Justin Sane | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Justin Cathal Geever |
Born | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | February 21, 1973
Genres | Punk rock, hardcore punk, skate punk, anarcho-punk |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar |
Years active | 1988–present |
Labels | RCA, Fat Wreck Chords, A-F, Sideonedummy |
Website | justinsane |
Justin Cathal Geever (born February 21, 1973), known professionally as Justin Sane, is an American singer and guitarist. He was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of Anti-Flag, a punk rock band formed in 1988 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that was known for its left-wing political views. Sane holds US and Irish citizenship and lived in Pittsburgh.
In 2023, Anti-Flag abruptly disbanded following multiple rape allegations made against Sane. He is currently being sued for rape under New York's Adult Survivors Act. Sane holds dual United States and Irish citizenship, [1] and sold his house in Pittsburgh to allegedly flee the country.
In 1988, Sane formed Anti-Flag with friend Pat Thetic. [2] In a 2014 interview, Sane claimed that their first performance as a band occurred at his high school, that the band truly solidified in 1993, and that the 1988 iteration had "very little similarit[ies]" with "what Anti-Flag later became." [3]
In 1996, they released their first album, Die for the Government . Later that year, Andy Flag left the band as a result of personal disputes. Various band members came and went during 1997 and 1998, after which they finally settled on a permanent line-up consisting of Sane as lead guitarist/vocalist, Thetic as drummer, Chris Head as guitarist/backing vocalist, and Chris "#2" Barker as bassist/second vocalist. [4] In 1998, the band released their second album, Their System Doesn't Work For You .
In 1999 Anti-Flag released their third album, A New Kind of Army , and founded their own label, A-F Records. In 2001, they signed to Fat Wreck Chords after discussions with the label's owner, "Fat Mike" Burkett. [5] Following their switch to Fat Wreck Chords, the band released Underground Network .
Mobilize , recorded shortly after the September 11, 2001 attacks, was released early 2002. [6] Anti-Flag released a split CD with Bouncing Souls seven months later. 2003 saw the release of The Terror State , produced by Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine. Anti-Flag's first DVD, Death of a Nation , was released in 2004. The DVD includes live footage, three music videos, an interview with the band, behind-the-scenes tour footage, and three montages compiled by the band. [7]
In 2006, Anti-Flag released For Blood and Empire on RCA Records. The Bright Lights of America was released in 2008.
On March 4, 2009, Sane jumped into the crowd at a concert at the LCR in Norwich to stop a scuffle which broke out and landed awkwardly, breaking his collar bone. This caused Anti-Flag to cancel the remainder of their tour with Rise Against and their upcoming headlining tour of Europe. [8] The same year, a 2-track split album with Rise Against was released, originally given away with any merchandise purchase on the 2009 Rise Against/Anti-Flag/Flobots UK tour.[ citation needed ]
Anti-Flag:
Solo:
On July 19, 2023, Anti-Flag abruptly disbanded via a brief Patreon statement in the middle of a European tour. [9] Publications including Stereogum and Us Weekly linked the breakup to sexual assault allegations made on a podcast against an anonymous "singer in a political punk band", believed to be Sane. [9] [10] [11] On July 21, the mental health nonprofit organization Punk Rock Saves Lives severed ties with Sane. [12]
On July 26, Sane denied the accusations as "categorically false" through a statement on his reactivated Instagram account. In a separate statement, his bandmates said Anti-Flag broke up as Sane's alleged behavior contradicted the band's values. [13]
On September 5, Rolling Stone published an exposé revealing twelve more females, the youngest at 12 years old, who accused Sane of predatory behavior, sexual assault, and statutory rape in alleged incidents dating from the 1990s to 2020. [14] Following the release of the article, Sane's former bandmates, Thetic, Head, and Barker, released a statement directly condemning Sane, stating they believed he was "in need of serious professional help" and that "it appears you used our beliefs as a cover for egregious activities that you clearly knew we would never condone." [15]
On November 23, 2023, Sane was sued by Kristina Sarhadi, the woman who made the initial allegation, under New York's Adult Survivors Act, for allegedly raping her in 2010 when she was 21. [16] In March 2024, Sarhadi's legal team learned that Sane sold his Pittsburgh home and transferred funds to an Irish bank account, where he holds dual citizenship, and later claimed that Sane had successfully fled the country. Around 60 victims have come forward to Sarhadi about sexual assault allegations against Sane. [17] [18]
The Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) is an American nonprofit anti-sexual assault organization, the largest in the United States. RAINN operates the National Sexual Assault Hotline, as well as the Department of Defense Safe Helpline, and carries out programs to prevent sexual assault, help survivors, and ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice through victim services, public education, public policy, and consulting services.
Anti-Flag was an American punk rock band formed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1988. The band was known for its left-wing political activism. For the majority of the band's career, their members included Justin Sane, Chris Head (guitar), Pat Thetic (drums), and Chris Barker, also known as Chris No. 2.
Die for the Government is the debut studio album by the U.S. punk rock band Anti-Flag, released in 1996. After this album, bassist Andy Flag played with Anti-Flag on their EP North America Sucks, but left soon after as they couldn't get along as a band. The CD booklet bids farewell to Andy Flag.
Mobilize is the fourth studio album by punk rock band Anti-Flag. It contains eight new studio tracks, and eight live songs.
The Terror State is the fifth studio album by Pittsburgh punk rock band Anti-Flag, released on October 21, 2003, on Fat Wreck Chords. The album's artwork was regarded as somewhat controversial, and the band was forced to create an alternate version for sale in some larger chain stores, such as Wal-Mart.
