Death Atlas - Cattle Decapitation and the dangers of eco-fascism | This Review Kills Fascists
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- čas přidán 21. 10. 2022
- Cattle Decapitation are among the best known and most beloved names in modern extreme metal. From their humble beginnings, they built a reputation as "the vegetarian metal band," and eventually earned tremendous success by highlighting progressive causes like trans rights and environmentalism with their music. However, as the state of the environment has worsened, the misanthropy that has permeated their work since the beginning has lead them down the dark path of genocide apologia, and it has become necessary to discuss some of the profoundly incorrect things their latest album has to say.
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Citation for the article referenced at 17:32:
Brian Hughes, Dave Jones & Amarnath Amarasingam (2022) Ecofascism: An Examination of the Far-Right/Ecology Nexus in the Online Space, Terrorism and Political Violence, 34:5, 997-1023, DOI: 10.1080/09546553.2022.2069932
I will say Travis has done interviews regarding the album, and these have led me to believe that his lyrics are more an expression of misanthropic frustration. Less an actual approval of getting rid of humans and more a sort of, "Get rid of them then, fuck," out of frustration that we *could* fix these issues and those most in power to do so absolutely will not.
And even worse, get many people to support them in their lie that global warming and coming catastrophies are a myth.
I think its just an expression of misanthropy and frustration, I've been there myself at times, and I'm not in favor of genocide, but seeing that most of the issues on the planet are caused by humans (even if is a small amount of us with way too much power) is a very saddening thing, since it greatly affects humans trying to fix it, AND other life forms who had no say in this at all.
He's stated in interviews (I'll try to find them later) that we could be doing much more, but those in power simply will not.
You've nailed it.
I agree. Out of frustration one would say "fuck the world"
Perfectly said. My own comment was trying to say the same thing, but you said it way better.
This critique is absolutely ridiculous. The music video for Bring Back the Plague explicitly tells people to stay indoors during the worst part of the pandemic.
To say Travis Ryan truly endorses genocide is the same as saying he truly endorses forcing cusgendered people into sex change operations.
Yeah, listen. I don’t much care for some of the less than subtle lyrics from Cattle Decap. But insisting they’re eco-fascists and asserting that all of Travis’s lyrics are to be taken seriously and never open for interpretation or artistic exaggeration is dishonest and makes me think this whole video is done in bad faith.
I appreciate your assessment of the video, but your criticisms are of things I did not say. I do not insist (or personally believe) that the band are eco-fascists, I definitely don't think ALL their lyrics are to be taken seriously, and I very strongly believe that all lyrics are open to interpretation and that most use artistic exaggeration.
I stand by every word I did say, though. Their numerous lyrics about overpopulation are to be seriously considered, because they express an eco-fascist sentiment with sincerity, and some in their large audience will interpret them as encouragement to further accept fascist stances. The repeated calls for genocide on this album are very exaggerated, but they can get people to shrug and look on the bright side of genocide, which is literally the worst thing that can happen, and a thing that is happening right this moment. Fascism needs to be actively fought by everyone, and the more people are willing to passively accept the perpetration of atrocities, the more powerful fascism becomes.
I'm proud that I made this video, and I wouldn't change a word of it except to further clarify and drive home the points I made.
@ThisReviewKillsFascists i mean cannibal corpse has a song about SA-ing a woman with a knife, doesn't mean anyone would think it's alright
Yeah. I respect Travis R more for his vocal artistry than his lyrics. Sometimes it seems he tries to hard to be like Barney G in terms of lyrical themes but
it's an interesting perspective on their lyrics! I always considered Cattle Decapitation as an outlet for the rage you feel when dealing with humans: you see them destroy the planet for greed, so you want them to die. It's as simple as it is cathargic. They became my go-to band after watching the news for that reason. Just like a depressive suicidal black metal band doesn't really condone suicide, they just use that topic to release those thoughts. It's just frustration and rage. I don't think their aim is to tell people what to do or to solve a problem, they are PISSED because we are most likely doomed.
