Richard Brown (The Proletariat)

The Proletariat is one of the most unique bands to come out of the early Boston hardcore scene. They certainly had a lot in common with their peers: their short, angry, high energy songs meant that they fit perfectly on (the absolute classic 1982 compilation) This is Boston not L.A., alongside Boston hardcore legends such as The FU’s, GANG GREEN, THE FREEZE and JERRY’S KIDS. But a strong post-punk influence and focus on radical left-wing politics is what actually set them apart and made The Proletariat truly one of a kind.  After being on hiatus for over 30 years, they started playing again in 2016 and recently released a new single on Bridge Nine records, titled The Murder of Alton Sterling. Listen to the song: it still has the same energy, the same fury. Read the lyrics: still as defiant, still as relevant. In the current political climate, it is really good to have them back. Keep an eye out for a full album of new material to be released in 2019!

-Cédric N.

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Name five songs that you consider “perfect songs” and explain why or what they mean to you.
Oh yeah, this looks fun. There are hundreds of “perfect” songs, so I will list the first five I think of in no particular order:

GENERATION X – Kiss me Deadly
From song structure to tempo, bridges, chorus, etc…I grew up in a small town in Massachusetts and would dream of running the subways of London with hundreds of punks.  The first Generation X Lp is fantastic.

BOWIE – Hang on to Yourself
The Bowie/Ronson years were flawless. The riff might be my favorite guitar riff of all time,  

GUN CLUB – She’s like Heroin to me
Like the first Generation X Lp, the Gun Club’s Fire of Love is stunningly brilliant, grimy, and challenging. Jeffrey Lee Pierce seemed to literally be battling demons in the studio.  

JOHNNY THUNDERS and The HEARTBREAKERS – You can’t put your arms round a memory
As much as I loved the Dolls…Thunder’s solo stuff was the best. We somehow opened for him on our fifth or sixth show. They weren’t always great live, BUT on any given night they could be the best band in the world. More on Thunders later.  

WIRE – Reuters
Lead track on one of the ten best records ever made…enough said.

Which music genre do you listen to the most? List your five favorite albums in that genre.
There are probably two main genres I listen to….punk and 70s rock. Chronologically I’ll start with 70s rock :

STONES – Let it Bleed
There was a four Lp run by the Stones that no band can match, that included Beggars Banquet, Let it Bleed, Exile and Sticky Fingers. Mick Taylor era Stones were the best in my opinion… any of these lp’s could be plugged in. 

CHEAP TRICK – In Color
The first three Cheap Trick albums might be the best American albums released in succession …ever, Ramones included.

BOWIE – Ziggy Stardust Lp
The second Five years starts, I well up. A beautiful album that meant more to me than any album I had ever heard up to that point in my life…a total life changing Lp.

AEROSMITH – Get your Wings
Being from just up the road I saw them at least seven times. They were great live, they were from Boston, and they played their asses off.  

NEIL YOUNG – Everybody Knows This is Nowhere
I adored Neil Young in my youth and still love this era Neil Young. Cinnamon girl, Down by the river and the title track still play in my head all the time.

PUNK LPS…

MISSION OF BURMA – vs
Amazing record by my favourite band ever…there will be more on Burma, I’m sure, but we, THE PROLETARIAT, were their “kid brother” band. This band changed my life.  

BLACK FLAG – Damaged
Say what you want, like whatever vocalist you like the best…Personally I would put Dez on top, but Henry is a monster on this Lp…side two was light years ahead of its time.

GANG OF FOUR – Entertainment
Perhaps my favorite album ever made. Smart, funky, noisey AF. No one was doing this stuff then or now.

FUGAZI – In on the Kill Taker
Facet squared, Public witness, Smallpox champion…all great songs. I love Fugazi my favorite 90s band.

PATTI SMITH – Horses
I was a bit late discovering this one. I had seen her on television shows and thought she was really cool…but then when I saw her on the Mike Douglas show perform Free money. I got into my car, drove to the Harbor Mall in Fall River, Massachusetts and purchased an album that I still love today.

Your five favorite vocalists of all time? Name one song that best exemplifies what makes them great.
PAUL WELLER – Until fairly late in THE JAM’s career I worshipped Weller and Co. In the City, This is the Modern World, Setting Sons were great albums and the two times I saw The Jam they were stellar.

