Agent Orange

Annotation

Punk Rock group formed in 1982 in Neuwied, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. They disbanded in 2003. The 80s line-up featured: William Faber (drums, 1982-86), Michael Breiler (guitar, 1982-96), Ralf Weidauer (vocals, bass, 1983-2003), Guido Reich (guitar, 1983-84), Siggi Kuhl (vocals, 1983-84), Stefan Ziehn (bass, drums, 1985-88). Firstly, this album (Rat Records # RR 04) contained a cover of "Agent Orange", by the The Destructors (released on their 1982 EP Religion! There is No Religion!) - a reference to the defoliant / herbicide used by U.S. forces during the Vietnam War, which had long term negative health effects on the Vietnamese and US soldier whom came into contact with the chemical: "you’re victim of chemical warfare... Agent Orange pollutes the waters, and deforms your sons and daughters". The lyrics also reference napalm: "napalm will burn all around, you’re victim of American aggression" - chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.123Sources1Napalm: An American Biography (Robert M. Neer, 2013)↩2Times Higher Education: Napalm an american biography by robert m neer↩3Napalm, An American Biography (book website)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Annotation — P.O.W. / M.I.A. Songs

Punk Rock group formed in 1982 in Neuwied, Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany. They disbanded in 2003. The 80s line-up featured: William Faber (drums, 1982-86), Michael Breiler (guitar, 1982-96), Ralf Weidauer (vocals, bass, 1983-2003), Guido Reich (guitar, 1983-84), Siggi Kuhl (vocals, 1983-84), Stefan Ziehn (bass, drums, 1985-88). Firstly, this album (Rat Records # RR 04) contained a cover of "Agent Orange", by the The Destructors (released on their 1982 EP Religion! There is No Religion!) - a reference to the defoliant / herbicide used by U.S. forces during the Vietnam War, which had long term negative health effects on the Vietnamese and US soldier whom came into contact with the chemical. Next on this album was the song "Saigon". This contained strong anti-war sentiment, referenced P.O.W.s, PTSD, drug use, and focused on the indiscriminate killing of civilian, referencing the use of napalm: "to burn the land with napalm, you slaughter innocent women and kids". chemical weapon Napalm B - a jellied gasoline mixture, with polystyrene, benzene, and gasoline. Declared a war-crime since 1980, the US government extensively used this weapon during the Vietnam conflict, dropping 388,000 tons on Indochina between 1963 and 1973.123 The lyrics looked at the negative impact of the war on soldiers and possible veterans, both physically: "see your friend loosing both of his legs", and mentally, with a reference to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), frequently referenced in post-war 1980s songs about US veterans, often connected in songs to stress, shell shock, flashbacks, nostalgia, and feelings and dreams related to an event: "blow your mind to bits... you cry... closer to insanity step by step". The song also noted the use of drugs in Vietnam: "take a lotta drugs to mitigate your pain". Finally, the song made a reference to being held a prisoner of war (P.O.W.) in North Vietnam: "torture in Vietcong’s captivity... somewhere between Saigon and Hanoi". Vietcong (or "VC") referred to the National Liberation Front (NFL), the political and military resistance to the US and South Vietnamese government from within South Vietnam.Sources1Napalm: An American Biography (Robert M. Neer, 2013)↩2Times Higher Education: Napalm an american biography by robert m neer↩3Napalm, An American Biography (book website)↩

Annotation by Justin A. Brummer

Lyrics

English: Warplanes in the sky and you wonder why / Because when the bomb hits the ground / The napalm will burn all around / You’re victim of American aggression / You’re victim of chemical warfare / You’re victim of technological oppression / You’re victim of push-button warfare / For total war civilian stands / In the centre of the battleground / And this insidious chemical warfare / Will ultimately affect his welfare / And children with flesh burnt to the bones / Ruining your TV-dinners in your homes / And with your taxes you pay for carnage / And to your armed forces paid homage / Agent Orange pollutes the waters / And deforms your sons and daughters / But you hide it from your eyes / And cover it with government lies / And sleep happy in your beds / And never think about the dead You send your forces to Vietnam / To burn the land with napalm / You slaughter innocent women and kids / The war will blow your mind to bits / And you stop, you cry, you cry / You known why: cause you too, soon will die / You see your friend loosing both of his legs / You get closer to insanity step by step / You take a lotta drugs to mitigate your pain / Although you realize that they’re driving you insane / You can’t stand war’s brutality / And the torture in Vietcong’s captivity / You know somewhere between Saigon and Hanoi / Your rotten life will be destroyed

About the artist

German punk band from Neuwied, Germany. Both 'Saigon' and 'Agent Orange' appear on their 1984 recording 'Heroes of Today' (they also issued a three-track demo that year), and the band performed and released material into the late 1990s. [Source: Last.fm band bio via SonicHits]

Themes

Agent Orange · Anti-War · Napalm

In collections

European Songs · P.O.W. / M.I.A. Songs · Punk Songs