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Propagandhi is a Canadian punk rock and metal band formed in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba in 1986 by guitarist Chris Hannah and drummer Jord Samolesky. The band is currently located in Winnipeg, Manitoba "A Comprehensive Look At Winnipeg's PC Punk Scene". Noisey, Sheldon Birnie September 22, 2014, and completed by bassist Todd Kowalski and guitarist Sulynn Hago.
In 1992, Propagandhi played a show with California punk rock band NOFX and included in their set a cover version of Cheap Trick's "I Want You to Want Me". Impressed by their performance, NOFX front man Fat Mike signed them to his independent record label Fat Wreck Chords. The band later accompanied him to Los Angeles, where they recorded their debut album, How to Clean Everything, released in 1993. The band spent the next three years touring and issuing several smaller releases, including the How to Clean a Couple o' Things single on Fat Wreck Chords, a split 10-inch record with I Spy, a split 7-inch with F.Y.P, and the double 7-inch Where Quality is Job #1, the latter three on Recess Records.
In 1996, they recorded and released their second album, Less Talk, More Rock, via Fat Wreck Chords. The title was ironic, as they had become well known for lengthy song explanations and speeches during live performances. The album was more politicized than its predecessor, with such song titles as "Apparently, I'm a 'P.C. Fascist' (Because I Care About Both Human and Non-Human Animals)", "Nailing Descartes to the Wall/(Liquid) Meat Is Still Murder", and "... And We Thought Nation-States Were a Bad Idea". Ramsey Kanaan, founder of the anarchist publishing company AK Press, appears on "A Public Dis-Service Announcement from Shell" as the voice of the petroleum multinational. Partial proceeds of the album were donated to AK and other activist groups. Less Talk, More Rock caused some controversy at the time of its release due to the band's pro feminism and "gay positive" stance which, according to Hannah, clashed with the sexist and homophobic culture of the West Coast punk rock scene with which the band had become associated.
In 2001, Propagandhi released their third album, Today's Empires, Tomorrow's Ashes. The album was considered by some to be a major departure from their previous works. The song titles and lyrics of Today's Empires, Tomorrow's Ashes furthered the sphere of their political views, bolstered by the addition of Kowalski's aggressive songwriting and an increased density of guitar lines. The album includes enhanced content, with political videos and essays concerning such topics as COINTELPRO and the Black Panther Party.
Hannah briefly adopted the pseudonym Glen Lambert in the run-up to and immediate aftermath of the release of Potemkin City Limits, causing confusion among some fans, reviewers, and commentators; the band concluded the prank by announcing on August 14, 2006, that Glen Lambert had been dismissed and would be replaced by "former" member Chris Hannah. This coincided with the addition of second guitarist David Guillas, marking the band's first four-piece lineup in their then-twenty year career. Guillas, nicknamed "The Beaver", was a former member of two Winnipeg-based rock outfits, Giant Sons and Rough Music. Hannah had previously stated that he had been a fan of, and influenced by, Guillas' work in Giant Sons.
In 2007, the band released a DVD entitled Live from Occupied Territory, which features a recording of their set at The Zoo in Winnipeg on July 19, 2003. Proceeds of the DVD benefit the Grassy Narrows road blockade and the Middle East Children's Alliance. Included on the DVD are two full-length documentaries: Peace, Propaganda and the Promised Land, and As Long as the Rivers Flow.
The digital Recovered EP followed on April 6, 2010. It featured old recordings from the How To Clean Everything and Less Talk, More Rock eras, remastered and with new parts recorded by Hannah. A split 7-inch with Sacrifice followed that December, featuring Propagandhi covering Corrosion of Conformity. In collaboration with their friends and fellow musicians from Sheet Happens Publishing and Protest the Hero, Propagandhi also released a tablature transcription of Supporting Caste for guitar and bass in early 2012.
The group began plans for a new record shortly after completing Supporting Caste. After several years' work and pre-release snippets offered through various Internet outlets, Failed States, their sixth studio album, was released on September 4, 2012, through Epitaph Records. Early reviews were generally positive: Revolver praised the record's musical and lyrical accomplishment, while Exclaim! identified its improvements upon the standards set by the band's recent work. In October 2012, the release of the Failed States tab book was announced.
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