DAVID BOWIE – Great voice, great bands, always challenging, always changing, always brilliant.  

BOB DYLAN – Yeah, you know, his voice is an acquired taste, but it’s easy, raw, urgency fit the lyrics… and the lyrics were great. My high school English teacher, Mr. Bruce Stark, would read Dylan’s lyrics as poetry to the class, not revealing them as lyrics until the next day when he would play a recording. It was mind blowing when the two mediums came together.

POLY STYRENE – Smart, clever, totally entertaining. Germ Free Adolescence was one of the coolest records ever.

JOE STRUMMER – Probably more than any band THE CLASH influenced my world view.  I think that because they reached such a broad audience and got truly ginormous that some punks dismissed them, and/or despised them. Their first three albums are brilliant and the three times I saw them they were galvanizing.  

What’s the album you’ve listened to the most in your life? Do you still listen to it?       
I would say the album I have listened to the most in my life would be WIRE’s Pink Flag and yes I do still listen to it.

What are some of your favorite song lyrics? Lyrics that have been important to you or that had an impact on you?
Taking his entire body of work, I think my favorite lyricist would have to be BOB DYLAN…Socially conscious, clever, biting, political …everything I want in lyrics.

Do you have a favorite setting or place to listen to music? How does the setting influence the type of music you’ll listen to?
I guess while driving. Typically I will select or program music for rides depending on my mood, the weather, the time of day, and the length of the ride…good question.

Do you have an absolute all time favorite band or musical artist?  What makes them so special to you?
Not one in particular…but if I had to narrow it down I would say MISSION OF BURMA.  When The Proletariat first formed our goals were a) Play at the Rat in Boston b) Record a song c) Open for Burma…we accomplished them all and probably played with them over a dozen times. They were always supportive, kind and cool. I admire them to this day.  

What are your ten favourite albums of all time? Name a standout track on each of these albums?    
The ten favorite album thing 🙂 They change all the time, but here goes…in no particular order…

BOWIE – Ziggy Stardust – Five years
As stated above this album made me want to be in a band.    

RICHARD HELL AND THE VOIDOIDS – Blank Generation – Love cums in spurts
So many incredible songs to choose from. We opened for them in Providence, RI and they were chatty and friendly. In direct contrast to some of the other bands we opened for, like oh umm, STIFF LITTLE FINGERS.        

GANG OF FOUR – Entertainment – Let’s go with the hit I found that essence rare.      

WIPERS – Youth of America – Can this be?
Easily one of my favorite bands ever. Saw an article on American HC that put us (The Proletariat) in the same grouping as the Wipers: not quite HC, not quite post-punk.   

MISSION OF BURMA – Vs – Mica
I’ve gone on far too long on Burma in this interview, so let’s just call them God and move on.     

PUBLIC IMAGE LIMITED – First Issue – Public image
From the charred ruins of the Pistols came PiL. Brilliant musicians, a total 180° from Pistols, great album.     

THE JAM – This is The Modern World – The modern world
Could have picked either of the first two lps, both were great.    

BLACK FLAG – Damaged – Thirsty and miserable
Side one had the “hits”, side two the demons, so raw, so dark.    

SIOUXSIE AND THE BANSHEES – Juju – Head Cut
I liked a lot of Banshee songs, but this is my fave.

THE STOOGES – Raw Power – Search and destroy  
When one thinks about how far ahead of their time The Stooges were, it’s amazing…unbelievable Lp, brilliant song.

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Do you remember the first time you really appreciated an album or a song?                           
It think the first time I truly appreciated an album, it was BLACK SABBATH Vol 4. I had heard early Sabbath stuff and it was good, but always had that goofy mystical, dark element. The wizard, Fairies wear boots, etc…Vol 4 wasn’t dark and gloomy, it just rocked.

What were you listening to in elementary school? then in high school? (Your favorite bands/records back then?) How much of that music is still a part of your playlists today? How have your musical tastes evolved since?
Elementary school? Ha, mostly the radio, top 40, some BEATLES, some STONES. By high school, it was a really wide assortment: SABBATH, HENDRIX, STONES, ZEPPELIN. AEROSMITH, VU, BOWIE, T REX, CHEAP TRICK, some RAMONES. Surprisingly I still listen to most of the bands I listened to in high school, not a lot of Hendrix, Sabbath, Zep, or Aerosmith though.

