Promoters within the electronic dance music scene are scrambling to find ways to prevent hospitalizations and deaths occurring because of drug use. The genre, more so than any other, has attracted headlines because of deaths due to the use of ecstasy or molly. Security is as tight as ever at festivals but fans still find ways to sneak the stuff in. We can vouch from our recent trip to Lollapalooza that kids were popping pills, and not just at electronic sets.
Electric Zoo in New York City is one of the events that suffered fatalities last year and they've got a new idea for preventing drug use: Attendees will be forced to watch a short film on the dangers of drug abuse before being allowed onto the grounds at Randall's Island. It's short and to the point.
The performers themselves have come out strongly against using drugs, because they don't like the bad publicity either. Unfortunately, their genre rarely allows for lyrics encouraging substance-free living. Other genres are more than happy to speak out against drugs however. So, to answer the theoretical question "turn down for what," we give you ten great tracks totally against turning up in the first place.
NOTE: These aren't songs that subliminally discourage drug use via personal narratives, i.e. Alice in Chains' entire early discography. These are songs from performers actively against drugs and aren't actively using themselves.
10) "Crack and Cocaine" by McGruff The Crime Dog (1984)
We admit, most of this song's drug prevention ability comes from the horrible hallucinations you'll have of the McGruff the Crime Dog mascot on the cover. We agree that drug education, like sex education, needs to be delivered earlier rather than later to have a proper impact on the youth. But it seems this 1984 PSA collection from The National Crime Prevention Council might actually be funnier to someone who's using, marijuana at least.
09) "Knock Me Down" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers (1989)
This single from Mother's Milk was a total shift of direction for the Peppers, who up until then had largely promoted going Y.O.L.O. However guitarist Hillel Slovak had died of an overdose prior to its recording and vocalist Anthony Kiedis wanted to pay tribute while encouraging those with abuse issues to seek help. He stated however that he didn't want the song associated with any anti-drug campaigns although he himself entered rehab following his friend's death. The song calls for the listener to knock Kiedis down if they see him getting high.
08) "If James Hetfield Can Stay Straightedge, Anyone Can" by Casey Jones (2011)
Casey Jones is one of several straight edge bands that will pop up on this list, despite being named after a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character who's named after a Grateful Dead song. The track seems to be a defense launched against those who criticize members of the no-drugs-no-alcohol community, as vocalist Josh James notes in the title that no one ever gives Metallica's James Hetfield crap for dropping his habits. Metallica, it should be noted, released one of the greatest drug tragedy narratives of all time in the form of "Master of Puppets."
07) "The Discipline" by Earth Crisis (1995)
Earth Crisis was a straight edge band to the core, meaning it didn't just stick with raging against drugs and alcohol. "The Discipline" opens with a firm statement against drugs as a method of repelling the revolution, but then the group moves on to promoting abstinence (another popular straightedge theme). The next on the album Destroy The Machines laments the use of animals in medical testing, a more rare complaint. If any of this sounds like hippy fodder, don't worry: Earth Crisis is pretty heavy stuff.
06) "Things Get A Little Easier" by Biz Markie (1989)
Biz Markie has always been a good example for the youth, as evidenced by his recurring role on Yo Gabba Gabba! The Markie also makes his anti-drug more kid friendly than McGruff could: The lyrics are the stuff you hear in other tragic drug tracks, but Markie seems to be poking fun at his subjects, keeping the lyrics light. Dealer John gets sent to jail with no one to bail him out, user Suzy spends all her money and finally Marie loses her great looks. The song operates like a collection of short stories, all with the same ending.
05) "Dead Men Tell No Tales" by Motörhead (1979)
It will surprise many that Lemmy Kilmister, bassist and vocalist for Motörhead, would write any anti-drug songs, considering that he was legendary for drinking up to a bottle of whiskey a day during his heyday. Heroin was no friend of his however, as detailed in both "Dead Men Tell No Tales" and "Iron Horse/Born To Lose." The former makes reference to the latter, as Kilmister tells the listener that you'll be losing his friendship when you start using, and not to expect any pity when the damage is done.
04) "Pause" by Run-D.M.C. (1990)
Several tracks in this list come from New York-based hip-hop performers and it's easy to understand why. The crack epidemic hit black neighborhoods in the city as hard as anywhere in the United States and socially-minded rappers aimed desperately to discourage their home hoods from falling victim. One such group was the legendary Run D.M.C., who used positive peer pressure to dissuade listeners: "That's not fly when you die on a high."
03) "Needle of Death" by Bert Jansch (1965)
Scottish folk singer Bert Jansch lamented the death of a friend to heroin overdose on his self-titled debut album, and it became one of the hardest-hitting anti-drug songs ever. The quiet way in which Jansch delivers the last line makes it all the more haunting and lonely. The track came to more prominence when Neil Young began covering it. Young was a huge fan, having based his own "Ambulance Blues" on the melody.
02) "Night of The Living Baseheads" by Public Enemy (1988)
Public Enemy was another New York hip-hop group appalled by the use of crack in its community, but they didn't waste time being wishy-washy. The group certainly questioned law enforcement's attribution of justice to drug users but it also took dealers in the neighborhoods to task for pushing the substances in question. No wonder they called it the "golden age of hip-hop"...they used to use the music for anti-drug PSA's in the scene, but now it's a platform for promoting one's skill at selling it.
01) "Straight Edge" by Minor Threat (1981)
Despite the minuscule length of this track by Minor Threat, no other song has been so effective and to the point while lashing out against drug use. "I'm a person just like you/but I've got better things to do/than sit around and f--k my head" yells frontman Ian MacKaye. Minor Threat only released one proper album, but this song served as the anchor point for the entire straight edge scene, an army of punks and other musicians rebelling against substance use of any kind. MacKaye, reluctantly, serves as the patron saint of the movement.
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