You almost have to feel sorry for the members of the Norwegian “black metal” group Taake.
For the last 25 years, Taake has gone about its about usual Satanic business without inciting much in the way of pushback, little from the traditional standard bearers on the religious right and certainly none from the left. The left has never had much of a problem with Taake’s music about death, devils, demons, and all things Satanic.
Then lo and beyond, Donald Trump gets himself elected president. In resistance to Trump’s election, a loose consortium of groups operating under the umbrella of “Antifa,” short for anti-fascist, springs up in America, and now Antifa is on a witch hunt for all things fascist.
In a dazzling bit of self-parody, some Antifa zealot discovered a photo of band leader “Hoest” from a 2007 concert in Germany with a swatika painted on his chest and communicated his or her outrage worldwide.
In his defense, Hoest claims on his website, “Everyone should know by now that our whole concept is built upon provocation and anything evil.” The Maoists of Antifa aren’t buying. They may be down with evil, but they draw the line at swastikas. They are demanding that venues scheduled to host Taake in America cancel their concerts.
This brings us to Kansas City. In late March, Taake is scheduled to appear at a local venue in Westport called the Riot Room. Alerted to the Antifa protest, controversial hip-hop entertainer Talib Kweli has canceled his February 21 appearance at the Riot Room.
Billboard Magazine quotes Kweli as saying, “I find it appalling that The Riot Room refuses to apologize for booking this band. I wouldn’t feel safe bringing my team, family, and fans into a venue that is sympathetic to white nationalism, so I’ve cancelled the show. It’s a shame because I was really looking forward to performing in Kansas City.”
“Hip-hop” and “safe” are two words that rarely appear together in the same paragraph, certainly not this past weekend in Kansas City, Kansas, where eight people were shot, one killed, at an underground hip-hop show.
For Kweli to use the word “safe” is particularly delusional. He sings about a “Glock nine” and a “44 Desert Eagle” the way singers a generation ago sang about blue suede shoes and puppy love. Kweli’s song “Gun music,” for example, is an ode to the wonders of handguns: “Punk niggas feel inferior/ Guns make us superior.” It gets worse from there.
Oh yea, after twenty-five years of desecrating everything Christian with impunity, Taake stands accused of being anti-Muslim. God must surely have a sense of humor.
Hat tip to Tony’s Kansas City.
