Redistribution of wealth: Earache, Psycroptic
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Speaking of government funding, Earache’s blog has a great entry about how the label (and also Creation Records) started with the help of Margaret Thatcher. During her regime, the UK government set up an “enterprise allowance scheme,” which gave money to people to start businesses. The goal was to get people off the dole; the scheme worked, at least according to this Parliamentary transcript.
In the December issue of Decibel (#50, Metallica cover), I have a feature on Psycroptic. They, too, have had public backing. The Tasmanian government helped fund the death metallers’ debut, as well as airfares for some gigs. The investment paid off, as Psycroptic are now a global commodity. Their records have progressed from pleasant beatings to the sleek sculpture that is Ob(Servant) (Nuclear Blast, 2008). Its rhythm guitar work is amazing.
I’ve heard of similar public funding of metal in Europe, particularly in Sweden (which financed the awesomely wacky Diagnose: Lebensgefahr record) and France. (This just in: Dutch metallers Textures made a video with “a generous grant from the Dutch tax videoclip fund.” See story and video here.) Maybe Europeans take it for granted, but such aid is unheard of in the US. Recall the ’80s, in which the National Endowment for the Arts was a convenient scapegoat for conservatives, despite its tiny budget. In 1996, at the height of its various controversies (Serrano, Mapplethorpe, etc.), its funding got cut to $100 million. The US defense budget that year was around $250 billion. Now the disparity is even greater. For fiscal year 2008, the NEA budget is about $145 million; the 2008 US defense budget, including the War on Terror, is about $700 billion.
And people get up in arms when Barack Obama talks about “redistribution of wealth.” Can’t they see that their tax dollars are already grievously misprioritized? No wonder the rest of the world perceives Americans as trigger-happy philistines. My solution: redestribute wealth towards metal. Metal appreciation programs in schools. Replace “high school jazz band” with “high school metal band.” Establish a National Endowment for the Dark Arts. Turn ammo into bullet belts. Progress shall be measured not by rounds per minute, but by beats per minute. Dave Lombardo for President.
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