Streetpunk stalwarts A Global Threat are at a crossroads – a critical juncture in their career. Not only are they in the midst of writing new material, they also are contemplating switching record labels. Things are a bit uncertain right now, as they ponder where they want the band to go. However, what they are sure of is that they want their music to be heard by more people, and know that in order to do so, they must make some changes. But, rest assured, the band will soldier on, as they have in the past.
First though, a brief history of the band and a look at their prior work and accomplishments is in order. A Global Threat started back in 1997 in Maine, and through the years, there have been a number of line-up changes. Presently, while at home writing and recording, AGT is a three-piece, with Bryan (the only original member remaining) on vocals and guitar, newest recruit bassist John, and drummer Mike, with whom I spoke recently. On the other hand, while touring, they bring along a guitarist so Bryan can concentrate solely on the vocals. Says Mike, “We kind of have two or three people that are on-call to tour. It’s kind of odd not to have a full-time guitar player, but it works out for us, so we’re cool with it for right now.” Mike actually came onboard in 1998 right around the time the band relocated to Boston (although he now lives in New Hampshire). Streetpunk fans will undoubtedly know that Mark Unseen (of – yes – The Unseen…) also joined the band in 1998, adding his voice to the mix, but he left about three or four years ago. Yet, Mike gets a little annoyed when people continually ask about Mark, elaborating, “I see a lot of things on the Internet about people saying that the band was better with him…That kind of pisses me off. I mean I don’t think one person’s voice, and…five songs-worth of lyrics made this band that much better.” Of course, the drummer makes it clear he has nothing against Mark, as “he’s a good friend.” But still, when people – usually those just getting into AGT – assume that he’s still in the band, it “kind of gets annoying to deal with,” admits Mike.
In any case, AGT have released three full-lengths now – 1999’s debut LP ‘What The Fuck Will Change?’, 2000’s ‘Until We Die’, and most recently, 2002’s ‘Here We Are’. Full of socially-aware lyrics and riotous, unrelenting streetpunk, the band’s material stands the test of time. The early records feature plenty of politically-minded lyrics, yet Mike backs away from the “political punk” moniker, claiming, “I know a lot of people view this band as kind of a political punk band; I’ve never felt that we are.” He expounds, “I think of political punk bands as [ones] that try to push their own views or agendas in order to try to make a change. As far as we’re concerned, our lyrics are more like observations of how things are and what we see.” Fair enough – they’re certainly not preachers. In any event, the band also doesn’t try to only convey one specific message, but rather “write about different things and try to keep things [varied].” They don’t want to limit themselves lyrically – or musically for that matter. In fact, from record to record, Mike is adamant that they’re somewhat of an anomaly in the streetpunk scene, as they’re one of the only bands that really makes an effort “to offer something new or different with each release.” Likewise, while describing AGT’s progression, the drummer states, “The lyrics are kind of more personal than on previous [records]. I think musically we’ve progressed; we’re better songwriters and better musicians than we used to be.”
And ‘Here We Are’ proves this surmise, as it’s brimming with thought-provoking lyrics and excellent musicianship. In addition, as Mike hinted at above, the majority of the lyrics deal more with personal matters than with the problems brought upon us by the nation’s institutions like government, capitalism, and religion, which was really a prevalent theme on the two earlier LPs with songs like “False Patriot”, “Channel 4”, and “Filthy, Greedy, Guilty”, to name a few. Of course there are some in this vein on the newer record, including “Blow You Away” and “There’s Your Threat”, but many deal with everyday issues like the whole work rut that, sadly, mostly everyone succumbs to sooner or later. Mike feels that the subject matter on ‘Here We Are’ pertains more to “how things affect you rather than talking about wider topics…that you can’t really relate to,” adding that they’re more about “what’s going on directly around you.”
