“It’s been a long fucking four years, fam. But for those of us who have dedicated our lives to fighting fascism, we know that this wasn’t an aberration, and even Impeachment 2: Electric Boogaloo isn’t the end. On their latest, Pleasure Venom peel back the veneer of American civility to reveal the fascist rot beneath. Singer Audrey Campbell says the kernel of the song started with the realization that “Americans, including myself, being sent back to work in a pandemic because rich people needed shit like haircuts and brunch was pretty fucking fascist. It wasn’t until I finished the lyrics that I realized why I had even put pen to paper. I had fucking snapped.”
The song took shape from there building over a year of simmering tension, finally exploding with the chaos of the past week. “As I write this, racism still runs rampant in America. Sharing on your social feeds because it’s trendy is not enough to end a systemic, generational problem. Even a pandemic cannot stop the rampant racism, classism, bigotry and homophobia when it should be a time to come together against these fascist ideals and build something new. There were Black lives lost, particularly Black trans people murdered last year that have resulted in no arrest, conviction, or justice for anyone. And now the nation’s capitol has been stormed by fascist pawns. We wrote this song almost a year ago, so don’t tell me no one else saw this coming.”
Campbell continues. “We saw the stark contrast between the unchecked insurgence and the BLM protests, where the National Guard were called and buses were ready to sweep up anyone present. Fascism and racism are real, and now the entire world knows – America has truly revealed itself. We watched bigoted American Police take selfies and escort racists, fascists, and terrorrists in and out of the Capitol building on January 6th. We saw how tolerant they were to them. Where was that tolerance during BLM protests?
So now what? Do you just share to Instagram and social feeds? Trust me, that’s simply not enough. We have to start in how we treat the people in our own personal Black and Brown communities. We need to take action in small but impactful ways. Find your lane and get into it – but if you are not actively combating racism some way in your daily life, you are part of the problem. This movement has to move away from performative displays of solidarity. Put the pressure on, and give ‘em hell. Keep up the energy. Most of all, stay informed, and wear a goddamn mask, because we would like to tour again!” - AFROPUNK
lyrics
VERSE 1:
Deep inside
Feelin it
Keep it thin
Trying to slim
Darker inside
Turn the light on
Stop
Stop
Stop it in your Benzo
CHORUS:
Feel it in your spine
VERSE 2:
Getting in your way
Trying to stop
Feeling them
Trying to get on
Sicker inside
Trying to get you
Stop
Stop
Stop it in your Benzo
released January 12, 2021
Written, performed and co-produced by Pleasure Venom 2021
Engineered and co-produced by Elliott Frazier
Executive Produced by Wolfshield Records
Mastered by Jas Nowicki
Artwork by Chase Dungan
Performed by
Audrey Campbell, Vox
Chase Dungan, Guitar
Joel Coranado, Bass
Thomas Valles, Drums
Explosive experimental garage punk outfit Pleasure Venom of Austin, TX, explores topics of love, sex, resentment, and the
general “absurdity of it all,” consistently blasting audiences with a firehose deluge of fierce femme-punk rock led by singer, Audrey Campbell on vocals, Thomas Valles on drums, Chase Dungan on Guitar and Jordan Emmert on bass.
