We stopped along the road in Idaho while the sun was setting to record this live acoustic rendition of "Redemption Song" during our US tour with Radio Moscow.
I love their music, but what's with all TLI's winking at communism? Presumably "Internationale" is a reference to the Communist Internationale. They've also prominently featured anarcho-communist flags in their imagery and even currently it on shirts in their merch store. What's with this? Why isn't anyone speaking against this? If we're serious about reducing/eliminating human suffering, we have to speak honestly about the horrors of statism, especially its instantiations in communism and socialism. In sheer murderousness, not even Naziism can hold a candle to this awful ideology. Casually displaying this imagery is every bit as repugnant as someone's flying a Confederate flag or Nazi flag. TLI, your music is terrific, but I think you need to carefully ponder the meanings and history of the ideology and imagery you so blithely disseminate.
Hey my brother. Thank you for your statement. We welcome and encourage everyone to express their opinions. We agree that we have to speak honestly about the horrors of statism, including state communism. Our flag is not an endorsement of those oppressive elements in history. We don't think it's fair to compare it to Naziism or state communism either. Believe me, our flag would be outlawed and our band would be persecuted in many of these statist communist countries you are referring to. Our flag is more inspired by those who fought and lost their lives in the Spanish Civil War, for example. They were also against state oppression, so we believe it is important to celebrate our history and organizations like the Abraham Lincoln Brigade. We have never supported brutal dictators or endorsed an ideology. To the contrary, we are very vocal against many on the right and the left. It's extremely sad to see the world being oversimplified and divided into two categories: liberal/left or conservative. The world is much more complex than that and we only see people (including fans) as human beings. We feel a lot of people can benefit from this kind of discussion that we're having right now. If you'd like to continue it, maybe over a live stream, then we welcome that too. We're always open to being challenged and learning something new. Stay safe, my brother and keep on rocking!
