Anti-Fascist, Anti-Racist Metal Festival “Black Flags Over Brooklyn” Announced for 2019
Update, November 30th, 10:22am EST: Woe have been replaced by Morne on this bill. New flyer posted above.
Original Post:
At MetalSucks we love when metal becomes intertwined with politics — after all, ALL art is political — so we’re excited to learn that a brand new festival will launch in Brooklyn in January of 2019 that combines both of our passions into one event.
The two-day show, dubbed “Black Flags Over Brooklyn,” will take place at the Brooklyn Bazaar on Friday evening, January 25th, and all-day Saturday, January 26th. Dawn Ray’d, Woe, Ragana, Vile Creature, Chepang and Whitephopshorous have been announced to perform, with a second wave of bands to be revealed in mid-December. The venue will also host an all-day vendor market on Saturday consisting of band merch, label distros, radical publishers, activist organizations, local artisans and more.
Black Flags Over Brooklyn has been started as a way to encourage inclusivity in the metal scene and speak out against bigotry of all kinds within the metal scene. From an official press release:
“This event is for those of us who reject and push back against that poison infecting our scene—those who adhere by the mantra that “metal is for everyone (except Nazis),” and who are committed to cleaning up our own backyard. The artists on the lineup all have different identities and come from different backgrounds, but are all united under the same ethos: FUCK NSBM.
“As we all know, metal is an incredibly vibrant, diverse subculture with sounds, fans, and artists who span the globe; as we also know, there’s a small but unfortunately vocal contingent in our midst who care more about gatekeeping and upholding toxic ideologies like white supremacy, racism, misogyny, homophobia, transphobia, Islamophobia, xenophobia, and bigotry in general than in seeing the genre thrive. The worldwide rise of violent white supremacy and fascism has put every one of us—but especially those in marginalized communities—at risk, and metal should not be allowed to remain a breeding ground for right-wing extremism. Metal is too good for Nazis.
“It’s time to raise the black flag, throw the horns, and take our scene back!”
It should go without saying, but this event has the full support of MetalSucks! So glad there’s a festival like this in the community, and hopefully this is the first year of many.
Friday tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/black-flags-over-brooklyn-day-1-tickets-52898438654
Saturday tickets: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/black-flags-over-brooklyn-day-2-tickets-52898459717
Weekend passes: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/black-flags-over-brooklyn-fest-pass-tickets-52898497831
