"Invalid Litter Dept." is a song by American rock band
At the Drive-In, released in 2001 as the third single from the album ''
Relationship of Command''. The CD release in March 2001 came in a variety of international formats, including the standard two CDs in the United Kingdom. The Australian release included the UK B-sides from the two CD releases. "Invalid Litter Dept." is the band's highest charting single in the UK, peaking at No. 50 on the
UK Singles Chart and No. 47 on the
Scottish Singles Chart.
The song's lyrics and music video deal with the
Juárez femicides, a series of rapes and murders in
Ciudad Juárez
Ciudad Juárez ( ; ''Juarez City''. ) is the most populous city in the Mexican state of Chihuahua. It is commonly referred to as Juárez and was known as El Paso del Norte (''The Pass of the North'') until 1888. Juárez is the seat of the Juà ...
,
México, of young women who worked in factories called
maquiladoras
A (), or (), is a word that refers to factories that are largely duty free and tariff-free. These factories take raw materials and assemble, manufacture, or process them and export the finished product. These factories and systems are present t ...
. Cd. Juárez is located just across the
U.S.-Mexican border from
El Paso, Texas, At the Drive-In's home town. The song explicitly criticizes the
federales, or the
Mexican Federal Police
The Federal Police ( es, PolicÃa Federal, PF), formerly known as the (Federal Preventive Police) and sometimes referred to in the U.S. as "Federales", was a Mexican national police force formed in 1999 and folded into the National Guard in 2019. ...
, for their lack of response to these cases.
"Lamacq version" tracks originally broadcast on
BBC Radio 1's ''The Evening Session'' with
Steve Lamacq, week beginning 11 September 2000, and produced/mixed by Simon Askew.
Track listing
U.S. / Australia CD
# "Invalid Litter Dept." – 6:07
# "Initiation" (Lamacq Version) – 3:36
# "Quarantined" (Lamacq Version) – 5:55
# "
Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk" – 5:05
# "Metronome Arthritis" – 4:03
UK 7-inch
# "Invalid Litter Dept." – 6:07
# "Initiation" (Lamacq version) – 3:36
UK CD1
# "Invalid Litter Dept." – 6:07
# "Initiation" (Lamacq version) – 3:36
# "Quarantined" (Lamacq version) – 5:55
UK CD2
# "Invalid Litter Dept." – 6:07
# "Take Up Thy Stethoscope and Walk" – 5:05
# "Metronome Arthritis" – 4:03
# "At the Drive-In TV Ad" (video starring
Michael Diamond)
References
External links
*
2000 songs
2001 singles
At the Drive-In songs
Songs based on actual events
Virgin Records singles
Political songs
{{2000s-US-single-stub