Melbourne Band Rancid Eddie Defend Themselves Against Criticism Of Their Lyrics

Rancid Eddie has had several shows across Australia cancelled after people took issue with the content of their songs.

The Melbourne band was all set for a country-wide Opposite Of Wet tour to promote their single 'Dry', however some people believed their lyrics contained misogynistic messaging.

According to NME, one of their unreleased songs referred to a woman as a 'c*m rag' and a 'slut'.

'Dry' contains messaging that some artists believe are problematic and highlights toxic relationships.

"Sex doesn't feel very nice no more/And our kiss don't taste like it did before/ I can't get it up when I'm all out of love/ And I'm always drunk cause I hate you so damn much," the band sing in the song.

Aussie artist Kira Puru explained how the lyric 'hints at the type of behaviour that anyone who has been in an abusive [relationship] knows well and shouldn't be normalised let alone promoted'.

The band denies their music promotes misogyny and insists it is about becoming 'bitter toward someone while you're still in a relationship with them'.

But they've taken to social media to defend themselves against the wave of hate that has arrived since they were first criticised.

"First off, we do not accept the notion that we need to explain or justify our lyrics. Our belief is that music and lyricism cannot itself be harmful because it is diffusive in its expression," Rancid Eddie said.

"The public sphere should be a vent for all forms of expression as opposed to only being an echo chamber for speech and views that 'higher-society' are comfortable acknowledging.

"A society afraid to understand itself will devolve into a fractured culture.

"No one is righteous enough to govern what should and should not be allowed to be in the public sphere. We are all different, we all come from different backgrounds, have different experiences - and we're not all going to agree on what is right and wrong.

"That's why we believe in absolute free speech, and detest any attempt to silence another person even if we find them and their views to be morally repugnant."

Their 10-slide Instagram statement goes on to talk about the problem with cancel culture.

They believe the social media pile-on is 'the most repulsive form of punching down we've seen' and added that a lot of the criticism has come from 'mostly young, privileged, educated, inner city champagne socialists'.

It's unclear how much longer the fallout will continue for the up and coming band.

Their shows in St Kilda, Wollongong, Southport and the Fortitude Valley have been axed and there could be more in the future.

Topics: Australia

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

@stewartperrie