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Hopefully I can help shed some light on the miss information that is being passed around about this band. Please read what I have to say and if you have any further questions or concerns do not hesitate to write back. If I have the answer I will provide them.
Quick disclaimer – I am not going to take the art or free speech route. They really don’t prove any points. The artist merit of Death in June isn’t really what is up for debate, it’s the other issues. So me saying the band and Douglas P (lead singer of Death In June) are controversial and risqué artists that push the envelope really doesn’t prove anything. The free speech angle is also a gimmie, but I feel it’s used to often as a panacea for these types of arguments when a person really has nothing else to say. Holocaust deniers say they can say what they want to say under the pretext of free speech. It’s a cop out, and used when you really have no other means to justify yourself.
So I am going to take a different look at Di6 using other lenses.This is a consolidated list highlighting the main points about this band. If you have questions about specifics, once again, don't hesitate to ask.
*1 – Death in June is not recognized as a hate/right wing/neo Nazi by the Anti-Defamation League. *
The ADL is the big leagues Antifa organization. The Antifas protesting Di6 have been small, home grown affairs, minor clubs, or individuals – no affiliation with the real deal, which is the ADL. If any organization takes neo-fascism, neo-nazism, anti-semitism, right wing elements seriously, it’s these guys. This is the group that if you say 5,999,999 died during the holocaust instead of 6 million, they will take away your birthday. That may be a little extreme and have their own controversies, but they have been around for 100 years and they know their stuff. They maintain a list at their website of hate, racist, nazi, etc bands. Here is the link:
http://archive.adl.org/learn/ext_us/bands_alph.asp
This is a list of hate bands from all over the world of various notoriety. Some are famous, some barely even existed as a blip. Death in June, a band who has been a provocateur and juggling the line of good taste in this serious subject, of fascisim, etc – is not even listed. Had Death in June been a new band, perhaps they were not around for a long enough time to get on ADL radar. I highly doubt it. The fact of the matter, a contreoverisal band like Di6 is probably investigated by the ADL on many occasions. Them not being on this list, the list maintained by the mother all of all antifa organizations, says something about the band, and gives credence to a lack of fascist and racist elements.
2 – The band is not classified as extreme right wing in Germany
Aside from the ADL, another organization takes fascism, anti-Semitism, right wing, etc very seriously – and that is the German government. Flirting with WW2 iconography, even for artistic purposes, is frowned upon and will lead you to get banned or arrested.
Now true, Death in June do have two albums banned in Germany, Brown Book and Rose Clouds of Holocaust. They are banned for some of the samples and elements in the music – such as using the old SA Anthem. But it’s not banned for lyrical content of promoting hate, anti-semitism, etc. So in theory, Death in June can go to Germany, sell all their records and play until their heart is content, so long as it’s not key songs from Brown Book or Rose Clouds of Holocaust.
In Germany you have two government bodies. You have the Bundesamt Fuer Verfassungsschutz (Federal Office for the Protection of the Consitution) at the Federal Level, and the Landesaemter Fuer Verfassungsshutz at the state level. They are a security agency, much like our FBI. One of the things they keep in check are right wing elements, calling out organizations, groups, and even bands that are extreme right wing. Death in June have not been labeled as such by these organizations who no doubt have conducted research into the band because two albums did get banned. But as far as I can tell, from all my research, I can’t find Di6 labeled as such.
These are two institutions that know what they are doing, have done it for years. They know their stuff. I don’t want to rag on the small time, unaffiliated antifa groups protesting Di6, but I strongly believe they lack this knowledge base. I doubt the first year liberal arts student has done the official research to really look into Di6 and come to their realization without relying on just looks from WW2 iconography or quotes being passed around.
But those are the 2 big big points that the organizations in the know have pretty much put their stamp on Di6 not being a neo-facist band. There are many other points I want to bring up as well.
3 – There is a giant list of Douglas P. quotes floating around that provide some decent support to call him fascist/racist/ etc. Here is probably the most comprehensive from the NYC Antifa:
http://nycantifa.wordpress.com/2013/09/16/why-we-dont-like-death-in-june/
It’s a pretty compelling list. There’s some pretty bleh stuff on there. But here is the problem: It can't be trusted. The issue is, Douglas P. is a known prankster and along with his partner in crime Boyd Rice, spent a good chunk of time playing tricks and pranks, teasing, enticing, subverting, poking fun at, bullshitting, making stuff up, presenting to be bad boys, provoking – you name it! Are some of those statements true and Douglas P. stands by them? Probably. Are some false and are there just to provoke? Definitely. The problem is no one really can tell which are which. An example I’ll use is trying to quote something from Klaus Kinksi’s autobiography. How much in there is legit, and how much in there is tall tales and scandals? You can’t tell! The same with Douglas P.’s remarks. And if anyone is taking seriously something he was being provoking over, the only person laughing about it is Douglas P. himself.
