Rockers Bill the Government for Using Their Music as Torture

Credit: Emilie Elizabeth and John Kraw

Today, in "Things That Totally Happened," rock band Skinny Puppy has sent the government a bill for using their music as a torture tactic in interrogations.

“We heard through a reliable grapevine that our music was being used in Guantanamo Bay prison camps to musically stun or torture people,” said band founder cEvin Key (yes, that's his name, apparently). “We heard that our music was used on at least four occasions. So we thought it would be a good idea to make an invoice to the U.S. government for musical services, thus the concept of the record title, Weapons.”

But Key supposed that, perhaps, not every prisoner saw it as torture. "But what's funny is maybe they came across a prisoner who was a fan and secretly enjoyed it. Like, it sounds bad to the guy doing the torturing, but the guy getting tortured is like, "Hey, I heard this before. Can you turn it up?"

However, Key's good humor doesn't mean he or his band are happy about their music being misappropriated. Key spoke out against harsh interrogation practices when asked how the band feels about being used as a torture tactic.

“Not too good,” Key declared. “We never supported those types of scenarios. … Because we make unsettling music, we can see it being used in a weird way. But it doesn’t sit right with us.”

Skinny Puppy has been kicking around for over thirty years, having formed in 1982. Hopefully, they won't have to wait as long to get their money from the government. Given the economy, maybe they'll set up a payment plan.

Via: Phoenix New Times / Miami New Times