US rock band Primus cancels Israel gig

[azurnoir]

The cancellation comes two days after American R&B and soul singer Lauryn Hill called off a concert in Israel, which was scheduled to take place On May 7 at Rishon Lezion's new Live Park amphitheater, following pressure from the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement.

Primus was founded in 1984 and went on to become one of the most successful and popular psychedelic folk groups in the world.
In the past 30 years, the band has released eight studio albums which became platinum and gold albums. The band members also recorded the original theme song for American TV show "South Park."

Primus is considered one of the most veteran and critically acclaimed bans in the world of rock.

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4654802,00.html

[azurnoir]

1. Just because

[Dr Hobbitstein]

3. I see that, and raise you this.

[Dr Hobbitstein]

2. Psychedelic folk?

There's a lot of phrases I'd use to describe Primus. That isn't one of them.

I saw them at Ozzfest '99 in West Palm. Was a killer show. Their new album is all kinds of cool, too. Primus & The Chocolate Factory. They redid all the songs from the original film's soundtrack their own way. "Pure Imagination" is quite awesome. So was "Candy Man".

[Mosby]

4. primus sucks (yeah, for real)

They are really a "one hit wonder" group with the one being the beaver song.

[BillZBubb]

5. In other words, anyone who doesn't do Israel's bidding sucks...

(yeah, for real)

[Mosby]

6. No, I just think they suck

I still think Pink Floyd is awesome despite the fact that Waters is an Antisemitic piece of shit.

In case you don't know, primus fans chant "primus sucks" at concerts to get them to play encores. That's why I included the comment "for real".

[Warren DeMontague]

7. Les Claypool is a monster on the bass.

but no, they never did anything terribly radio-friendly. Either to their credit or detriment, depending on how you look at it.

That said, the shit about the hamburger train is classic.

[Little Tich]

10. How is Roger Waters an antisemite?

I’ve never heard about him expressing anti-Semitic views, although I know some hasbara idiots have unsuccessfully tried to portray his criticism of Israel as anti-Semitic.

Do you actually have a shred of evidence to back up your odious claim?

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

17. Well, Waters doesn't like Israeli apartheid and has spoken out

against it. He also had the star from the Israeli flag ob a stage prop so that majes him an anti-semite in hasbara chat groups.

[oberliner]

18. "the star from the Israeli flag ob a stage prop"

The Jewish star on a pig, you mean.

[Little Tich]

22. There have been a few flying pigs over the years, but only one of them had a star of David,

as far as I can see. Judaism isn’t singled out. Perhaps it’s just in line with what’s written on another pig: “Religion divides”, and maybe Waters considers Judaism to be one of these religions that divide. I don’t know, but the extensive use of many symbols seems to indicate that the star of David is just one of them, and that it’s not getting any special treatment.

[oberliner]

23. It was the only religious symbol used

After he got flak for it, he added others.

"Since then, because of the complaints from some of the Jewish community, we've added a crucifix and star-crescent."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/12/03/roger-waters-defends-religious-imagery-goodbye-blue-sky_n_4377114.html

[Little Tich]

24. He might as well have used a cross or a crescent instead,

there seems to no real reason why the star of David was chosen. So one group cries out: “Why only us?”, and Waters respond: “No, it’s all of you”. For me, for the flying pig to be anti-Semitic, there has to be some kind of intent with the choice of a star of David, and frankly there seems to be none.

[oberliner]

25. But he didn't

He also doesn't promote the boycotting of Islamic or Christian majority countries, in spite of the many atrocities committed in the names of both religions. There is a fair amount of evidence to suggest that his selection of the Jewish symbol was not done randomly.

[Little Tich]

26. He boycotts Israel because he considers it an apartheid regime.

I have no intention of speaking for Roger Waters, so here is an excerpt from the horse’s mouth:

Source: Artists Against Apartheid

Roger Waters Announces BDS Support

(5th paragraph, snip)
Under the protection of the UN I visited Jerusalem and Bethlehem. Nothing could have prepared me for what I saw that day. The Wall is an appalling edifice to behold. It is policed by young Israeli soldiers who treated me, a casual observer from another world with disdainful aggression. If it could be like that for me, a foreigner, a visitor, imagine what it must be like for the Palestinians, for the underclass, for the passbook carriers. I knew then that my conscience would not allow me to walk away from that Wall, from the fate of the Palestinians I met, people whose lives are crushed daily in a multitude of ways by Israel’s occupation. In solidarity, and somewhat impotently, I wrote on their wall that day: “We don’t need no thought control.”