Travis has said multiple times that he writes these as concept albums
Perhaps the fascist lyrics are supposed to be portrayed by the government point of view.
*Example*
Rich Political Figure states:
“We need to keep capitalism alive so let’s lower the population. Let’s pin the blame on the lower economic part of society while the rich benefit from the extra resources. Genocide is the only answer.”
Of course I don’t believe the band are fascist or advocating for real genocide. At best the story is loose sci-fi horror with an environmental twist. That or the band is not as well educated on the matter. I respect your opinion. I don’t know if I would take the lyrics completely literal. It is art. Well made video.
Respectfully, I think his lyrics are a (certainly ignorant and irresponsible) way of saying "fuck the world" out of frustration with very real problems. I'm not denying or downplaying the harm that could come from someone taking everything literally and taking it to heart but truly outside of the unsavory but i believe intentionally hyperbolic lyrics, this guy comes across as if his heart is in the right place.
Way to miss literally the entire point. If you wanted an unironic call to action that specifically talks about the real solutions to climate change that we need to implement, as opposed to hyperbolic lyrics made to elicit an emotional response, why did you not show the lyrics to "an uneraseable past" on this album which literally says
"It has become clear that an enormous operation and policy program to revolutionize agriculture and repair the Earth's ecosystems is immediately needed"
The fact you left that out destroys your entire argument. They are explicitly stating, in no uncertain terms, plain as day, spoken word, that the solution is to revolutionize agriculture and repair Earth's ecosystems, not anything about genocide. Note how the lyrics about genocide and killing all humans are coming from Travis Ryan's demonic screams, giving an artistic impression that when you hear that voice that it's more a gutteral emotional response coming straight from the heart expressing the pain of our situation in as angry, nihilistic, misanthropic words and ideas as possible. The point of those lyrics are to snap you out of your daze and realize the absolute severity of what we are facing and how we are doomed and deserve it IF WE DO NOTHING.
Whereas when there are spoken lyrics, they are much more somber, and are more of a pleading cry for help for someone listening to hear the real message behind the music and take it to heart to really try and affect positive change.
Do you really think Travis Ryan unironically advocates for genociding the entire human race? Do you understand that death metal lyrics aren't real, when Cannibal Corpse writes about a guy smashing someone's face in with a hammer they don't ACTUALLY LITERALLY want to see someone in real life get murdered like that? Death metal lyrics are about expressing anger and hatred in an actual healthy way by writing down terrible things and singing about them instead of just letting it build up inside of you. I know some people are too simple to get that, which is why they included an entire section of the album basically spelling it out for you what they are actually trying to convey, but you conveniently left it out for whatever reason.
Jon Fishman improvised the line you referenced. Literally all the band did was allow it on the album. It's essentially the only sentence of value anywhere on Death Atlas, and it has nothing to do with the album, so it would have been irresponsible to include it in the discussion.
@@Fiendly nothing to do with the album? How can you possibly justify that statement? And why would you not take that line seriously but take the lines about genociding the entire human race as literal policy prescriptions the members of the band agree with? Do you think infant annihilator literally want to tear babies out of wombs and send them to the nursery of rape as their actual, genuine policy prescriptions that they themselves believe in and not... Shock value mixed with gruesome scenes to paint an emotional landscape of pure anger in audio form
So, they aren't actually pro genocide?? That's a relief.
@@claudiasolomon1123 Ya know, misanthropes can also be left-leaning. Death Atlas was a concept album about the erasure of humankind. Plain and simple.
It was always so funny to me that this album and Anaal Nathrakh's Endarkenment came out so close to each other because they really do feel like the approach very similar topics from different angles. I like both albums, but Anaal Nathrakh still is my fav of the two.
What do Cattle Decapitation and Cannibal Corpse have in common for me? Love the songs but don't take their lyrics as dogma - best of both worlds.
