We Are The Union take aim at veteran punks who abandon their antiestablishment ethos with age on their Dead Kennedys-referencing new song, "Fresh Fruit for Rotting Punk Rock Stars." Vocalist/guitarist Reed Wolcott explains:

This song is probably going to get us into some trouble. Though its original title, “Punk Rock is an Oligarchy,” was swapped at the last minute in favor of the Dead-Kennedys-Retweeting-Mitt-Romney-inspired “Fresh Fruit for Rotting Punk Rock Stars,” the meaning of the song remains the same. For a community supposedly built on antiestablishment ethos, when it comes to the endless battle with white supremacy, abolishment of the police, trans rights, and, truthfully, most of the social issues facing us all today, I look around and see too many of my teenage heroes remaining quiet and unhelpful at best. At worst, I see them standing fully on the wrong side of history. If the words that shaped our worldview as young punks in the early 2000s ever meant anything, the time is now for the people who wrote them to show up, take accountability, and get to work. But from former Sex Pistols wearing MAGA shirts to overwhelmingly white male festival lineups, one can’t help but wonder: was punk rock all just a way to sell us god damn t-shirts?

It's a message that resonates very strongly right now, and it comes through loud and clear in this catchy, anthemic, sarcastic punk rock song. The Chris Graue-directed video stars Reed in clown face paint with people throwing fruit and vegetables at him, and to match the $100 worth of food that was wasted in the video, the band will be donating $100 to Watts Powerhouse Food, which provides "access to medical and dental, food, and education to children and families in the Grape Street neighborhood of Watts in Los Angeles."

The song hits streaming and Bandcamp on Friday (2/5) at midnight Eastern, and since this Friday is one of Bandcamp's monthly fundraisers, WATU will be donating 100% of Bandcamp proceeds on Friday to Mutual Aid Network Los Angeles, "a grassroots community initiative that is organizing and redistributing supplies, services, emergency cash assistance, and additional resources to the Los Angeles community."

Stay tuned for the official release (and find WATU on Bandcamp here), but meanwhile, the video premieres in this post. Check it out:

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