I have very mixed feelings about this and almost didn’t review it, but I’m not here to make decisions for people, just to give honest reviews. This is three-piece from Maryland and it’s put together really well. There’s a free sticker and I’m a fan of the minimal packaging, avoiding any unnecessary crap that might detract from the overall experience. The recording is crisp and the levels perfect adding a nice kick to the RAMONES influenced rock and roll style. Lyrically the band goes less in the direction of straight-forward politics and leans heavily towards the real life experience side of things. Up to this point, I’m totally on board and thoroughly enjoy this release. The issue I take with the lyrics comes with using the word gay in a derogatory manner. I’m not the PC police by any means, but I’d like to think that the punk community would be above the social bullshit that is such a problem in mainstream culture and we should at least keep an open dialogue about these issues, if not flat out call each other out in these situations. My other gripe is with the song The Emo Lesbian Connection where the chorus states that a big reason that so many women are homosexual is due to the fact that emo boys aren’t manly enough. I realize that a large part of the population believes that sexual orientation is a choice, and for some folks that may be the case, though many would argue that it’s who you are from birth. Punk shouldn’t have boundaries or limitations put on it, which is why I chose to review this CD and leave you to decide whether or not you want to pay the $10 for it. I’m all for freedom of expression, but I also rather listen music that doesn’t refer to sexual orientation in a negative fashion. (Jake)
http://www.soulfulaggression.com
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Jake,
Thank you for the great review on our music. I think the issues you have are because the song lyrics may have been interpreted too literally. Although I write half the songs in the band, I did not write those two. They were written by our female singer/guitarist, Dar.
She is probably better able to address them but I will. The first reference is to our song “Get a F’n Life”. The word gay is actually used metaphorically to mean lame. It is actually spelled “Ghey”. Go to urban dictionary dot com and see.
In a similar vein, she wrote the Emo Lesbian Connection to express her frustration with some shows in the baltimore/DC area that are billed as “punk” when they are not. We support all lifestyles and don’t discriminate. Dar can comment on her sexual preferences but I will say Soulful Aggression has had members and/or followers of all races, creeds, and sexual orientations.
Check out our second EP “Raspberry Rollercoaster”. It’s a free 3 song download at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/soulfulaggression2
I think you’ll dig it.
Sean (bass)
I heard the lead singer is a lesbian.