Felt like I needed to comment this but damn this video came out really well made and with a level of professionalism that most metal/punk/etc channels just don’t have. Although the dissection of death metal lyrics screams tipper gore to me, I do have to say you made some valid points and well placed criticisms. Definitely subscribed
Everything he said was laughable
After watching this video, all I can say is that Travis's lyrics are NOT meant to be taken as seriously or literally as you've taken them, and that if you know who, specifically, With All Disrespect was written about, that person deserved every bit of the ire in those lyrics.
Dunno dude, I feel like you are thinking this way too hard. I've personally never cared much about the environment, until I listened to death atlas. It was the first album of theirs that I actually listened with thought and it made me think that maybe we should do something, and I'm not talking about a genocide. Also, didn't "bring back the plague" release before the pandemic?
Love your videos so much. I wonder if you'd tackle NS Black Metal in the future as much as I despise the ideology I do have a morbid curiosity to listen to what they're saying.
Btw have you listened to Stray from the Path's new album? Album of the year
Black Metal would be a rough one, especially because I've never much cared for it even when it's good. I am planning a video about nazi punks though, so anything's possible.
I missed the new Stray from the Path, but I'll check it out, I know they're pretty sharp when it comes to politics.
@@ThisReviewKillsFascists perfect!! I can’t wait to hear that episode.
And as for Stray from the path. Please let me when you listen to it and we can discuss the last song lol
i'm still alive.
Loved what you talked about overpopulation and genocide, also cattle decapitation is my favorite band at the moment.
Curious to know what your opinion is on their latest album Terrasite.
So I will say the lyrics are some evidence but Maybe Travis wrote that from a different perspective I mean it is frustrating but if 95 percent of the population indulges in pollution and 4 percent trys to protect it its frustrating and overpopulation is not a myth if I take a 30 gallon tank and drop 3 Oscar's in there and they get bigger fighting for food and space either they all die or kill eachother so I wouldn't say it's myth at all this is not an attack you did make some good points but I write lyrics all the time about mental health and my issues being Trans and I write them very cynical sometimes because it's frustrating to keep pushing an issue sometimes being cynical and taking a point to the extreme to get a point across but the lyrics sadly we need shootings genocide and all that it could be wrote from a perspective of feeling hopless that the human race could change I do believe that humans are the worst thing that happened to the planet animals could have inherited the planet and I feel it would be a better place if humans never evolved to the point of intelligence but then again what do I know
This review sucks. While Travis Ryan's lyrics are pretty serious, you take them entirely too seriously. It's just meant to be death metal with thought provoking ideas, not some kind of mission statement.
Underrated channel. Can’t wait for you to blow up!
I don’t agree with a lot of what you said but you still delivered your opinion in a respectful and effective manner, sub earned
"At the dawn of agriculture 10,000 years ago, humans, livestock, and pets constituted about 0.1% of terrestrial vertebrate biomass. Today, this figure is 98%." (Dan Dennet, 2024 see here: czcams.com/video/DFQhTOpHxNA/video.html)
If it can be eaten or used for something, destroy it so something consumable can replace it 🤔?
You say Travis Ryan unironically stands behind everything he says but you don't really support that claim? I really doubt he or the band genuinely believe the erasure of the human race is what will save our planet and wish to see such a solution come to fruition or wish to promote any fascist ethos. He's just continuing themes of caring about the environment because its become the bands identity but he's phoning in his lyric ideas resorting to extreme misanthropy, nihilism, hopelessness because its metal to be super grim and brutal and I think that's pretty much it. Maybe Travis feels hopeless for humanity and wants to express his feelings, either way I can agree the execution isn't great. It really falls short of what he's capable of when you bring up Forced Gender Reassignment, it's brutal, shocking, graphic and it takes a real positive stance and that's doing something, whereas Death Atlas does nothing. They should pick a lane and commit to political/environmental activism or just be an unserious death metal band because they're basically doing both. I don't believe they're Geo-fascist or the record is geo-fascism but its fair to say it can be construed that way and actual fascists or anyone with adjacent perspectives could construe it that way as well which is no positive accomplishment. i think they're a good band of probably mostly good people who can do better. The Bring Back the Plague video was pretty cringey, dumb and insensitive. Interesting watch and well done video
Saying Travis unironically stands behind what he's saying was mostly in reference to the following quote he gave:
"You have to take everything into consideration. But that’s not what’s happening [in the world] right now. People are staying on their own side and not really wanting to hear anybody out. So the song is basically just saying, ‘Chill out. We’re not really worth it.’”
