INB or Infernal Noise Brigade was a group whose purpose is to raise awareness for political or social issues through the use of music and protest. I believe I saw this group in San Francisco in 2000 the year I moved to the Bay Area. I barely remember them as there was a lot of people and a lot for me to absorb... but I do remember the marching band and the police of course. What I enjoy about this organization is that it uses traditional forms of political protest with a sonic twist. The use of music and performance allowed for this group to reach and communicate with a wider spectrum of people; accepted or not.
It has long been known that sound waves are directly influential on heart rates and emotion among many other physical effects and grouped with political or social intent could be extremely powerful. In Stevphen Shukaitis' writing he says this..."This is aesthetic politics—not necessarily because of the directly expressed content of the work—but because of the role it plays in drawing lines of flight away from staggering weight of everyday life, in hybridizing sounds and experiences to create space where other relations and possibilities can emerge." What is being expressed here is that combining sound and performance you are able to create a new space a new experience that can enlighten in ways you might not have seen otherwise. Political art is complicated and many often don't want to or don't feel it necessary to become involved if it is not having a direct effect on their lives. What INB did bringing themselves into the community was become less formal, more attractive on a psychological and aesthetic level. Think for a moment, have you ever been to a concert you really enjoyed? One that you enjoyed enough to let some comments or ideas expressed by the artist slide? I know I have.
Although these were peaceful protests in some cases they were gassed and local authorities found it necessary to use physical force or even arrest protesters because of the tense situation adrenaline can produce. Particular tempos of especially drum beats can have a serious impact on ones perception, thought process and emotional stability. I see it as no coincidence that they were playing a warrior anthem while this gassing took place, if anything it could have caused this aggressive reaction from the police because they might not have been aware of how the music was affecting them.
Lets take Bob Marley as an example, his songs of freedom, his political messages paired with soothing harmonious sound waves. Of course if your a fan a reggae you know Bob Marley didn't start the game he contributed to it by creating a new way of sending a political message, new way of creating hope and resistance. In every culture around the world music serves a purpose, it shall be no different in the United States and the sub-culture of revolution.
Organization is a key element of any type of performance art. Although INB had a rough start with this they managed to still have a lasting impact on political protest history and I'm sure many people who have herd of them or seen them have incorporated the use of performance and music in causes of their own.
Recently I went to the Carnaval in San Francisco's Mission and this is a perfect example of the power of music. Shukaitis expresses that more so these days public spaces are becoming less open to public or street art. While at the Carnaval I couldn't help but notice that yes there was indeed a parade going on, but it did stay in a central location near Mission District of San Francisco and didn't stray far. This celebration is rooted in the multicultural gathering of the diverse groups that inhabit the city. The power and pride that these performances provoked was exhilarating and reminds us how alike we all really are and also how music and dance/performance can influence/teach.
Shukaitis states the following "Not surprisingly, then, the repertoire of many radical marching bands is a veritable melting pot of styles, cultures, and backgrounds, bringing together everything from jazz and big-band tunes to klezmer and Moroccan music, from Indian wedding songs to calypso, salsa, reggae, and Sun Ra. They also derive a large degree of inspiration from projects that have merged the energy of punk rock and street performance, such as Crash Worship and !TchKung!, the latter of whom had members that went on to form marching bands. There is a great amount of crossover and mixing between political marching bands and other forms of street and performance art and theater." Organizations that recognize the validity of this statement can create an awareness and spread it's message to a greater number of people in a faster amount of time. Just think of "Hope for Haiti" almost everyone saw, bought or herd some music from this collection of artists who used their medium to raise money for a cause.
This is good.
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