Rhythm Activism was a Canadian,

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

-based musical collective, revolving around the core duo of Sylvain Côté and Norman Nawrocki. The group, formed in 1985 as a poetry and music ensemble, evolved into performing a politically radical brand of "

rock 'n roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

cabaret Cabaret is a form of theatrical entertainment featuring music, song, dance, recitation, or drama. The performance venue might be a pub, a casino, a hotel, a restaurant, or a nightclub with a stage for performances. The audience, often dining or d ...

" and incorporating elements of

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

and

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Folk Plus or Fol ...

into their music. They featured on 36 releases. On several occasions, the band recorded and released albums on just a few days' notice, to support political activist campaigns such as the

Oka Crisis The Oka Crisis (french: links=no, Crise d'Oka), also known as the Kanehsatà:ke Resistance (), was a land rights, land dispute between a group of Mohawk people and the town of Oka, Quebec, Canada, which began on July 11, 1990, and lasted 78 day ...

of 1990 and a Quebec students' strike. Most of their material was released on their own Les Pages Noires label, although their 15th and final album ''Jesus Was Gay'' was distributed on

G7 Welcoming Committee Records G7 Welcoming Committee Records was a Canadian independent record label based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The label mostly released material by artists and speakers with a radical left-wing point of view. History G7 Welcoming Committee Records was ...

. The band's song "Leo Lachance" appears on the 1999 G7 compilation ''

Return of the Read Menace ''Return of the Read Menace'' is a compilation album, released in 1999 on G7 Welcoming Committee Records. Track listing # Screeching Weasel, "My Own World" # J Church, "Tightrope" # No Use For a Name, "Hybrid Moments" ( Misfits Cover) # Pitchshi ...

'', and their song "Down in the Mines" appears on the 2005 G7 compilation ''

Take Penacilin Now ''Take Penacilin Now'' is a 2005 compilation album released on G7 Welcoming Committee Records. The compilation features almost every artist that has released material on the label. It features a new exclusive track from Propagandhi, unreleased tra ...

''. Rhythm Activism also performed theatre shows in Montreal, including the "community circus cabaret comedy" ''Le Cirque en Ca$h'' in 1997 and 98. The band toured with DOA,

John Giorno John Giorno (December 4, 1936 – October 11, 2019) was an American poet and performance artist. He founded the not-for-profit production company Giorno Poetry Systems and organized a number of early multimedia poetry experiments and events, inc ...

Mecca Normal Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red Sea, in a narrow valle ...

and Linton Kwesi Johnson.

Discography

* ''Rhythm Activism'' (1986) * ''Rhythm Activism Live'' (1987) * ''Resist Much, Obey Little'' (1987) * ''Louis Riel in China'' (1988) * ''Un logement pour une chanson'' (1990) * ''Fight the Hike!'' (1990) * ''Perogies, Pasta and Liberty'' (1990) * ''Oka'' (1990) * ''War is the Health of the State'' (1991) * ''Oka II'' (1992) * ''Tumbleweed'' (1993) * ''Blood & Mud'' (1994) * ''More Kick!'' (1995) * ''Buffalo, Burgers & Beer'' (1995) * ''Jesus Was Gay'' (1998)

Videography

* ''That's the way we tie our shoes : a recipe by Rhythm Activism'' (1996) * ''Alive and kicking : the first ten years of Rhythm Activism'' (1997)

References

External links

Rhythm Activism
at ''Nothingness.org''
Rhythm Activism
at

Rhythm Activism
at '' music.cbc.ca'' (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) {{DEFAULTSORT:Rhythm Activism Musical groups established in 1986 Musical groups disestablished in 1998 Musical groups from Montreal Canadian punk rock groups G7 Welcoming Committee Records artists Anarcho-punk groups English-language musical groups from Quebec Musical collectives

Discography

Videography

See also

References

External links