- Travis Ryan via Apple Music
This is him saying, as himself, not in the character of "metal guy screaming something cool" (which I agree is a level of abstraction that allows people to say things they may not exactly believe) that right wing ideas should be valued and implemented for the sake of allowing deaths. In a more reasonable-sounding way, of course, but he certainly indicates that he does believe the basic premise of Be Still Our Bleeding Hearts to be true, just exaggerated in the song. Should probably have clarified all this in the video, I cut a lot for the sake of pacing.
I also don't think they necessarily have fascist leanings, but that song in particular is a catastrophe, and many of the other songs have similarly terrible parts. When there's ten minutes of deadly serious spoken word tracks and all the press for the album talks about getting people to consider what must be done to aid the environment, the lyrical failings throughout are just irresponsible. I hope they do better with the next one too.
Glad you enjoyed the video and were able to engage with it on such a thoughtful level.
Great video👍👍 Very happy to see more lefty analysis. Subbed!
The left and the right are both equally dumpster fires that need reformed
Genuine question, but when he talks about not wanting to name a certain maligned group with all the wealth and power, are we sure he means the government and not *another* much maligned group accused by others of having all the wealth and power? Not outriight accusing them of anti-semetism, not without more info which, admittedly, I outright lack, but when people have right-wing/fascistic leanings, it's never just one angle, it's ten.
Only Travis himself knows for sure, but his fans have certainly had similar interpretations in the Genius annotations. I currently believe he harbors no hatred toward specific groups, considering his continued performance of Forced Gender Reassignment and the time in 2018 when he gave a a pair of brothers from an indigenous family free guest list spots for life after they were expelled from college for racist reasons. However, hatred requires a degree of hypocrisy, and the possible crypto-fascist implications of With All Disrespect bothered me too. Nothing would surprise me, I'd just rather think it's an awesome "we will crush our oppressors" song until we know more.
@@ThisReviewKillsFascistsTravis is absolutely not referring to Jews. This is something I’ve spoken to him about directly.
Mass amounts of people leads to increase in pollution agriculture & pavement. I'm fairly sure cattle aren't fascist. but i'll admit i'll have to watch the last 10 mins later
Excellent video.
They get their inspiration from Al Gore
It is not that overpopulation is the problem, but it is what makes the problems global. If all man would behave and be modest, we would not have to worry.
But since math was already mentioned: exponential growth has no limit by itself, and usually runs into hard limits very very fast. What hard limits that might be probably depends the growth rate.
If we have a low growth rate, we have a longer reaction time, and our mistakes and greed would not be as harmful as it is, and we might even be smart enough to survive.
But if 8 billion people want to live in "luxury", 8 billion obviously is too much already, because right now not even a quarter of mankind has what most of us believe to be the minimum.
So, if mankind keeps on going, there will be hunger and starvation (while others might die of obesity). This will for sure cause wars, which will make things even worse, because war might reduce the number of mouth' to feed, but it will also damage economies and environment. But that will not stop hungry or starving people from not trying to get food and water. To expect people will silently and peacefully keep on starving is silly.
Genocide is not the solution - but sadly, it is probably a result. As will be diseases and whatever nature usually uses to keep population in bounds.
