New York saw what was probably the city’s first ever “guitarmy” this May Day, a march by hundreds of OWS-affiliated musicians led by former Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello from midtown’s Bryant Park to Union Square, where they were joined by Immortal Technique, Das Racist and Dan Deacon to fire up protesters with song.
Anger against Arizona’s recent spate of anti-immigrant laws, most notably the toxic SB 1070 law legalizing racial profiling, has hit the entertainment industry, as musicians are banding together in a “Sound Strike” to boycott playing shows in the state.
The veteran alt-rockers of R.E.M. are joining forces with other musical acts such as Pearl Jam, Nine Inch Nails and Roseanne Cash in a bid to close Guantanamo Bay. Their group effort, the National Campaign to Close Guantanamo, sprung in part from their joint outrage about their music reportedly being blared at high volumes to upset prisoners held at the detention center in Cuba.