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MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2017 | VOLUME 134 ISSUE 04
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
Self says Kings 'a great place' for Frank Mason III
▶ WESLEY DOTSON
@WesDotsonUDK
Self said he thinks Mason's mentality will
ARTS & CULTURE
Jesse Walker plays the bass guitar during Flobots' set at The Bottleneck on June 8.
KANSAN.COM
Flobots' lead singer talks arts, politics, activism
Missy Minear/KANSAN
▶ COURTNEY BIERMAN
@courtbierman
Hip-hop rock band Flobots visited The Bottleneck last week in promotion of their latest album "NOENEMIES" released on May 5.
The Denver-based band came to prominence in 2008 with their song "Handlebars", a political anthem about using influence for good rather than evil, off of their first album "Fight with Tools."
"NOENEMIES," and Flobots' music in general, would sound preachy if the band didn't practice what it preaches. Flobots are involved in grassroots community development in Denver.
The Kansan caught up with James Laurie (Jonny 5), Flobots vocalist and founder, to discuss "NOENEMIES," Trump, and what the band likes about playing in Lawrence. The interview was condensed for clarity.
KANSAI This is your first album in five years. Where have Flobots been?
JAMES LAUBE We stay really engaged with our communities around us. This particular album cycle, there's been a lot going on this year,
long before the election that we really wanted to stay involved in.
If you're going to have a healthy movement, it involves many more voices than just the ones standing onstage. So we did a project that took two or three years that really asked people to raise their own voices,to become comfortable singing together so that when there was a protest or march, people have songs to sing together. We found that it was transformative for people to be in the same room together and be singing the same song.
Do you think the album would be perceived differently if the outcome of the presidential election had been different?
Things were going to feel divided and divisive no matter what. There's a rank war right now and an antagonism right now that is pervasive, and in comes in part from how we see each other and how we talk to each other, which is online.
So I think that was going to be the reality no matter who won the election. There were going to be people who felt disempowered.
Flobots have been talking about climate change and social justice for so many years. Is there any sense of "I told you so?"
I don't feel that way. I don't take much satisfaction in being right about things. I think for me primarily to see a big step backwards is disheartening. There is some hope in certain things being fully revealed. You look at the sexism and misogyny that women deal with every day, and to have that be so visible in our president, hopefully it means people are being believed now.
Who was Dr. Vincent Harding, and how did he influence the record?
Vincent Harding was a speech writer for Dr. Martin Luther King, a friend of his, and worked with him during the Southern Freedom Movement, which is what he called the Civil Rights Movement. He also lived in Denver, and he was a familial mentor figure to both Brer Rabbit (Brackett) and myself.
Dr. Harding would always say to us, 'Where are the songs for today's movements?' and we would often
answer, 'What do you mean where are the songs? We're making songs.' And he would just ask us the question again to see if we could really understand what he meant.
But in 2014, he passed away. It hit us, and right away we knew, 'You know what, we are now called to answer his question. We need to answer it by actually gathering people to sing in the streets.' And that was when our No Enemies Project was born.
I think the way you guys take a more specific apa haunting track about the emotional turmoil of political discourse.
The audience wasn't allowed to forget how much the band members liked playing in Lawrence. Jonny 5 talked about eating at Zen Zero before the show,
the band stressed the importance of speaking out against social injustice. The message was strongest before they launched into the "Blood in the River,"
and praised the town for embracing its abolitionist history.
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Four songs made up Flobots' encore, one of which was, to no one's surprise, the 2008 single "Handlebars." But it wasn't their last song of the night.
Rather than ending on a familiar note, Flobots said goodbye with a fantastic cover of Sly and the Family Stone's "Everyday People." Qbala jumped back onstage to sing along, and Jonny 5 and one of the backup singers freestyled during
FROM FLOBOTS
"We wanted to give Lawrence something special," Jonny 5 said. "Because The Bottleneck has always treated us right and this city has always treated us right."
the bridge.
proach to political music sets Flobots apart from other bands.
In general, is it kind of unnerving to try to take these messages to more conservative communities in the Midwest?
Yeah, it's always been important for us that it not be superficial. Sometimes we're touring so constantly that we can't do much else. We rely on the audience to take inspiration in what we're able to provide, and kind of go into the trenches and do the work.
It isn't because of two things. One is that, I think in any area, if we come and people perceive us as like a progressive band, then those people are kind of looking for an oasis in the middle of a desert.
On the other side of things, it's a more inspiring challenge for us to say,'How do we in very good faith meet people from all across the spectrum in authentic and genuine ways?' If we are in the same space in real life and not online, then we will find that we have things in common.
P/T workers needed for veg farm and/or farmers market. Call 842-7941 leave message with exp.
Robertson said, shows the need for a community like this one.
"We've talked about it over the years but never had a sense that there was a particular interest or need yet. When it began to percolate from the students, before it was mostly our staff wondering if we should do it." Robertson said. "Finally it was our students saying, 'Hello, we want this,' and that's when we're going to act on it."
The work group, spear-
"Having a single room was cool, but it did suck that I missed the opportunity to live with a roommate all because I couldn't find someone who was open-minded," Wantling said. "Especially because once I got to KU I met a lot of open-minded people that said, 'Oh, I would have lived with you had I
year. Waiting's year in Student Housing was a good one spent in a single room at GSP, she said, but getting there wasn't easy.
tance.
"I had a lot of people turn me down just because of my sexuality," Wantling said. "I had one girl who said, 'My mom doesn't want me to live with anyone that's gay,' and another one that was like, 'Well, my boyfriend might have a problem with that.'"
The creation of the GIH wing, Robertson said, is one step toward removing hurdles like those faced by students
SEEDORM PAGE2
MCKENNA HARFORD @McKennaHartford
Editor's Note: This story is the third in a series of stories looking at the way concealed carry on campus will look once it goes into effect July 1.
Each new semester brings a new round of syllabuses,but this semester professors will include a new added section of information that addresses concealed
carry on campus. As the University prepares to shift to an environment where students are legally allowed to bring concealed handguns to class, this will be just one of many preparations.
In response to the arrival of concealed weapons on July 1 as a result of a 2013 state law, professors are taking steps to adjust their teaching style, class content, office hours or even seeking employment elsewhere.
Aerospace engineering professor Ron Barrett Gonzalez, president of the Kansas chapter of the American Association of University Professors, said this is because many faculty members are concerned that concealed carry will have a chilling effect in classrooms.
"I know a nontrivial number of faculty members who are changing their syllabus.
SEE GUNS PAGE 2
INDEX
NEWS. 2
OPINION. 3
ARTS & CULTURE. 4
SPORTS. 6
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