Exponential growth can only be stopped by dying of the living or by not being born now (better later then never or into a dying world). The key to the first is nature, the key to the second is education. So I prefer education and having less children. But this only works if all people agree. Otherwise evolution dictates that the stupid would simply grow even faster and use the freed up ressources to have even more children. By "stupid" I mean those who think their children are more important than mankind or the planet.
To call overpopulation racists is a new idea to me. Are you sure you are not being a bit racists by thinking that this might be a racist idea ? Racism and overpopulation are separate issues. Religion on the other hand might be a serious problem, because religious people don't think "mankind", they think "my religion" and "god will save us" ...
Damn that really got long... sorry
Please review Burzum
To listen to a death metal band and believe they're actually spouting ideology through lyricism and to consider it anything other than a means to elicit an emotional response is wild to me. You read way too far into this and you didn't take the music for what it was worth.
That's lame.
However, you did get whatever you wanted out of it, and that's what music is all about, so I guess mission accomplished there.
You got some stuff right and some stuff... less than right. However, arguing on the Internet is stupid and unproductive, so we won't go into that. I just wanted to say that, while I love Cattle Decapitation's music, and their riffs are generally sick AF, I also can't help but troll their videos about how it's "environmental fear porn set to great music". Bands like Whitechapel and Cannibal Corpse have already proven that your lyrics can be as dark or violent as you like and people will still love the music. CD's problem is that they are serious, while CC and WC are not. Their lyrics are "poetic". They express an emotional state or philosophical view in a dark or violent way, but are not actually advocating for what they say. CD seems to be. Not depopulation, per se. Look at the mixed messaging in their homemade video for "Bring back the plague". The song is ostensibly about wanting a new pandemic to come and thin the herd. However, the message of the video is that people need to stop being stupid and stay home. However, their near militant environmentalism is a problem. They are proselytizing 1st world environmentalist fascism to impressionable kids who will take it as gospel truth and wind up in ANTIFA or ELF making everyone's lives miserable for no reason.
Yeah...... Nah. Sorry, I think this video takes Cattle Decap fans to be fools and is a little patronising. Perhaps useful to the very young getting into this metal style, but most people understand that this is art, theatre and all its inherent contradictons. You can debate whether or not it's good or bad art, but to basicly call Cattle Decap eco-fascists and putting them on the same bus as real eco-fascists who commited racialy motivated massacres is about as ridiculous as Christian parents in the early 80s who dragged Judas Priest through the courts. This video made one fair point though - that Cattle Decaps messages should be taken as warnings about the future. That's exactly how the fans take them, including warnings about bigotry and false narratives around over-population etc. The fans are a bit smarter that what's premised here. We get it and don't need a lecture.
i think this is too thought out 😂
You gonna shityourself when you find out that bring back the plague was released before the pandemic😂
ᴘʀᴏᴍᴏsᴍ 😣
You can tell things are out of control when ppl are trying to criticize Travis Ryan for not being liberal enough…
The guy wrote some dark lyrics. He’s entitled to a bit of misanthropy after years of being a vegetarian and watching animals factory farmed and humans just unwilling to care or act to protect our own environment.
It’s videos like this that make a bleeding heart liberal like me start to see the point of the right wing rage against cancel culture.
And I HATE hearing ppl whine abt cancel culture.
poser
How is he a poser🤔??
Explain your reasoning pls!
Dumb.
I'll correct you on quite a few glaringly wrong aspects of this uninformed review. Point number 1: you don't know what fascism is
Point number 2: you are severely incorrect about the point of the album to the point you are projecting your own meaning into the music and it's hilariously misguided.
Point number 3: you don't even know what genre you're listening to
Point number 4: the concepts Travis touched upon are objectively real problems and your denial/delusion doesn't change that.
yeah i feel like this whole review is kind of a strawman, and the a lot of the things they say are a stretch at best
Love fragile metal fans when they get butthurt over saying something negative about a band 😂😂