4 – Di6 do not operate like a Nazi band should.
Di6 are a public band. They may not be super famous, but they are known and they do not hide in the shadows. In fact, like any provoker (see point 3 above), limelight is usually sought, not shunned.
Nazi bands do not operate that way. They do not go on publicized tours across America. They try to keep the lowest profile possible, playing shows in secret, and sometimes even anonymously. People in the white power scene do not want to get caught by others outside the scene, and they don’t want to face the backlash of being exposed. Festivals are kept on the hush-hush and are not promoted or advertised like a normal band would. Nazi bands need to operate in the shadows because they need to hide from the general public because, well, they are neo Nazis and racists.
Death in June welcomes the limelight. And with that comes the added scrutiny of the public eye. You don’t embrace this facet of the public life if you haven't something to hide, if you’re a fascist.
5 – none of the debate about Di6 is about the music
Take a look at the list on point 4 again. Take a look at the call to arms about Di6. All of the opposition stems against statements of Douglas P. himself, or the use of WW2 symbols in a risqué fashion. I actually have not seen one piece during this tour that has actually taken a look at the music itself and said “these lyrics promote hate”. None! I’ll give an example of some Death in June lyrics, probably his most famous song:
With you hair a flaming roses / your kiss, Medusa’s touch / turn me into a pillar of salt / to die now would be perfection / then my loneliness closes in / so I drink a german wine / and drift in dreams of other lives / and greater times.
Note – depending on were he is playing, it could be Italian, French, or even Californian wine.
Anywho, that’s the first half of Runes and Men. An amazing song that has a really somber feeling. This is probably the most influential piece in his discography, since it is the prototype of so many other neofolk artist’s sound and lyrics. It’s almost a love song. It’s definitely sad. What it doesn’t have are lyrics promoting hate.
The song “Little Black Angel” is even covered by electro group Ladytron on their Best of 00-11 compilation album (and they do a good job too!). I highly doubt a bigger and prestigious band like Ladytron is going to cover a Nazi band’s lyrics.
The slogan for the NYC antifa states: “actions speak louder than songs; lyrics”. But… I am not finding anything in Di6 lyrics that promote hate or fascism. Go to the Death in June website, look at some of the lyrics. Some are risqué, but nothing promotes hate. They are all spelled out right there.
If you need context, watch the DVD “Live in New York”. It’s a really nice concert actually, and even Di6 detractors will have to admit to the intimate concert. He spends the time introducing the songs he plays, and what they mean.
Side note – of course, some of that could be BS as shown in point 3, but I have the feeling they don’t.
6 – The neofolk / military pop context just isn’t understood
This isn’t really evidence for or against Di6, but an observation. The neofolk and martial genres or music are barely understood. They are subaltern and underground, and generally not well known. While other genres of music, from rock to even punk, have had years of dialog, documentation, and scholarly works written about them, this scene doesn’t. And I think that adds a bit to the problem, its hard to identify or understand something if an effort hasn’t been made to really document it and present it back.
7 - This is our 2nd time hosting this show, last May we had ZERO instances of Neo-Nazi activity
Death In June fans usually fall within the realm of 35-55 year old goths/hippies who enjoy Alternative Folk music. They are not violent and do not hold any sort of right wing politics (at least none that come into play at a concert). We had no violence from anyone except for members of Rose City Anti-Fa who attempted to antagonize the fans waiting in line and assaulted a young couple walking back from 7-11. Rose City Anti-Fa advocates violence and uses misinformation in an attempt to get normal Portland citizens to support their actions. I have experienced this personally because they have taken to spreading our employees personal information across the internet in an attempt to get people to threaten and intimidate them and their families.
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We sincerely do not believe Death In June is a Nazi band, nor do any of the experts in the field of Fascism and/or right wing politics across the globe. If we believed Death In June were apart of and supported an ideology as extreme as Fascism, we would not be willing to book or promote them in Portland.
I understand your concern and hopefully I have been able to ease your mind about this band and the controversy that surrounds them.
Thanks,
Alhambra Theatre”
