Locrian Co-Founder Launches Anti-Fascist Power Electronics Project Axebreaker
Terence Hannum is mad as hell, and he's not going to take it anymore. Like most of the world, the multi-instrumentalist (best known as a co-founding member of Chicago avant-metal trio Locrian) is disturbed by Donald Trump's presidency — especially its accompanying resurgence of racism, nationalism and fascism, loathsome philosophies that the new president has effectively endorsed through his policy initiatives and staff picks (I'm looking at you, Steve Bannon).
When it comes to fighting back, there are plenty of options (donating to the ACLU, participating in a protest, punching Richard Spencer). Naturally, Hannum's weapon of choice is music — more specifically, his new power electronics project, Axebreaker. It's less a solo endeavor than a disjointed ANTIFA manifesto: dissonant collages culled from rage-fueled flotsam, straight from Trump's sphincter-shaped mouth. These screeds are set to be unleashed later this year, when Hannum drops the first Axebreaker release, Burning False Flags. With songs like "Know the Enemy" and "The Reek of Your Privilege" on the track list, it's safe to say that the Pepe set won't be putting the record on their year-end lists — and that's exactly the point.
Axebreaker's "White Rose," which we're premiering today, offers a fitting introduction to Hannum's subversive mission, with lyrics that double as a galvanizing call to arms. "Is your spirit already so crushed by abuse that you forget it is your right to eliminate this system?" Hannum asks. "Why do you allow those in power to rob you?" It's one hell of a pep talk, to say the least. Listen below.
Axebreaker's debut full length, Burning False Flags, will be released March 21 via Primal Architecture. Pre-orders for the digital version and limited-edition cassette box (which comes with a patch) are available here.
AXEBREAKER, BURNING FALSE FLAGS TRACK LIST
1. "White Rose"
2. "Changeling"
3. "Enemies List"
4. "The Reek of Your Privilege"
5. "Everywhere and Nowhere"
6. "Know the Enemy"
7. "Holocaust"