew up most of a joint manifesto presented as an advisory document to candidates prior to the MEP elections - check out the website of the AFS from my profile if you're interested, I can't post links yet.

[FieldHound]

Is there any more good Oi! bands with English lyrics, maybe underground bands? I know all the obvious ones (redskins, red london, red alert, upstarts etc) but surely there are other good bands just with a few demo tapes out or whatever. Hard to find cos internet searching "communist oi" turns up loads of "anti-communist" results :glare:

[Sea]

The Doors. Just listen to The Doors.Marxist or not, just listen to them anyway. :grin:
:glare: the beatlesdragonforce

[Skyhilist]

If you like punk: I'm pretty sure that Strike Anywhere are Marxists (though they might be anarchists). Also, Propagandhi and Leftover Crack are both good punk bands, although both are once again anarchists and not Marxists, so maybe not quite what you're looking for. Boots Riley identifies as communist, and Tom Morello (who I believe identifies as some type of radical socialist) are both in Street Sweeper Social Club. Tom is also in RATM, which I'm sure you've probably already heard of, and pretty much everyone in RATM professes radical politics as well.

[Bulletformyreagan]

Surprised no one has mentioned them, but if you're into punk/hardcore, Manliftingbanner are explicitly Marxist and they have an awesome discography. IMO, they're a bit more erm 'authentic' ;) than your RATM-esque bands and are all active within socialist organizations. Can't post a link yet :(

[Sewer Socialist]

Surprised no one has mentioned them, but if you're into punk/hardcore, Manliftingbanner are explicitly Marxist and they have an awesome discography. IMO, they're a bit more erm 'authentic' ;) than your RATM-esque bands and are all active within socialist organizations. Can't post a link yet :(

Yes! Also, the bands Seein' Red and Lärm are Marxist. All 3 share members, I believe.

Assück and Napalm Death probably aren't Marxist really, but they're def some kinda leftist. And really good.

[consuming negativity]

Johnny Hobo and the Freight Trains/Wingnut Dishwasher's Union/Ramshackle Glory (in order from earliest to latest)

Anarchist and enjoyable; although some of it sucks and Pat can be a bit childish and/or incoherent at times. It's hard not to enjoy shit like this tho:

o8YHVQGfFLs

[Rafiq]

My understanding is that most "Marxist" music groups are shitty edgy punk bands.

One thing I find utterly despicable is when song lyrics are literally, word for word phrases and statements you'd find in some garbage apologist "left" pamphlet. RATM does this sometimes. It's like the song is so confused it has to justify its politics in the lyrics. True political music doesn't have to answer to anyone or anything, and is much more vague or poetic. True political music expresses ideological sentiment and revolutionary passions in the melody, in the sound of the music itself, not the lyrics. It's such an obnoxious trend how left punk bands have this garbage archetype of sound, rhythm and whatever (usually really edgy, bombastic "FUUUCK SOCIETY" type of sound) - with different interchangeable "leftist" lyrics about different problems. Like they're trying to give you a damn speech with instruments in the background. That's not music, that's utter garbage.

[Zukunftsmusik]

My understanding is that most "Marxist" music groups are shitty edgy punk bands.

Yes. There are honourable exceptions though. Gang of four has been mentioned, for example.

[Turinbaar]

Woody Guthrie, Pete Seager, and the Weavers were all members or close associates of the communist party, and were all blacklisted in the red scare. Guthrie's guitar bore a sign that read "This Machine Kills Fascists."

My band plays some of there songs. My favorites are "Deportees" and "I Ain't Got no Home."

Every once in a while someone will approach and strike up conversation about music and the left. Today while performing a show I met the son of the Spanish Civil War combat vet who drew my portrait when I was a child.

Sadly "Marxist" music, and left art in general, is so often either crude garbage or pretentious empty propaganda and suffers both aesthetically and ideologically, especially with the starkly pronounced political and social irrelevance in which we find ourselves.

Aesthetics is Marx's great unfinished subject, and a revival of the left necessitates that we continue to develop this contribution to human culture and civilization, not merely as an expression of our critique or a rallying cry, but also as a precious thing to be protected against capitalism and barbarism.



We can save a debate about the content (Assad, W.H. Auden, Czechoslovakia 1968) but here is a song that I helped create -

IMvVUUCpFf0

[Creative Destruction]

The Coup

[flaming bolshevik]

Immortal technique


Though he does use homophobic/misogynistic language at times which I find disturbing.

[Red-Heathen]

The Coup is pretty great. Dead Prez also has Marxist tones to their stuff. Commendantes are really good imo. Dropkick Murphys and Marxman are also good.

*WARNING, these bands are not listed by order of sound.*

[Creative Destruction]

The Coup is pretty great. Dead Prez also has Marxist tones to their stuff. Commendantes are really good imo. Dropkick Murphys and Marxman are also good.

