The Circle Jerks and Free Speech
- Fred
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
Updated: 1 day ago
Lead singer Keith Morris of the punk band the Circle Jerks made headlines last weekend at Coachella when he said "we need an army of Luigis" in front of a bunch of spoiled rich kids and social media influencers. All of a sudden, his words made news:
"Luigis" in question? Luigi Mangione, the man accused of shooting, and killing, United Health Care's CEO Brian Thompson. Do I agree with Keith Morris? Irrelevant.
When was the last time I wrote about the Circle Jerks? Even though I am keenly aware of their existence, I don't think it has ever happened. But, technically, I wrote about Morris and his side project OFF! just last year.
Listen, the Circle Jerks should have went the way of the dinosaur when they originally broke up in 1990. Yes, I know that Keith Morris was in Black Flag. I'm still not sure how the Circle Jerks ended up at Coachella.
What exactly am I so agitated about?
Look at this lineup:
That's over a hundred artists. Are any of these bands Crosby, Stills, & Nash at Woodstock?
Or The Clash at Shea Stadium?
I see a bunch of has-beens and never-weres. (Not counting Post Malone).
You are shrieking at me that Lady Gaga put on a show for the ages last weekend? I'm sure she did. But was she touring behind music that spoke truth to power against "Evil Donald Trump?" Uh no. Her PERFORMANCE was epic. Her music was still pop candy.
The Circle Jerks didn't make news with their music, they made news with their on-stage banter.
If you cared about the content of Keith Morris' work, you should have been paying attention in 1982.
Again, what artist above is creating GREAT ART as a form of protesting today's Billionaire Culture? Not like Phoebe Bridgers, who makes disposable art but whines about Donald Trump at every turn, for publicity.
You counter that Green Day changed their lyrics to counter MAGA America?
We are way off track here. The point is, if the Circle Jerks were playing at The Paramount in Los Angeles, played the same exact set as they did at Coachella, and had the same between song conversations with each other or the audience, THAT would not have made the news.
Which is a different indictment on America than what the Coachella Kids meant to convey.
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