Musicians have a rich history of bringing politics into their realm of interest. Eddie Vedder, Zach De La Roca and Kanye West are only among the recent microphone junkies to spout their socio-political views on a sometimes less-than-receptive public.
Americans generally don't think of Matt Good in the same respect as Serj Tankian, but the Canadian rock artist, slated for a stop below the forty-ninth parallel for his concert at Club Infinity on Friday is no less politically vocal.
Without so much as a proper introduction, the musician/political guru broke out into a five-minute manifesto about our governments.
"For any understanding of both of our countries you have to admit we don't live in a democracy and we never have," Good said. "We live in plutocracies. We live in countries in which the 5 percent or 10 percent of the wealthy aspect of the population influences the government and really runs our countries."
Good is as known for his outspokenness on political subjects as he is for creating some of the most groundbreaking music of our generation.
It will be interesting to see if the Vancouver native withholds from expressing his political views in front of an American audience.
"I say overtly political things between songs, depending on what kind of mood I'm in," Good said. "One thing I don't want to do is be this Canadian and get up in front of a whole bunch of Americans and turn it up 15 notches, which I love to do."
Matt Good's fame lies somewhere in that golden valley between the mainstream and indie spheres. In the United States, he's virtually unknown except in border cities like Buffalo where his music has radiated across the border from Canadian radio stations. In his homeland, he's notorious for rejecting Juno Awards as well as for his involvement in a verbal sparring match with Nickelback's Chad Kroeger.
His latest release, "In a Coma," is a "best of" compilation of songs he's produced over the past decade.
"I just wanted to put a cap on the past and move on to something different. There comes a point in your career when you don't want to spend every tour you're on playing back-catalogue material to appease people," Good said. "I wanted to put out a greatest hits CD and go out and make a record that was not like work that I've been doing up until now."
If he's not touring across Canada, he's promoting Amnesty International or updating his website (matthewgood.org) with an OCD-like frequency.
His dedication to human rights and his animosity for the current administration in his lyrics and web blog has garnered scorn from critics who think he needs to shut up and stick with music. Unsympathetic to such opinions, Good rejects this demand.
"F*** 'em. Every person in our society should have a voice. This idea that you're a musician and you should shut up is a problem. You're a plumber. Shut up and f***in' plumb," Good said.
The musician has given hints of future plans to travel solo on an acoustic tour. For his next album, he also plans to compose music wildly different from previous works.
"The kind of record that I've written so far is kind of a weird concoction of acoustic Steve Miller Band and, I don't know, The Beatles? Not really even The Beatles, I can't say that. I don't know. It's different," Good said.
Good is touring with a band capable of captivating crowds with their penetrating rock, prevalent lyrics and a performance that will have energy oozing over the stage and into the frenzied crowd.
In between songs, Good's insertion of social commentary is an expected element of the show.
"Whether it's with school, college or a university, find a democratic group that you can become a part of that demands change," Good said. "It's in our youth that this has to start. People my age and older, they're f***ing useless right now."
Matt Good will perform at Club Infinity Friday night in Williamsville. Tickets are $22-$25.
Photo: Courtesy of Matthew Messina, from the RMBERS' Instagram page
