Cock It (COtu × jh0st)

On this 20th anniversary of the Columbine attack we need words of peace. But we also need words of resistance against public forces and figures that continue to disseminate disinformation under the guise of ‘gun rights.’

This song takes direct aim at Ted Nugent, former musician and controversial board member of the NRA. On the surface, his over-blown rhetoric seems easily dismissible in its sheer stupidity. But entangled with popular culture (yes, he wrote those awful ‘hits’ like ‘cat scratch fever’ in the 70s) his racist, anti-semitic, and violent politics continues to reach millions. Even as late as last year, he made headlines ridiculing the Parkland Shooting survivors as “mushy brained children… who have no souls.”

The music and words of Cock It are chock full of cultural references (yes, there’s even a sidelong diss of Ian Mackaye). But the vocals also channel the energy of another artist and activist Curtis Mayfield. A genius at converging melodies, irony, and social commentary, Mayfield pushed at the edges of poetry and politics to reveal the injustices of his time. I hope Cock It can also supply some grooves to your moves while shedding daylight on the festering hypocrisy of figures like Nugent…