Last week friend of the collective Julia Tausch published an essay disavowing Toronto band Death From Above. One member of the band was recently accused of associating with the alt-right; Tausch shows that the band’s music has always been misogynistic.
The news that a fave is problematic — or a straight-up problem — is never welcome, and Tausch acknowledges DFA fans who were genuinely heartbroken at seeing their image of the band tarnished. One good thing about our historical moment, though, is that there is so much art out there, so many potential faves.
For example, there are plenty of bands out there that trade in heavy rawk riffage, like DFA, but that manage to not accompany that riffage with arguments for patriarchal family values. Some of our faves from the last few years are: Big Joanie, Bully, Dilly Dally, Downtown Boys, G.L.O.S.S., HIRS, Lithics, Marnie Stern, Melkbelly, Mourn, Priests, and Xenia Rubinos. These artists rock out and punch up; they bring the riffage, and they sing (or scream) about intersectional feminism, systemic racism, trans liberation, xenophobia, as well as anxiety, depression, desire, relationships, and sex.
When faves are called out for being problematic, some people worry that a witch hunt is in progress. To borrow from Lindy West: it’s true! — our faves are witches, and they’re on the hunt! Instead of choosing just one song for today’s jam, we’ve made a whole playlist of heavy music. Good luck, and good hunting!
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