Anti-Flag Artistfacts

1993-2023
Justin SaneLead vocals, guitar1993-2023
Pat TheticDrums1993-2023
Chris HeadRhythm guitar, bass1997-2023
Chris BarkerLead vocals, bass1999-2023
With a name like Anti-Flag, it's no surprise that this Punk Rock band's repertoire is full of overtly political song titles like "Sodom, Gomorrah, Washington, D.C." and "Red, White and Brainwashed." The group's drummer, Pat Thetic, describes himself as a borderline socialist, but shares a small glimmer of optimism about democracy with Songfacts:
"Well, I think democracy, there's a lot of benefit to it. But really the only thing that it guarantees us is that in 8 years, no matter how much this douche bag is, we can get a new one. So democracy doesn't make us automatically get a better candidate or a better president. It just means that they can't be there for 30 years like in a lot of other places in the world."
Anti-Flag are impressed with the Occupy movement. Drummer Pat Thetic believes that the grassroots nature of the protests makes it a powerful force for potential social change. In his eyes, the movement embodies the sentiment of unrest and desire to improve the world that manifests in some form every generation. This is the same revolutionary, counter-establishment sentiment that Anti-Flag attempt to convey through their music.
Anti-flag constructed their own studio to record their 2009 album, The People or the Gun. The album was written while the studio was still being constructed, meaning that some songs were recorded in half-completed facilities.
Singer Justin Sane and drummer Pat Thetic originally formed the band in 1989 along with bassist Lucy Fester in 1989. This version of Anti-Flag broke up after playing a single show. Sane and Thetic reformed the band in 1993, forming the first iteration of the act that would eventually become today's Anti-Flag.
The band claims that their number one goal is to break down artificial barriers between different groups of people. Members are often quoted as saying that Anti-Flag are not a skin color, religious preference, sexual orientation, or anything of the sort: they're simply human beings, and it's this message that they hope to spread to fans across the world.
The name "Anti-Flag" has drawn controversy in the past due to interpretations that see it reflecting an anti-American sentiment. This prompted the band to include an explanation of their name on the sleeve art of their 1999 album, A New Kind of Army. The explanation read: "Anti-Flag does not mean Anti-American. Anti-Flag means anti-war. Anti-Flag means the common people of the world are better off living in unity and peace. Anti-Flag means to stand against corporate greed that hurts millions while benefiting a handful of extremely rich. Anti-Flag means to fight against mindless nationalism. Anti-Flag means unity."
Singer and back-up bassist Chris Barker, who joined the band in 1999, is usually referred to by fans and press as "Chris #2". This is because of the name he shares with bandmate Chris Head.

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