Derelict, ‘Machete’ — Video

Canadian metal band Derelict are touching on a sensitive political issue in their video for 'Machete.' It takes a cold, hard look at genocide in places like Sri Lanka and Darfur. "The video itself is pretty brutal indeed," frontman Eric Burnet told Noisecreep. "And it serves to catch the attention of people who otherwise might not read the lyrics or look into any of the issues.

"The video and lyrics for 'Machete' deal with the subject of genocide and human rights violations. At the time that we were working on the 'Unspoken Words' album, I was becoming increasingly shocked by how our media and politicians were getting away with starting wars and justifying casualties to the public all by simply playing around with the way things were titled."

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It's all a matter of semantics, as Burnet also said, "Give an invasion a catchy name like 'The War on Evil' and people line up behind it, but call the exact same thing 'The Accidental Bombing of a School' and suddenly public opinion changes. It all prompted me to look into the definitions of genocide, human rights and some recent military history." In his research, Burnet came across things that both shocked and enraged him. "While not wanting to directly preach my political views, I figured, as a band, we could encourage people to inform themselves by shining a light on some issues," the singer said. "Almost every line of the song refers to a war, a treaty or a policy that has lead to large losses in human life."

The content for the vid, lensed by Justin Peeler of Frontline Pictures, is certainly inflammatory, but Derelict aren't trying to be as politically charged as it might seem. "We're not trying to be activists with this video," Burnet said. "We're just encouraging other people to inform themselves about real life issues that impact the world. A lot of horrible things are done every day in support of the system that we find so comfortable in the Western world, and I think a lot of people would live their lives differently if they knew the human cost of some of our luxuries and privileges."

Burnet and Derelict do hope to make a bit of an impact, though. "A message like this has the potential to make a difference, but not in a super-direct way," Burnet said. "We're not preaching something like 'recycle all your plastic' or 'don't do drugs.' We're just suggesting that people inform themselves. Informed people make informed decisions, and that benefits society in a broad and general sort of way. On the flip side, if people just listen to the tune and have a good time, then hopefully that's a positive impact, too!"

You can grab a copy of Derelict's 2009 album 'Unspoken Words' at CDBaby.