Faithless
Mass Destruction EP
Well today I bought the "Mass Destruction" EP and album "No Roots" by Faithless. The EP has the video clip for "Mass Destruction".
P>The clip is a provocative statement about the evils of war, racism, misinformation and fear as weapons of 'mass destruction", and features chilling black and white footage of British school children acting out 'prisoner of war' scenes. These scenes produced the desired shock reaction, particularly as the children act the parts of both captors and captives, aggressors and victims. One is prompted to ask what kind of world our kids are growing up in, or more pointedly, what is our society training them to become?
As he did with "We Come 1" from the "Outrospective" album, Maxi Jazz puts global violence in our faces to bring a message of peace. Although Jazz's particular religious beliefs show through more clearly than at some times ("An you aint goin to nirvana or far-vana, you comin' right back here to live out your karma") this is not a distraction from the thrust of the song as a whole - if anything it is a reinforcement that we reap what we sow.
For those who don't know Faithless, they are the masterminds behind "God is a DJ". a former band member, Jamie Catto, was one of the duo who put together the extraordinary 1 Giant Leap CD and DVD. And band member Rollo's sister is Dido who has also been part of the band on more than one occasion. Did o provides some vocals on this album.
Have a listen here:
Faithless Website
A great website too!
Lyrics to Mass Destruction:
(Chorus)
With a long range weapon or suicide bomber
Wicked mind is a weapon of mass destruction
Whether you're stowaway's son or BBC 1
Dis-information is a weapon of mass destruction
You could a caucasian or a poor asian
Racism is a weapon of mass destruction
Whether inflation or globalisation
Fear is a weapon of mass destruction
My dad came into my room, holdin his hat
I knew he was leavin', he sat
on my bed, told me some facts, son
I have a duty, callin on me
You and your sister be
brave my little soldier,
and don't forget all i told ya
Your the mister of the house now remember this
And when you wake up in the morning give ya momma a kiss,
then I had to say goodbye
In the morning i woke momma with a kiss on each eyelid,
Even though im only a kid,
certain things can't be hid
Momma grabbed me, held me like i was made of gold,
but left her in the story untold
I said, momma it will be allright,
when daddy comes home, tonight
(Repeat Chorus)
Whether Haliburton, Enron or anyone
Greed is a weapon of mass destruction
We need to find courage, overcome
Inaction is a weapon of mass destruction
Inaction is a weapon of mass destruction
Inaction is a weapon of mass destruction
My story stops here, lets be clear
this scenario is happenin everywhere
and you ain't goin to nirvana or favana
You comin right back here to live out your karma
with even more drama
than previously, seriously
Just how many centuries have we been waiting for someone else to make us free
And we refuse to see,
The people overseas are just like we
Bad leadership, amigos, unfettered and free
They feed on the people they're supposed to lead, I dont need it
We need to pray away, for the lord to make it all straight
Its only now we do it right, cos I don't want my daddy, leavin home tonight
1 comment:
I bought the Mass Destruction CD last night in Brisbane and listened to it on the way home to the Gold Coast. The CD is a top seller at the moment in HMV - there were many many copies in stock. Played it to some of the youth group kids later that night - they'd heard it on the radio but hadn't quite made sense of it yet. The video clip packs a powerful punch.
One line cuts through to me - "inaction is a weapon of mass destruction."
The story of the kid saying goodbye to his dad in the night brings back memories of Pink Floyd's movie, "The Wall" - the pain of a child growing up with his dad in the war.
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