*WARNING, these bands are not listed by order of sound.*

I'm not sure if Dead Prez are strictly Marxists, but they're socialists of some kind. They've outright called for the establishment of a socialist economy:


Bring the power back to the street where the people live
I'm sick of working for crumbs and filling up the prisons
Dying over money and relying on religion
For help. We do for self like ants in a colony
Organize the wealth into a socialist economy
A way of life based off the common need
And all my comrades are ready, we're just spreading the seed

-- Police State, Dead Prez

I get the feeling that they've read Kropotkin as well, given the reference to the ants. They're also associated with Omali Yeshitela, who is a pan-African socialist and heads up the African People's Socialist Movement: http://asiuhuru.org/ontheground/apsp-usa/index.shtml.

[Ceallach_the_Witch]

a lot of Rock In Opposition was Marxist or at least generally left-influenced if you're in to avant-prog stuff

[Illegalitarian]

Guthrie, Seager and Utah Philips are all pretty great.


There's a Trotskyist rapper who is very preachy and very... trotskyist, but nonetheless still pretty good. His name escapes me though, I just remember one of his lyrics were "you won't see no anarchists out on the black blocks", a subject that does strike a nerve with many anarchists (non M-Ls in general)

[Celtic_0ne]

The Oppressed. duh

[Rafiq]

a lot of Rock In Opposition was Marxist or at least generally left-influenced if you're in to avant-prog stuff

Stormy Six. They're great. Well, honestly they have about three good songs, but great songs .

[Anglo-Saxon Philistine]

There's a Trotskyist rapper who is very preachy and very... trotskyist, but nonetheless still pretty good. His name escapes me though, I just remember one of his lyrics were "you won't see no anarchists out on the black blocks", a subject that does strike a nerve with many anarchists (non M-Ls in general)


There's a Trotskyist rapper


Trotskyist rapper

Alright, now I think I literally have seen it all. I think I'll go hang myself on a doorknob or something because there's no way anything in my life is going to top that.

I don't know though, I guess someone rapping the "World Prospect for Socialism" would come pretty close. Or the ICL(FI) DOP (and SOP).

Political music tends to be pretty bad. Particularly when people try to work political messages into rap and pop music.

[newdayrising]

I was going to say Manliftingbanner, but Bulletformyreagan beat me to it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEAQhvddL8o
Where man is free where`s no more need i`ll rest my soul in peace when there is silence without a coming storm i`ll be free of the oath i`ve sworn But until that time remains my commitments to communism When man controls what man has made i`ll put up with faith when there`s no more sorrow no more harm i`ll lay down my arms But until that hour remains our commitment to communism.

[Lily Briscoe]

I was going to say Manliftingbanner, but Bulletformyreagan beat me to it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xEAQhvddL8o
Where man is free where`s no more need i`ll rest my soul in peace when there is silence without a coming storm i`ll be free of the oath i`ve sworn But until that time remains my commitments to communism When man controls what man has made i`ll put up with faith when there`s no more sorrow no more harm i`ll lay down my arms But until that hour remains our commitment to communism.
Ugh

[RedKobra]

I love New Model Army but I don't know if I'd call them Marxists, if anything they fit into the Utopian Socialist movement. Singer/Lyricist Justin Sullivan is probably the only member who gave much of a toss about politics & he's very "gaia spirit" and anti-materialist. His lyrics are fantastic though.

Jangle-pop band McCarthy were very, VERY Marxist, just a bit boring musically.

One band I loved for many a long year were the Manics, gone rubbish now, but as a Teen I adored them. They're massively politically confused & I do look back on a lot of the stuff they did and cringe now but none the less they see themselves in the Marxist tradition.

Unlike some on here I quite like in your face agit-prop music as long as its genuine.

[RedKobra]

The (International) Noise Conspiracy were one group I was aware of as being overtly Communist / Marxist. Can't remember if they were any good or not.

Weren't they an offshoot of 'Refused'? INC weren't really my thing & ideology wise I think they were more Situationist than strictly Marxist.

One band I did remember is UK punk band The Newtown Neurotics. I never read any interviews with them so don't know if they espoused their politics outside of their music but their lyrics were highly political, anti-Tory & left. I always got the impression that they were further left than Red Wedge which was an explicitly pro-Labour grouping of bands.

[socialistlawyer]

Cuban music and culture are very very addictive. I took them granted until I got a recommendation from my friend when I was 20 years old and compared them with bourgeoisie music which to me is mere 'rattling of cans' and senseless. No intellectual value. French communist music is good too.

[contracycle]

AOS3 are worth a look; more anarchist than Marxist per se but with some interesting class war ideas. Also, Scum of Toytown; both of these use a ska sound.