• Interview with Ação Libertária (short version)

    ACAO LIBERTARIA is a promising young and energizing band from the Brazilian hardcore, punk and thrash metal underground scene that just released its first studio record “Cavalo de Tróia” in early 2013. The band discusses very actual and important topics in their lyrics by talking about delicate economical, political and social issues in their home country. Those who just watched the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil one year before the FIFA World Cup have surely been informed about the high amount of massive demonstrations that agitate the country. Brazil becomes a global player and is surely a developing country but it has to deal with many brutal crimes, a weak educational system and extreme poverty. I've contacted the band after discovering their honest and powerful first full length release to discuss with them abolut their fresh music, their emotional lyrics and the situation of their home country. This band has a clear message to tell the world out there, so let's give them some space to express themselves:

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: Hello from Germany and Canada and thanks for accepting this great interview occasion. First of all, could you please introduce yourselves and talk a little bit about the history of your great band?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: My name is Márcio "Pigmeu” and I am the vocalist and songwriter of ACAO LIBERTARIA. Since the beginning, our band is composed of Edson "Mustache" on the guitar, Junior on the bass guitar, Toni on the drums and myself on the vocals. The band started at the end of the year 2009. Our purpose has always been to mix thrash metal, punk and hardcore in our band sound. Our lyrics deal with socio-political issues, different kinds of behaviors and everyday topics. Our band is the fruit of our entourage in the underground scene of our city. We were born and we grew up in the midst of social inequality, poverty, drugs and deaths of friends who were involved in crimes. Our country has an extremely high amount of corrupt politicians and liars as well. Our inspirations also come from books, scientific articles, documentaries and observations of the world we live in. Our goal is to make people think about what drives their lives. We seek to warn them about the dangers of the world's governments, multinational organizations and elitists who try to manipulate and control people.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: Please tell us about the musical or lyrical evolution between your three different releases until now. Tell us about the reception of your first studio record as well!

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: Our evolution is quite evident because our first self-titled demo was recorded only four months after our formation back in 2010. We also recorded our first EP “Criptocracia” in that same year but it already showed a clear evolution of our band as well. The public acceptance here in our city has always been wonderful and we quickly got the attention of many people. But the new album ”Cavalo de Tróia” consolidated our band in the scene of our city. We got a good aesthetic level and great compositions. We received good reviews and compliments for this work. We are happy with our progression, but we always intend to improve.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: You come from Natal. Tell us more about your city and its artists. Is there a big metal and punk scene and are there some other important bands to discover?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: Our town is in the northeast of Brazil. Natal is the capital of the state Rio Grande do Norte. It is the nearest Brazilian city to the South African and the European continent and that's why our city was used as a military base by the United States of America during World War II. Compared to other Brazilian cities, ours is rather small and has around 800,000 inhabitants. Its economy relies mainly on tourism, because we have many beautiful beaches here. The underground scene is very rich. There are bands of excellent quality from heavy metal to punk rock. We could highlight some good bands from our city, like the death metal and grindcore band Expose Your Hate, the heavy metal band Comando Etilico and the punk or hardcore bands N.T.E. - Nem Todos Esquecem and Manifest Rebeldia.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: Your style is often described as a certain crossover style with elements of thrash metal, punk and hardcore. How would you describe it?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: Our influences range from a multitude of bands of the hardcore, punk, thrash and even death metal genres. We listen to almost all rock genres and this ends up by refelcting on our sound which is a good crossover style of all these influences. Our sound is fast, acid and aggressive.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: I think it's interesting to point out that you have a Portuguese band name and lyrics in that language. Please tell the international fans about the meaning of your band name and the reasons why you choose to write your songs in your mother's tongue.