A-F Records was an American independent record label founded by punk rock band Anti-Flag – namely the band's drummer Pat Thetic, their rhythm guitarist Chris Head, and their lead vocalist Justin Sane – and based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was created to help expose more political punk bands to a larger audience.
Aus-Rotten was an American crust punk band formed in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Active from 1991 to 2001, its members practiced and promoted a philosophy of anarchist politics. The band included lead vocalist Dave Trenga, vocalist/guitarist Eric Good, bassist Corey Lyons, and drummer Matt Garabedian. Spitboy singer Adrienne Droogas would often join the band in their later material. The band's name comes from the German verb ausrotten, which translates to "exterminate" or "eradicate".
Their System Doesn't Work for You is a compilation album by punk band Anti-Flag, released in 1998. It was the first album released by the band's label A-F Records.
Underground Network is Anti-Flag's third studio album, released on Fat Wreck Chords in 2001. Widely considered to be the band's breakthrough album, it helped make Anti-Flag become a household name in the U.S. punk scene with tracks like "Underground Network," "Bring Out Your Dead," and "Stars and Stripes."
A New Kind of Army is a punk rock studio album originally released by Anti-Flag on May 25, 1999. It was reissued by A-F Records on October 19, 2004, and is also the only album to feature only Justin Sane as lead vocalist. All other albums featured at least one song sung by either Andy Flag or Chris #2.
For Blood and Empire is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band Anti-Flag. It was released on March 21, 2006. It was the band's first release on RCA Records, which caused the band to receive criticism from many due to their initially anti-corporate message.
BYO Split Series Volume IV is a split album released in 2002 as the fourth entry in BYO Records BYO Split Series. The album features twelve tracks by American punk rock bands the Bouncing Souls and Anti-Flag. Each band covers one song originally by the other, with The Bouncing Souls performing "That's Youth" and Anti-Flag performing "The Freaks, Nerds & Romantics". Other covers are Cock Sparrer's "We're Coming Back" and Sticks and Stones' "Less Than Free" by The Bouncing Souls and the Buzzcocks' "Ever Fallen In Love" by Anti-Flag. The remaining tracks were originally recorded for this album.
The People or the Gun is Anti-Flag's eighth studio album. The album was released on June 9, 2009. It was their first album released on independent label SideOneDummy Records after the band's two-record contract ended with RCA Records. The first track, "Sodom, Gomorrah, Washington D.C. ", was released on the band's MySpace page prior to the album.
A Document of Dissent: 1993–2013 is a compilation album by the punk band Anti-Flag. The album was released on July 21, 2014, on Fat Wreck Chords. It marked the band's first release on the label since The Terror State, in 2003.
SWMRS, pronounced 'swimmers', are an American punk rock band formed in Piedmont, California in 2004 by Cole Becker and Joey Armstrong, with Becker's brother Max Becker joining only a few weeks afterwards. They drew on a mix of influences ranging from the Beach Boys to the Ramones to create their own brand of rock. The band added Travis Neumann in 2009, who later left in 2014 due to creative differences. The band released a demo and a string of EPs from 2008 to 2010. The band released their first album, Don't Be a Dick, on June 14, 2011. The band's second album, Lost at Seventeen, was released on June 11, 2013. They added Sebastian Mueller as the bassist in 2014. The band's third studio album, and their first under the name SWMRS after dropping their former name, Drive North, was released February 12, 2016, via Uncool Records. Drive North was later re-released after the band was signed to record label Fueled by Ramen on October 13, 2016.
American Spring is the tenth studio album by American punk rock band Anti-Flag from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was released on May 26, 2015 via Spinefarm Records, making it their first record released through the label. The fourteen-track record featured guest appearances from Tim Armstrong of Rancid on the song "Bradenburg Gate" and Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine on the song "Without End". The album debuted at #22 on the Top Rock Albums, #17 on the Alternative Albums, #5 on the Hard Rock Albums, and #15 on the Independent Albums.
Pwr Bttm, stylized PWR BTTM, was an American queer punk duo formed in 2013 at Bard College by Ben Hopkins and Liv Bruce. The duo's debut album, Ugly Cherries, was released in 2015. Their second studio album, Pageant, was released in 2017 to critical acclaim. Pageant's release was preceded by sexual abuse allegations against Ben Hopkins, which led to the duo being dropped by both Polyvinyl and Big Scary Monsters. Pwr Bttm denied the allegations and the band broke up that same year after a falling out between its two members.
American Fall is the eleventh studio album by American punk rock band Anti-Flag, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was released on November 3, 2017, via Spinefarm Records, making it their second record released through the label. In the US, the album debuted at No. 17 on the Hard Rock Albums chart, No. 11 on the Independent Albums chart, and No. 10 on the Tastemakers chart. The album featured cover art by artist Noah Scalin.
Sharptooth was an American hardcore punk band from Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Formed in 2013, the band released two EPs and two studio albums, entitled Clever Girl (2017) and Transitional Forms (2020), before disbanding in 2023.
Lies They Tell Our Children is the thirteenth and final studio album by American punk rock band Anti-Flag from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was released on January 6, 2023, via Spinefarm Records. Primary production, recording, and mixing was handled by Jon Lundin, while the mastering was done by long-time Anti-Flag producer and mastering engineer Mass Giorgini. It is also the band's first concept album, and features multiple guest musicians from notable acts such as Rise Against, Bad Religion, Bad Cop/Bad Cop, Pinkshift, and Silverstein.
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