Playlist: The Burning Hell & Carsie Blanton share their protest playlist

Perennial Joyzine favourites The Burning Hell have teamed up with American singer-songwriter Carsie Blanton for Everything Is Great!, an astonishingly good record (even with the sky-high expectations I went in with) of hilarious, scathing, insightful calls to action through song, loaded with revolutionary zeal, dripping with irony and very much up for both a fight and a hug. And what better time for an album like this, as half a million people took to the streets of London to stand against the far right at the weekend while millions more rallied in cities across the United States and beyond in No Kings protests against the Trump administration.

We’ll be writing about the record in more detail soon, but with the album released today and the pairing set to embark on a UK tour later this month, we asked them to share their perfect protest playlist. Check out their selections below, but first watch the brilliant video for new single ‘Everything Is Great!’

It’s still remarkably common to hear people declare that “nobody writes protest music anymore,” by which they usually mean that music hasn’t been politically vital – or even good at all, really – since around 1969 or so. Of course, that sort of statement says more about the listener than anything else, and billions of hip-hop and punk fans would be right to point out that plenty of protest music has been made in the last half-century. But there’s no question that the tides of politics and music cross each other in ebbs and flows. The waves seem to be getting bigger these days.

But musicians have been fighting the power clowns for a long, long time. The four of us – Carsie Blanton, Ariel Sharratt, Joe Plowman, and me, Mathias Kom – compiled this list of some of our favourite protest songs. There are many obvious omissions, and it was tough to keep this as brief as it is (and brief it isn’t). Some of these are classics, others are a little more under-the-radar. A few are about very specific issues, but many are more generalized shouts against oppression, capitalism, or war. A few might not appear to be protest songs at first listen, but the power of music is in how we receive it and what we do with it. Finally, a great many of these are at least a little bit funny, because we believe that a message can be far more powerful and effective when it comes with a laugh.

Listen to the full playlist here and check out the reasons for each track’s inclusion below:

I Don’t Mind Failing – Malvina Reynolds

We’ve performed this at the end of our gigs for years, and there’s nothing more beautiful than the sound of a hall full of people singing Malvina’s perfect words.

Big Rock Candy Mountain – Harry McClintock

A true vision of paradise.

World Turned Upside Down – Dick Gaughan

A brilliant version of the Leon Rosselson classic about the Diggers, who have been inspiring us all since way back in the 1640s.

A Place Called England – June Tabor

We love the horn arrangement in June Tabor’s version of this Maggie Holland song, and it’s a perfect singalong for those of us who suspect the rich will make excellent compost.

Scales Will Fall – Hen Ogledd

A brand-new anthem for modern Diggers.

Revolution – Nina Simone

Yes, yes, the Beatles were a wonderful band. But Nina’s Revolution is better.

The Guillotine – The Coup

A perennial anthem from the beautiful mind of Boots Riley.

Canzone del Maggio – Fabrizio De André

One of the best, from one of the best, reminding us that there are no bystanders in the revolution.

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised – Gil Scott-Heron

A work of genius by a wordy genius.

Resistance Hymn – Barbara Dane with Active Duty GIs

Singer, record-label founder, and lifelong activist Barbara Dane is a true hero.

Beware Verwoerd (Ndodemnyama) – Miriam Makeba

Miriam Makeba’s excellent version of this anti-apartheid classic, originally composed by Vuyisile Mini, who was hanged by Verwoerd’s regime in 1964.

Fight the Power – Public Enemy

Where would we be without Chuck D?

War – Bob Marley

The combination of Bob Marley’s interpretation of Haile Selassie’s speech to the UN with one of Aston Barrett’s most iconic basslines is unstoppable.

Beds Are Burning – Midnight Oil

The time came a long time ago, but the time has come again.

More Than a Paycheck – Sweet Honey in the Rock

A perfect, beautiful, angry song of labour and solidarity.

Part of the Union – Strawbs

One of the most fun union anthems to sing, still fantastic over fifty years later.

Do They Owe Us a Living – Crass

TLDR: of course they fucking do.

We’re Not Gonna Take It – Twisted Sister

Sometimes you don’t need a big discussion – sometimes you’re just not gonna take it anymore, and you need a good singalong to let everyone know.

Arthur MacBride – Paul Brady and Andy Irvine

The best version of this absolute banger of an anti-recruitment song from the Napoleonic Wars.

Zombie – Fela Kuti

It’s a rare song that can make a military dictatorship as scared and angry as Zombie made the Nigerian government in 1976.

Fuck the Police – N.W.A.

So many powerful anti-police brutality songs have been written over the years, but this remains the gold standard.

Killing in the Name – Rage Against the Machine

Maybe the second-best anti-cop anthem, and one of the greatest folk songs in drop-D tuning with a wah-wah pedal guitar solo of all time.

If I Had a Rocket Launcher – Bruce Cockburn

Inspired by the US-funded coup and civil war in Guatemala, this song remains vital.

We’ll All Go Together When We Go – Tom Lehrer

Tom Lehrer is one of Mathias’ biggest songwriting influences, and this one feels more relevant than ever these days.

The Lottery – Stanley Brinks & Freschard

“Who wins the lottery? The lottery. Who wins the war? The war itself.” An under-the-radar gem from our friends and comrades.

All You Fascists Bound to Lose – Woody Guthrie

Choosing a single Woody Guthrie song for this list wasn’t easy, but this is one of the most joyful to sing with your comrades.

Nazi Punks Fuck Off – Dead Kennedys

It was a challenge to pick just one Dead Kennedys song for this list, but this is a perennial fave and we love this version from the studio.

The Day the Nazi Died – Chumbawamba

A companion piece that reminds us the Nazis never really went away.

WWPRD – Jeffrey Lewis

You ask yourself, and I’ll ask me: WWPRD?

Manifesto – Victor Jara

Posthumously released after Jara was murdered by the Pinochet regime, a beautiful song about the power of song itself.

Everything Is Great! by Carsie Blanton and The Burning Hell is out now as a digital download via Bandcamp

Catch them together on tour in the UK and Ireland from 14th April – full dates and ticket details here

Carsie Blanton: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp
The Burning Hell: Website / Facebook / Instagram / Bandcamp

Introduction by Paul Maps

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