ANTI-FLAG 20 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

Celebrate 20 Years of Anti-Flag!

2013 marks 20 years of Anti-Flag. Anti-Flag will be playing a series of special anniversary shows this year. These shows provide a unique opportunity to hear the band playing their signature anthems, as well as reaching deep into the catalog and playing rare material that a live audience normally wouldn’t have the chance to hear.

This year finds Anti-Flag once again touring the globe, releasing new music, and innovatively engaging audiences. Anti-Flag have joined forces with Art For Amnesty to release an electrifying version of “Toast To Freedom,” the now-classic commemorative song written to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Amnesty International. The track – inspired by the imprisonment of Russian activist punk band Pussy Riot and benefiting human rights organization Amnesty International – was recorded at the legendary Hansa Studio in Berlin, Germany, and features Donots, Ian D’Sa of Billy Talent, and Bernd of Beatsteaks. Anti-Flag have also just released a split 7” with the up and coming Connecticut based band, Hostage calm. The split features one new song from each band pressed on three beautiful combinations of red, white and blue splatter with an etched b-side. Proceeds from record sales will go to benefit two organizations based in each band’s hometown.

Anti-Flag have been spreading their political punk message to the masses for two decades. Through the years, they’ve gone from non-stop tours criss-crossing North America in a dilapidated van to world tours traveling as far as Australia and Russia. Born out of Pittsburgh basements, their goal was to become a voice for change within the punk community.

From humble beginnings in the Steel Town, Anti-Flag has worked hard to use music as a force for positive change. They are strong advocates for worker and human rights, environmentalism, animal rights, healthcare, conscientious objectors, prison reform and freedom for political prisoners, equality and peace. They have stood alongside, Michael Moore, Gloria Steinem, MP George Galloway, Billy Bragg, and Congressman Jim McDermott. Anti-Flag has worked with countless organizations. Groups as diverse as PETA, the African Well Fund, Amnesty International, Rainforest Action Network, ACLU, Greenpeace, Planned Parenthood, Unionrocks, and the Center for Victims of Violence and Crime (among many others) have always been welcome to make their voices heard through the power of Anti-Flag’s live shows.

Activism has always been the cornerstone for Anti-Flag, from clothing drives to benefit shows, their goal is to not only entertain but more importantly to inform and educate those who share their vision and hope for a better tomorrow. They’ve been active in the Occupy Wall Street movement. Anti-Flag have lent their ferocious live set to many causes, including the Gay Edge Liberation benefit in Cologne Germany and Positive Force DC. Anti-Flag also brought their punk philanthropy to the UK for Wherever the Need, which supports clean water projects, and Emmaus, an organization that provides the homeless with an opportunity to rebuild their lives in a supportive environment. Anti-Flag previously headed a cross-Canada coat and blanket drive that supported local youth shelters, canned food drives for local food banks, and raised money to build wells in Africa. In addition to raising funds for those who need it most, they’ve created the non-profit organizations Military Free Zone (combating a provision in the No Child Left Behind act that invades students’ privacy for Military Recruitment purposes) and Underground Action Alliance (a networking site for social justice).

As much as Pittsburgh has defined them, they’ve always done their best to take their message to the world at large. They’ve toured extensively in Europe, Russia, Scandinavia, UK, Australia, Southeast Asia, Mexico, and South America (in addition to the USA and Canada, of course). They’ve appeared on the Big Day Out festival tour in Australia with Rage Against the Machine, Billy Bragg, Arcade Fire and Bjork. They were the only band to play two sets each day at the Leeds and Reading Festivals in England (rocking the main stage and the BBC Lock Up Radio Stage for a total of four sets in 35 hours). They’ve headlined Rhein Kultur, the biggest free festival in Germany, taking their message to a crowd of 50,000, and at Woodstock Poland a record-breaking crowd of 350,000+ people. Closer to home, they nearly got their heads kicked in by cops while performing two shows in Minneapolis around the 2008 Republican National Convention, one on the steps of the state capital, the other at the Target Center with Rage Against The Machine.

Anti-Flag created “Demand In DC”, for Inauguration Day 2009, applauding the empowerment of people thru art, film, and music and in 2012 created their very own festival ANTIfest that debuted in the UK. 

Anti-Flag’s music and message is a call to action for people of all backgrounds and beliefs to focus on making tomorrow a better place for all. As Anti-Flag celebrates 20 years, they carry the torch forward putting emphasis of the band and every show played on community. As Chris #2 says, “This is an extension of what our vision of punk rock is, was, and will always be.”