The Music ‘Business’

By Rob Mason

The word sell-out has been thrown around in punk-rock circles almost since the inception of the genre in the late ’70s, but it seems like more and more bands are being tagged with the term now than ever before. As bands progress throughout their careers and pick up a larger fan-base along the way, they are often offered to play bigger venues and make larger profits. It might seem like the American dream to some, but in a scene dominated by left wing political ideals it’s considered to be a profoundly egregious act.

Perhaps because they have been so openly adamant about their dislike for the way capitalistic societies are run and always dress in black from head-to-toe to showcase their anarchist backgrounds, Against Me! always seem to find themselves at the forefront of the bands being deemed sell-outs, especially after signing to major corporate label Sire Records.

“I’m so used to being called a sell-out now that it doesn’t usually even phase me anymore,” Against Me! frontman Tom Gabel. “We started catching flack even before we ever moved to Sire. When we left No Idea (Records) and signed to Fat Wreck we started hearing the comments and getting the letters. I mean, we wanted to be able to keep making music so we wouldn’t have to get ‘real’ jobs that made us miserable. Our old label couldn’t even afford to get us a $3,500 van which we needed to go on tour. It was a matter of survival, not greed.”

“I still believe in the same things I did ten years ago, but at the same time things have changed,” Gabel said. I’m married now and we’re expecting our first child. I have a family to support. As unfortunate as it is, you need money to survive in this world.”

While Gabel describes the band’s move to Sire as necessary to be able to keep doing what he loves, many of Against Me’s fans still feel jaded by the label change and believe that they are being hypocritical.

“What they did by signing to a major label was completely going against everything they said in their music,” said Mike Diers, a student and long-time fan of the band. “They wrote a song that was about how ridiculous the record industry is and that it’s basically like signing your life away, and a few years later they go out and do just that.”

The song that Diers referenced was, “Unprotected Sex With Multiple Partners,” in which Gabel sings satirically, “We call it our insurance plan/ to stretch the inevitable as far as we can/ gotta make your money while you got the chance/ do whatever it takes to sell it... just how desperate can we be/ go buy our record and see.”

“I don’t understand it,” Diers said. “I mean, I understand wanting to be able to make a living by doing what you love to do, but how can you write a song completely bashing corporate record labels and then go ahead and sign with one?”

Gabel said he understands how it might look to people looking in from the outside, but doesn’t believe he has sold-out. “I feel like I know what my intentions are and I know what I want to do. I want to play music and that's a really simple thing.”