Realizing at that point that my presence on a Tel Aviv stage would inadvertently legitimize the oppression I was witnessing, I canceled my gig at the football stadium in Tel Aviv and moved it to Neve Shalom an agricultural community devoted to growing chick peas and also, admirably, to cooperation between people of different faiths, where Muslim, Christian and Jew live and work side by side in harmony.

Against all expectations, it was to become the biggest music event in the short history of Israel. 60,000 fans battled traffic jams to attend. It was extraordinarily moving for me and my band, and at the end of the gig I was moved to exhort the young people gathered there to demand of their government that they attempt to make peace with their neighbors and respect the civil rights of Palestinians living in Israel.

Sadly in the intervening years, the Israeli government has made no attempt to implement legislation that would grant civil rights to Israeli Arabs equal to those enjoyed by Israeli Jews, and The Wall has grown, inexorably, illegally annexing more and more of The West Bank.

(end snip)

Read more: http://www.artistsagainstapartheid.org/?p=1292

I don’t consider his argument anti-Semitic, but it’s strongly anti-Israel.

[oberliner]

28. Right

Which is why I don't think he chose the Jewish star by coincidence. I think he chose it deliberately because of it's association with the one country he is boycotting.

[Violet_Crumble]

29. I think Primus and Bon Jovi suck...

My first reaction on reading this thread was to be amazed that they're both still around. With Primus it's not so bad or so much that they suck. It's just they were never my sort of thing as I'm a purist and only listen to mainstream chart toppers. But Bon Jovi. They're like the Eagles, only far worse. They're like walking into a store where nothing ever changes and you know exactly what yr going to get each and every time. They're the McDonalds of food, except to be fair Maccas does change its menu every now and again. The genre that they belong in, Blands, is populated by some pretty dull offerings like Matchbox Twenty, Creed, Four Doors Down and others so uninspiring and boring that I've forgotten who they are, but Bon Jovi wear the crown for being boring and dull and making a shitload of money doing it. The only band that can come close is the Eagles, and they're over in the Yacht Rock genre, so they don't qualify...

btw, Pink Floyd are pretty good apart from the Sid Barrett stuff, and Roger Waters is no more an anti-Semite that Eddie Vedder is...

[Mosby]

30. I don't like Bon Jovi either

I don't hate many bands but I absolutely despise Guns and Roses.

The entire genre of heavy metal sucks imo and hasn't aged very well at all.


eta the Eagles for me are like Journey, they have their moments but you can only take so much of them.

[leftynyc]

27. Tsk tsk

Before you want to crap all over someone else's opinion of a band, perhaps visit this thread by someone who considers Bon Jovi a washed up band BECAUSE they want to play in Israel. I'm betting any "washed up" band would love to clean up with that kind of attention, sold out shows and multi million dollar hauls. Frankly, I've never even heard of this band on this thread.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

8. Your musical intellect is indeed fascinating...

[Mosby]

9. what's funny?

Are you trying to insult me?

I don't get it.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

13. 0-7. That's rough.

[Mosby]

15. I didnt send an alert to a jury

I sent another PM to Lithos and Skinner.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

16. Another...

Hmmmmm.....

[bravenak]

11. Yo.

On Sat May 9, 2015, 11:24 PM an alert was sent on the following post:

Your musical intellect is indeed fascinating...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1134&pid=103189

REASON FOR ALERT

This post is disruptive, hurtful, rude, insensitive, over-the-top, or otherwise inappropriate.

ALERTER'S COMMENTS

Personal attack

You served on a randomly-selected Jury of DU members which reviewed this post. The review was completed at Sat May 9, 2015, 11:30 PM, and the Jury voted 0-7 to LEAVE IT.

Juror #1 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No
Juror #2 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #3 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #4 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #5 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given
Juror #6 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: Silly alert. There was no personal attack.
Juror #7 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE
Explanation: No explanation given

Thank you very much for participating in our Jury system, and we hope you will be able to participate again in the future.

[R. Daneel Olivaw]

12. The alerter haz a sad.

[bravenak]

14. .

[oberliner]

19. Nothing to do with politics

"Primus apologizes to fans for any disappointment and inconvenience and hopes to be perform in Israel in the not too distant future."

[guillaumeb]

20. if not politics, then what?

[oberliner]

21. Logistical constraints

That's all they have said so far.