THE PROLETARIAT
from Smash! #4
Smash!: How is the recording going?
Frank: Pretty good. We should finish it this time. (today)
Smash!: Will this record feature all new material?
Frank: Not really, three of the songs are off "Distortion."
Smash!: How is it different playing in the studio as compared to playing live?
Rick: Recording sucks... playing concerts is good.
Frank: We've never played a concert!
Rick: I hate saying "gigs" cause it sounds so horrible. I hate being in the studio. I can't stand it, it's the worst thing in the world.
Smash!: What's your background?
Rick: Us three started playing for about two months, without a drummer. I used to drum. Just a snare. Then we got Tom (present drummer) and it's gone down hill ever since. (laughter) That was about two years ago.
Smash!: Are you psyched about the way things are going presently?
Frank: I don't know if we were ever "psyched." (laughter) But yeah, it's goin' okay.
Pete: I think we always knew we were pretty good.
Frank: But we didn't know if anyone would realize it.
Smash!: What's your political philosophy?
Rick: We had a political philosophy before we ever started the band. People say it's not original, that everyone has done it, but it's a hell of a lot more original than writing love songs or some fooling thing like that. It's basically putting the many before the few.
Frank: We don't want to preach. We're doing this for ourselves first. We're angry about the way this world is, but we don't force people to listen to our message, or whatever you want to call it.
Smash!: What did you think of playing in the Rock and Roll Rumble?
Rick: These two didn't want to, to begin with, but I thought it'd be kinda stupid to say no, it would have looked like we were backin' out of it.
Frank: It was good to play for a different crowd.
Rick: Yeah, because we did choose the name Proletariat, y'know. That's for everyone. We can't discriminate, we can't say, "no we're not gonna play there because everyone dresses new wave." Why can't we reach them too, cause you're not gaining anything by reaching the people you've already reached.
Smash!: What do you think of the scene around town?
Rick: I like it. Lot of good bands around Boston. Mission of Burma was the best band that was ever in this town.
Smash!: Yeah!
Pete: Now that they're gone ...Berlin Airlift. (laughter)
Frank: I like the FU's myself. 007.
Pete: A lot of the hardcore. Sorry has possibilities.
Smash!: What's your attitude towards the hardcore scene? You seem to take somewhat of a separtist stance, like you don't want to be just another triple-speed band.
Frank: We never were. By the time we had formed what we were like, we didn't even know what the hell hardcore was.
Rick: We just happened to come out around the same time as Decontrol did, that was it pretty much.
Frank: We don't fit the stereotypical image, musically and appearance-wise.
Smash!: What do you think about the straight edge?
Frank: It's fine, if that's what you want to do. Everybody has to live by their own rules. I don't like drugs, I don't use drugs, but I drink. I try not to drink to an excess, but no one's gonna tell me not to drink. You have to take responsibility for your own life.
Smash!: Do you have any plans to tour?
Frank: We'll probably do some kinda week thing this summer, but I don't thinik we're gonna be a big touring band anyway.
Rick: Once the album comes out and is going like top-twenty, then we'll put together a tour, probably opening for John Cougar. Cougar can cook live, I'll tell you.
Frank: I wanna play with Billy Joel - he's getting political.
Rick: Hey -"Allentown?"
Frank: The government is gonna get more skilled at manipulating the people. It's kinda so subtle now that most people don't even realize it. It's gonna become more obvious.
Rick: It's like "take the poison... or starve."
Pete: They're getting away with giving the people less and less all the time. They are taking more and more away.
Smash!: But aren't people more aware of what's happening with the government today?
Frank: No, all Reagan has to do is go on TV and say, "oh, it's working, it's working." And things are getting worse and worse. He'll get elected again.
Smash!: What kind of government would you like to see?
Frank: Most of the governments I'd like to see would never happen. Anarchy in theory is great, but it'd never happen. Not here, anyway.
Rick: Communism in theory is great too, but there's never gonna be true communism. Even if a communist-socialist revolution took place, there'd still be capitalist rebels who'd rebel against that.
Frank: If there was a communist revolution, whoever was leading would be just as corrupt in the end as what we have now.
Smash!: But don't you have any hope?
Frank: No, I don't have a hell of a lot of hope. You can't force people. If we got up there and just started ramming it down people's throats, they'd be less likely tolisten. Wouldn't you?
Smash!: Yeah.
Rick: If someone says, "No, I won't do this," we'll say "fine, fuck you, be left behind"... We don't want to really forcefully change anyone's mind, we just want to open them up.
Smash!: What do you think about violence in politics? Do you support the right to violence?
Frank: Yeah, I support the right to violence. That doesn't necessarily mean it's right for me.
Pete: I don't really think violence solves anything. Take two examples; the Black Panthers, a violent group, and Martin Luther King. They're supposedly going for the same thing; equality. Which did more for the black people?
Chuck/Mark: King.
Frank: Jed doesn't agree with that, though. I don't agree with him about how to stop the Klan.
Smash!: Would you like to comment on the Rathskellar incident (riot)?
Frank: I thought it was kind of funny that (the) next week everything went okay.
Rick: Yeah, maybe it didn't go well for us and it didn't go well for Burma, but it helped for other shows, it served a purpose. Hey let's interview you now. Jed, who are your favorite bands around town?
END
(No, the Proletariat's songs don't tell the whole story, there's more to this band than what comes across on stage. But if you're stupid like certain people, I guess you can't grasp that.)
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