What beloved music do you share with your parents or children? Any specifics memories?
My parents listened to ELVIS, SINATRA, TOM JONES…really gaffe loungey stuff.  Neither of my daughters listen to much punk or rock, they tend to favor more folky fare.

Most memorable show you’ve ever seen? What makes it stand out?
THE CLASH at the Orpheum Theatre, Boston. Bouncers/security were really beating the crap out of kids up near the stage. Strummer stopped playing, said they wouldn’t play another note until ALL the security was removed. A few minutes passed and then they had security leave the arena. The place erupted, but not in a violent or destructive way, just loud, crazy, but cool…changed my view of what being in a band is about…it’s not always us against them, sometimes it’s just us.

Do you have any songs that are meaningful to you because you associate them with important events in your life?
Not really at all. Other than playing THE CLASH’s I’m not Down in my head when everything is going south.    

What music or artist has been the most influential to you as a songwriter?
I don’t write music, just lyrics so based on that I would have to say BOB DYLAN, yet again.  He was/is much better at it than I am.

Do you change what you listen to when you write music? Do you have a go-to record that you use for inspiration?
I don’t have set music to listen to while writing new material. For the most part I tend to listen to music less than usual during the process.

What is the most impressive band you’ve toured with? The one that you just had to watch every night? Did you learn anything from them/by watching them?   
We never did full on tours with other bands, so instead of talking about learning from bands that impressed us I will write about lessons learned from bands that went about it the WRONG way. We opened for JOHNNY THUNDERS a couple of times and after watching him shaking and in need of a fix, I would never do heroin. We opened for the BAD BRAINS in Providence and it was during their intense vegan phase. The club owner had laid out a huge spread for them, but there wasn’t a whole lot of vegan options. They exploded and ripped into the guy, who had probably spent a lot of money on their pre-show meal, it wasn’t cool. When people are generous enough to offer you anything, hell even beers, I think one should be grateful. We played with STIFF LITTLE FINGERS and our bass player Peter absolutely loved them. When sound checks ended he headed off to their green room and knocked on the door, just wanting to say “hi” and thanks for having us on the bill.  SLF went full-blown rock star on him, told him to “get the fuck outta here”. We make a point to watch opener and support sound checks and introduce ourselves. I’ll never treat anyone in a band like shit.

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Is there any classic / universally acclaimed artist that you missed out on when they first came out and discovered way later? Any artist that you didn’t like at first and learned to appreciate over time?
A band that I “discovered” after the fact was THE DAMNED. I never thought they belonged in the same tier as say the PISTOLS, CLASH, RAMONES. But when we started playing shows again, it seemed that they were in town a few nights before us and our paths never crossed. I listened to their new stuff to see how it sounded and that led me to re-listen to their earlier stuff.

Do you have an artist that you love in a genre that you don’t usually listen to? What makes them stand out?
I dont listen to a lot of rap, but I worship and adore PUBLIC ENEMY…I have a thing for political bands 🙂

Do you have any controversial/unpopular music related opinions that you would like to defend?
Yes, I have long argued, to the embarrassment of my band mates, that the first three CHEAP TRICK albums were the best trio of lps from an American band in the 70’s, including VELVET UNDERGROUND and RAMONES.

If you could create your dream band (with any musicians, dead or alive), who would play which instrument?
It would be a five piece with Jah Wobble on bass, Andy Gill and Greg Ginn on guitar, Peter Prescott (Mission of Burma) on drums and Poly Styrene on vocals.

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What albums have been on heavy rotation lately?
BIKINI KILL – Pussy Whipped
BUZZCOCKS – A Different kind of Tension
MAGAZINE – Real Life

What are some up and coming artists that you would recommend?
MATERIAL SUPPORT (NYC) are my favorite American band, you should check them out.  BLACK BEACH (Boston), three guys from the town next to the town we grew up in. Brilliant. HAIRSPRAY QUEEN ( Providence, RI), incredible live act, scary good energy.

Is there a band that you’ve discovered live recently that blew you away?
MATERIAL SUPPORT. We asked them to open for us in NY, they fucking rocked.

What are you listening to right now, while answering these questions?
The white noise of our air conditioning unit.

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