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: We are neither patriots nor nationalists, but we are keen to sing in Portuguese because our target audience are Brazilians. We speak of our reality, but some words become nevertheless universal because of the issues we are talking about. The band's name refers to our attitudes of deliverance and liberty in our lives in opposition to the feeling of loneliness in empty speeches. We have some affinities with anarchy, because it gives us the freedom to think, act and envision a better world for all.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: As a band that criticizes much, I would like to know your opinion about the upcoming FIFA World Cup in your country and about the recent demonstrations and rebellions in the streets. What is going on in Brazil and what do you think about it?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: We from Ação Libertária are not only musicians but we are also libertarian activists. We love football and it's a magical sport. But the World Cup in Brazil will be a disaster because we have greater needs than the construction of modern stadiums. The health, safety, education and other public services in Brazil are very poor but a whole lot of money is sent to build and convert all these stadiums. FIFA sets up its own business in our country. The demonstrations are a good sign. It's a response of the people against the domination. We have always been active in the streets, we have been arrested in demonstrations, we have participated in the occupation of our city hall back in 2011 and we have also come into confrontation with the police several times but only to fight for our rights. The Brazilian police is extremely fascist, coward, repressive and violent. The downside of the demonstrations here in Brazil is that the political right is manipulating people through the television channel Rede Globo. It's a channel that had already supported the dictatorship here in our country in 1964. They try to standardize the demonstrations, manipulate people and lead them to manifest themselves only passively to have no effect on the rulers.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: According to you, what are the main problems and challenges in the Brazilian society as well as in the whole wide world and how can things get better?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: We believe that if people have a better education and the true freedom to think, the world would be much better. In Brazil the biggest problems are the elites and corrupt politicians who suck the lives out of the poorest. We have to react while there is still some time left on our hands. With each day that passes by things are getting harder, governments worldwide are imposing more control over the people, multinationals and banks rule the government and in the end also our lives. People need to unite and fight for freedom, laws do not work and might need to be horizontalized.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: One can purchase your music for free on the Internet. Why do you offer this possibility and are you able to earn some money from your work as artists?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: We are an underground band and we don't intend to have commercial success, to get a certain status or to have some fame. We don't rip off any money and it's not our intention to make music to get rich. Our goal has always been to warn people and make them think about the world and their lives. We always provide our work on the Internet for free, because many people can't afford to buy a CD. After the virtual launch, we though always present a physical edition as well. We sell these CDs at the shows and send them via the postal service as well. Everything is done with the band's own resources. We always exactly sell our stuff the price it really costs because we don't want to make profit but to spread our message to the people.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: I imagine that your energizing songs might work really well in concert. Tell us more about a typical Ação Libertária Show.

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: Undoubtedly, our shows are very electrifying. The crowds are insane and share loads of energy. It is very rewarding to hear people singing along with you. We've played in various places, from concert halls to more structured alleys and narrow streets. We've played in several cities in Brazil and the audience is always good, but we have also played in events that had only five people in the public and we still always gave and will give the best we can. We would really like to tour throughout Brazil one day as well as through Latin America, Europe and the United States of America. We have already received many invitations to play outside of our country, but no opportunity has been taken so far.

     

    SEBASTIAN KLUTH: Thanks again for taking the time for this interview. The last words are yours! What is the message you would like to share with our readers from all around the world?

     

    ACAO LIBERTARIA: Sebastian, first of all we would like to thank you for all the support and strength you've put in us. We are happy that every day more people are enjoying our work. We hope that humans have more wisdom to face this cruel world we live in. We hope that one day nations can live in harmony, without war, without hunger, without poverty, without radicalism and without governmental control. We also appreciate the patience of everyone who managed to read this interview until the end. Big hugs from the Ação Libertária family to everyone!

     

    If you want to know more about us, try out the following contacts and links:

     

    Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/acaolibertaria (contato para eventos)

     

    Myspace: http://www.myspace.com/acaolibertaria

     

    Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/AcaoLibertaria

     

    E-mail: acao.libertaria@gmail.com (Event contact)

     

     

    Other Youtube link: http://youtu.be/dx3a0vP2ih8

     

    If you want to download our records for free, check out the following links:

     

    Cavalo de Tróia (Album, 2013) http://www.mediafire.com/?c1p6cmgdivgn9u1 

     

    Criptocracia (EP, 2010) http://www.mediafire.com/?v6lau947k5t45so

     

    Ação Libertária (Demo, 2010) http://www.mediafire.com/?sbbwax658cp44gv

     

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