Occupy This Album - Various Artists

“Occupy This Album” is what every liberal political junkie should have on hand. I realize that’s a bold statement. But “Occupy This Album” truly shows, just like the Occupy Movement, that people from different walks of life, different bands, different genres, different colors, and different beliefs can come together for one purpose, to help each other out, and to show that the 99% will not back down!

Spanning four discs, and seventy-seven vastly different artists, “Occupy This Album” is the sound of a movement that will never die. And with that many songs, I’m pretty sure this album will never die, or end. Seriously, there’s over five hours of music on it. Maybe I’m dumb for trying to review an album with approximately four thousand different genres on it, but like I said before it’s not just punks that are protesting now, it’s everyone. Everyone that is tired of being pushed around by the rich and the government. There are artists from every genre, from punk to rap to jazz to bluegrass to alt rock to pop and everything in between.

Obviously with that many different styles on one disc, I didn’t like some songs, but that’s not due to the artist not having talent, it’s just because that’s not my genre of preference. Every artist on here has talent coming out of their ears. There’s not a poorly produced or ill-put together song on this album. There are so many songs that shine on this album, it’s impossible to name all the great artists.

There are HUGE, I mean, HUMONGOUS names on here. Willie Nelson. Anti-Flag. Deborah Harry. Third Eye Blind. Patti Smith. Yoko Ono. Our Lady Peace. The list goes on, and on, and on…. Seeing big name artists join indie-label bands is truly refreshing to hear. It’s again going back to that everyone is struggling and fighting this. I mean, obviously Willie Nelson isn’t hurting in the cash department, but those big names bring money, focus and help to the cause. I’ll admit it; I was much more excited about this album when I saw Anti-Flag on it, so there you go, an example.

Another reason I liked seeing big names next to smaller ones, is that it gives the chance to discover a lot of really talented artists you weren’t aware of before. Richard Barone, Matt Pless, My Pet Dragon, Build the Sun, and various others are ones that I liked in particular. Don’t write this album off for not having your favorite genre on it, (though I cannot imagine one it missed) because you probably will find an artist on here that’s from a completely different genre than you’re used to that will blow you away. True story, happened to me.

Not all of the songs on “Occupy This Album” are protest songs. There are songs for uniting (We Stand as One, Come on Come on Come On, Smile {Get Up and Sing}, Under the Bridge, others). Ones clamoring for peace and love (Love {Only Love}, Take a Stand, A Peaceful Solution, others), And, Ones shouting that rebellion is the way to go (Rebel, Worldwide Rebel song, People Have the Power, Fight the Good Fight, Revolution, others). And of course the protest ones (Nothing Recedes like Progress, This Is What America Looks Like, GREED, Which Side Are You On?, others).

All in all, a powerful album that shows up any compilation album of many artists of the last few years. A real prize, it’s not an album to be missed.


--Gorgeous Nightmare