"Kill your government, not yourself"

Though Suicide Machines are a bit morbid in name, they'd rather you play with the First Amendment than razors.

Suicide Machines, a multifaceted punk/ska/reggae band, will be playing at The Icon on Sunday, March 5 at 7 p.m. with No Use for A Name, I Am the Avalanche, and Versus the World.

Getting their name from Detroit's Doctor of Death (Dr. Kevorkian), Suicide Machines debuted with "Destruction by Definition," in 1996. It was named one of America's best pop albums by Alternative Press and sold 200,000 copies.

Their latest album, "War Profiteering Is Killing Us All," was released August of last year, full of commentary on our country's foreign and economic policies.

The idea of peace through punk is slowly beginning to develop according to guitarist and vocalist Dan Lukacinsky.

"It's a socio-political record," he said in an interview with The Spectrum. "It's basically self-explanatory."

Songs like "17% 18 to 25" address the issue of youth apathy and poor voting turnout. "War Profiteering Is Killing Us All" is also blunt in its message.

The music is not easy listening. It is hard-hitting, ear-smashing and blatantly political.

"We combined our musical interests into what we do," Lukacinsky said. "We're a punk band that plays ska and reggae. But we're definitely a punk band, that's for sure."

There is no hidden agenda embedded in the lyrics. The subject matter is right there in the open.

"It's for anyone that wants to listen," Lukacinsky said, "I wanted anyone to be able to pick up the album and understand what it means."

Like other artists such as Rage Against the Machine and Kanye West, Suicide Machines frequently use their music as a soapbox for spouting political beliefs.

"Our stance on what's going on right now," he said, "is that we don't back what's going on with the present administration that is running our country right now. We're pretty much opposed to everything the Bush administration has done in the last five or six years."

The personal convictions of the band are easily apparent with this outspoken guitarist. Freedom of speech is ironically what brought them to where they are today and what gives them the power to influence.

"That's one of the greatest things about living in our country, freedom of speech," he said. "We're lucky enough to live in a country where we can express the way that we feel by writing about it, talking about it or demonstrating."

They have been touring since the release of their new album, from Pennsylvania to California and all the way here to Buffalo.