My Favorite Political Song of 2007

As some of you Dear Readers may know, if I'm not waxing political with The Young Turks, I'm rocking out to Seattle radio station KEXP. Whereas Cenk Uygar is my political hero on the airwaves, I consider John "In the Morning" Richards to be the best damn DJ on the planet.

Yeah, it's safe to say I'm a big nerd for politics and indie rock music.

So, in that vein, today I'm going to share with you my favorite political song of the year.

2007 proved itself to be an interesting year in music. And I'm not even going to mention Britney Spears' meltdown and subsequent lethargic, lackluster VMA performance. Whoops. I guess I just did.

For starters, music buffs fell in love with Amy Winehouse's catchy, alcohol-fueled classic "Rehab." After the initial charm of that song wore off, however, we wished Winehouse would actually attend rehab herself. Go, go, go.

Radiohead stunned the music industry by releasing their seventh studio release as a download, by which fans could determine their own price of purchase. I'm pretty sure the Tonsing household downloaded it for free, but we plan to purchase the CD as soon as it comes out. Tomorrow, actually.

M.I.A.: Marred with visa troubles in the states, in part, because of her outspoken political views, this hip-hop/reggae fusion darling dazzled with her sophomore effort, Kala. She samples The Clash, gun shots, and the clank of a cash register in "Paper Planes." Holdups at gunpoint have never sounded so good. And Kala features a song called "Bird Flu," complete with an Indian dancehall beat, heavy drums, and the squawking of little girls and chickens. Effing great.

Canadians The Arcade Fire also released quite the political album, Neon Bible, with songs that denounce the Bush Administration like "Intervention" and "Windowsill." Some of my favorite lyrics of the year were penned by The Arcade Fire. In "Intervention":

"Walking with your head in a sling / Wanna hear the soldier sing / Working for the church while my family dies / Your little baby sister's gonna lose her mind / Every spark of friendship and love will die without a home / Hear the soldier groan 'We'll go at it alone.'"

However...none of these stellar artists managed to make my cut of best political song of the year.

Drum roll, please. Honors go to:


"Capitol G" by Nine Inch Nails.

Trent Reznor's sixth studio release, Year Zero, is a concept album based 15 years into the future. And in my humble opinion, Year Zero is Reznor's best effort since 1999's The Fragile.

Year Zero doesn't just lambast the Bust Administration. It portrays a dystopic society, complete with an authoritarian government, terrorist attacks at Wrigley Field, visits from aliens, and a tainted water supply.

Paranoia of our future never sounded so relevant and wonderful.

Here's the video of my favorite political song of the year, "Capitol G." I'll just let Mr. Reznor's lyrics speak for themselves.

Enjoy the angst. I sure have. Cheers.