AGT have been on an impressive four U.S. tours, according to Mike; the last one being an extensive seven-week stint, which on most dates also featured the great F-Minus. I can’t say for the rest of the tour, but at their stop in Brooklyn at Southpaw, AGT headlined and played a killer set. However, the turnout cannot be as highly praised. About that show, Mike just laughs, “That one kind of sucked.” Perhaps it wasn’t promoted properly, perhaps it’s because it was in Brooklyn (as one of my friends reasoned), but for the few who were there, it was pretty cool actually, despite the lack of action on the dance floor. In any case, their show at the Knitting Factory in NYC in May that also featured labelmates Clit 45, as part of their short East Coast tour, Mike says, “That was a lot better [turnout-wise].” But the band played a rather short set, probably due to the fact that Bryan couldn’t make the show. Mike explains why: “He got in this big fight in Philadelphia the night before and he had to go to the hospital…His lip was stitched up and he had all these stitches in his head and stuff, so the bass player from Clit 45 was singing.” Bryan was actually out of commission for about two or three weeks. Other bands would have folded, called off their dates until their singer recovered, but you must give AGT credit for sticking it out sans vocalist. Still, about the unfortunate situation, Mike simply concludes, “It sucked.” The band hasn’t made it out to Europe yet, but they’re eager to do so. Hopefully it’ll happen soon.
Meanwhile, in 2002, they got the chance to play the legendary Holidays In The Sun festival in New Jersey, which must have been great. Mike concurs, “That was a good time,” admitting, “I don’t really remember a lot of it, but we played I think the first day and we got a really good reaction.” The guys stayed the entire three days and “just did a lot of partying…It was overwhelming and I was glad it was over…but it was a really good time,” he reiterates. Yet, when asked what band he was most excited to ever be on a bill with, Mike responds without hesitating: those insane U.K. pioneers The Exploited in Denver, explaining, “I never would have imagined listening to their records when I was younger that we’d be playing with them…so it was pretty awesome.” Another show he’s glad to have been a part of is a one-day fest that featured a slew of bands, including GBH, Circle Jerks, and Murphy’s Law, all of which are some of his most beloved acts. Of AGT’s shows early on in their career, the drummer relates, “I remember every time we’d play a show and there’d be a live review of it in a magazine…it’d always say it was sloppy but it was energetic. And I think that’s how it was back then,” but he can’t deny that they were fun. “They were usually out of control…We were really on level with the crowd then ‘cause we were pretty much the same age.”
Mike is also a part of another band, Self Destruct, which features members of both AGT and The Unseen. However, the guys haven’t released anything since their well-received 2001 debut 7”“Violent Affair” on Punk Core. When questioned about this side project, Mike sheepishly laughs, saying nothing’s really been going on with it. He adds, “It’s become really hard to even get together and practice. I mean the last time we played was Holidays,” confessing, “I can’t even remember when we played before that. It’s become a once-in-awhile thing, and even less now that The Unseen are getting really big and they’re touring a lot, so it’s hard to find the time to dedicate to that band.” He does reveal that Self Destruct actually have some songs written, but, essentially, it’s all up in the air. “We just need to find a time when both The Unseen and A Global Threat aren’t touring so we can get together and try to get something done,” he says.
The guys of AGT on the other hand, are hard at work writing and making demos of new material for another record, their follow-up to ‘Here We Are’. Details were still sketchy at the time of our conversation; titles were not divulged, but they do have “probably close to 10 [songs] that are written” and have been recorded as demos. However, no vocals were recorded yet and Mike wasn’t exactly sure if Bryan had even written any lyrics yet. One piece of info the drummer did let me in on was that AGT is actually looking for a new record label on which to release the record once it is completed. He hopes all this will be done some time in the near future. About leaving Punk Core for another label, Mike explained, “We’ve seen the success The Unseen and The Casualties have had by getting on slightly bigger labels. We just feel that where we’re at right now we’re not gonna get those [chances] to get better touring opportunities and get our music out to a bigger audience.” But still, Mike makes it clear that “it’s nothing against Punk Core,” saying, “They’ve been a big help to us and it’s a mutual thing, but we just don’t want to limit ourselves to one particular audience.” The band is ready for a change and wants to be able to tour with different bands so, the drummer concludes, “We gotta go to a place where there’s a little more room to grow.” All valid points. Whether punk purists will agree with their decision, only time will tell… And it may take some time for everything to be sorted out, but fans of the band can have faith that it will all work out in the end.
As for upcoming touring plans, according to Mike, AGT will “probably” be heading out on the road with NYC’s The Krays in January for a U.S. tour. The band is “about 99% sure” it’ll happen. You can check out AGT’s site at www.aglobalthreat.com for details and Punk Core (www.punkcore.com) also lists tour dates. In the meantime, Mike and company are going to “try to work hard and get stuff out to labels” and see what ensues.
