MDC
Magnus Dominus Corpus (Sudden Death)
No one takes on Christianity, corporations, and cops quite like MDC. Formed in Austin, 1980, as the Stains before changing their moniker and relocating to the Bay area, MDC tapped just the right mix of breakneck speed, astute political observations, gut-bomb rage, and black humor. Continuing the rotating acronym meaning that spawned Millions of Dead Cops, Multi-Death Corporations, and Millions of Damn Christians, Magnus Dominus Corpus (Corpses of the Ultimate Dominators) is the band’s first studio album in almost a decade. MDC eulogizes MaximumRockNRoll‘s Tim Yohannon while simultaneously attacking punk’s commercialization on “Timmy Yo” and laments the 40-hour spanking machine on “Long Day, Short Life,” but the album’s most trenchant material excoriates the Bush regime. MDC’s upbraiding of the American ruse on songs like “Destroying the Planet” and “Founding Fathers – Terrorists or Freedom Fighters?” is only slightly less subtle than the cover photo of Iraqis celebrating in front of the burned corpses of U.S. security contractors hanging from a bridge in Fallujah. While a multitude of acts have attempted to formulate a rebuttal to 21st-century America, old-fashioned hardcore disseminated by seasoned professionals like MDC is one of the few idioms with enough bile to effect any sort of catharsis.
This article appears in April 15 • 2005.
