When it comes to songwriting inspiration, the subject of love has lately been unseated by musicians’ hatred of Stephen Harper. Petra Glynt’s takedown of the prime minister and his shoddy environmental record prompted her moody summer jam, Murder. Blue Rodeo’s anti-Harper Stealin’ All My Dreams got lots of mileage last week, as did the star-studded #imagineoctober20 concert that rallied Harper’s opponents through song and words.
This week we get Vote That Fucker Out, by Toronto’s Paul Kolinski, and Harper’s Got To Go, by the Thievin’ Harpers, a group led by Toronto songwriter/performer/activist Brooke Lydbrooke.
The former is super-catchy and fun, with a video shot in Kensington Market featuring Kolinski and drummer extraordinaire/Woodshed Orchestra leader Dave Clark encouraging us to vote out Harper. Harper’s Got To Go is more verbose and earnest, with lyrics like “The census form was shortened / scientists are silenced / charities are losing funds / while prisons are built and financed.”
In both songs, the anti-Harper passion is real.
See our election coverage here.
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